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KNOWLEDGE AND ATTITUDE REGARDING INFECTION CONTROL AMONG MALE NURSES WORKING AT PRIMARY HEALTH CARE CENTERS, TAIF CITY, 2017

Faisal Saleh Alzahrani and Dr. Mohammed Alzaydi

Background: Adherence to standard precautions measures is fundamental to control healthcare associated infections among in health care workers, including nurses. Objectives: To investigate knowledge, and attitude of male nurses working in Taif primary health care centers regarding infection control measures. Subjects and Methods: A cross sectional study was conducted in Taif city among all male nurses currently working at Ministry of Health, primary healthcare centers (n=115). A self-administered questionnaire was utilized for data collection. It consisted of four main sections: Socio-demographic characteristics, Knowledge about different aspects of infection control (38 questions), attitude towards infection control (7 statements) and perceived obstacles to adequate application of standard precautions and infection control. Results: One hundred and nine male nurses participated in the study out of a total of 115 invited with a response rate of 94.8%. Their age ranged from 24 to 55 years with a mean of 34.2 and SD of 6.6 years. All are Saudis and registered nurses. Approximately half of them (50.5%) had attended any training program in infection control or standard precautions. The percentage of the total knowledge score ranged between 31.58 and 81.58 with a mean of 62.84 and SD of (±) 12.26. Overall, The highest level of knowledge was observed regarding hand hygiene (74.4%), followed by general concepts of infection control and standard precautions (73.9%) while the lowest level was observed regarding sharp disposal and sharp injuries (50.2%). Among studied factors, the only significant one was the highest qualification of male nurses as the mean rank of the percentage of knowledge score was significantly higher among nursed who had Bachelor degree compared to those who had Diploma (68.48 versus 51.97), p=0.034. Overall, 70.6% of the male nurses had positive attitude towards infection control and standard precautions. Regarding obstacles for application of infection control and standard precautions at primary health care centers, lack of awareness about standard precautions in health care settings is ranked first with a weighted mean of 3.96±1.49 on a scale ranged between 1 and 5. Overcrowded work place and lack of guideline on standard precaution in the health facility are ranked second and third with weighted means of 3.79±1.45 and 3.78±1.46, respectively. Conclusion: The overall knowledge level for infection control among male nurses working at primary health care centers, Taif city was above average. However, most of them had positive attitude towards infection control and standard precautions.

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