KNOWLEDGE AND PRACTICE ON TUBERCULOSIS INFECTION CONTROL AMONG GOVERNMENT PRIMARY HEALTHCARE WORKERS IN A DISTRICT IN MALAYSIA

Abstract

Background: Tuberculosis (TB) is the leading cause of mortality among infectious diseases in the world. Healthcare workers (HCWs) are among the high-risk group infected by TB with double prevalence than the general population due to inadequate TB infection control (TBIC). In Malaysia, TB cases among HCWs have increased, but the TBIC knowledge and practice remain poor. This research aimed to determine the TBIC knowledge and practice among HCWs and the predictors of good knowledge and practice of TBIC.

Materials and Methods: This study is a cross-sectional study with a random sampling of HCWs from 13 primary healthcare facilities in a district in Malaysia. A self-administered questionnaire was used in this study, adapted from similar studies in Ethiopia and Uganda. Simple and multiple logistic regressions were used as statistical analysis.

Result: The response rate of this study was 77% (320 respondents). The percentages of respondents having good TBIC knowledge and practice were 70.6% and 51.6% respectively. The significant predictors of good TBIC knowledge were the diploma educational level, (AOR=2.325, 95%CI=1.145-4.722), family history of TB infection (AOR=3.882, 95% CI=1.021-14.765), doctor (AOR=5.022, 95%CI=1.224-20.600) and worked in an outpatient clinic (AOR=4.504, 95%CI=2.050-9.892). Meanwhile, the diploma holder (AOR=2.055, 95%CI=1.065-3.964), married or widow (AOR=2.616, 95%CI=1.487-4.603) and working in maternal and child health clinic (AOR=3.479, 95%CI=1.700-7.118) were the predictors of good TBIC practice.

Conclusion: The practice of TBIC among the respondents was inadequate despite good knowledge. Training that emphasises on hands-on skill needs to be strengthened to ensure proper knowledge as well as practice on TBIC.

Keywords: Tuberculosis infection control, knowledge, practice, healthcare workers.