KNOWLEDGE ATTITUDE AND PRACTICE REGARDING HEPATITIS B INFECTION AMONG HOSPITAL STAFF NURSES IN HAYATABAD MEDICAL COMPLEX, PESHAWAR

OBJECTIVE: To assess the knowledge, attitude and practice regarding hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection among nurses working in a public hospital of Peshawar, Pakistan. METHODS: This descriptive, cross sectional was conducted on 100 (96 females, 4 males) staff nurses of Haytabad Medical Complex, Peshawar, Pakistan, from 15th November 2010 to 15th January 2011. The sampling technique was simple random sampling. Qualitative variables were analyzed by calculating means and standard deviations. Quantitative variables were analyzed by calculating frequencies and percentages. RESULTS: The mean age of the respondents was 34.8±9.5 years. Sixty one percent had job duration u003e4 years. Previous source of knowledge about HBV, during nursing training school was 91% through workshops. Knowledge about HBV infection was 94%. 95% responded that it spread through blood transfusions. Ninety-six percent responded that they do not have separate dressing sets for hepatitis B patient. The practice of vaccination against HBV in nurses was 66% and use of disposable gloves while handling hepatitis B patient was 45%. Increase in duration of job was significantly associated with knowledge about hepatitis B virus and its spread (p-value u003c0.001). Intravenous cannulas and syringes were properly discarded with increasing job experience (p-value u003c0.001).Nurses with job duration of more than four years used gloves while handling hepatitis B patient (p-value u003c0.001). CONCLUSION: Knowledge of hospital staff nurses regarding HBV infection was adequate. The attitude of the hospital staff nurses regarding HBV infection was good. The practices of the hospital staff nurse regarding HBV infection were very poor. KEY WORDS: Knowledge (MeSH), Attitude (MeSH), Practice (NonMeSH), Nurses (MeSH), Hepatitis B (MeSH), Healthcare worker (Non-MeSH)