title: Knowledge of blood-borne infectious diseases and the practice of universal precautions amongst health-care workers in a tertiary hospital in Malaysia.
abstract: This study aimed to assess the knowledge of blood-borne diseases transmitted through needle stick injuries amongst health-care workers in a tertiary teaching hospital. We also aimed to assess the practices of universal precautions amongst these workers and its correlation with the facts. We carried out a cross-sectional study from January to July 2008 involving various levels of health-care workers in Serdang Hospital, Selangor, Malaysia. A self-administered questionnaire assessing knowledge of blood-borne diseases and universal precautions, and actual practice of universal precautions was used. Two hundred fifteen respondents participated in this study; 63.3% were staff nurses. The mean knowledge score was 31.84 (SD 4.30) and the mean universal practice score was 9.0 (SD 2.1). There was a small, positive correlation between knowledge and actual practice of universal precautions (r = 0.300, n = 206, p < 0.001) amongst the cohort studied. Factors such as age and years of experience did not contribute towards acquisition of knowledge about blood-borne illnesses or the practice of universal precautions.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, University Putra Malaysia, Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia. zaini@medic.upm.edu.my
authors.forename: M Z A
authors.initials: MZ
authors.lastname: Hamid
authors.forename: N A
authors.initials: NA
authors.lastname: Aziz
authors.forename: A R
authors.initials: AR
authors.lastname: Anita
authors.forename: O
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Norlijah
mesh_terms: D017848:Blood-Borne Pathogens; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D019983:Guideline Adherence; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006282:Health Personnel; D006761:Hospitals; D006801:Humans; D017053:Infection Control / Q000379:methods* / Q000592:standards; D008296:Malaysia; D008297:Male; D016602:Needlestick Injuries; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D016635:Universal Precautions