title: Travel-related mosquito-transmitted disease questionnaire survey among health professionals in Taiwan.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Health-care professionals can help travelers by providing accurate pre-travel counseling for mosquito-transmitted diseases such as malaria, yellow fever, and dengue fever. Governments and international organizations will benefit from knowledge survey among health professionals in this field to promote the development of travel health profession. This study investigates physicians' and nurses' knowledge regarding malaria, yellow fever, and dengue fever.
  
  
  METHODS
  A cross-sectional questionnaire survey was distributed to physicians and nurses in Taiwan interested in travel medicine between April and September of 2008. The self-administered, single-choice questionnaire evaluated knowledge regarding epidemiology, prophylactic medication for malaria, yellow fever, and dengue fever, and vaccinations for yellow fever as well as background information of participants.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Complete information was collected from 82 physicians and 203 nurses. (Out of 289, effective response rate = 99.9%). The mean percentage of accurate responses was similar for all three diseases: malaria 67.3% (range, 16.8%-90.5%); yellow fever 65.4% (39.6%-79.3%); and dengue fever 74.4% (14.4%-96.5%). The items with the lowest accuracy were (1) behavior of the dengue fever vector Aedes aegypti mosquito (14.4%) and (2) incubation period of malaria (16.8%). There were 60.4% participants who did not know the current revaccination interval for the yellow fever vaccine. The average knowledge scores for all three diseases were statistically significantly higher in the physician group.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Analysis of the results revealed significant deficits in travel medicine knowledge among health-care providers. Emphasis on continuing medical education for disease vector behavior, prophylactic drug prescription, and preventative vaccination is important to travel safety. Health professionals in Taiwan should actively participate in the International Society of Travel Medicine to follow the international standard of travel medicine practitioners. This type of survey should be adopted in other countries which would be helpful in improving the quality of care for travelers.
authors.affiliation: Department of Family Medicine, College of Medicine and Hospital, National Taiwan University, No. 7 Chung-Shan South Road, Taipei, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Hsien-Liang
authors.initials: HL
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.forename: Tai-Yuan
authors.initials: TY
authors.lastname: Chiu
authors.forename: Kuo-Chin
authors.initials: KC
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.forename: Shao-Yi
authors.initials: SY
authors.lastname: Cheng
authors.forename: Chien-An
authors.initials: CA
authors.lastname: Yao
authors.forename: Long-Teng
authors.initials: LT
authors.lastname: Lee
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D003140:Communicable Disease Control / Q000379:methods; D003376:Counseling / Q000592:standards*; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006266:Health Education / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006282:Health Personnel / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D007299:Insect Bites and Stings / Q000517:prevention & control; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009032:Mosquito Control / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013624:Taiwan; D014195:Travel; D055815:Young Adult