title: Comparison of Knowledge and Attitudes Regarding Hepatitis B Among Healthcare Professionals in Pakistan.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Hepatitis B virus (HBV) is a blood-borne infectious disease. It is one of the most common causes of end-stage liver disease, including cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma. Healthcare professionals, including medical and dental students, are at a high risk of acquiring this infection. The aim of this study was to compare and contrast the knowledge and attitudes toward HBV infection amongst doctors, dentists, nurses, and undergraduate final year medical and dental students.
  
  
  METHODS
  A cross-sectional study was carried out on a sample size of 381 medical professionals, which included doctors (59), dentists (77), nurses (71), final year medical students (126), and final year dental students (48) at Combined Military Hospital Lahore Medical College and Institute of Dentistry (CMH LMC). A questionnaire comprising 27 multiple choice questions was distributed amongst the groups mentioned above. The questionnaire aimed to assess basic knowledge, attitudes towards those infected, and knowledge about vaccination against HBV.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The total response rate was 88.8% (382/430 respondents returned the questionnaire). The mean ± standard deviation (SD) score for all healthcare professionals in knowledge was 15.54 ± 3.69 and attitude were 4.67 ± 1.37, which indicated that majority of the healthcare professionals were well informed about hepatitis B and generally exhibited positive attitudes. However, results revealed that medical students lacked adequate knowledge about various aspects of HBV infection, including modes of transmission and prevention methods against the disease. On the other hand, dental students were better informed and exhibited a more positive attitude towards the disease.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  According to the results of our study, medical students showed poor knowledge about hepatitis B disease, including its modes of transmission and the option of vaccination. Lack of knowledge contributed significantly to their negative attitudes towards those suffering from the disease, which has the potential to considerably affect the quality of patient care and the doctor-patient relationship. Major steps should be taken towards improving the curriculum followed at medical colleges in Pakistan. More emphasis should be laid on providing knowledge during early academic years and increasing the amount of clinical exposure. Frequent workshops and seminars should be organized in order to provide up-to-date knowledge about HBV infection and means of prevention to both healthcare professionals and students.
authors.affiliation: Medicine, CMH Lahore Medical College and Institute of Dentistry.
authors.forename: Asad
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ali
authors.affiliation: Dentistry, CMH Lahore Medical College and Institute of Dentistry.
authors.forename: Sara
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Khan
authors.affiliation: Community Medicine, Combined Military Hospital, Lahore, Pakistan.
authors.forename: Saad M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Malik
authors.affiliation: Surgery, De' Montmorency College of Dentistry.
authors.forename: Muhammad
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Haris Iqbal
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry and Mental Health, Rush University Medical Center.
authors.forename: Muhammad
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Aadil
keywords: attitude; awareness; dental students; dentists; doctors; healthcare professionals; hepatitis b virus; medical students; nurses; vaccination