Knowledge and practice of Ebola virus disease preventive measures among health workers in a tertiary hospital in Northern Nigeria

Abstract

Background: Healthcare workers treating cases of Ebola virus disease (EVD) are at greatest risk of getting infected themselves. The risk increases when these workers do not have appropriate protective clothing or do not wear them properly or handle contaminated clothing incorrectly. This risk is particularly common in parts of Africa where health systems function poorly and where the disease mostly occurs. The study was carried out to assess the knowledge and practice of EVD preventive measures among health workers in a tertiary hospital in Northern Nigeria. Methodology: A cross-sectional survey was carried out using a self-administered, structured questionnaire, with a sample size of 80 health workers selected through multistage sampling technique. The data obtained were entered, cleaned, coded, and analyzed using IBM Statistical Package for the Social Sciences statistics 20. Results: All the respondents had heard of EVD, with 73% of them having good knowledge of the disease. Majority (62.2%) of the respondents had excellent knowledge of preventive measures of the disease. Positive attitude toward EVD preventive measures was demonstrated by 84% of the respondents. Only 41% of the respondents practiced hand washing all the time when attending to patients, 69% always used hand gloves for procedures which may involve contact with blood and body fluids, while 27% always used facemasks and goggles for procedures that may involve splashes of blood and body fluids, and 34% of the respondents, however, still practiced recapping of used needles. Conclusion: A third of the health workers still practiced recapping of needles, and very few health workers always use facemasks and goggles for procedures that may involve splashes of blood and body fluids. Management of tertiary hospitals should improve staff training on EVD preventive measures.