KNOWLEDGE, ATTITUDE AND PRACTICE OF FOOD HANDLERS TOWARDS FOOD SAFETY

Introduction: Food handlers play an important role in ensuring food safety throughoutthe chain of production, processing, storage and preparation of food. Good knowledge,positive attitude and good practice of food handlers are important for prevention offood borne diseases. Aim of work: To assess knowledge, attitude and practice (KAP)of food handlers towards food safety at Mansoura University Hospitals and find outpersonal and work-related factors associated with different KAP levels. Materialsand Methods: A descriptive observational cross-sectional study was conducted fromDecember 2016 to September 2017. It included all food handlers working at MansouraUniversity hospitals᾿ kitchens who were on duty and fulfilling legibility criteria. Thedata were collected using a questionnaire about demographic data, occupational history,food safety knowledge and attitude. Observational checklist was used to assess theworkers practice. Results: Only one quarter of food handlers had good knowledgetowards food safety and hygiene, on contrary, most of them had a good attitude level(61.0%) and a good hygienic practice level (59.0%). High KAP scores were notedamong females and university certified workers. The highest KAP scores were notedamong veterinarians and cooks. There is a significant strong positive correlationbetween knowledge and attitude (r = 0.78), and moderate positive correlation betweenknowledge and practice (r = 0.46). Conclusion: Limited number of food handlers hadenough knowledge regarding food safety. Practice had a positive correlation with bothknowledge and attitude. KAP scores of food handlers differ significantly regardinggender, educational level and type of work. It should be mandatory for food handlersto undergo a supervised food safety training courses prior to renewal of their license toensure their efficacy.