Knowledge, attitudes and practice of oral healthcare workers towards infection, prevention and control measures: lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic
1
College of Health Sciences, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, South Africa
2
Department of Health, Department of Health, Ugu, South Africa
Popul. Med. 2026;8(Supplement Supplement 1):
ABSTRACT
INTRODUCTION:
Oral healthcare workers face an increased risk of exposure to nosocomial infection due to the nature of their work. Appropriate infection prevention and control (IPC) measures are critical to protect healthcare workers, patients and visitors, in various healthcare settings. The COVID-19 pandemic provided numerous lessons for improving and strengthening infection prevention and control (IPC) measures in the face of emerging infectious diseases.
METHODS:
A cross-sectional study, with both descriptive and analytic components, was conducted amongst all categories of oral health personnel within the Ugu health district in KwaZulu-Natal, using a self-administered questionnaire. Descriptive statistics were used to describe the demographic profile and health status of oral healthcare workers. The Independent-Samples Kruskal-Wallis Test, a non-parametric version of ANOVA, was employed to analyse the differences between groups across biographical factors in relation to individual statements and the Knowledge, Attitude, and Practices (KAP) dimensions.
RESULTS:
The age range of the 103 participants in the study was 20 years to 69 years old and were predominantly female. 26.2% reported having tested positive for COVID-19. High mean scores for knowledge and practices and moderate scores for attitude were noted. No significant difference was observed for each variable across the dimensions of knowledge, attitude, and practice. Bivariate correlation showed a directly proportional and positive relationship between attitude and practice (r=0.404, p < 0.01). Both knowledge and practise had a significant negative relationship with practice (β = -0.3243, p = 0.0058) and (β = -0.3884, p = 0.0110) respectively.
CONCLUSIONS:
Oral health care workers face the risk of acquiring infection, as was observed during the recent COVID-19 pandemic. Adherence to IPC measures are essential to reducing that risk. However, the lessons learned during recent and past outbreaks lay emphasis on the need for ongoing support and training that is informed and appropriate.
Oral healthcare workers face an increased risk of exposure to nosocomial infection due to the nature of their work. Appropriate infection prevention and control (IPC) measures are critical to protect healthcare workers, patients and visitors, in various healthcare settings. The COVID-19 pandemic provided numerous lessons for improving and strengthening infection prevention and control (IPC) measures in the face of emerging infectious diseases.
METHODS:
A cross-sectional study, with both descriptive and analytic components, was conducted amongst all categories of oral health personnel within the Ugu health district in KwaZulu-Natal, using a self-administered questionnaire. Descriptive statistics were used to describe the demographic profile and health status of oral healthcare workers. The Independent-Samples Kruskal-Wallis Test, a non-parametric version of ANOVA, was employed to analyse the differences between groups across biographical factors in relation to individual statements and the Knowledge, Attitude, and Practices (KAP) dimensions.
RESULTS:
The age range of the 103 participants in the study was 20 years to 69 years old and were predominantly female. 26.2% reported having tested positive for COVID-19. High mean scores for knowledge and practices and moderate scores for attitude were noted. No significant difference was observed for each variable across the dimensions of knowledge, attitude, and practice. Bivariate correlation showed a directly proportional and positive relationship between attitude and practice (r=0.404, p < 0.01). Both knowledge and practise had a significant negative relationship with practice (β = -0.3243, p = 0.0058) and (β = -0.3884, p = 0.0110) respectively.
CONCLUSIONS:
Oral health care workers face the risk of acquiring infection, as was observed during the recent COVID-19 pandemic. Adherence to IPC measures are essential to reducing that risk. However, the lessons learned during recent and past outbreaks lay emphasis on the need for ongoing support and training that is informed and appropriate.
| eISSN: | 2654-1459 |
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