Abstract:
Introduction: Hepatitis B is a serious liver disease caused by the hepatitis B virus (HBV), with an estimated 360 million chronic infections worldwide, about a million of which die each year from chronic liver diseases. In South Africa (SA) over 50% of the population has been infected by HBV, and at least 3 million people are chronic HBV carriers. Chronic HBV carriers have the potential of transmitting HBV parenterally in the hospital setting, thus health care workers (HCWs) are at risk of contracting HBV, with the most likely exposure being via a needle stick injury (NSI). There is an effective vaccine against HBV which is recommended by the SA Department of Health, yet previous studies have shown that most HCWs are not vaccinated.
Aim and objectives: The study aimed to investigate the knowledge, attitudes and practices regarding hepatitis B vaccination amongst HCWs in the Ekurhuleni Metro. Objectives were to determine: (1) the level of knowledge of HCWs about vaccination against HBV; (2) the attitudes of HCWs towards vaccination against HBV; (3) the practices of HCWs regarding HBV prevention and (4) the barriers to / predictors for effective HBV vaccination among HCWs at Ekurhuleni Metro
Materials and Methods: This was a cross-sectional descriptive study which made use of a self-administered questionnaire that was sent to Ekurhuleni nurses and doctors who were working in 3 public hospitals, 7 district clinics, and 110 general practices.
Results: Two hundred and fifteen questionnaires were distributed and 161 were returned giving an overall response rate of 74.9%. HCWs do not report their NSI; over a third [37.6% (41/81)] always reported the NSI; while 72% (116/161) of HCWs had been vaccinated, only 61.2% (71/116) of those vaccinated had received all 3 doses of the vaccine.
For knowledge of HBV vaccination, 66.5% (107/161) scored poor; 31.7% (51/161) scored moderate; and 1.8% (3/161) scored high. For attitudes towards HBV vaccination, 0.6% (1/160) scored negative; 24.4% (39/160) scored neutral; and 74.5% (120/160) scored positive. A positive attitude score was a significant predictor for being vaccinated (OR=1.13, p=0.007)
Conclusion: Guidelines should be put in place to increase vaccination uptake and reduce the risk of exposure to HBV infection by HCWs
