School of Health and Social Care, Teesside University, Middlesbrough, Tees Valley, TS1 3BX, UK.
Zambia Ministry of Health (Namwala District Health Office), Lusaka, Zambia.
BMC Health Serv Res. 2020 Nov 12;20(1):1037. doi: 10.1186/s12913-020-05877-0.
To explore the perceptions of health workers on the risks of contracting tuberculosis at Namwala District Hospital. Tuberculosis literature indicates that health workers are at risk of contracting tuberculosis while conducting their daily duties in the workplace. This is mainly attributed to low tuberculosis awareness. It is with this empirical evidence that this study was conducted to further explore health workers risky behavior, attitude and practices that expose them to tuberculosis infection when on duty and eventually generate effective health promotion and public health interventions.
Semi-structured interviews lasting between 35 to 45 min were conducted to all the participants. A purposive sampling technique was used to recruit ten participants for this study. All the ten interviews were audio recorded in order to enhance consistency during data analysis process. Interview materials were transcribed verbatim, coded and themes generated to form thematic networks. Data analysis was conducted using thematic analysis strategy.
Four themes were identified; 1. Health workers personal safety: participants reported wearing uniforms and gloves but they were not putting-on face masks hence, exposing themselves to tuberculosis infection. 2. Tuberculosis infection prevention practices: hand washing was described by many participants as a universal method of protecting health staff from the risks of contracting tuberculosis at the hospital however, few health workers frequently washed their hands after attending to tuberculosis patients. 3. Health workers working environment: the working environment at the hospital was not conducive for both health workers and patients due to poor ventilation, unhygienic conditions, overcrowding and the lack of an isolation ward. 4. Health promotion: awareness on tuberculosis was reported to be low with no refresher training being conducted for health workers at the hospital.
The risks of contracting tuberculosis by health workers at Namwala District Hospital did exist hence, a need of advocating for tuberculosis awareness for health workers through appropriate health promotion interventions. Health policy should focus on continuous health promotion activities on prevention and control of tuberculosis in health facilities and communities.
探讨纳姆瓦拉区医院卫生工作者对结核病感染风险的认知。结核病文献表明，卫生工作者在工作场所履行日常职责时，有感染结核病的风险。这主要归因于结核病意识较低。正是基于这一实证证据，开展了这项研究，以进一步探讨卫生工作者在工作时可能使他们接触结核感染的危险行为、态度和实践，并最终制定有效的健康促进和公共卫生干预措施。
对所有参与者进行了持续 35 至 45 分钟的半结构式访谈。采用目的性抽样技术招募了 10 名参与者参与本研究。为了增强数据分析过程中的一致性，对所有 10 次访谈均进行了录音。对访谈材料进行了逐字转录、编码，并生成主题以形成主题网络。使用主题分析策略进行数据分析。
确定了四个主题；1. 卫生工作者的个人安全：参与者报告说他们穿着制服和手套，但不戴口罩，因此容易感染结核病。2. 结核病感染预防措施：许多参与者将洗手描述为保护医护人员免受医院结核病感染风险的通用方法，但很少有医护人员在照顾结核病患者后经常洗手。3. 卫生工作者的工作环境：由于通风不良、不卫生条件、过度拥挤和缺乏隔离病房，医院的工作环境对医护人员和患者都不利。4. 健康促进：据报道，结核病意识较低，医院没有对医护人员进行再培训。
纳姆瓦拉区医院卫生工作者感染结核病的风险确实存在，因此需要通过适当的健康促进干预措施来倡导结核病意识。卫生政策应侧重于在卫生机构和社区内持续开展结核病预防和控制的健康促进活动。
