Shakeel Sadia, Iffat Wajiha, Naseem Saima, Nesar Shagufta, Rehman Hina, Yaqoob Muhammad, Rehman Anees Ur, Barrak Ibrahim, Jamshed Shazia, Gajdács Márió
Department of Pharmacy Practice, Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Dow College of Pharmacy, Dow University of Health Sciences, Karachi 74200, Pakistan.
Department of Pharmaceutics, Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Dow College of Pharmacy, Dow University of Health Sciences, Karachi 74200, Pakistan.
Healthcare (Basel). 2022 Jan 30;10(2):277. doi: 10.3390/healthcare10020277.
The human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is an important public health concern that has become more prevalent in Pakistan in recent decades. Healthcare professionals (HCPs) are frequently exposed to many HIV-infected patients; as a result, they are more vulnerable to HIV infection due to occupational exposure. Hence, the current study was executed to evaluate HCPs' knowledge, attitude and practice in terms of post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) for HIV. This cross-sectional study was carried out in several clinical and laboratory settings of Karachi and the HCPs involved in treating patients were surveyed using a structured questionnaire. The Shapiro-Wilk test was performed to establish the normality of the variables. Pearson correlation was employed to identify the relationship between the independent variables considering -values < 0.05 as statistically significant. A total of 578 filled forms were incorporated in the study with a response rate of 72.2%. Physicians and medical students (OR = 1.68; 95% CI = 1.16-2.24; = 0.001) belonging to private work settings (OR = 1.84; 95% CI = 1.33-2.35; < 0.003) indicated better knowledge. The majority, 407 (70.4%), of the respondents reported having been exposed to risky occupational circumstances during their professional life; however, 65.7% took PEP for HIV after exposure and only 56.8% completed the entire course. A statistically significant association was observed between experience ( = 0.004, CI = 0.14-0.72), job category ( = 0.0001, CI = 0.16-0.62) and frequency of exposure ( = 0.003, CI = 0.42-11.31) and reporting of occupational exposure. More than half (53.8%) of respondents stated that their institute has a policy for the management of HIV exposures; however, their response was significantly associated with their organization ( = 0.004). The current study shows adequate knowledge revealing a positive attitude among respondents; however, there was a gap between the knowledge and its practical application. Even though many of the HCPs had experienced risky HIV exposure, a lack of reporting was noted in the study.
人类免疫缺陷病毒（HIV）是一个重要的公共卫生问题，在近几十年里在巴基斯坦变得更加普遍。医疗保健专业人员（HCPs）经常接触许多感染HIV的患者；因此，由于职业暴露，他们更容易感染HIV。因此，开展了本研究以评估HCPs在HIV暴露后预防（PEP）方面的知识、态度和实践。这项横断面研究在卡拉奇的几个临床和实验室环境中进行，使用结构化问卷对参与治疗患者的HCPs进行了调查。进行了夏皮罗-威尔克检验以确定变量的正态性。采用皮尔逊相关性来确定自变量之间的关系，将P值<0.05视为具有统计学意义。本研究共纳入578份填写完整的表格，回复率为72.2%。属于私人工作环境的医生和医学生（OR = 1.68；95%CI = 1.16 - 2.24；P = 0.001）表现出更好的知识水平。大多数（407人，占70.4%）受访者报告在其职业生涯中曾暴露于危险的职业环境；然而，65.7%的人在暴露后采取了HIV的PEP，只有56.8%的人完成了整个疗程。观察到经验（P = 0.004，CI = 0.14 - 0.72）、工作类别（P = 0.0001，CI = 0.16 - 0.62）和暴露频率（P = 0.003，CI = 0.42 - 11.31）与职业暴露报告之间存在统计学上的显著关联。超过一半（53.8%）的受访者表示他们所在的机构有HIV暴露管理政策；然而，他们的回答与他们所在的机构显著相关（P = 0.004）。当前研究显示受访者有足够的知识并表现出积极的态度；然而，知识与实际应用之间存在差距。尽管许多HCPs经历过危险的HIV暴露，但本研究中仍发现报告不足的情况。
