Impact of Sensitization on School Teachers' Knowledge and Attitudes Towards Adverse Drug Reaction Reporting During National Deworming Day: A Prospective Quasi-Experimental Study.

BACKGROUND

School teachers play a crucial role in executing administration of single dose albendazole to school children on National Deworming Day (NDD). Effective reporting of adverse drug reactions (ADRs) during such mass administration of medicines at the time of such public health programmes is vital for several policy decisions on safety. The study aims to evaluate teachers' knowledge and attitudes on ADR reporting regarding NDD and assess the impact of a sensitization program.

METHOD

A total of 163 school teachers from 94 schools in the district, who gave informed consent were included. The study utilized a pretested and prevalidated questionnaire, scored on a 0-10 scoring scale. Employing a prospective quasi-experimental one-group pre-test and post-test research design, the primary aim was to evaluate the impact of the awareness program, with secondary objectives focused on demographic correlations with program effectiveness.

RESULTS

The study shows a significant improvement in participants' scores from the pre-test (mean score of 5.60) to the post-test (mean score of 8.28), resulting in a mean deviation of -2.68±1.74 (p < .001), suggesting that the intervention significantly enhanced outcomes. Additionally, the results indicate that the mean post-test score was slightly higher among urban participants in comparison to rural participants, with mean scores of 8.45 and 8.10, respectively.

CONCLUSION

The sensitization program significantly improved the knowledge and attitude of school teachers engaged in NDD regarding ADR reporting. However, long-term studies on the impact of this improvement in knowledge and attitude on actual ADR reporting need to be planned.