| dc.description.abstract | Background: Inappropriate use of antimicrobials in humans and animals is a key driver of antimicrobial resistance (AMR). Both human and animal health workers prescribe antimicrobials to people and animals and provide patient education on the use of antimicrobials. Despite their role in fighting infections among people and animals, there is scarcity of evidence regarding their knowledge, attitudes and practices on the drivers of AMR especially in a peri-urban setting like Wakiso district, Uganda.
Objective: This study assessed the knowledge, attitudes and practices of the human and animal health workers on the drivers of AMR in Wakiso district.
Materials and methods: A cross-sectional study design, involving qualitative and quantitative methods of data collection was used to collect data among human and animal health workers within Wakiso district. There were 324 participants for quantitative and 7 for qualitative. Study participants to the quantitative component included; clinical officers, health inspectors, health assistants, nurses, Village Health Teams (VHTs), laboratory technicians, medical doctors, veterinary officers and veterinary assistants. Study participants to the qualitative component included; the District Health Officer, the Assistant District Health Officer, pharmacists and District Veterinary Officer.
A structured questionnaire was used for quantitative and a key informant interview guide for qualitative. The collected data for quantitative was checked for completeness and analyzed using Stata version 14.1 while qualitative data was transcribed and transferred to NVivo version 12 for analysis.
Results: The highest number of study participants was female 52.2% (169/324). Majority of the participants had good knowledge 81.7% (265/324) on the drivers of AMR, more than half 64.2% (208/324) had negative attitudes on the drivers of AMR and among the health workers 73.8% (239/324) that prescribe antibiotics, 61.8% (148/239) had poor practices regarding AMR drivers.
Study limitations and conclusion: This study was conducted in Wakiso district hence the study results cannot be generalized to the entire country. Therefore, extensive research for the whole country needs to be done around this particular area to determine the level of knowledge, attitude and practices of all human and animal health workers towards the drivers of AMR to enhance preventive measures.
My sample size was too big and it was hard for me to get all study participants. So, I involved a vast range of human and animal health workers of different education categories and calibers to enable me to reach my sample size.
The human and animal health workers exhibited different knowledge, attitudes and practices towards the drivers of AMR. Therefore, Continuing Medical Education and trainings are needed to improve knowledge and awareness on AMR of both health professionals. | en_US |
