Knowledge, attitude and practices of eye health care among first year medical students at makerere university college of health sciences

Abstract

Introduction: Visual impairment and blindness reduce the quality of life. It has huge impact on the physical, functional, economic and social well-being of individual, families of those affected and the nation at large (Baidoo, 2009). Undeniably visual problems increase in old age but early diagnosis minimizes the risk (Salvi et al., 2006). Adequate knowledge and the appropriate attitude acquired in one’s lifetime helps them make informed choices, reduce health risks and increase quality of life. The aim of this study is therefore to assess the knowledge, attitude, and practices of eye health care among first year students at Makerere University college of health sciences. Methods: Year one medical students at the college of health sciences were randomly selected to fill questionnaires with guidance from the investigators. Demographic data like age, sex, religion and marital status were collected. A total of 98 participants filled the questionnaires, inferential statistics were used to highlight the relationship between sex, age, and other variables with the knowledge, attitudes and practices of eye care. Results: Of the 98 participants, 61.9%, 74.5% and 37.8 had knowledge on glaucoma, cataracts and refractive errors respectively, with the commonest source of information being a healthcare personnel. From the findings, gender was found to be statistically significant with the description of glaucoma (X2 = 24.743, p-value = 0.000) and cataracts (X2 = 10.751, p-value = 0.030). However, gender was found to be insignificantly associated with the description of myopia (X2 = 6.838, p-value = 0.077), hyperopia (X2 = 1.818, p-value = 0.403) and presbyopia (X2 = 4.705, P-value = 0.095). From the findings, 61% of the respondents indicated that they visited a hospital after they had experienced an eye problem and 41.5% indicated that they last visited an eye care clinic within 1-6 months ago. On their visit, 51.2% of the respondents indicated that they contacted an optometrist as their eye care provider and their reason for the visit was mainly to seek treatment (66.7%). Conclusion: Despite the good knowledge on common eye conditions like glaucoma and cataracts, the knowledge on refractive errors is very low. In conclusion, people with more knowledge about the different eye conditions had better eye health attitudes and eye care practices.