Assessment of the Knowledge, Attitude and Practice (KAP) of PMTCT among Healthcare Providers at the University of Ghana Legon

Abstract

One of the leading causes of morbidity and mortality among communicable diseases is acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). A vulnerable group in this setting is HIV exposed infants, (born to women living with HIV). The magnitude of the pandemic of HIV infection in developing countries is such that multiple approaches are required to show its spread and alleviate the burden on the health sector and society in general. Every woman of childbearing age needs to be aware of HIV infection, the risks of Mother-to-Child Transmission and the services available to reduce such risks. Considering these, this study assessed the knowledge, attitude and practice of Prevention of mother-to-child transmission (PMTCT) among healthcare providers at the University of Ghana Legon. A descriptive cross-sectional design was used in this study. The minimum sample size for this study was calculated using the single proportion population formula by Fisher (1978): The study area was the University of Ghana Hospital Legon. The collected data was exported into STATA version 16.0 for cleaning and analysis. Descriptive analysis, such as simple frequencies, percentages, means, and standard deviations, were used to summarize the data. Findings were presented in tables and graphs. Generally, the data accumulated from the research on the knowledge, attitude and practice of PMTCT among healthcare workers indicate that there is unsatisfactory knowledge and practice. In this study, no participants had a total good score above 85%. The relationship between gender, ward and knowledge was investigated using a chi-square. The p-value was higher than the alpha-value, indicating acceptance of the null hypothesis (p-value = 0.79 and 0.053, alpha value = 0.05). Sixteen (16) of the respondents, representing 17.6%, said HIV positive pregnant women should be managed like any other pregnant woman in Labour. The majority of the respondents (56) said at the first week of pregnancy, while only (2) said at week 28. However, their attitude was satisfactory. It must be noted that without further training and an increase in staffing levels, the quality and accessibility of PMTCT will be severely affected. It is therefore recommended that there should be continuous and pre-service training on PMTCT. All new medical officers, midwives and nurses should undergo PMTCT training, and those who are already in service should take refresher courses on new and updated guidelines.