1. Knowledge, Attitudes and Practices Related to HIV Stigma and Discrimination Among Healthcare Workers in Oman
- Author
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Nilanjan Mitra, Essam Morkos, Vidyanand Vaidya, Zeyana Al-Habsi, Muhammad Muqeetullah, Samir S. Shah, Idris Al-Abaidani, Mahmood Al-Skaiti, Prasanna A. Raju, Kishor Duthade, Maha Al-Fori, Parag Shah, Seif Al-Abri, Huda N. Al-Mashani, Adil Al-Wahaibi, Iyad Omaar, Mohammed Amin, and Ali Elgalib
- Subjects
Adult ,Male ,Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice ,medicine.medical_specialty ,Oman ,Social stigma ,Attitude of Health Personnel ,Health Personnel ,Social Stigma ,Clinical & Basic Research ,lcsh:Medicine ,Stigma (botany) ,HIV Infections ,03 medical and health sciences ,0302 clinical medicine ,Acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) ,Surveys and Questionnaires ,Health care ,medicine ,Humans ,030212 general & internal medicine ,Response rate (survey) ,Government ,030505 public health ,business.industry ,lcsh:R ,Social Discrimination ,General Medicine ,Middle Aged ,medicine.disease ,Confidence interval ,Work experience ,Cross-Sectional Studies ,Family medicine ,Female ,0305 other medical science ,business - Abstract
Objectives: Stigma and discrimination undermine the quality of life of people with HIV and their access to health services. This study aimed to assess HIV-related knowledge, attitudes and practices among healthcare workers (HCWs) in Oman. Methods: This cross-sectional study took place between July and November 2016. A questionnaire was distributed to 1,400 government HCWs to determine HIV-related knowledge, attitudes and practices. Results: A total of 1,281 HCWs participated (response rate = 92%). Routine tasks, such as dressing wounds, drawing blood and touching clothes, were a cause of concern for 24–52% of HCWs. Only 69% correctly answered questions regarding the transmission of HIV via eating/drinking and mosquito bites. Compared to other HCWs, doctors had significantly higher knowledge (mean = 0.46, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.19 to 0.73; P 15 years’ work experience scored significantly higher on knowledge (mean = −0.60, 95% CI: −1.12 to −0.08; P = 0.025) and attitude (mean = −0.99, 95% CI: −1.87 to −0.10; P = 0.029) compared to those with less experience. Conclusion: The high rate of HIV-related stigma among HCWs in Oman should be rectified in order to achieve the 90-90-90 target set by the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS.Keywords: HIV; Social Stigma; Social Discrimination; Knowledge; Attitude; Professional Practice; Healthcare Providers; Oman.
- Published
- 2020
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