Knowledge of Healthcare Workers: Impact of Educational Training Program
Authors: Pendharkar Dinesh , Nirmal Garima 
Published: December 2024

Knowledge of healthcare workers: Impact of educational training program

Introduction:

Sickle cell disease (SCD) causes significant morbidity and mortality and is prevalent in Africa and the tribal population of India. The government of India has launched a National Sickle Cell Elimination Mission that aims to eradicate sickle cell disease by 2047.Limited knowledge among health professionals, despite the availability of treatment and standard treatment guidelines, is one of the major reasons for poor performance of healthcare interventions. The training and education of healthcare workers are pivotal in achieving this goal. Community health officers (CHO)are frontline health workers at the point of first primary contact. This study aimed to assess the immediate recall of information from training on the knowledge of healthcare workers (CHO) in three different districts of India.

Methods:

This was an observational cross-sectional study. Healthcare workers (HCW) knowledge was assessed using the DF Conhecimento instrument (Deniz), which included a set of 13 questionnaires. A short training program involving lectures on SCD, Diagnosis, Treatment, prevention, newborn screening, and complications of Sickle cell disease was conducted in three different districts of India. The participants were asked to complete a questionnaire before and after the training session. Pre- and post-test mean scores were assessed using a paired T test to assess the impact of training on healthcare workers' knowledge.

RESULT

A total of 321 healthcare workers participated in this survey. The median age of the participants was 28 years, with the majority (278 (86.6%)) being female. Two hundred ninety-three (91.3%) participants provided healthcare facilities to patients with SCD. Fifty-nine participants (14.2%) received SCD training. On assessing the adequacy of knowledge, only six (2.5%) had adequate knowledge, which improved significantly to 55 (23%) (p=0.01) post-training. There was a significant difference in the pre-test scores (M = 3.95, SD = 1.89) and post-test scores overall (M = 5.77, SD = 2.28) (p ≤ 0.0001), indicating that the training program had improved knowledge about all contents ( except for post-participation) as compared to pre-participation. Post training session, individuals working in government sector (5.76 (2.28) vs 4.47 (2.193)) ; prior training of SCD (5.82(2.26) vs 5.03 (2.15)) and Healthcare workers in Balaghat district ((6.82 (2.08) versus 5.61(2.16 ) (Dindhori ) versus 4.94 (2.19) (Alirajpur)) has statistically significant improvement in mean scores as compared to the pre training session

Conclusion

This large data from prevalent zones allows to draw important steps forward. The training program did lead to a significant increase in health care workers' knowledge of SCD and relevant clinical pediatric practices. Although ,post training session,only 25% of the HCW had improved adequate knowledge.Therefore, multiple training sessions are required for HCW involved in treating patients with SCD. Trainings can not be single time activity. This will eventually improve the care and prognosis of SCD patients.