Knowledge, attitude and practice towards droplet and airborne isolation precautions amongs dental health care professionals in India.

AIMS AND OBJECTIVE The purpose of this study is to obtain comprehensive information about the knowledge, attitude and practices in regard to droplet and airborne infection related precautions among faculty member and the undergraduate students in Udaipur, Rajasthan, India. MATERIAL AND METHODS A cross sectional survey was conducted among 311 dental faculty and the undergraduate students under clinical training in Udaipur, Rajasthan. A self-assessment questionnaire composed of queries on three levels, namely knowledge, attitude and practices with respect to airborne and droplet isolation precautions was used. The data was collected and analyzed by using SPSS software. RESULTS Frequency distribution scores of knowledge, attitude and practice in relation to droplet and airborne isolation precautions were revealed that even the students under training along with the faculty member were quite aware of the precautions and the principles of airborne and droplet isolation. Mean score for knowledge was 9.17±2.07; Mean scores for attitude and practice were 48.65±7.47 and 6.88±3.51 respectively. There were no significant difference in all groups regarding knowledge, attitude and practice. In addition, a positive linear correlation was found between two items of survey including knowledge- attitude, knowledge- practice and attitude- practice (P<0.01) CONCLUSION The results highlighted that though the professionals had good knowledge and attitude but the practice levels for the same were low. The study confirms from the findings that the infection control measures among the health care professionals are fairly good and an educational program on isolation precautions can further enhance these levels and thereby, reducing the risk of infection transmission risks.