The Effect of Education on Knowledge, Attitude, and Practice of the Catering Staffs about Food Hygiene and Safety in Yazd City

Background: Millions of people worldwide suffer from foodborne diseases every year. So, these diseases are recognized as one of the most common problems worldwide. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of education on knowledge, attitude, and practice of catering staffs about food hygiene and safety in Yazd City, Iran. Methods: This quasi-experimental study was conducted among 55 employees of catering in Yazd in 2018. The cluster random sampling method was applied to select the participants. Data collection tool was a questionnaire containing four parts of demographic, knowledge, attitude, and practice data. Prior to the intervention, all participants were asked to complete the questionnaire. Later, they were provided with the necessary training for 8 hours in four consecutive weeks. Two months after the intervention, the participants were asked to complete the same questionnaire again. Results: The mean score of before and after the intervention of the participants' knowledge, attitude, and practice were 19.32 ± 3.15, 22.69 ± 4.99, 13.20 ± 1.74, 25.07 ± 3.51, 35.21 ± 2.64 and 17.40 ± 3.48, respectively. prior to and after the intervention, respectively. Based on the findings, the participants' mean score of knowledge, attitude, and practice increased significantly after the educational course (P < 0.05). A significant difference was also observed between the mean scores of practice and work experience before and after the intervention (P < 0.05). Conclusions: According to the results, the educational content should be revised and implementation of the acquired knowledge should be improved in order to achieve the desired level of knowledge, attitude, and practice. In addition, education on food hygiene should be continuous and meticulously planned.