Abstract
Aim/Objective
To assess the knowledge and practices of health care providers towards high-risk groups (HRGs) in order to maximize/better the services provided by health care workers to HRGs.
Methods
A cross-sectional study was conducted among 300 health care providers of various job categories involved in the TI program under TANSACS. The study included 100 NGO clusters; three health care providers per cluster were selected randomly and a semi-structured questionnaire was administered. Health care providers who were working in government hospitals for more than 3 months were selected.
Results
Out of 300 health care providers, 130 (43%) were aware of gender policy and 276 (92%) were aware of STI/RTI services. The majority of the study participants (90%) had good awareness of basic knowledge about HIV/AIDS, the TI program, condom demonstration, stigma and discrimination and high-risk groups. Study participants who were in the job profile that is closely associated with the patients demonstrated better knowledge of TI activities. Similarly, health care providers in the clusters that had a tertiary level care centre nearby as a referral centre were observed to have more knowledge than their counterparts. Poor knowledge on pre-exposure prophylaxis (14%) was noted among the study participants.
Conclusion
Knowledge gaps were identified among health care providers closely associated with HRGs. Continued training activities, especially for health workers in peripheral areas of the district, need to be undertaken to implement the TI program effectively.
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Abbreviations
- HIV:
-
Human Immunodeficiency Virus
- AIDS:
-
Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome
- WHO:
-
World Health Organisation
- TANSACS:
-
Tamil Nadu State AIDS Control Society
- HRG:
-
High-Risk Groups
- TI:
-
Targeted Intervention
- STI:
-
Sexually Transmitted Infections
- RTI:
-
Reproductive Tract Infections
- NGO:
-
Non-Governmental Organisation
- COVID:
-
Coronavirus Disease
- GoI:
-
Government of India
- ART:
-
Antiretroviral Therapy
- PLHIV:
-
People Living with HIV
- NACO:
-
National AIDS Control Organisation
- CBO:
-
Community Based Organisation
- MoHFW:
-
Ministry of Health and Family Welfare
- CGI:
-
Central Government of India
- SPSS:
-
Statistical Package for Social Sciences
- DSRC:
-
Designated STI/RTI Clinics
- ICTC:
-
Integrated Counselling and Testing Centres
- ORW:
-
Out Reach Worker
- HCP:
-
Health Care Personnel
- PHC:
-
Primary Health Centre
- GHQH:
-
Government Headquarters Hospital
- TI-PM:
-
Targeted Intervention – Project Manager
- HCTS:
-
HIV Counselling and Testing Services
- HEP B and C:
-
Hepatitis B and Hepatitis C
- HCW:
-
Health Care Worker
- PEP:
-
Post Exposure Prophylaxis
- BMWM:
-
Biomedical Waste Management
- SPS:
-
Social Protection Schemes
- DMLT:
-
Diploma in Medical Laboratory Technology
- PrEP:
-
Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis
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Acknowledgments
We would like to thank NACO and our Project Director, Mr. Thiru. T. N. Hariharan I.A.S.
Funding
Funding was received from the National AIDS Control Organisation (NACO).
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Authors and Affiliations
Contributions
JM – Proposal Writing (Methodology), Project Approval, Data collection, Data analysis and Content writing
AM – Project Approval, Ethical Committee Approval, Data Collection
SD – Content Writing and Analysis
JB – Data Collection Compilation
KS – Data Collection Compilation
KG – Data Collection Compilation
KM – Data Collection Compilation
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Ethical approval was waived by the local Ethics Committee of Government Ramanathapuram Medical College in view of the retrospective nature of the study and all the procedures being performed were part of routine care. The study was conducted in accordance with the declaration of Helsinki.
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Marimuthu, J., Alli, M., Subasri, D. et al. Knowledge, attitude and practices of health care providers in implementing services to HRGs under the TANSACS program. J Public Health (Berl.) (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10389-023-02169-9
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10389-023-02169-9