Knowledge and Practices of Infection Prevention and Control towards COVID-19 among Healthcare Workers in Benghazi Medical Centre, Libya

Abstract

Background: The current pandemic puts a substantial pressure on the health-care system worldwide. Healthcare workers especially those in frontline of patients’ care are at increased risk of being infected. The aim of this study is to assess infection prevention and control knowledge and practice toward COVID- 19 among health care workers. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted from July to September of 2020 at Benghazi Medical Centre in Benghazi, Libya. Self-administered questionnaire was distributed to 400 health care workers. Results: Of those surveyed, the majority of participants were females; (40 .6%) in frontline, the overall percentage of correct answers was (64.8%). Knowledge was gained mainly from news media by (27.8%) of participants, while official government websites were used by nearly 21% of participants. The percentage of total good practice score was (76.28%). The knowledge scores were significantly associated with differences by gender, occupation, and level of education (p<0.05). Conclusion: The study found a satisfactory knowledge and relatively good practice towards COVID-19 among health care workers. However; there were areas with poor knowledge and practices. These areas should be addressed through continuous public health education on COVID-19 infection prevention and control.