Knowledge and vaccination status of hepatitis B amongst medical interns of Rural Medical College, Loni, Maharashtra, India

Authors

  • Purushottam A Giri Associate Professor, Department of Community Medicine (PSM), Rural Medical College and Pravara Rural Hospital, Loni Dist. Ahmednagar, Maharashtra
  • Deepak B Phalke Professor and Head; Department of Community Medicine (PSM), Rural Medical College and Pravara Rural Hospital, Loni Dist. Ahmednagar, Maharashtra,

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.3329/seajph.v3i2.20034

Keywords:

Knowledge, Vaccination status, Hepatitis B infection, Medical interns, rural India

Abstract

Hepatitis B Virus (HBV) infection is a serious global public health problem. It is the most common blood borne viral infection which places healthcare professional at higher occupational risk. The present study was conducted to assess the current knowledge and vaccination status about hepatitis B amongst medical interns. A cross-sectional study was conducted between February and March 2009 on 100 medical interns of the Rural Medical College, Loni, India. A pre-designed questionnaire which assessed their knowledge of hepatitis B was the tool of data collection. The data was analyzed in the form of percentage and proportions, and the chi-square test was applied. In the present study, 83.3% of interns showed a good level of knowledge regarding hepatitis B infection. The percentage of interns with the correct knowledge regarding post exposure prophylaxis and mode of transmission of hepatitis B were 89% and 90% respectively. It was found that 87% of the respondents espoused vaccination as a measure for the prevention of hepatitis B and 72% of the interns were fully immunized against hepatitis B. However, there is a misconception about prophylaxis, vaccination and the treatment of HBV. Hence there is an imperative need for health education to improve the knowledge of the interns towards hepatitis B infection.

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3329/seajph.v3i2.20034

South East Asian Journal of Public Health Vol.3(2) 2013: 19-22

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.
Abstract
182
PDF
315

Downloads

Published

2014-08-17

How to Cite

Giri, P. A., & Phalke, D. B. (2014). Knowledge and vaccination status of hepatitis B amongst medical interns of Rural Medical College, Loni, Maharashtra, India. South East Asia Journal of Public Health, 3(2), 19–22. https://doi.org/10.3329/seajph.v3i2.20034

Issue

Vol. 3 No. 2 (2013)

Section

Original Research

License

Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:

  1. Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
  2. Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.
  3. Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).