Background Acute pain is a predominant problem in the prehospital setting. Acute pain management in the prehospital setting requires precise and competent skills in practice—failure to assess and relieve pain results in multisystem effects that lead to poor patient prognosis. Emergency care providers should have adequate knowledge and develop good pain management practices. Limited information is documented on knowledge, attitude and practices about acute pain management among emergency care providers. This study aimed to assess the Knowledge, Attitude, and Practice of acute pain management in the prehospital setting and associated factors among emergency care providers in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Methods Quantitative cross-sectional study design was conducted among emergency care providers working in a prehospital setting in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. One hundred forty-one participants were included in the study. Data were collected using a structured questionnaire and practice observation checklist, then entered into Epi-info version 7 and exported to SPSS version 25 for further analysis using a logistic regression model. Results Most participants had good knowledge, with 81 (63.8%) scoring above the mean value (64%). The mean percentage for pain management practice was 36%. Availability of pain medications and assessment for pain were factors significantly associated with pain management practice with an adjusted odds ratio of 7.98, 95% CI: 1.32–48.18 and 42.87, 95% CI: 12.7-144.7, respectively. Conclusion The results show that the knowledge regarding acute pain management is good, but the attitude and practice of emergency care providers are unfavourable and poor. Further research is indicated to assess the possible barriers and facilitators of acute pain management in the prehospital setting.

Background: Patients’ health outcomes can suffer as a result of poor knowledge and unfavorable attitude towards prehospital emergency care. The purpose of this study was to assess emergency health care providers’ (EHCPs’) knowledge, attitude, and associated factors towards prehospital care in selected prehospital Emergency Medical Service institutions in Addis Abeba, Ethiopia. Methods: An institutional-based cross-sectional study design was conducted among EHCPs working in the three selected prehospital emergency medical care centers in Addis Ababa. Data were collected using a standard self-administered questionnaire, cleaned, coded, and entered into EPI Data Version 6, and then exported to SPSS Version 26 for further analysis. The generated data were compiled using frequency tables, charts, and percentages. Logistic regression analysis was used to see the association between independent and dependent variables. Results: One hundred thirty-five (135) study participants were included in this study, with a response rate of 95.7%. The mean age of the respondents was 29.2 years (SD = 4.86). Almost three-quarters of the respondents (71.1%) were aged between 26 and 35 years. Of the total participants, 58.5% and 62.2% of EHCPs had good knowledge and a favorable attitude towards prehospital care, respectively. The study revealed that profession (AOR = 3.2; 95% CI, 1.03 - 7.65), educational status (AOR = 1.17; 95% CI, 1.08 - 4.93), and having training (AOR = 2.25; 95% CI, 1.33 - 4.52) were significantly associated with the knowledge of EHCPs. This finding also revealed that the respondent’s knowledge (AOR = 1.36; 95% CI, 1.05 - 2.32) and having training (AOR = 3.2; 95% CI, 1.24 - 7.83) were significantly associated with EHCPs’ attitudes towards prehospital care. Conclusions: The knowledge and attitude of EHCPs regarding prehospital care were found to be good and favorable as compared to previous studies. In-service training regarding emergency health conditions and the time needed to care for the patient is important for quality prehospital emergency medical care.