Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices towards Diabetic Retinopathy among Primary Care Physicians of Saudi Arabia: A Multicenter Cross-Sectional Study

Abstract

Primary care physicians play a vital role in preventing the progression of diabetic retinopathy (DR) from the initial stages to the late stages. This questionnaire-based analytical cross-sectional study was carried out to assess the knowledge, attitude, practices, and their correlation among 274 randomly selected primary care physicians in Saudi Arabia. Among the studied population, high knowledge, attitudes, and practice scores were observed in 21.5%, 15%, and 29.2% of the physicians, respectively. The mean knowledge score was significantly higher among the age group of less than 30 years (p = 0.031) and the female gender (p = 0.012). The attitude scores were significantly higher among the Saudi physicians (p = 0.027) and those with PHC work experience of less than five years (p < 0.001). Regarding the practices, a significant association was found among the age group of less than 30 years (p = 0.019) and Saudi physicians (p = 0.003). There was a significant positive correlation between knowledge (correlation coefficient (r) = 0.739, p < 0.001) and attitude (r = 0.479, p = 0.007) with the practice scores. It is recommended that targeted continuous medical education, workshops, and seminars are conducted on the prevention and care of DR among primary care physicians. Furthermore, an exploratory multicenter study that involves primary care physicians belonging to all ministries and private sectors is warranted.

Knowledge, attitude and practice towards bio-medical waste management among healthcare workers: a northern Saudi study

“…Our categorization is in accordance with the original Bloom’s cut-off point for assessing KAP and is supported by previous studies conducted among healthcare workers in the KSA and other parts of the world ( Mohammed Basheeruddin Asdaq et al, 2021 ; Feleke, Wale & Yirsaw, 2021 ; Abalkhail et al, 2021 ). Additionally, we combined low and medium scores as a single category for further analysis, and previous studies among the HCWs strongly support our categorization ( Abalkhail et al, 2021 ; Thirunavukkarasu et al, 2021 ; Ukwenya et al, 2021 ). The association of the subscales’ categories and sociodemographic characteristics was assessed by Pearson’s chi-square test.…”

Female Healthcare Workers’ Knowledge, Attitude towards Breast Cancer, and Perceived Barriers towards Mammogram Screening: A Multicenter Study in North Saudi Arabia

“…Our categorization is as per the original Bloom’s cut-off point and is supported by previous studies conducted among the HCWs in the KSA and other parts of the world. In Saudi Arabia, the HCWs are expected to have high knowledge (≥80%) of common public health problems, as they play a crucial role in preventing diseases by health education and delivering healthcare services implemented by the concerned authorities [ 19 , 20 ]. Hence, we combined low and good scores as a single category for logistic regression analysis, and previously conducted surveys among the HCWs strongly support and justify our categorization.…”

Knowledge, attitude and practice toward diabetes among the public in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia: a cross-sectional study

“…Furthermore, this study has found that those with education related to medical field have higher knowledge ( β = 1.997; p < 0.01), higher positive attitudes ( β = 1.005; p < 0.01) and good practices ( β = 0.303; p < 0.05) related to diabetes. The higher KAP score is likely a result of higher exposure to comprehensive diabetes information which, in turn, contributes to a more positive attitude ( 49 ). Self-care education is crucial for effective diabetes management as it helps correct misconceptions regarding diabetes treatment and management ( 37 ).…”