ABSTRACT
Background: Coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) is a rapidly spreading pandemic. Under the Ayushman Bharat Scheme of Govt. of India, community health officer (CHO) trainees undergo 6 months of training to provide comprehensive primary health care to the patients attending health wellness centers. Aims and Objectives: This study was conducted to assess the knowledge, attitude, and practices (KAPs) about COVID-19 among CHO trainees in Maharashtra. The relation between sociodemographic factors of CHO trainees and their KAPs was also studied. Materials and Methods: An online study was conducted during September 15, 2020 to October 15, 2020 among CHO trainees of the March 2020 batch undergoing training under health wellness program study centers in Maharashtra using a prevalidated questionnaire. Data were analyzed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 25.0. Results: One hundred and sixty CHO trainees participated in this study. The majority of respondents (98 [61.3%]) were females with a mean age of 27.86 years (SD 4.862) and (range 20–43 years). Seventy-five (46.8%) respondents were ayurvedic doctors, whereas 85 (53.2%) were nursing graduates. Overall, 159 (98.76%) had sufficient knowledge, 126 (78.26%) had a positive attitude, and 65 (40.37%) had fair practices toward COVID-19. Age >30 years was associated with good knowledge. CHO trainees with age ? 30 years and using social media to access information on COVID-19 were having a good attitude. CHO trainees with age ? 30 years, working in the civil hospital and those with Bachelor of Ayurveda, Medicine, and Surgery (BAMS) degrees were significantly (P < 0.05) more likely to have fair practices. Conclusion: Studies involving CHO training centers all over India should be conducted.
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Health officers are an integral part of the occupational health service, and there have been studies to identify and improve the role of health officers in the workplace in order to improve the level of health care in the workplace. This study aimed to determine the contribution of health officers to the role of a health officer as prescribed by law and the percentage of health management work performed during work according to their qualifications. METHODS: Questionnaires were distributed to a total of 4584 workplaces where health officers were hired, and a total of 806 copies (17.58%) were returned. Of these, 336 questionnaires were finally analyzed, after excluding questionnaires missing the main variables. Using the data, the difference of role contributions and the percentage of health care work performed during the whole day according to the qualification of the health officer was analyzed. RESULTS: Nurses were highly rated in the field of medical care, and industrial hygienists and air environmental engineers were highly rated in terms of chemicals and risk factor management. The percentage of health care work performed during the whole day differed according to the size of the workplace and industrial classification, but it was generally the lowest among air environmental engineers. CONCLUSIONS: Health officers play a very different role in the workplace depending on their qualification, and they need support for areas of other qualification. In order to effectively manage the health of the staff at a workplace, it is necessary to consider the development of a support system for small- and medium-sized enterprises and adjust the conditions of employment of the health officer according to the law.