ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Tuberculosis is one of the oldest diseases known to mankind. However, still practitioners are unaware of various facts associated with it. OBJECTIVES: (1) To assess the knowledge, attitude and practices adopted by practitioners of both government and private sectors in diagnosis and management of TB patients. (2) To assess the views of practitioners in strengthening the RNTCP programme. METHODOLOGY: 200 allopathic practitioners from both government and private sectors providing their services in Gwalior District were interviewed using pre-designed pre-tested structured questionnaire. RESULTS: The mean score of knowledge related to tuberculosis and RNTCP was higher among government practitioners (9.8) compared to private practitioners (6.1). All practitioners were having positive attitude towards regular up gradation of knowledge while statistically significant differences were noted on issues related to management of TB patients as per RNTCP guidelines. X-ray was the most preferred modality for diagnosis and follow up among private practitioners compared to sputum examination among government practitioners. Referral of poor and serious patients was also very low among private practitioners. CONCLUSION: The present study hereby concludes that there is a large gap in Knowledge, Attitude and Practices on TB and RNTCP among the practitioners of both the sectors. There is an urgent need for upgrading the knowledge on various issues and regular Continuing Medical Education (CME) involving various professional bodies.
