Abstract
Background: Medical laboratories are one of the most common hazardous places for health care workers, where a wide range of occupational hazards can occur.To avoid these hazards, biosafety measures should be strictly implemented, which necessitates awareness of the health care workers about these measures and comply with the standard biosafety practices.
Objectives: This study aimed at the assessement ofthe knowledge level of health care workersregarding biosafety in medical labsand to estimate the prevalence and possible factors associated with occupational lab incidents among health care workersin main governmental laboratories (BLS2, BLS3) in Jeddah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
Subjects and Methods: Through a cross sectional design, 171 medical laboratory professionals working in governmental medical laboratories in Jeddah were included in the study. Data were collected using a self-administered structured questionnaire reflecting their knowledge and adherence to biosafety measures as well as previous exposure to incidents while working in the labs.
Main Results: The mean age of the health care workers in the labs (n=171) accounted for 36.4±8.7, with a slight dominance of females (54.4%). Almost one half of them (53.8%) had experience in lab work for more than ten years. While great majority of the workers 152(88.9%) reported that they got information about OHS, tested the level of knowledge showed lesser percentage 102(59.6%) who had above average level of knowledge about standard precautions. Significant differences in the level of knowledge were detected among workers according to their job title, previous training and receiving biosafety manual; where the highest percentage of knowledgeable workers was recoded in consultants (85.7%), previously trained (65.2%) and who received biosafety manual (66.9%) p<0.05. Previous incidents were reported by one third (36.3%) of the workers; its significant predictor is the positive biosafety practice, as it was much less frequent among health workers who have above average level of positive biosafety practices than those with below level (60.9% vs 31.5%) with an odds ratio (OR=0.296; 95% CI:0.119-0.733).
Conclusion and Recommendations: Training on occupational health & safety are a significant predictor of knowledge, practice, and incidents of the health workers in the labs. This study shows that there is a great need to establish Health and Safety Program for Laboratory Safety Officer (LSO), as well as the need to organize a National training programs to increase awareness of the Laboratories health workers about proper laboratory techniques and self-hygienic principles.
Keywords: Biosafety, Occupational hazards, laboratories Health workers.
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Corresponding Author
Dr Amal Hassan Al Ghamdi
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DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.18535/jmscr/v6i9.01
