TY - JOUR
T1 - Knowledge, attitude and practice survey of bacterial contamination of blood for transfusion in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
AU - Heroes, Anne-Sophie
AU - Kabamba, Paul
AU - Luyindula, Aimée
AU - Bongenya, Bernard
AU - Nzazi, Pierre
AU - Nasali, Monica
AU - Akele, Cathérine
AU - Lusinga, Marie-Paule
AU - Ekofo, John
AU - Coene, José
AU - Van Cauwenberg, Inge
AU - Vandekerckhove, Philippe
AU - Lunguya, Octavie
AU - Jacobs, Jan
N1 - FTX; (CC-BY-NC-ND)
PY - 2024
Y1 - 2024
N2 - BACKGROUND: We assessed healthcare worker's knowledge-attitude-practice regarding bacterial contamination of blood products in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.MATERIALS AND METHODS: In three hospitals and the National Blood Transfusion Centre (NBTC), two multiple-choice surveys were completed on a tablet computer: one each, for blood bank (31 questions) and for clinical ward staff (20 questions). A score was calculated for 11 overlapping knowledge questions.RESULTS: Among 247 participants (blood bank No.=62, ward No.=185), median (range) knowledge score was 10 (2-19) on a maximum of 20, with blood bank staff (12/20) scoring higher than clinical ward staff (9/20) (p<0.0001). Half (50.2%) of 247 participants recalled previous training in transfusion medicine. Participants had limited understanding of and compliance with NBTC-recommended preventive measures: incorrect assumption that wearing gloves prevents bacterial contamination (83.8%) and that blood banks test donor blood for bacteria (59.9%). Half (50.0%) of blood bank staff did not acknowledge the NBTC-recommended antisepsis procedure, 62.1% did not apply the appropriate number of antisepsis steps, and 32.3% saw no harm in touching the venipuncture site after antisepsis. Presence of bacteria on healthy skin (62.3%) and blood bank fomites (examination gloves: 30.8%, soap: 62.8%) was underestimated. Although 92.4% of clinical ward staff said to easily recognize transfusion reactions, only 15.7% recognized septic reactions and post-transfusion antibiotic treatment practices were not consistent. Challenges reported by blood bank staff and particular for low-resource settings were: frequent power cuts (98.4%), transport of blood products by patient attendants (41.1%), without cooling elements (64.4%), and reuse of finished antiseptic/disinfectant containers (75.4%).DISCUSSION: The present study points to gaps in knowledge, attitudes, practices along sampling, cold chain and transfusion which can feed customized training and monitoring.
AB - BACKGROUND: We assessed healthcare worker's knowledge-attitude-practice regarding bacterial contamination of blood products in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.MATERIALS AND METHODS: In three hospitals and the National Blood Transfusion Centre (NBTC), two multiple-choice surveys were completed on a tablet computer: one each, for blood bank (31 questions) and for clinical ward staff (20 questions). A score was calculated for 11 overlapping knowledge questions.RESULTS: Among 247 participants (blood bank No.=62, ward No.=185), median (range) knowledge score was 10 (2-19) on a maximum of 20, with blood bank staff (12/20) scoring higher than clinical ward staff (9/20) (p<0.0001). Half (50.2%) of 247 participants recalled previous training in transfusion medicine. Participants had limited understanding of and compliance with NBTC-recommended preventive measures: incorrect assumption that wearing gloves prevents bacterial contamination (83.8%) and that blood banks test donor blood for bacteria (59.9%). Half (50.0%) of blood bank staff did not acknowledge the NBTC-recommended antisepsis procedure, 62.1% did not apply the appropriate number of antisepsis steps, and 32.3% saw no harm in touching the venipuncture site after antisepsis. Presence of bacteria on healthy skin (62.3%) and blood bank fomites (examination gloves: 30.8%, soap: 62.8%) was underestimated. Although 92.4% of clinical ward staff said to easily recognize transfusion reactions, only 15.7% recognized septic reactions and post-transfusion antibiotic treatment practices were not consistent. Challenges reported by blood bank staff and particular for low-resource settings were: frequent power cuts (98.4%), transport of blood products by patient attendants (41.1%), without cooling elements (64.4%), and reuse of finished antiseptic/disinfectant containers (75.4%).DISCUSSION: The present study points to gaps in knowledge, attitudes, practices along sampling, cold chain and transfusion which can feed customized training and monitoring.
U2 - 10.2450/BloodTransfus.586
DO - 10.2450/BloodTransfus.586
M3 - A1: Web of Science-article
C2 - 38063792
SN - 1723-2007
JO - Blood Transfusion
JF - Blood Transfusion
ER -