Knowledge, Attitude, and Competency of Primary Eye Care (PEC) Services among Health Workers in Primary Healthcare Facilities in Rivers State

Abstract

Background: Primary Eye Care (PEC) services are an integral part of comprehensive eye care involving the provision of quality ocular healthcare services to the populace. This study aims to determine the knowledge, attitude and competency in providing primary eye care (PEC) services among primary health care workers (PHCWs) in Rivers State, Nigeria.
Materials: This study utilized a descriptive design, and was conducted among 271 PHCWs in selected Model and Comprehensive PHC facilities located in all 23 Local Government Areas (LGAs) of Rivers State. Responses were elicited from all willing respondents using a self-administered adapted questionnaire. Assessment of the respondents’ attitude and knowledge of PEC services was done using a set of ten and fifteen questions respectively. Competencies in providing PEC services were also elicited. Responses were then collated and analysed on a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet.
Results: This study identified that most of the PHCWs had good knowledge 226 (83.4%) and good attitude 239 (88.2%) towards the PEC services provision. PHCWs were of the opinion that they were competent providing some and not all of these services. Services in which they were competent included doing a good eye care health talk 182 (67.2%), how to counsel a patient in need of PEC 179 (66.1%), how to refer a patient 169 (62.4%), how to apply eye ointment 168 (62.0%), how to instill eyedrops 163 (60.1%), screening procedure for near vision 131 (48.3%) as well as for distance vision 130 (48.0%) among others.
Conclusion: Most PHCWs were found to have good knowledge and good attitude towards the provision of primary eye care services, however, the workers were competent in providing some of the PEC services. It was recommended that healthcare stakeholders in Rivers State develop and implement in-service training programs targeting the development of these skills for primary healthcare workers in Rivers State.