Knowledge, Attitude, and Practice Towards Infection Control amongst Dental Assistants in Private Dental Clinics in Kelantan: A Cross Sectional Study

Abstract

Dental assistant plays an important role in dental practice, performing both clinical and clerical duties to ensure the operation of dental clinic run smoothly and efficiently. As their daily tasks frequently involve the handling and cleaning of instruments contaminated with blood and saliva, they pose a significant risk to contracting infectious diseases due to the nature of their job[1]. A disparity exists in the educational qualifications of dental assistants working in various public and private dental facilities[2]. The knowledge related to infection control was questionable while the attitude and compliance towards practicing infection control measures need to be assessed. The study aimed to determine the mean score of knowledge, attitude, and practice (KAP) towards infection control among dental assistants working in private dental clinics in Kelantan.   A cross-sectional study was carried out among 89 dental assistants who worked in the private dental clinics at all districts in Kelantan. The knowledge, attitude, and practice towards infection control were assessed using a newly developed questionnaire. The questionnaire was content and face validated, with CVI and FVI scores of 0.9 and 0.99, respectively. The questionnaire was administered to the dental assistants as a Google form. The maximum scores of knowledges, attitude, and practice were 33, 25 and 210, respectively. Data were analysed using IBM SPSS Statistics for Windows Version 26.0.   Result showed that the mean age was 28.7(SD=6.98). All of them were Malay and more than a third of respondents (34.8%) completed secondary school. The mean (SD) scores of knowledges, attitude, and practice towards infection control were 25.4(3.10), 23(2.25), and 176.2(14.77), respectively. This study revealed that dental assistants in private dental clinics have limited knowledge at certain aspects of infection control. It is recommended that continuous training should be done regularly to maximize and enhance the compliance of dental assistants towards implementing infection control measures in the dental clinics. As employers, the dentists are responsible to ensure that their employees have adequate knowledge and continuous training in infection control procedures.