Knowledge and perception of patients with sickle-cell disease about primary care providers in Zaria, North-West Nigeria

Background: Sickle-cell disease (SCD) is a common disorder worldwide, affecting 2% of the Nigerian population. Patients with SCD require emergency care, especially during crises. However, specialists are scarce in hospitals in most towns and cities of Nigeria. Effective primary care may be life-saving where there are no specialists. Objectives: To determine the knowledge, perception, and attitude of patients with SCD toward primary care in Zaria. Materials and Methods: It was a researcher-administered questionnaire-based cross-sectional study of patients attending the adult SCD clinic of Ahmadu Bello University Teaching Hospital, Zaria. Results: There were 78 respondents including 55 (70.5%) females and 23 (29.5%) males. The median and interquartile range age of respondents was 22 (7) years. Most respondents have attained secondary (58.1%) and tertiary (35.5%) levels of education. Fifty-six (71.8%) respondents have visited a primary care facility in the past. While 24/76 (31.6%) respondents felt that the nonspecialist doctor was the major primary care provider, 8/76 (10.5%) each felt that the community health officer and the chemists were the primary care providers. Bone pain (26, 66.7%) was the main reason for seeking primary care. However, 8 (14.3%) respondents felt that services were poor and 4 (7.1%) felt that services were excellent at primary care centers. Conclusion: SCD patients have a fair understanding of primary care; however, there is low patronage and poor perception about the quality of care provided by the primary care providers.