KNOWLEDGE, ATTITUDE AND PRACTICE TO NON-COMMUNICABLE DISEASE SCREENING AMONG SENIOR CIVIL SERVANTS IN KANO STATE

ABSTRACT Background Senior civil servants are at high risk of NCDs because of the sedentary nature of their work. They are usually elderly, spending a lot of time in the office without physical activity. Most of them are of high social class, thus consuming too much of unhealthy diets. Research has shown that senior civil servants have poor knowledge, attitude and practice to NCDs screening due to the fact that they do not have much time to go the hospitals for utilization of these screening services. This study therefore aimed at identifying the knowledge, attitude and practice to NCD screening among senior civil servants in Kano state. It is believed that findings from this study will positively influence policies on disease prevention and health promotion with regards to screening for NCDs. Methodology A cross sectional descriptive study was carried out among 178 senior civil servants in ministries within Audu Bako secretariat, Kano state, who were selected using simple random sampling technique. A structured interviewer- administered questionnaire was used as the tool for the data collection. Result The results of this study showed that majority of the respondents (86.52%) have poor knowledge of NCD screening, only few (13.48%) of the respondents had good knowledge. Knowledge of the respondents was found to be significantly affected by their religion. Majority of the respondents have negative attitude (51.69%) towards NCD screening, only few (48.31%) of the respondents reported had positive attitude. The attitude of the respondents was found to be significantly associated with their age and religion. Most of the respondents (77.53%) observe poor practice towards NCD screening, (22.47%) observe good practices towards NCD screening. The practice of the respondents was found to be significantly associated with their age and ethnicity. The majority of the respondents were male, Muslim, Hausa, and within the age range of 45-54 years. Additionally, the highest education level for most respondents was college or university, and the majorities were married. Conclusion The results of this study showed that majority of the respondents have poor knowledge of NCD screening. Majority of the respondents have negative attitude towards NCD screening. Most of the respondents observe poor practice towards NCD screening.