KNOWLEDGE AND STANDARD PRECAUTION PRACTICES AMONG HEALTHCARE WORKERS IN PRIMARY HEALTH CENTERS, AKURE, ONDO STATE.

ABSTRACT Health-care associated infections (HAIs) are considered one of the serious problems that healthcare providers face while handling patients’ services (Al-Faouri et al., 2021). Those infections are common causes of morbidity and mortality among hospitalized patients. This study is a cross sectional descriptive research conducted to assess the knowledge and standard precautions practices among healthcare professionals in primary health centers in Akure, Ondo State. The study further assesses the factors influencing standard precaution practices among the health professionals. A total of 140 health workers participated in the study. A self-developed questionnaire used to collect the data for this study was analyzed using both the descriptive and inferential statistics. The results showed that the majority of the healthcare professionals demonstrate a comprehensive understanding of hospital-acquired infections (HAIs) and prioritize preventive measures such as hand hygiene and proper disinfection. They exhibit high compliance with standard precaution practices, indicating a commitment to patient and healthcare worker safety. However, challenges such as irregular access to personal protective equipment (PPE) and time constraints may hinder consistent adherence. The chi square test revealed that there is a significant relationship between the level of knowledge and the level of standard precaution practice with a zero p-value. These implies that Healthcare professionals understand the importance of HAI prevention, indicating they are receptive to training and education on this critical patient safety issue. Meanwhile, government should ensure sufficient funding and resources for healthcare facilities to procure necessary personal protective equipment (PPE) and implement infection control protocols effectively. Keywords: Knowledge, Practices, Precaution, Infection, Acquired, Healthcare