A single hospital survey of anaphylaxis awareness among health care providers and medical students

Abstract

Purpose: Anaphylaxis is a rapidly progressive allergic reaction that requires precise recognition and immediate management. However, health care providers, awareness of anaphylaxis has not been acknowledged. The aim of this study is to investigate the extent of knowledge and principal management skills on anaphylaxis among medical personnel and students. Methods: We performed a questionnaire survey on knowledge, education, and managing skills for anaphylaxis to physicians, nurses, health personnel, and medical students in Ajou University Medical Center, from 26 June to 31 October, 2014. The survey contained 2 main sections: questions about demographic data and 2 types of questionnaire (type I for all participants and type II for only medical staffs) for self-assessment on anaphylaxis. Results: A total of 1,615 participants (128 doctors, 828 nurses, 436 students, and 223 health personnel) completed the survey. For questionnaire I, the percentages of correct answers in doctors, nurses, medical students, and health personnel were 77.5%, 56.4%, 47.8%, and 28.0% respectively, showing significant differences between groups (P<0.001). For questionnaire II, 93% of doctors and 75.6% of nurses indicated epinephrine as the drug of choice, and 79.7% of doctors and 71.3% of nurses selected the correct intramuscular route. More than 3 quarters of the doctors (80.5%) selected epinephrine within the first 5 steps of treatment, but only 48% included epinephrine within the first 3 steps. Conclusion: Our study showed considerable lack of knowledge on anaphylaxis among health care providers, especially on the specific management steps of anaphylaxis. As significant gaps on overall knowledge of anaphylaxis were observed between different groups of medical personnel, regular education should be implemented for each department in the health care setting.