Summary: | A research report submitted to the Faculty of Health Sciences,
University of the Witwatersrand, in partial fulfilment of the requirements
for the degree of
Master of Medicine in Anaesthesiology
Johannesburg, 2016 === Background: Surgical site infection (SSI) is the second most common hospital
acquired infection and results in increased morbidity and mortality and a longer
hospital stay. Surgical antibiotic prophylaxis (SAP) is one component of broader
strategies to reduce rates of SSI. Adherence to SAP guidelines is generally sub
optimal globally, with knowledge of appropriate SAP being a factor that affects this. This results in less effective prevention of SSI.
Objectives: To describe awareness amongst anaesthetists at university-affiliated
hospitals of available SAP guidelines and to describe their knowledge on the subject.
Comparisons between senior and junior anaesthetists were assessed.
Methodology: A prospective descriptive study design using a self-administered
questionnaire. The study population was the anaesthetists in a university-affiliated
Department of Anaesthesiology in Johannesburg, South Africa.
Results: The analysis included 135 completed questionnaires from the department’s
anaesthetists. A total of 15.6% of participants followed a specific guideline in their
practice, 28% for senior anaesthetists vs. 4.2% for junior anaesthetists. The overall
mean score for knowledge was 56.2%, 59.3% for senior anaesthetists vs. 53.6% for
junior anaesthetists, which was statistically significant (p-value <0.001). Overall
knowledge was found to be poor and specifically, knowledge regarding indication for
prophylaxis, antibiotic re-dosing interval, and duration of prophylaxis, was poor.
Conclusion: The anaesthetists had poor knowledge regarding SAP. While the
difference in knowledge between senior and junior anaesthetists was statistically
significant, we feel that this difference would not be substantial enough to have a
clinical impact. We recommend improving the knowledge of the anaesthetists
regarding SAP as well as the development of local SAP guidelines. === GR2018
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