Aim: Traditional and complementary medicine (T&CM) applications should be performed under the responsibility of the physician and / or dentist who is certified in the relevant field and in the centers authorized by the Ministry of Health. During the trainings, standard infection control measures / hygiene and contact information related to infections are given and thought to be inadequate. In this study, it was aimed to determine the knowledge, attitudes and behaviors of T&CM physicians in order to remind and emphasize the importance of infection control measures / hygiene rules in the clinic.
Method: The study was conducted with a digital questionnaire questioning hygiene practices in T&CM clinic which was prepared with the support of demographic information and literature, and their attitudes and behaviors related to the subject were determined. The data obtained were analyzed statistically.
Results: A total of 103 participants were 54.4% male, 46.6% general practitioner, 9.7% family physician and 38.8% had a professional experience of 20 years or more. 95.0% of physicians have at least one T&CM certificate and the most obtained certificate was determined as 64.3% hijama (cupping therapy), 45.9% acupuncture, 34.7% ozone treatment and 33.7% leech treatment. 92.8% of the participants had hepatitis B vaccine, 49.5% had tetanus vaccine and 22.7% had flu vaccines. AntiHBs titers against Hepatitis B of 54.5% were over 10 IU. 65.7% of physicians accumulate or render cutter drill tools in special waste bags and 11.8% in red medical waste bags. 57.0% of the participants put “non-penetrating tools” in red medical waste bags and 28.0% in the same bag with all wastes. While 51.5% of the physicians strongly recommend T&CM applications to others, 72.5% found that the level of knowledge on infection control measures / hygiene in T&CM applications was sufficient. 86.2% of physicians think that if adequate hygiene rules are not applied in T&CM , It may cause hepatitis and HIV transmission. While 65.6% of the patients were asked about their Hepatitis B, C and HIV test status before T&CM administration, 71.6% of them stated that their approach to T&CM application could be changed to a Hepatitis B, C or HIV (+) patient. While 73% stated that all materials in contact with the patient were disposable and 37,6% used continuous protective equipment against infectious diseases; 61,3% reported that they did not work in the clinic without gloves. 21% of physicians stated that T&CM may have infective complications. While 50.5% of the physicians said that we have an infection control procedure to be used in stab wounds, 35.6% reported that they had been exposed to Sharp penetrating stab injuries 1-3 times in the last 5 years. More than half of the participants (54.5%) stated that they needed additional hygiene training on T&CM practices.
Conclusion: It was determined that additional training would be meaningful in the prevention of hygiene, medical waste and bloodborne infections.
Primary Language | Turkish |
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Subjects | Traditional, Complementary and Integrative Medicine |
Journal Section | Research Article |
Authors | |
Publication Date | September 30, 2019 |
Acceptance Date | September 21, 2019 |
Published in Issue | Year 2019 GETAT Special Issue |
Journal of Biotechnology and Strategic Health Research