Knowledge, Attitude, and Practice towards acute pain management in the prehospital setting and associated factors among emergency care providers in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia: A cross-sectional study

Abstract Background Acute pain is a predominant problem in the prehospital setting. Acute pain management in the prehospital setting requires precise and competent skills in practice—failure to assess and relieve pain results in multisystem effects that lead to poor patient prognosis. Emergency care providers should have adequate knowledge and develop good pain management practices. Limited information is documented on knowledge, attitude and practices about acute pain management among emergency care providers. This study aimed to assess the Knowledge, Attitude, and Practice of acute pain management in the prehospital setting and associated factors among emergency care providers in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Methods Quantitative cross-sectional study design was conducted among emergency care providers working in a prehospital setting in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. One hundred forty-one participants were included in the study. Data were collected using a structured questionnaire and practice observation checklist, then entered into Epi-info version 7 and exported to SPSS version 25 for further analysis using a logistic regression model. Results Most participants had good knowledge, with 81 (63.8%) scoring above the mean value (64%). The mean percentage for pain management practice was 36%. Availability of pain medications and assessment for pain were factors significantly associated with pain management practice with an adjusted odds ratio of 7.98, 95% CI: 1.32–48.18 and 42.87, 95% CI: 12.7-144.7, respectively. Conclusion The results show that the knowledge regarding acute pain management is good, but the attitude and practice of emergency care providers are unfavourable and poor. Further research is indicated to assess the possible barriers and facilitators of acute pain management in the prehospital setting.