Determinants of first aid knowledge and basic practice among elementary school teachers in Debre Tabor City, Northwest Ethiopia

AbstractBackgroundUnpremeditated injuries are the leading causes of morbidity and mortality in pediatrics population, especially in low and middle-income countries. Giving immediate help for an injured child is a crucial step for saving the child from further disability and/or death. This study aimed to assess the determinant factors of first aid knowledge and basic practice among elementary school teachers in Debre Tabor, Ethiopia.MethodInstitution based cross-sectional study was employed in Debre Tabor City. Single population proportion formula was used for sample size calculation and a total of 216 elementary school teachers were included in study. Simple random sampling technique with proportional allocation was applied for selections of the study participant. Data entry was done by Epi data version 3.1 and the data was exported to SPSS version 21 for analysis. Binary and multivariable logistic regression analysis were performed to identify determinants of knowledge on first aid. Crude and adjusted odds ratios were used to determine the significance and strength of association at 95% confidence interval.ResultOur study revealed that 45.8% of the subjects were knowledgeable on first aid. More than 75% of study participant reported that they have encountered a child who need first aid. Among this 64% of them provide first aid. The multivariable analysis revealed that service year (AOR=3.51, 95%CI: (1.06, 11.59)), educational status (AOR=12.15, 95%CI: (3.17, 46.67)), previous first aid training (AOR=0.43, 95%CI: (0.21, 0.87)) and information about first aid (AOR=0.12, 95%CI ;(0.03, 0.48)) were found to be significantly associated with having knowledge on first aid.ConclusionSchool teachers have low knowledge on first aid. Educational status, service year, previous first aid training and information on first aid were the predictor of first aid knowledge. Introducing essential first aid training in the curriculum during teachers’ training shall be considered.