Assessment Of Competence In Metered Dose Inhaler Technique And Associated Factors Among Health Care Professionals Of Nigist Ellini Mohammed Comprehensive Specialized Memorial Teaching Hospital, Southern Ethiopia...

Abstract

Background: Both asthma and COPD treatment rely heavily on inhaled medicines. Metered dose inhaler therapy is a commonly used method for administering drugs such as beta 2 agonists and corticosteroids. Meanwhile, health care professionals' (HCP’s) and patients' knowledge and experience with this metered dose inhaler are critical for the accurate delivery of these medications, which has an impact on disease control and patient adherence. However, in Nigist Ellini Mohammed Memorial Comprehensive Specialized Hospital (NEMMCSH), no research has been done on health care professionals' competence in Metered Dose Inhaler (MDI) technique and associated factors previously. Objective: This study aimed to assess competency (skill) in metered dose inhaler technique and its associated factors among NEMMCSH health care professionals. Method: Cross sectional study was employed on 300 health care professionals working in NEMMCSH, southern Ethiopia from November 10, 2021, to January 10, 2022. The National Asthma Education and Prevention Programs of America (NAEPP) step criteria for the demonstration of a metered dose inhaler was used to rate the skill of using the inhaler and theoretical questions about MDI were used to assess the basic knowledge of HCPS. Collected data was first cleaned, edited, and entered into Epidata version 3.1 and exported to SPSS version 25 for analysis. First, descriptive data analysis was performed, and then bivariate logistic regression analysis was carried out to determine the association of different potential factors. Independent predictors were determined using an adjusted odd ratio with 95% CL at p-value < 0.05. Results: Out of 314 health care professionals approached 300 (95.5%) were involved in the study. Only 22(7.3%) of the study participants had an adequate level of competency in the MDI technique. However, the odds of having an adequate level of competency in MDI technique was more likely higher among pharmacists [(AOR=8.82, 95% CI: 2.59–30.07)] and General Practitioners (GP) [(AOR=3.89, 95% CI: 1.26 -11.87)] compared to nurses. Conclusion and recommendations: Health care providers (nurses, pharmacy, and GP) competence in MDI techniques was poor, though qualification was found to be significant predictor of their competence. To integrate HCP into the future asthma care establishing and providing capacity building education and training has to be made by all stakeholders.