Cross sectional analysis of disease pattern among sanitary workers of hospitals of Lahore, Pakistan
Paper Details
Cross sectional analysis of disease pattern among sanitary workers of hospitals of Lahore, Pakistan
Abstract
The present study aimed to highlight the health problems faced by the sanitary workers while handling hospital waste in the public and private sector hospitals of Lahore City. A cross-sectional descriptive study design was selected, and 65 hospitals of Lahore city were surveyed during October 2016 to January 2017. 325 sanitary workers were selected through quota sampling technique and were interviewed through fully structured questionnaire. Permission was acquired from respective hospital authorities prior to data collection. Inquiries were made from the sanitary workers regarding health awareness, hygiene practice, precautionary measures adopted while handling hospital waste and the diseases they suffered from within the lapse of a year. The collected data was arranged and analyzed by using Microsoft Excel 2013, SPSS Version 22. All sanitary workers were male, 56.5% of study participants aged between 31 to 40 years and 61.7% had a working experience of more than 11 years. 57.5% got proper training, 61.2% practiced hand washing, 62.2% were vaccinated against Hepatitis B. Tetanus etc. and 75.2% of them had faced infections like Hepatitis B & C, Typhoid, Skin allergies, Ocular infections. During last one year. The overall health situation of sanitary workers was poor, and they were at greater risks of developing serious infections due to lack of awareness and improper use of preventive methods. The study recommends the existing hospital waste management practices should be improved and proper training and awareness should be disseminated among hospital sanitary workers.
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