RISK PERCEPTION OF HEALTHCARE WORKERS ON HEPATITIS 'B' AND ATTITUDE TOWARDS THE UPTAKE OF ITS VACCINE IN SELECTED HOSPITALS IN IBADAN, OYO STATE, NIGERIA

ABSTRACT The World Health Organization, WHO, estimates that 296 million people were living with chronic hepatitis B infection in 2019, which resulted in 1.5 million new infections each year, and resulted in an estimated 820,000 deaths. Healthcare workers are a high-risk group in terms of exposure to HBV; thus, the observance of the universal safety precautions and vaccination of people at risk is vital. The main objective of this study is to determine the risk perception of healthcare workers on Hepatitis ‘B’ and their attitudes towards the uptake of its vaccine in selected hospitals in Ibadan, Oyo State, Nigeria. The research design for this study is a descriptive survey, and the study population comprises health workers from Adeoyo Maternity Teaching Hospital, Yemetu, and the University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan, Oyo State, Nigeria. A well-structured Likert scale questionnaire was used for the study, and 240 health workers, which include doctors, nurses, medical laboratory personnel, and community health extension workers, were selected for the study using sample random sampling and proportionate sampling techniques. The collected data was collated and sorted using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) software. A frequency count and simple percentage were used for the research questions while a Chi-square and ANOVA analysis was carried out on the hypotheses at 0.05 level of significance. The findingsshow that Healthcare professionals in both health facilities,UCH, and Adeoyo Maternity Hospital,have heard of or seen colleagues having hepatitis, while doctors and nurses are the two categories of healthcare professionals that are mostly affected byhepatitis ‘B’ infection. Healthcare professionals show a positive attitude towards the uptake of hepatitis ‘B’ vaccination, approve, and strongly believe that hand washing, wearing of masks, eye protection, use of personal protective equipment, and a safe system for hospital waste management and disposal are helpful practices in reducing the spread of hepatitis ‘B’ among healthcare workers. Other positive attitudes expressed by healthcare professionals include early immunization of healthcare professionals, pre-vaccination serological testing, use of 0, 1, and 6-month schedules for vaccination against hepatitis ‘B’, and post-vaccination testing. Attitude to adherence to preventive precautions against infectious diseases is positive. Healthcare professionals affirmatively opined that