Knowledge, attitude and practices towards surgical wound care and healing among the public in the Jazan Region, Saudi Arabia

Abstract

The purpose of this research was to evaluate how much the people in the Jazan region know about the care and healing of surgical wounds. Proper care of surgical wounds is very important to achieve the best treatment outcomes and to avoid negative consequences. However, factors like obesity, diabetes, and certain medications can impair wound healing, with surgical site infections being a major problem in the healthcare system. Therefore, this study aimed to determine public awareness and perceptions of surgical wound care to help improve education and raise awareness of the importance of proper wound care for better results. We run an observational cross-sectional study among adults above 18 years in the Jazan region. An online self-administered questionnaire was used in the collection of data. Simple random sampling was the used technique and 384 participants were calculated. The study used Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) for data analysis and employed descriptive statistics, independent t test, Analysis of Variance (ANOVA), Pearson’s correlation, and multivariate logistic regression to identify factors associated with knowledge of surgical site infection and wound care. This study analyzed 599 participants’ knowledge, attitude, and practice about surgical site infection and wound management. While participants had a strong general understanding of surgical wounds, only 17% had a high degree of knowledge about surgical site infection and wound management. Medical students had the highest degree of knowledge, and being a medical student was the only significant predictor of having a high level of knowledge about surgical site infection (SSI) and wound care. The study emphasizes the necessity of enhanced patient education and investment in medical education quality. The participants in this study had high overall knowledge regarding surgical wounds but lacked particular knowledge concerning surgical site infection and wound management. Medical education was discovered to be a strong predictor of having a high level of knowledge about surgical site infection and wound management. Healthcare professionals should take the lead in giving accurate and reliable information regarding wound care techniques to patients, and legislators should invest in enhancing medical education quality.