KNOWLEDGE, ATTITUDE AND PRACTICE (KAP) OF PRIMARY HEALTH CARE PHYSICIANS AND NURSES TOWARDS HYPERTENSION: A STUDY FROM DAMMAM, SAUDI ARABIA

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the quality of management of hypertensive patients attending Primary Health Care Center (PHC) in Dammam city and to determine factors that possibly affect it. DESIGN: A cross sectional study and direct interview. SETTING: Dammam city. SUBJECTS: All doctors and nurses from a randomly selected sample of Primary Health Care Centers during April 1994. MAIN MEASURES: Measuring the knowledge, attitude and practice of doctors and nurses about hypertension management. RESULTS: Hypertension is regarded as an important health problem in Saudi Arabia in the opinion of majority of doctors (80′0) and nurses (69%). Almost half of the doctors and nurses believe that nurses are sufficiently qualified to measure blood pressure of patients. Most of the doctors (96.7%) and nurses (86%) depend merely on face-to-face education of patients Thirty percent of doctors and 34% of nurses think that the care for hypertensive patients in their Primary Health Care Centers is inadequate. CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS: Offering on job training of both physicians and nurses on hypertension management. Producing a well planned protocol on the national level. Implementing a total quality management and medical audit system to PHC centers.