Knowledge, attitudes, and practices of Florida physicians regarding dengue before and after an educational intervention

BACKGROUND: Failure to recognize and appropriately manage dengue early in the clinical course may result in late initiation of supportive treatment for severe disease. In Florida, travel-related and autochthonous dengue occur and are likely under-recognized. The objective of this study was to evaluate physician knowledge of dengue and its management before and after an educational intervention in Florida. METHODS: From 2012–13 we conducted 14 grand-rounds style lectures on dengue clinical management attended by 413 physicians, and analyzed data from the pre- and post-tests. RESULTS: Of those attending, 231 and 220 completed the pre-and post-tests, respectively. Overall, the mean pre-test score for knowledge-based questions was 74.3 and average post-test score was 94.2 %, indicating a mean increase of 19.9 % (P < 0.0001, 95 % CI 17.7–22.4). Reported confidence in dengue recognition and management also increased. Non-US trained physicians and those who had treated more than ten dengue cases performed significantly better in the pre-test. Post-test scores did not differ by subgroup. CONCLUSIONS: The train-the-trainer approach with grand-rounds style presentations appear to be an effective intervention to improve knowledge of dengue among physicians.