Determinants of knowledge, attitude, and practice towards first aid among kindergarten and elementary school teachers in Gondar city, Northwest Ethiopia

BACKGROUND: Injuries continue to be an important cause of morbidity and mortality in the developed and developing world. School-age children are more likely to experience unintentional injuries in the school, while they are playing and teachers are the primarily responsible body for keeping the welfare of the students. Knowing the knowledge, attitude, and practice of kindergarten and elementary school teachers towards first aid will be used as an input for policymakers to intervene and provide training. Therefore, this study was aimed to assess knowledge, attitude, practice, and associated factors towards first aid among kindergarten and elementary school teachers in Gondar city, Northwest Ethiopia, 2021. METHODS: An institution-based cross-sectional study was conducted from January 01 to 20, 2021. A simple random sampling technique was employed to recruit 346 participants. A structured pretested self-administered questionnaire was used to collect data. Data were entered in Epi-info version 7, analyzed using SPSS version 21, and presented by frequencies, percentages, tables, and graphs. Bivariable relationships between the independent and outcome variable were investigated using a binary logistic regression model and a multivariable analysis was run to control potential confounding factors. Variables with a p-value < 0.05 were considered as factors significantly associated and the strength of association was determined using an odds ratio with a 95% CI. RESULTS: Only 41.1% of the teachers had good knowledge of first aid. Nearly two-thirds (64.8%) of the teachers had a favorable attitude towards first aid. The majority (85.8%) of the teachers who faced a child in need of first aid in their school gave first aid. Factors like working experience [AOR: 2.45; 95% CI (1.26, 4.73)], school level [AOR: 4.72; 95% CI (1.96, 11.4)], school type [AOR: 4.23; 95% CI (2.07, 8.64)], and having information about first aid [AOR: 2.09; 95% CI (1.11, 3.92)] were significantly associated with knowledge. School-level [AOR = 5.4, 95% CI (2.18–11.67)], school type [AOR = 0.45, 95% CI (0.21–0.94)], and working experience [AOR = 0.33, 95% CI (0.13–0.86)] were the factors significantly associated with attitude. CONCLUSION: Less than half and nearly two-thirds of the teachers had good knowledge and a favorable attitude towards first aid. The majority of the teachers who encountered a child in need of first aid gave first aid. Having higher working experience, working in elementary and private schools, and having previous information increases the odds of having good knowledge. Teachers who work in elementary and private schools and have the lower working experience had higher odds of favorable attitude towards first aid. It is better to give attention to the training of staff on first aid specifically for teachers working in kindergarten and governmental schools and new employees and consider integrating first aid in teachers’ training curriculum.