Knowledge, attitude, and practices toward tobacco control among rural community health care workers of primary subcenters in Belagavi district, Karnataka

CONTEXT: Tobacco is the common cause to a number of illnesses affecting millions of individuals all over the world. Primary care physicians are the initial point of contact for tobacco users, yet reaching everyone is impossible. Therefore, it is important to understand community health workers attitude to render community services in tobacco cessation counseling. AIM: To assess knowledge, attitude, practices, and occupational barriers toward tobacco control among community health care workers in Belagavi district, Karnataka. SETTINGS AND DESIGN: This cross-sectional study was conducted in various subcenters of Belagavi district, Karnataka. METHODS AND MATERIAL: Simple random sampling technique was employed and 220 participants were interviewed using an interviewer administered questionnaire comprising of 22 close ended questions. Reliability of the questionnaire assessed with Cronbach’s a value of 0.85, face validity 84%, and content validity ratio 0.78. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS USED: The data were analyzed using descriptive analysis, chi square analysis, correlation, and regression. RESULTS: The mean knowledge score among Accredited Social Health Activist (ASHA) workers was 4.77 ± 2.11 and it was lower in Anganwadi workers 2.93 ± 2.55. There was a statistically significant difference in the attitude scores (P < 0.05) between the community health workers. The majority of the ASHA workers would spread awareness, on the other hand, Anganwadi workers did not take any specific step which showed statistically significant difference with a P value of 0.018. CONCLUSION: ASHA workers had been superior to Anganwadi workers with regard to knowledge and attitude toward tobacco control. However, knowledge regarding tobacco and its ill effects was below optimal level among community health workers which desires to thoroughly educate in the aspects of oral health and disorders as part of their training.