Knowledge, attitude and practice of blood donation among health professions students in Saudi Arabia; A cross-sectional study

Introduction: World Health Organization advocates that 3-5% of the population should donate blood yearly. However, the donors in Saudi Arabia (SA) in 2011 represented 1.46% of the population. This study aimed to assess knowledge, attitude and practice concerning voluntary blood donation among health...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Mohammed A Alsalmi, Hani M Almalki, Abdulrahman A Alghamdi, Badr A Aljasir
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Wolters Kluwer Medknow Publications 2019-01-01
Series:Journal of Family Medicine and Primary Care
Subjects:
Online Access:http://www.jfmpc.com/article.asp?issn=2249-4863;year=2019;volume=8;issue=7;spage=2322;epage=2327;aulast=Alsalmi
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Summary:Introduction: World Health Organization advocates that 3-5% of the population should donate blood yearly. However, the donors in Saudi Arabia (SA) in 2011 represented 1.46% of the population. This study aimed to assess knowledge, attitude and practice concerning voluntary blood donation among health professions students in Saudi Arabia and to determine the associated factors. Methods: This is a cross sectional study on 598 students. Chi-square and Fisher tests were used to analyze the significant association of blood donation and influencing factors. Results: Majority of respondents (360; 60.2%) showed sufficient knowledge regrading blood donation. A total of 593 participants (99.2%) believed that blood donation is important for the community. Around 180 (30.1%) of the respondents have donated blood before. Out of the participants, 422 students (70.6%) reported that they did not take any courses concerning blood donation in their colleges. However, 502 (83.9%) showed a high willingness to donate blood if their colleges organize a blood donation camp within campus. There was a significant association between knowledge level, current academic level and gender with practice of blood donation. Conclusion: Saudi health professions colleges' role in promoting blood donation was notably missed. Students showed high willingness to donate blood if a blood camp was organized within the campus. The implementation of encouragement campaigns and educational sessions within the campus will have a great effect on blood donation.
ISSN:2249-4863