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Assessment of knowledge and attitude to palliative care among undergraduate clinical physiotherapy students in Nigerian universities
Abstract
Background: Developing special skills and expertise for Palliative care (PC) begins with the right attitude and adequate knowledge during the training of various healthcare providers. Little is known about the knowledge and attitude of physiotherapists in training to PC. This study aimed to assess the knowledge and attitude of undergraduate clinical physiotherapy students in Nigerian universities towards PC. Materials and Method: This was a cross-sectional survey conducted with 281 students from 10 purposively selected universities across Nigeria. Knowledge regarding PC was measured using a structured questionnaire on knowledge of PC, while attitudes were assessed using the FROMMELT Attitude Towards Care of the Dying Scale (FATCOD). The questionnaires were administered online via Google Forms. The socio-demographic data of the respondents were also collected. The data obtained were analysed using descriptive and inferential statistics. The level of significance was set at p<0.05. Results: Majority of respondents were males (53%), aged 21-25 years (87.9%), in the 4th year of study (50.9%), and from south-western Nigeria (61.9%). Over 40% are from Obafemi Awolowo University and had above-average knowledge (62%). Almost all (99.6%) of the respondents displayed a favourable attitude towards PC. There were significant associations between knowledge and university of training of respondents (p=0.001), and between attitude and age (p=0.003) and geopolitical zone of origin (p=0.006) of respondents. There was also a significant correlation between knowledge and attitude of respondents (r =0.441, p =0.001). Conclusion: Clinical physiotherapy undergraduates in Nigerian universities demonstrated above-average knowledge and positive attitudes towards PC. This may imply that these future physiotherapists are likely to contribute positively to multidisciplinary PC teams, and suggest a readiness to advocate for and expand PC services in the country.
