Survey on Knowledge of First Aid Management of Burns Amongst Medical and Non-medical Students in Karachi, Pakistan: Need for an Educational Intervention?

Abstract

Background: Burn related injuries (BRIs) are relatively common, mostly accidental, and highly preventable forms of injury. First aid management of BRIs can have a significant impact on the outcome and morbidity of these injuries, yet there seems to be an inadequacy in the knowledge related to burn management worldwide. Hence, our study aimed to delineate the level of knowledge and awareness of burn first aid treatment (BFAT) amongst undergraduate students, and the impact training courses had on that knowledge. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted by employing undergraduate medical and nonmedical students from various universities of Karachi, Pakistan. By means of convenience sampling, 400 students were sent online, structured questionnaires. The analysis was conducted using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS version 23.0, IBM Corp., Armonk, NY, US), and associations calculated through t-tests. A mean knowledge score was calculated to assess the participant's adequacy of knowledge regarding BFAT.Results: Medical students had a better knowledge score than their non-medical counterparts (5.8 ± 1.6 versus 3.6 ± 1.5, P < 0.01), however, overall knowledge of BFAT remained inadequate amongst participants. Students who received formal training scored a higher mean knowledge score than the majority of students with no training (P < 0.01). Conclusion:The majority of students had insufficient overall knowledge about BFAT, highlighting the need for integrating this topic into the curriculum. In addition, education of the masses via multimedia and conducting formal training courses, are both imperative in raising awareness and reducing the occurrence of BRIs.

Assessing Knowledge of First Aid Management of Burns Amongst Syrian Private University Students.

“…In addition to the low knowledge scores in general, in our study there were no statistical differences between medical and non-medical colleges, this result is opposite to each of the studies conducted in both Pakistan and Saudi Arabia [14,24], but this does not deviate from the general trend of health care workers who have insu cient knowledge of rst aid for burns [8,9].…”

“…Our study also highlights that for students, educational institutions to which they belonged (32.4%) were the main source of information for knowledge related to rst aid for burns, followed by workshops and the Internet, and this is consistent with the results of other studies [14]. With this in mind, the internet should also be used to impart knowledge related to BFAT and rst aid in general to the younger generation, as they are more inclined to use social media platforms rather than traditional methods as sources of information such as television and radio.…”

“…Regarding the maneuver "stop, throw oneself on the ground, and roll" in case the clothes caught re, we found that (41.7%) answered correctly in our study compared to the results of a study conducted on medical students in Pakistan where (73%) of the students answered correctly [14].…”

Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices toward First Aid Management of Skin Burns in Saudi Arabia

“…Though studies showed that using honey does not effectively reduce the extent of burn of the affected tissue, recently, it has been reported that silver sulfadiazine, along with honey, is effective in burn wound healing [ 18 ]. Most studies have shown a lack of knowledge of burn first aid in groups such as medical students and healthcare workers in the United Kingdom, the Saudi population, students in Nigeria, and adults in Australia [ 19 ]. In Saudi pediatric health care professionals, Alomar et al 2016 [ 20 ] found that only 41% were aware of using cold water as an aid to burn wounds, only 15% had burn first-aid training, and only 3% knew the appropriate duration of cold-water use.…”

Burn first aid issues again—“Not seeing the forest for the trees”

“…The impetus to improve public education and compliance with burn first aid recommendations remains omnipresent on a global scale if further increases in preventable burn injuries are to be avoided [ [32] , [33] , [34] , [35] ]. This cannot occur without broader efforts to clearly define and establish universal parameters for burn first aid.…”