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The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA |
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The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA |
Sarah N. Keller, PhD1, Karen Daley, RN, MPH2, James Hyde, MA, SM3, Richard S. Greif, BS, MBA4, Daniel R. church, MPH5, and Judy Lunedei, BS4. (1) Dept. of Communication, Emerson College, 120 Boylston St., Boston, MA 02116, 617-824-8857, sarah_keller@emerson.edu, (2) Massachusetts Association of Registered Nurses, 52 Copperwood Dr., Stoughton, MA 02072, (3) Department of Family Medicine and Community Health, Tufts University, 136 Harrison Ave., Boston, MA 02111, (4) John Snow, Inc., 44 Farnsworth St., Boston, MA 02210, (5) State Laboratory Institute, Massachusetts Department of Public Health, 305 South Street, Jamaica Plain, MA 02130
A Massachusetts survey of a representative sample of 2,443 licensed nurses in June 2001 revealed that respondents who recalled having received information about hepatitis C reported a greater propensity to counsel patients and use safety equipment. Results indicated a need to improve nurses’ preventive behaviors: 7% (171) - 27% (496) of respondents in direct patient care admitted they do not consistently use safety equipment to protect themselves, and less than half (43%) said they counsel patients about hepatitis C. Yet, most respondents recognized the virus as a serious health threat and 12% (212) said they were ready to discuss it with patients. Seventy percent (1,657) correctly identified hepatitis C as the most common cause of liver transplants and 78% (1,868) correctly identified it as the form of hepatitis not preventable through vaccine. The likelihood of having counseled patients increased with the number of sources of information respondents received: 37% (187) of respondents who received information from only one source had counseled, compared to 61% (80) of those who received five or more sources. The association between information exposure and higher rates of preventive behavior suggest important areas for behavior change communication. The fact that nearly half (42%) of respondents did not recall receiving any hepatitis C information in the last year underscores this need. These findings indicate that nurses may be ideal channels to disseminate hepatitis C information to the general public and high-risk individuals, and that informational strategies of health communication may be effective among nurses.
Learning Objectives:
Keywords: Health Promotion, Disease Prevention
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
Organization/institution whose products or services will be discussed: Massachusetts Department of Public Health
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.