Rabies: Knowledge and Practices towards Its Prevention & Control among Multi-Purpose Health Workers of A Rural Area of West Bengal

Background: - Rabies is a vaccine preventable zoonotic tropical disease that is neglected, but remained as a serious public health issue in India. It predominantly occurs in rural areas where preventive measures like proper post-exposure prophylaxis & vaccination of dogs are lacking. The study was conducted to see the existing knowledge and practices towards its prevention & control among multi-purpose health workers of a rural area of West- Bengal. Method: a cross sectional descriptive study was carried out among the multi-purpose health workers of Amdanga block of North 24 parganas, a district of West Bengal with the help of pre designed semi structured questionnaire. Data on demographic characteristics of the workers and their knowledge and practices were collected. Result: The acceptable level of knowledge & practices towards prevention & control of rabies in human among the multi-purpose health workers were 51.7% & 72.4% respectively. They were higher amongst those with higher education & previous history of exposure to dog bite. Immediate health seeking advice & washing of wound with soap & water before going to doctor was practiced by 91.4% & 81% of the respondents respectively. Conclusion: Both knowledge & practices towards rabies prevention in human were inadequate among the multipurpose health workers considering the 100% mortality of this disease.