KNOWLEDGE ATTITUDE AND PRACTICE OF PSYCHOLOGICAL FIRST AID AMONG HEALTH PROFESSIONALS WORKING IN ACCIDENT & EMERGENCY DEPARTMENT IN BRUNEI DARUSSALAM

Abstract

Background: Mental health is an important and integral factor of health. Psychological first aid (PFA) is seen as a beneficial treatment in the long run in order to make sure that any individual who is undergoing acute stress due to a disaster, emergency or crisis is able to receive basic support. This study was done to determine the proportion of PFA among emergency health professionals in Brunei Darussalam and assess their knowledge and attitude towards PFA practice. Methods: A cross-sectional survey study was conducted among emergency health professionals in Brunei Darussalam from end of May to early June 2017. Pilot testing was done prior to handing out interview-assisted, self-administered questionnaires to the study population. Descriptive statistics was performed by SPSS version 19. Results: A total sample of 123 health professionals working in the emergency department responded to the questionnaire. None of the emergency health professionals received PFA training, however, 39.0% had moderate level of knowledge, 42.3% had positive attitude towards PFA and 51.2% practice PFA on a moderate level. 48.3% claimed to have performed PFA at least once in their professional life. Conclusion: This study found moderate level of knowledge and practice of PFA among health professionals. Further research will be required to measure the skills of staff and outcome of PFA.