A Study Of The Common Occupational Hazards Affecting Dental Manpower In Khartoum State- Sudan

Abstract

Dental manpower in Sudan is increasing in number in the last twenty years. Like dental manpower elsewhere in the world, they are subjected to various occupational hazards at the workplace. The present investigation was designed to study common occupational hazards facing dental manpower in Khartoum state- Sudan. About Sixty-three dental auxiliaries including nurses, technicians and assistants who work in the dental clinics in Khartoum state were included in the study. The manpower sample representing workers in clinics were randomly selected from lists prepared by the health authorities concerned. The data was collected by means of two methods: interviews and observation; using special form and a pre-coded questionnaire. Analysis of results revealed that 79.4% of the respondents were males, 73.0% had an undergraduate degree only. The results also indicates the high knowledge of the respondents (95.9%) about biological hazards, 94.1% about physical hazards, 77.7% about chemical hazards, and 66.7% about psychological hazards. The acceptance of protective tools and sterilization was poor (61.9% & 55.6% respectively). The results indicated that the knowledge of the dental manpower vi included in the study about professional hazards was not reflected as behavior The researcher suggested some recommendations to avoid the occupation hazards among dental manpower including dentists and assistant through proper proactive and generate public awareness.