Knowledge, Attitude, and Perception about Modified Electroconvulsive Therapy among Healthcare Professionals in a Tertiary Care Centre – A Cross-Sectional Study

Suhasini Hubli, Preethi Rioniz, Shwetha C. Poojary, S. Vikram, Karthikaiselvan
Author(s)
1Assistant Professor, Department of Anaesthesiology, K. H. Patil Institute of Medical Sciences, Gadag, Karnataka, India. 2Assistant Professor, Department of Pharmacology, Chikkamagaluru Institute of Medical Sciences, Chikkamagaluru, Karnataka, India. 3Assistant Professor, Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Karwar Institute of Medical Sciences, Karwar, Karnataka, India. 4Assistant Professor, Department of Psychiatry, Koppal Institute of Medical Sciences, Koppal, Karnataka, India. 5Assistant Professor, Department of Psychiatry, K H Patil Institute of Medical Sciences, Gadag, Karnataka, India

Abstract

Background: Despite the rapid progress in somatic modalities and growing evidence for safety, there is still stigma surrounding Modified Electroconvulsive Therapy (mECT), indicating a need to assess knowledge, attitude, and perception among healthcare professionals. The objective is to assess the knowledge, attitude, and perception regarding mECT among healthcare professionals in a tertiary care centre. Material and Methods: After obtaining permission, a questionnaire (QueKAPE) adapted from QuAKE and the Agarwal questionnaire, with Cronbach's alpha α = 0.82, 0.78, and 0.85 on the Knowledge, Attitude, and Perception subscales respectively; sensitivity 88% and specificity 85%, was used to assess knowledge, attitude, and perception about mECT. Data were analysed using IBM SPSS Statistics v22.0. Descriptive statistics were used to summarize categorical data, and Chi-square test and ANOVA were used to test association. Results: Mean scores of Knowledge, Attitude, and Perception (13.60 ± 1.26, 12.60 ± 1.90, and 7.00 ± 2.11) were better among psychiatrists compared to non-psychiatrists, especially nursing staff (4.00 ± 2.53, 10.33 ± 2.42, and 12.83 ± 2.14) with a statistically significant p-value < 0.01. Psychiatrists had better knowledge (ANOVA F = 28.76) and attitude (F = 4.32) compared to other departments. Nursing staff had misperceptions about the procedure (ANOVA F = 19.84). Conclusion: Our study concludes that there is a need to fill the knowledge gap to reduce stigma and prevent delays in treatment. Further, there is a need to address the KAP towards mECT to increase awareness among healthcare professionals.

Keywords: Attitude, knowledge, perception, electroconvulsive therapy, health personnel.

Outline