Sickle cell screening among health workers in Tororo District, Uganda

Introduction: Tororo has a high prevalence (19.6%) of sickle cell trait compared to the national prevalence of 13.3%. In 2016, the Ministry of Health, Uganda rolled out a Sickle Cell Screening Programme (SCSP) for the new born children among health workers (HW) in Tororo district. Training focused on screening, diagnosis and management of sickle cell disease. We assessed HW¿s knowledge, attitude and practices towards SC screening 2 years following the roll out of the SCSP. Methods: A cross sectional survey was conducted in June, 2018 among 180 HWs randomly selected from all (38) public health facilities. Knowledge was determined using 10 items from Uganda national sickle cell guidelines and data considered good for scores above 6 and poor for scores below 6. Attitude of HWs and practice on SC screening was explored through interviews conducted with 10 key informants and 10 in-depth interviewees. Sickle cell screening practice was based on 4 practice questions.