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. 2022 Nov 7;10(11):2226.
doi: 10.3390/healthcare10112226.

Knowledge and Attitude of First-Aid Treatments for Snakebites, and the Perception of Snakes among the Students of Health Sciences at Jazan University, Saudi Arabia

Saad S Alqahtani  1   2 , David Banji  2   3 , Otilia J F Banji  1   2 , Mamoon H Syed  1   2 , Nabeel Kashan Syed  1   2 , Abdulkarim M Meraya  1   2 , Ahmed A Albarraq  1   2 , Hilal A Thaibah  1   2 , Amani Khardali  1   2 , Ibrahim A Alhomood  2 , Aeshah M Mahzari  2 , Omaymah M Alshlali  2
Affiliations

Knowledge and Attitude of First-Aid Treatments for Snakebites, and the Perception of Snakes among the Students of Health Sciences at Jazan University, Saudi Arabia

Saad S Alqahtani et al. Healthcare (Basel). .

Abstract

First aid is the most basic and life-saving service provided before emergency care is received. This study aimed to assess students' knowledge and attitudes about performing first aid for snakebite emergencies and their perception of snakes. A cross-sectional study was conducted between January and March 2019 among upper-level students (3rd year and above) of health-related courses at Jazan University, Saudi Arabia. Three hundred and nine students from four programs responded to the self-administered questionnaire. The collected data were analyzed using SPSS 23.0. The highest percentage of the study sample comprised pharmacy students (44%), followed by nursing (25.2%), medical (16.8%), and emergency medicine students (13.9%). Overall, the emergency medicine students exhibited greater knowledge of snakebite first aid. However, over three-fourths of the students were unaware of dry bites. Around two-thirds were sure that they should not massage the bite site, while nearly one-fourth were not sure about the use of a tourniquet. The fifth- and sixth-year students had extremely diverse perspectives on snakes. The majority of the participants (92.8%) did not feel good about snakes. However, most of the students (95.2%) wanted to learn about snakebite first aid and overcome their fear of snakes. Overall, the students had a positive attitude towards first aid but lacked knowledge of snakebite emergencies. Public health awareness is required to dispel first-aid myths about snakebites and misconceptions regarding snakes.

Keywords: Saudi Arabia; first aid; perception; snakebite; students; venomous.

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Conflict of interest statement

We declare that we have no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Participants’ perceptions of snakes in the wild.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Participants’ perceptions towards encountering different types of snakes in the wild.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Participants’ perceptions towards encountering different types of snakes in their home or yard.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Methods and new approaches that would increase respect for snakes.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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