Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2023 Dec 13;24(1):267.
doi: 10.1186/s12875-023-02213-3.

Healthcare providers' knowledge and clinical practice surrounding shigellosis - DocStyles Survey, 2020

Julia C Haston #  1   2 , Laura Ford #  3   4 , Kayla L Vanden Esschert  4 , Ian D Plumb  4 , Naeemah Logan  4 , Louise K Francois Watkins  4 , Amanda G Garcia-Williams  4
Affiliations

Healthcare providers' knowledge and clinical practice surrounding shigellosis - DocStyles Survey, 2020

Julia C Haston et al. BMC Prim Care. .

Abstract

Background: Shigellosis is an acute diarrheal disease transmitted through contaminated food, water, objects, poor hand hygiene, or sexual activity. Healthcare providers (HCP) may not be aware of the multiple routes of Shigella transmission, populations at increased risk, or importance of antibiotic susceptibility testing (AST). This study assessed HCP knowledge and clinical practices regarding shigellosis and antibiotic resistance.

Methods: Porter Novelli Public Services administered a web-based survey (Fall DocStyles 2020) to HCP in the United States. Pediatricians, primary care physicians, nurse practitioners, and physician assistants completed questions about knowledge and clinical practice of acute diarrhea and shigellosis.

Results: Of 2196 HCP contacted, 1503 responded (68% response rate). Most identified contaminated food (85%) and water (79%) as routes of Shigella transmission; fewer recognized person-to-person contact (40%) and sexual activity (18%). Men who have sex with men (MSM) were identified as being at risk for shigellosis by 35% of respondents. Most reported counseling patients to wash hands (86%) and avoid food preparation (77%) when ill with shigellosis; 29% reported recommending avoiding sex. Many HCP reported treating shigellosis empirically with ciprofloxacin (62%) and azithromycin (32%), and 29% reported using AST to guide treatment.

Conclusions: We identified several gaps in shigellosis knowledge among HCP including MSM as a risk group, person-to-person transmission, and appropriate antibiotic use. Improving HCP education could prevent the spread of shigellosis, including drug-resistant infections, among vulnerable populations.

Keywords: Health care provider education; Shigella; Transmission.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors whose names are listed on this manuscript certify that they have no affiliations with any organization with a direct or indirect financial interest in the subject matter discussed in the manuscript.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Antibiotics reported to be prescribed for patients with acute diarrhea or shigellosis among healthcare providers. “Acute Diarrhea” category represents only respondents who report seeing at least one patient per week with acute diarrhea and usually prescribe antibiotics (N = 896). “Positive Shigella test” category represents only respondents who report seeing at least one patient with Shigella each month and usually prescribe antibiotics (N = 370)
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Information for Healthcare Professionals (Shigella-Shigellosis). 2021. https://www.cdc.gov/shigella/audience-medical-professionals.html.
    1. Collier SA, Deng L, Adam EA, Benedict KM, Beshearse EM, Blackstock AJ, et al. Estimate of burden and direct healthcare cost of infectious waterborne disease in the United States. Emerg Infect Dis. 2021;27(1):140–149. doi: 10.3201/eid2701.190676. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). National Outbreak Reporting System Dashboard Atlanta, GA: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, CDC. 2021. www.n.cdc.gov/norsdashboard.
    1. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). National Enteric Disease Surveillance: Shigella Annual Report, 2016. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 2018. https://www.cdc.gov/nationalsurveillance/pdfs/LEDS-Shig-2016-REPORT-508.pdf.
    1. Libby T, Clogher P, Wilson E, Oosmanally N, Boyle M, Eikmeier D, et al. Disparities in Shigellosis Incidence by Census Tract Poverty, Crowding, and Race/Ethnicity in the United States, FoodNet, 2004–2014. Open Forum Infect Dis. 2020;7(2):ofaa030. doi: 10.1093/ofid/ofaa030. - DOI - PMC - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources