AWARENESS OF OCCUPATIONAL HAZARDS AMONG HEALTHCARE WORKERS IN TEACHING HOSPITALS IN NIGERIA

The study assesses the awareness of occupational hazards among healthcare workers in teaching hospitals in Nigeria. A descriptive research design of survey type was employed in this study. The population of this study consists of twenty-five thousand, five hundred and fifty (25,550) healthcare workers in teaching hospitals in Nigeria. The sample size for this study is three hundred and forty-eight (348), which was selected among healthcare workers at teaching hospitals in Northern Nigeria by using a multi-stage sampling technique. The instrument for data collection was the researcher's designed, structured questionnaire. An inferential statistic of one sample t-test and analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to test the hypothesis at the 0.05 level of significance. The findings of the study revealed that there was significant awareness of occupational hazards among healthcare workers in teaching hospitals in Nigeria (t=118.047, df:339; P=.000) and there is no significant difference in awareness of occupational hazards among healthcare workers in teaching hospitals in Nigeria based on their cadre (F =.591, df = 6,333; P > 0.05). Based on the findings of this study it was concluded that healthcare workers at teaching hospitals in Nigeria are aware of occupational hazards and there was no difference in awareness of occupational hazards among healthcare workers of teaching hospitals in Nigeria based on their cadre. It was therefore recommended, among others, that the Federal Ministry of Health, in partnership with non-governmental organisations, should regularly conduct seminars and workshops for healthcare workers in teaching hospitals across Nigeria. This initiative aims to enhance awareness and adherence to occupational hazards and safety practices, ensuring sustained and effective safety measures.