Introduction: The attitudes of healthcare professionals towards people with disabilities (PWDs) condition their health management. Thus, it seems important to characterize these attitudes among different categories of medical and paramedical staff. Our study aimed to measure the attitudes of health professionals towards PWDs encountered both during medical practice and in daily life, and to study the factors that would influence these attitudes.
Materials and Methods: The study was conducted in the major hospitals of the city of Oujda, and targeted physicians, interns and residents, nurses, rehabilitation therapists and auxiliaries. The evaluation of attitudes towards PWDs was performed using the score ATDP, translated and validated in the Moroccan population.
Results: 340 health professionals were included in the study, 12.1% were physicians, 22.4% training physicians, 48.8% nurses, 10.6% therapists, and 6.2% auxiliaries. The average age of the participants was 29.86 +/- 8.4 years. 54.1% were male. They had an average of 5.42 +/- 8.24 years of experience. 58% had disabled people in their close environment. The average score was 64.96 ATDP +/- 12.8. This score was not the demographic parameters such as age, sex, family status or years of experience. Physicians had the highest ATDP score followed by therapists. The score was significantly higher among people with HSP in their own surroundings.
Conclusion: The results observed in our study clearly highlight the need to develop awareness campaigns about the specific needs of PWDs, towards medical and paramedical staff