Knowledge, Attitude, Confidence, and Barriers in the Practice of Erectile Dysfunction Screening among Primary Health-Care Providers in Taiping Perak, Malaysia

Background: Erectile dysfunction (ED) is a common health problem and has clinical importance. it is well documented that ED is associated with coronary heart disease. However, the practice of ED screening is poor in primary can; settings. Objectives: To asses primary health-cam providers' knowledge and attitude toward ED and to determine the confidence and barriers in the screening of ED. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study using self-administered questionnaires was conducted at 11 government health clinics in Taiping Perak in 2018 involving all health-care providers who run the outpatient and noncommunicable disease unit. SPSS (version 25) statistical package was used to analyze the data. Mann -Whitney U-test, Kruskal-Wallis test, and Chi-square test were employed. Results: A total of 77 primary health-care providers participated in this study. The median age of the participants was 31 years (interquartile range 7). A total of 38 (49.4%) participants scored above the median knowledge. Participants who were doctors, users of clinical practice guide in ED, confident in ED screening, and perceived adequate training scored higher in knowledge (P <= 0.05). Smoking as a cause of ED (98.7%) recorded the highest percentage of correct responses, whereas the prevalence of ED (18.2%) recorded the lowest. All participants perceived ED as an important health issue and felt that proper treatment is required. Only 16 (20.8%) participants had confidence in FD screening practice. Lack of training in ED screening and assessment was the bather that significantly affects the confidence of practice (P = 0.012). Conclusion: The knowledge on ED and confidence in its screening were unsatisfactory among the primary health-care providers. Our work suggests the requirement to equip health-care professionals with adequate training on ED screening assessment, and management for early prevention of cardiovascular disease and improvement of men's quality of life.