Abstract

Objective: To assess the attitude of general public towards tracheostomy.
Methodology: 431 individuals were randomly selected and questionnaire was administered after taking informed consent. Questionnaire consisted on demographic data and they were asked questions regarding their attitude towards a person with a tracheostomy and brief knowledge regarding tracheostomy. Data was analyzed by SPSS version 22.
Results: Out of 431 individuals, 364 (84.5%) said that they would feel uncomfortable sitting next to a patient with tracheostomy with the majority citing the reason that tracheostomy patients are contagious (43.4%). Females were less likely to feel comfortable than males (10.3% vs 19.5%) (p=0.009). Formal education appeared to be significantly associated with comfort ability as uneducated participants were least comfortable (6.0%) in comparison to those who has either graduates or had intermediate or less education (13.1% and 21.6%, respectively; p=0.002). Old age (>50 years) participants were significantly less comfortable (5.8) than young and middle aged people (37.2% and 15.2%, respectively; p=0.001). Marital status did not significantly affect comfortability (p=0.34).
Conclusion: This study highlights some important issues regarding refusal of acceptance of a patient with tracheostomy. Misconceptions regarding tracheostomy were common, which in turn lead to delay in treatment and poor patient outcomes. Awareness of general population needs to be addressed to improve tracheostomy outcomes in developing countries like Pakistan.

Key words: Awareness, tracheostomy, general public.