Knowledge, attitude and practice of travel medicine among primary care physicians in Oman: the need for intervention

Oman is witnessing an increase in outbound and inbound travelers. This study was undertaken to assess the current knowledge, attitude, and practice of travel medicine among primary care physicians (PCPs) working in the Muscat Governorate. We conducted a cross-sectional survey of 108 primary healthcare physicians in primary healthcare institutions in the Muscat Governorate in December 2014 using a self-administered questionnaire. We had a response rate of 81%, 78% (n = 84) were females, 56.5% (n= 61) were Omani nationals. More than 50% (n= 54) of study participants had been in practice for more than 8 years. Sixty-eight (58.3%) reported having pre-travel consultations during the previous 1-month period and 86 (79.6%) had post-travel consultations. Most of the PCPs were aware of the issues that needed to be addressed in pre-travel consultation. This study showed that travel health is in an early stage of development in Oman and supports the need for the establishment of travel medicine services.