ASSESSMENT OF KNOWLEDGE, ATTITUDES AND PRACTICES (KAP) ON MICROBIOLOGICAL SAFETY AMONG CATTLE ABATTOIR WORKERS IN MALAYSIA

Abstract

Occupational safety and proper meat handling may serve as strategies that can be used to reduce
economic loses in the meat industry. Public health can also be improved if the strategies are
carefully adhered to. A self-administered questionnaire was distributed to cattle abattoir workers
for microbiological safety assessment. The results showed that all the workers have received
various forms of training mostly in occupational safety (90%) while only fifty percent (50%)
were trained on how to store carcass at the appropriate temperature and how to improve on
personal hygiene. Seventy five percent (75%) of workers wear hairnets and ninety percent (90%)
cut their finger nails regularly. Respondents within the age of 41-50 scored the highest (60%)
compared to 21-30(56%) age groups. Statistical analysis performed using Statistical Package for
Social Sciences (SPSS) showed that the mean KAP score was 16.9±2.4 among the workers. The
KAP determined by this study highlighted the need for an improvement of workers knowledge
on microbiological standards in their working place