Abstract

AWARENESS AND KNOWLEDGE OF ATTENTION DEFICIT HYPERACTIVITY DISORDER AMONG PRIMARY SCHOOL TEACHERS

Abdulrahman Mohammed Alwahbi*, Fahad Al Maathm, Abdulmajeed Ali Alrasheed, Saleh Mohammed Al-Buti, Omar Abdulrahman Al-Tasan, Adnan
Khalifah AlKhalifah, Abdullah Khalid Al-Jadi, Ali Khalid Alsugair and Majed Saud
Almutairi

Abstract

Background: School teachers play an important role in the assessment of children’s behaviors, and have been considered one of the most valuable sources of information with regard to the diagnosis of ADHD. Objectives: To assess primary school teachers’ knowledge of the symptoms and management of children with ADHD. Subjects and methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in Al-Qassim Region, Saudi Arabia during 2015-2016included a representative random sample primary school teachers. Self-administered questionnaire was utilized for data collection included the Knowledge of Attention Deficit Disorder Scale (KADDS) in addition to sociodemographic and work-related questions. Results: The study included 255 teachers. More than half of them (57.3%) were males and having Bachelor degree (55.3%). About one-third of them have been read or attended awareness courses about ADHD among students (31.4%). Overall adequate ADHD knowledge was reported among only 11% of the teachers. The only significant factor associated with ADHD knowledge among teachers was their teaching experience as the highest rate of adequate knowledge was reported among teaches who has experience between 15 and 19 years in teaching (19.5%). Followed by those who had 4 years or less in teaching (18.9%) whereas the lowest rate was reported among teachers of 20 years or more of experience in teaching (4.6%), p=0.033. Conclusion: We observed an inadequacy of knowledge regarding ADHD among primary school teachers in AlQasim. This inadequacy of knowledge raises serious questions about the screening of ADHD at the level of primary schools in AlQasim.

Keywords: ADHD, Knowledge, primary schools, teachers.