Background: Healthcare practitioners need a robust understanding of Neurodevelopmental Disorders (NDDs), a diverse group affecting an individual's emotion, learning ability, self-control, and memory, with lifelong consequences.

Objective: To assess the level of knowledge and attitudes regarding childhood neurodevelopmental disorders among doctors, nurses and other allied healthcare professionals in a tertiary care hospital using a questionnaire based online survey.

Methods: A 10-domain questionnaire, comprising yes/no and open-ended questions, was distributed online via WhatsApp and email to 400 health care professionals at a tertiary care institute, of which 309 responded, including 107 doctors, 102 nurses, and 100 other professionals.

Results: The mean score of all the participants for the questions pertaining to autism, cerebral palsy, epilepsy, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, specific learning disability, hearing impairment and vision impairment was 40.5±5.1 with a maximum possible score of 56. The mean scores for the individual groups of Doctors, Nurses and Other Health Professionals for these disorders were 42.9±5.4, 39.9±4.3 and 38.3±4.3 respectively. The knowledge levels were observed to be significantly different between doctors and nurses in the autism (p=0.009), cerebral palsy (p=0.028) and epilepsy (p< 0.001).

Conclusions: Significant knowledge gaps persist in the treatment and misconceptions related to Neurodevelopmental Disorders (NDDs) among healthcare professionals at a reputable tertiary care hospital. Merely 70% of participants responded accurately, potentially causing delays in diagnosis, referral, and subsequent treatment initiation, resulting in poor prognoses. Addressing this issue requires enhancing the knowledge of healthcare professionals across all levels, from primary to tertiary care, necessitating regular workshops.

Snikitha Tummala
All India Institute of Medical Sciences
India

Gautam Kamila
All India Institute of Medical Sciences
India

Sheffali Gulati
All India Institute of Medical Sciences
India