N . Shubayr : Radioprotection 2024 , 59 ( 2 ), 138 – 143 139
or comfort of RPE , a lack of understanding of the risks associated with radiation exposure , or the perception that RPE is unnecessary for certain procedures . Additionally , some radiologic technologists may feel pressured to prioritize patient care over their own safety and may perceive RPE as hindering their ability to provide care ( Mc Fadden et al ., 2022 ; European Society of R . et al ., 2019 ). Also , previous studies from Saudi Arabia reported a higher radiation doses received by radiologic technologists in fluoroscopy units than other departments ( Shubayr et al ., 2021b ; Shubayr et al ., 2021a ).
The Champion ’ s Health Belief Model Scale ( HBM ) is a tool used to assess health perceptions and behaviors related to specific health issues ( Champion et al ., 2008 ). The scale includes six domains : “ perceived susceptibility to a health issue , perceived severity of the health issue , perceived benefits of taking action to address the health issue , perceived barriers to taking action , cues to action , and self-efficacy ” ( Champion et al ., 2008 ). Employing the HBM in the context of using RPE can help to assess the perceptions of radiologic technologists towards RPE usage . By understanding the perceptions of radiologic technologists regarding the susceptibility and severity of potential radiation exposure , the benefits of RPE usage , and the barriers to its implementation , RDs can develop targeted interventions to improve RPE compliance . This assessment can also help to identify cues to action and increase self-efficacy , which can lead to more effective implementation of RPE protocols .
The HBM has been applied to understand adherence to COVID-19 prevention practices among the general public and health care workers ( Zewdie et al ., 2022 ; Tong et al ., 2020 ; Lee et al ., 2022 ). Moreover , the HBM has been applied to largescale factory workers ( Tessema et al ., 2022 ), farmers ( Abdollahzadeh et al ., 2021 ), waste water workers ( Wright et al ., 2019 ), sugarcane factory workers ( Panakobkit et al ., 2019 ), among others . However , there is a lack of research that employs the HBM constructs for RPE use among radiologic technologists . A possible reason for the lack of studies using the HBM to study RPE use among radiologic technologists is that RPE use is considered a mandatory and regulated practice in most countries , and not a voluntary or optional behavior . Therefore , radiologic technologists may not have much choice or autonomy in using RPE , and their beliefs or perceptions may not play a significant role in their RPE use . However , this assumption may not be valid in all contexts , as there may be variations in the availability , quality , accessibility , and compliance of RPE among different settings and countries . Moreover , radiologic technologists may have different levels of knowledge , awareness , motivation , and confidence in using RPE effectively and consistently . Therefore , it may be useful to apply the HBM to understand the factors that influence RPE use among radiologic technologists and identify potential gaps or barriers that need to be addressed . Therefore , the aim of this study is to assess the perceptions of radiologic technologists towards the use of RPE in RDs using the HBM and to identify the HBM constructs that predict RPE utilization among radiologic technologists . The results of the study will help identify areas where education and training can be targeted to improve adherence to RPE usage and reduce radiation exposure risks .
2 Materials and methods
2.1 . Population , sampling and study area
A cross-sectional observational study was conducted from June 2022 to February 2023 in Saudi Arabia . The study focused on radiologic technologists working in various hospitals and medical centres across the country . The minimal sample size of 130 participants was determined using G * Power software based on independent samples t-test , considering an effect size of 0.15 , a p-value of 0.05 , and a power of 95 %. A simple random sampling method was employed to select the participants . To gather data , an online survey was created using Google Forms . The survey link was distributed to radiologic technologists by their supervisors , who facilitated communication and distribution through email and social media platforms such as WhatsApp . A total of 228 questionnaires were collected and used for subsequent analysis .
2.2 Ethical considerations
This study was approved by the ethical committee at Jazan University . The participant ’ s consent was taken at the beginning of the survey . The data obtained were only used for research purposes .
2.3 Data collection tools
Data were collected using a self-administered structured questionnaire that include three sections . The first section comprised the socio-demographic items , including gender , age , marital status , education level , type of hospital , and work experience . The second section included an item about how radiologic technologists committed to RPE utilization in their daily practices in RDs with two options for response , full committed or not fully committed . The third section addressed the HBM for RPE utilization using a five-point Likert-type scale ( strongly disagree , disagree , neutral , agree , strongly agree )( Moreira et al ., 2020 ). The HBM scale used in this study consisted of a total of 39 items related to radiography occupation . These items were categorized as follows : ( 1 ) Perceived susceptibility of occupational-related health problems ( six items that assessed individuals ’ perception of their vulnerability to experiencing health issues related to radiography occupation ), ( 2 ) Perceived severity of occupational-related health problems ( seven items that aimed to measure individuals ’ perception of the seriousness or impact of occupational-related health problems ), ( 3 ) Perceived benefits of using RPE ( four items that assessed individuals ’ beliefs about the advantages or positive outcomes associated with the use of RPE ), ( 4 ) Perceived barriers to using RPE ( seven items that explored the obstacles or challenges individuals perceived when it came to using RPE ), ( 5 ) Cues to action of using RPE ( nine items that assessed the various prompts or triggers that could motivate individuals to use RPE ), ( 6 ) Perceived selfefficacy of using RPE ( six items that aimed to measure individuals ’ confidence in their ability to effectively use RPE ). To assess the viability and relevance of the questionnaire ,