South Africa recently updated its prevention of mother-to-child transmission (PMTCT) guidelines to match the current evidence in clinical care. The guidelines were renamed the Guideline for Vertical Transmission Prevention (VTP) of Communicable Infections in August 2023. As the guidelines change, healthcare providers’ knowledge is expected to be consistent with current guidelines for effective management. This study aimed to determine the knowledge levels and practices of South African healthcare workers on the VTP guidelines.

The study followed a cross-sectional research design using an 18-mark, online self-administered questionnaire. Purposive sampling was used to select 221 healthcare workers active in South Africa in 2024. Of these, 125 participants had not been formally trained on VTP, while 96 had received formal training. Healthcare workers reported the challenges they face in implementing the guidelines. Suggestions were also welcomed from participants on how the implementation of these guidelines can be improved in their workplaces.

The findings reveal that healthcare worker knowledge levels were high. Doctors had the highest mean score, followed by clinical associates and nurses. One-way analyses of variance conducted reported no significant effects of age, gender, employment sector and years in clinical practice on knowledge scores. Lack of training was cited as the biggest barrier in implementing the guidelines. Respondents suggested having teaching aids in consultation rooms. Additionally, the need for formalised training, appointing more staff and the development of a cell phone application with the guidelines were proposed.