Reliability and Validity Testing of the Occupational Exposure Risk Awareness Scale (OERAS) for Medical Personnel in Disinfection Supply Centers.

Background: Medical personnel working in hospital disinfection and supply centers face high levels of occupational exposure to biological, chemical, and physical hazards. Assessing their awareness of these risks is essential for preventing workplace injuries and improving safety behavior. This study aimed to develop and validate the Occupational Exposure Risk Awareness Scale (OERAS) for healthcare workers in such settings. Methods: A cross-sectional psychometric validation study was conducted among 959 medical staff from disinfection and supply centers in Jiangsu Province, China. The 20-item OERAS was developed through literature review, expert consultation, and pilot testing, and it comprised four dimensions: Occupational Exposure Knowledge, Protection Measures, Incident Response, Training and Education. Internal consistency, test-retest reliability, split-half reliability, content validity, construct validity, and criterion-related validity were analyzed using SPSS 26.0 and AMOS 24.0. Results: The OERAS demonstrated high reliability, with Cronbach's α = 0.85 for the total scale, Spearman's ρ = 0.83 for test-retest reliability, and a split-half coefficient of 0.81. Content validity was excellent (mean CVI = 0.88). Exploratory factor analysis extracted four factors explaining 62.8% of total variance, while confirmatory factor analysis confirmed good model fit (CFI = 0.93, TLI = 0.91, RMSEA = 0.05). Criterion validity showed a significant but low/moderate correlation (ρ = 0.42, p < 0.001) with an external safety knowledge test. Conclusion: The corrected OERAS exhibits strong internal reliability and construct validity, making it a robust and practical tool for measuring occupational exposure risk awareness among medical personnel. Although criterion validity was low/moderate, this reflects that awareness and knowledge are related yet distinct constructs. The OERAS can support targeted training and policy interventions to enhance occupational safety in healthcare environments.