Short Communication Knowledge and Perception of Health ...
Transcript of Short Communication Knowledge and Perception of Health ...
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ShortCommunication
KnowledgeandPerceptionofHealthCareWorkersRegardingCOVID-19in
DifferentPartsofGujaratState1 1 2 3
DishaPatel ,BelaPatel ,NareshMakwana ,DipeshParmar1 2 3JuniorResident, Professor, Professor&Head,DepartmentofCommunityMedicine,ShreeM.P.ShahGovt.
MedicalCollege,Jamnagar,Gujarat,India
Correspondence:Dr.DishaPatel,Email:[email protected]
Accessthisarticleonline
Website:
www.healthlinejournal.org
DOI:
10.51957/Healthline_185.1_2020
QuickResponseCode Howtocitethisarticle:
PatelD,PatelB, MakwanaN,ParmarD.Knowledge
and Perception of Health Care Workers Regarding
COVID-19 in Different Parts of Gujarat State.
Healthline.2021;12(2):54-57.
Abstract:
Introduction:TheWorldHealthOrganizationdeclaredthe2019–20coronavirusoutbreakaPublic
HealthEmergencyofInternationalConcern(PHEIC)on30January2020andapandemicon11March2020.
Apoorunderstandingofthediseaseamonghealthcareworkersmayimplicateindelayedtreatmentandthe
rapidspreadofinfection.Objective:Toknowtheperceptionandknowledgeofthehealthcareworkersin
differentdistrictsofGujaratstateabouttheCOVID19.Method:Acrosssectionalwebbasedsurveywas
conductedamongthe104healthcareworkersworkingindifferentdistrictsofGujaratduringthemonthof
April2020.WhatsAppandTelegrambasedquestionnairewassenttoeachparticipantandtheirresponse
wasrecorded.DatawasenteredinMicrosoftExcel2016andwasanalysedbyapplyingvariousstatistical
testusingSPSSversion25.Results:Outof104participants,46.15%and53.85%weremaleandfemale
respectively. Mean age of participants was 26.40 years. Majority participants were from Saurashtra-
Kutch(36.54%) followed by central Gujarat(28.85%) and north Gujarat(23.08%). Out of 63 who had
receivedtrainingofbasiccourseinCOVID-19,only27wereabletogivecorrectansweraboutcriteriafor
dischargeofpatient.Conclusion:HCWsinourstudyarehavinggoodknowledgeregardingCOVID19.They
are aware of themeasures needed to be taken to reduce the spreadof the disease.HCWswereusing
authenticsourcesforinformation;thisultimatelyaffectsknowledgeandisreflectedinattitudeandpractice.
Keywords:Perception,Knowledge,Healthcareworker,COVID19
Introduction:
Coronavirus (CoV) infections are emerging
respiratoryviruses thatareknown to cause illness
ranging from the common cold to severe acute[1]respiratorysyndrome (SARS). Multipleepidemic
outbreaks occurred in 2002 (SARS), with
approximately800deaths, and in 2012 (Middle
East respiratory syndrome coronavirus, MERS-[2,3]
CoV),with 860 deaths. About 8 years after the
MERS-CoV epidemic, the current outbreak of
coronavirusdisease2019(COVID-19)inWuhanCity,
HubeiProvince, China, has emerged as a global
[4]outbreak and significant public health issue. On
January 30, 2020, theWorld Health Organization
(WHO)declaredCOVID-19apublichealthemergency[5]
ofinternationalconcern. Astonishingly,duringthe
first week ofMarch, a devastating number of new
cases were reported globally, and COVID-19
emerged asapandemic.AsofJune15,2020,more
than3,00,000confirmedcases in Indiahad been[6]
reported. Therouteoftransmissionarerespiratory
droplets, close contact with an infected person
throughoral,nasal, andmucousmembranesof the[7]
eye, including through fomites. The first case of
HealthlineJournalVolume12Issue2(April-June2021)
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COVID-19inIndia,whichoriginatedfromChina,was
reportedon30January2020.Asof5June2020,the
MOH&FW has confirmed a total of 226,770 cases,[8]109,462recoveriesand6,348deathsinthecountry.
India'scasefatalityrateisrelativelylowerat2.80%,[9]
againsttheglobal6.13%,asof3June2020. Ongoing
pandemicnatureofthediseasemadeitnecessaryfor
doctorstoadoptincreasedprecautionsinaccordance
with the critical situation, and to put effort into
implementing appropriate hygienic conditions and[3]follow recommendations. In addition, healthcare
workers (HCWs) are at a high risk of getting the
infection and the source of transmission in the
community. A poor understanding of the disease
amonghealthcareworkersmayimplicateindelayed
treatmentandtherapidspreadofinfection.Withthis
background present study is aimed to know the
perception of the health care workers in different
districtsofGujaratstateabouttheCOVID-19.
Method:
Acrosssectionalsurveyusinggoogleformswas
conducted among the 104 doctors working in
differentdistrictsofGujaratstateduringthemonthof
April2020.Apretestedstructured 25-itemsurvey
instrument was developed using WHO course
materialsonemergingrespiratoryviruses,including
COVID-19. The survey instrument comprised 19
closed-endedand6open-endedquestionsandtook
approximatelyfiveminutestocomplete.Thesurvey
covered HCWs' characteristics, awareness,
informationsources,andknowledgeandperceptions
related to COVID-19. The developed draft survey
instrumentwasmadeaccessiblethroughalink.The
pilot web survey was then conducted among 10
randomly selected doctors to assess clarity,
relevance, and acceptability. Feasibility and time
required to answer the survey were evaluated on
another five participants. These participants were
notincludedintheresearch.Refinementsweremade
asrequiredtofacilitatebettercomprehensionandto
organize the questions before the final surveywas
distributed to the study population through a URL
link.Briefly,weusedWhatsappandtelegramacloud-
based instant messaging app. In the groups and
individually the survey link was advertised to the
targetpopulationandwasopenedinApril2020for
20days.Theobtaineddatawerecoded,validated,and
analysed using SPSS version 25 (IBM). Descriptive
analysis was applied to calculate frequencies and
proportions. The chi-square test was used to
investigatethelevelofassociationamongvariables.A
pvalueoflessthan0.05wasconsideredstatistically
significant. Confidentiality of personal information
was maintained throughout the study by making
participants' information anonymous and asking
participants to provide honest answers. Eligible
HCWs'participationinthissurveywasvoluntaryand
wasnot compensated.Electronic informedconsent
wasshownontheinitialpageofthesurvey.
Results:
Outof104participants,46.15%weremaleand
53.85%were female.Meanageofparticipantswas
26.40 years. Majority participants were from
Saurashtra-Kutch(36.54%) followed by central
Gujarat(28.85%)andnorthGujarat(23.08%).Among
theseparticipantsmajority(54.81%)werepursuing
their Post graduation or completed it, 25% were
Medical officers, 14.42% were Intern doctors and
5.77%were fromparamedical staff.Outof63who
had received training of basic course in COVID-19,
only 27 were able to give correct answer about
criteriafordischargeofpatient.
Modeoftransmission
Sampletobetaken
Testtobedone(RT-PCR)
Dischargecriteria
AttitudeaboutCOVID-19
PeoplearetestedadequatelyinIndia
StressfultoworkinCOVIDhospital
Gettingadequatesleep
Affectfamilylife
KnowledgeaboutCOVID19
54(51.92)
39(37.50)
56(53.84)
41(39.42)
Yes(n=104)(%)
14(13.46)
60(57.69)
70(67.31)
52(50.00)
Correctanswer
(n=104)(%)
Table1:KnowledgeandAttitudeaboutCOVID-19
Pateletal KnowledgeandPerceptionregardingCOVID19...
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Table1showsthat55(52.88%)participantswere
having knowledge about which sample has to be
taken for diagnosis of COVID 19 and 41(39.42%)
participants were knowing when to discharge the
patientasperguideline.Majority70(67.31%)were
getting adequate sleep during their duty and for
60(57.69%)participantsitwasstressfultoworkin
COVIDhospital.Half(49.43%)oftheparticipantsin
govt. hospital were provided with sufficient PPE
whileinprivatehospitalonly13.33%weregettingit.
Familylifewasmore(52.81%)affectedinthosewho
wereworkingingovthospital.
Table 2 shows the association between the
participants posted in COVID duty and taking any
prophylaxis in which there is no any statistical2
significance(a =0.075;p-value=0.78) between those
whoare taking and thosewhoarenot taking any
prophylaxis.
Majority31.25%oftheparticipantsweregetting
the information for guidelines from websites like
WHO/MoHFW, followed by socialmedia (23.26%),
television (17.70%), and rest were getting it from
newspaper(14.23%)andfriends(13.54%).
0a =0.075;p-value=0.78*Allopathicand/orAyurvedicand/orHomeopathic
Table2:AssociationbetweenCOVID19postingdutyandtakingprophylaxis
Participantsdoing/postedatCOVID19
duty
Takinganyprophylaxis*forCOVID19
Yes No
Yes 20 47
No 12 25
Figure2:FavourablefactorsforIndiatofightagainstCOVID-19
Figure 2 shows that majority participants
believed that preventive measures (66.34%),
followed by immunity (59.61%) and health
managementsystem(54.81%)werethefavourable
factorsforIndiatofightagainstCOVID19.
Discussion:
ThefindingsinourstudyshowedthatHCWshada
high level of knowledge and a positive attitude
towards the COVID-19 outbreak. Findings of this
study suggest out of 104, Majority (31.25%)
participants were getting the information for
guidelines about COVID-19 from websites like
WHO/MOH&FW, which is contrary to a cross
sectional study conducted by Huynh Giao et al at
District 2 Hospital, Ho ChiMinh City done on 327
participantsshowsthatHCWsaremoreinterestedin
socialmediatogatherknowledgeonCOVID-19than[9]the official website of the Ministry of Health.
Obtaining information from authentic sources is
pivotalfordisseminatingunbiasedandreliabledata
about the emerging COVID-19 infection and is
essential for HCWs' preparedness and response.
Studyconductedbyusshowsthatmajority(66.34%)
of HCWs agreed that maintaining preventive
measures is recommended which is similar to
findingof a study conductedbyBhagavathulaet al
whichshowsthatthemajorityoftheHCWs(n=338,
85.6%) agreed that maintaining hand hygiene,
covering the nose andmouth while coughing, and
avoidingsickpatientscouldhelptopreventCOVID-[3]
19 transmission. Present study shows only
32(30.76%) participants were taking any
prophylaxisagainstCOVID19whichisincontrastto
thestudyconductedbyDebajyotiBhattacharyyaetal.
atNewDelhi,Indiawhichshowsthataround76%of
theHCWs had accepted the prophylaxis and taken[10]
HCQatleastonceasapartofprophylaxis. Present
study shows that 52% participants were having
correct knowledge about mode of transmission
aboutCOVID19whileanotherstudyconductedon
nonmedicalstudentsshowsmorethan84%students
had wrong concept that COVID-19 could transmit
through touching personswith flu and 52.5% and
10.8%studentsbelievedthatCOVID-19couldspread*Handhygiene,Wearingmask,Socialdistancing
HealthlineJournalVolume12Issue2(April-June2021)
70.00%
60.00%
50.00%
40.00%
30.00%
20.00%
10.00%
0.00%Hotclimate Immunity Health
ManagementSystem
Preventive
Measures*
Genetic
37.50%
59.61%54.81%
66.34%
10.57%
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InfectedPneumonia.NEnglJMed2020Mar26;382(13):1199-
1207
3. BhagavathulaAS,ShehabA.TheStoryofMysteriousPneumonia
andtheResponsetoDeadlyNovelCoronavirus(2019-nCoV):So
Far!.NEMJ2020Feb21;1(1):7-10.
4. LaiC,ShihT,KoW,TangH,HsuehP.Severeacuterespiratory
syndromecoronavirus2(SARS-CoV-2)andcoronavirusdisease-
2019 (COVID-19): The epidemic and the challenges. Int J
AntimicrobAgents2020Mar;55(3):105924
5. EurosurveillanceEditorialTeam.Notefromtheeditors:World
Health Organization declares novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV)
sixth public health emergency of international concern. Euro
Surveillance2020Feb;25(5):200131e
6. COVID19CasesinIndia.mygov.in/covid-19[lastaccessedon17-
6-2020]
7. HuangC,WangY,LiX,RenL,ZhaoJ,HuY,etal.Clinicalfeaturesof
patientsinfectedwith2019novelcoronavirusinWuhan,China.
Lancet2020;395:497-506.
8. COVID19India."Home|MinistryofHealthandFamilyWelfare|
GOI".https://www.mohfw.gov.in/index1.php[lastaccessedon
17-6-2020]
9. HuynhG,NguyenTN,TranVK,VoKN,VoVT,PhamLA.Knowledge
and attitude toward COVID-19 among healthcare workers at
District 2 Hospital, Ho Chi Minh City. Asian Pac J Trop Med
2020;13:260-5
10. BhattacharyyaD.,RaizadaN.etal.ChemoprophylaxisofCOVID-
19with hydroxychloroquine - a study of health careworkers
attitude, adherence to regime and side effects med Rxiv
2020.06.11.20126359
11. WadoodA.,MamunA., et alKnowledge, attitude, practice and
perceptionregardingCOVID-19amongstudentsinBangladesh:
SurveyinRajshahiUniversitymedRxiv2020.04.21.20074757
12. SaqlainM.,MuddasirM.etalKnowledge,attitude,practiceand
perceived barriers among healthcare professionals regarding
COVID-19: A Cross-sectional survey from Pakistan med Rxiv
2020.04.13.20063198
13. AbdulahDM,MusaDH.Insomniaandstressofphysiciansduring
COVID-19outbreak.SleepMedicine:X.2020;2:100017.
through water and food, and mosquito bite[11]
respectively. Whenquestionaskedaboutwhichtest
has to be done for COVID-19, 46.16% participants
were unable give correct answer,While one study
donebySaqlainMetalshowed23.91%respondents
wereunabletoidentifycorrectresponsesregarding[12]
the same. One-third(32.69%) of the participants
were sleepless during the COVID-19 outbreak and
more than half had stress (57.69%) in this study,
whileinastudydoneby AbdulahDMetalshowed
More than two-thirds of the physicians were
sleeplessduringtheCOVID-19outbreak(68.3%)and[13]
majorityhadstress(93.7%).
Conclusion:
As the global threat of COVID-19 continues to
emerge, greater efforts through educational
campaignsthattargetHCWsareurgentlyneeded.We
identified thatHCWs in our study are having good
knowledgeandperceptionregardingCOVID19.They
are aware of the measures needed to be taken to
reduce the spreadof thedisease.The findingsalso
demonstrated that HCWs were using authentic
sources for information; this ultimately affects
knowledgeandisreflectedinattitudeandpractice.
Recommendations:
The study recommends that health ministry
should provide a comprehensive training
programme, targeting all HCWs, to promote all
precautionaryandpreventivemeasuresofCOVID-19,
toachieveequilibriumintermsofclinicalknowledge
aboutCOVID-19.
Declaration:
Funding:Nil
ConflictofInterest:Nil
Acknowledgement:
We thank all studyparticipants for their voluntary
participationandforprovidingessentialinformation.
References:
1. YinY,WunderinkRG.MERS,SARSandothercoronavirusesas
causesofpneumonia.Respirology2018Feb20;23(2):130-137
2. Li Q, Guan X, Wu P, Wang X, Zhou L, Tong Y, et al. Early
TransmissionDynamicsinWuhan,China,ofNovelCoronavirus-
Pateletal KnowledgeandPerceptionregardingCOVID19...