COVID-19 Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices Among People in Bangladesh: Telephone-Based Cross-sectional Survey

Parental Attitude, Knowledge, and Practices Regarding the Usage of Antibiotics for Upper Respiratory Tract Infections in Children During the COVID-19 Pandemic

BACKGROUND

The COVID-19 pandemic has raised knowledge of the proper antibiotic dosage for treating childhood upper respiratory tract infections (URTIs). In order to ensure proper antibiotic usage and prevent the establishment of illnesses that is antibiotic-resistant during the COVID-19 pandemic, parental attitudes, knowledge, and behaviour surrounding antibiotic use for URTIs in children are essential. The goal of this study was to find out the parental attitude, knowledge, and practices regarding the usage of antibiotics for URTIs in children during the COVID-19 epidemic.

METHODOLOGY

This cross-sectional was conducted in the Department of Paediatric Medicine, Central Hospital, Ganesh Nagar, New Delhi, India from September 2022 to February 2023. The study analysed a total of 500. All the children had URTIs. A structured questionnaire was randomly distributed among parents. Socio-demographic information like gender, age, occupation, monthly family income, and age of the children were noted at the time of enrollment. Outcomes were recorded in terms of responses to questions regarding attitude, knowledge, and practices regarding the use of antibiotics for URTIs in children during the COVID-19 epidemic.  Results: Of a total of 500 parents, 380 (76.0%) were male. The mean age was 39.9±8.3 years while 280 (56.0%) participants were aged between 31 to 45 years. Relatively older age (p<0.0001) and occupational status as unemployed (p<0.0001) were found to have a significant association with response to "virus being the cause of COVID-19". Females (p=0.0004) and increasing age (p<0.0001) were found to have significant associations with incorrect responses to "antibiotics are essential for managing the symptoms in children with COVID-19". Incorrect responses to "without the use of antibiotics, children usually suffer from greater periods of sickness" were associated with females and increasing age (p<0.0001). Incorrect responses to "not using antibiotics will prove beneficial for the children suffering from COVID-19" were significantly associated with female gender (p=0.0016) and increasing age (p<0.0001). The incorrect responses to "how often are antibiotics being prescribed to the COVID-19 children" was significantly linked with females and relatively older age (p<0.0001).

CONCLUSIONS

Parental attitude, knowledge, and practices regarding the usage of antibiotics for URTIs in children during the COVID-19 epidemic showed variations. Parental attitude, knowledge, and practices were associated with gender, age, and socio-economic status.

The COVID-19 pandemic: knowledge, attitudes and practices of coronavirus (COVID-19) among patients with type 2 diabetes

BACKGROUND

It is necessary to evaluate COVID-19 data on Knowledge, Attitudes and Practices (KAP) to confirm effective protective practice and to reduce risk in society. Hence, the study was carried out to determine KAP towards COVID-19 and the factors associated with knowledge and practices among patients with type 2 diabetes (T2D).

METHODS

In this cross-sectional (descriptive-analytical) study, 357 patients with diabetes in Izeh participated in the study. The sampling method used was convenience sampling method. Data collection tool was a researcher-made questionnaire of demographic information and KAP of patients with T2D in relation to the new coronavirus. The validity and reliability of the research tool was confirmed using the content validity and test-retest. Data analysis was done in Stata.14.2 and Smartpls 3.2.8 using descriptive and analytical statistical tests.

RESULTS

The mean score of participants' KAP towards Covid-19 was 74.22 (16.30), 72.88 (14.87), and 70.51 (19.70), respectively. The lowest and the highest score of the patients' knowledge was in the field of transmission (56.60 (20.96)) and care and prevention of the COVID-19 (88.58 (21.88)), respectively. Residence was the most important factor predicting the practice of diabetic patients with an explanatory coefficient ([SMD 1.08 (95% CI 0.85 to 1.30), P < 0.001] and R² = 0.87%).

CONCLUSION

Despite the good level of KAP of people towards the COVID-19 disease, there were answers showing poor knowledge, incorrect beliefs and attitudes, and insufficient practice regarding different aspects of the COVID-19 in some cases in our study. Residence was a strong predictor of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) patients' practice in terms of protective behaviors against Covid-19. Hence, educational needs evaluation based on residence is recommended, especially in rural T2DM patients.

Evaluation of the Knowledge, Attitudes, and Resulting Behavior Changes in Response to COVID-19 Among Students at the College of Applied Medical Sciences (CAMS), Jazan University, Saudi Arabia

Background

The emergence of COVID-19 posed a threat to millions of lives worldwide. The pandemic impacts extended to affect people's psychological well-being, resulting in significant behavioural change. This study was designed to assess the knowledge regarding COVID-19 precautions among the College of Applied Medical Science students at Jazan University and to evaluate the general, psychosocial, and behavioral changes due to COVID-19.

Methods

This is an observational study targeting 630 undergraduate students randomly selected during January 2020, using stratified random sampling. Data were collected using an online questionnaire. Linear regression models were used to evaluate the predictors of three outcome measures: knowledge, attitudes, and practice scores.

Results

Knowledge of COVID-19 revealed that the students with correct answers ranged from 48.9 to 95%. Furthermore, significant gender differences are found regarding shortness of breath, fatigue, persistent chest discomfort, headache, and malaise (p < 0.05). Knowledge scores differed significantly across gender and academic level (p < 0.05) and so does attitude scores (p < 0.05). No significant difference was observed between practice scores according to socio-demographic background (p > 0.05). The linear regression model showed that females had significantly higher knowledge, attitudes, and practice scores (p < 0.05) as well as those within the 21-23 age group and above (p < 0.05). Students residing in urban and semi-urban places had significantly higher scores for knowledge, attitudes, and practice (p < 0.05).

Conclusion

The results demonstrated moderate knowledge about COVID-19 among study participants, with significant differences between the responses of males and females and among the urban and rural populations. Outcomes suggest the need for interventions to bridge students' knowledge about COVID-19 and practice gaps. Students were concerned about basic life amenities and the inability to provide for their dear ones regarding behavioral changes.

Knowledge, attitudes, practices, and its associated factors toward COVID-19 pandemic among Bangladeshi older adults

BACKGROUND

The newly emerged COVID-19 has an unprecedented impact on all classes of people, particularly the elderly. The knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) of older adults toward COVID-19 are currently unknown. This study aimed to investigate the KAP and its associated factors toward COVID-19 among older adults in Bangladesh.

METHODS

A cross-sectional survey was conducted from April to May 2021 among Bangladeshi older adults. Face-to-face interviews were used to collect data from five selected divisions in Bangladesh using simple random sampling. The questionnaire consisted of socio-demographic characteristics, disease conditions, and KAP toward COVID-19. Descriptive statistics, t-tests, one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA), and logistic regression analyses were performed.

RESULTS

Out of 900 respondents, the majority of older adults (82.9%) indicated that COVID-19 is a viral disease and the major clinical symptom of COVID-19 (86.5%). Only 22.1% of participants always washed their hands with soap or hand sanitizer, and 27.6% wore a mask to protect against the virus when going outside the home. Overall, 55.2% had adequate knowledge, 50.2% had positive attitudes toward COVID-19 and only 22.7% had good practices. Out of 30 scores, mean score values were 20.8±6.7 in the knowledge section, 21.2±4.3 in the attitude section, and 11.3±6.7 in the practice section out of 30. In binary logistic regression analysis, factors associated with poor knowledge, and practices were being male, aged >70 years, having a primary education, less income <5000BDT, and multimorbidity (p < 0.05). Participants having poor knowledge of COVID-19 had higher likelihood of negative attitudes (OR: 6.79, 95% CI = 4.87-9.47, p < 0.001) and poor practices (OR: 9.15, 95% CI = 6.94-13.16, p < 0.001).

CONCLUSION

The findings highlight the need for immediate implementation of health education programs and adequate intervention programs for COVID-19 which integrates consideration of associated factors to improve the level of older adults' knowledge, attitudes, and practices.

Migration Intent of Health Care Workers during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Kosovo

The migration of healthcare workers from developing countries to more economically developed countries is a long-standing and ongoing trend. Loss of qualified staff due to migration can negatively impact healthcare systems. Understanding factors that drive migration is essential to identifying and managing health system needs. Our study explored factors related to the migration intent of healthcare staff in Kosovo, particularly after the COVID-19 pandemic. We carried out a cross-sectional survey of healthcare workers from public and private institutions. The survey analysed the prevalence of willingness to migrate and whether willingness was affected by the pandemic, and calculated crude and adjusted odds ratios for variables which may influence migration willingness. 14.43% of healthcare workers reported aspiration to migrate, and 23.68% reported an increased chance of migrating after the pandemic. Dissatisfaction with wages and working conditions, higher education and private sector engagement were associated with increased odds of migration willingness. After the pandemic, factors related to interpersonal relationships and state response gave lower odds of migration intent. These findings point to potential factors associated with the migration of healthcare workers, which can help policymakers address gaps in national health system strategy.

COVID-19 pandemic experiences of students from BAME and White ethnic groups pursuing higher education in the UK: A qualitative comparative exploration

BACKGROUND

The new severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2, SARS-Cov2, more commonly known as COVID-19 continues to be an ongoing cause of one of the most disruptive pandemics worldwide. UK universities comprise students who come from different backgrounds and cultures and the majority returned home or lived alone during the lockdown. This qualitative study aimed to compare the experiences of students from Black, Asian, and Minority Ethnic (BAME) backgrounds and White British students.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

An in-depth interview was conducted with each of 35 students-18 from BAME and 17 from White backgrounds-in their homes on Zoom or Microsoft between November 2020 and May 2021. Interview transcripts were checked for accuracy and were analysed using N-Vivo coding software for themes. The pre-pandemic and pandemic experiences of students were collected in the form of a data, including perceptions of the COVID-19 virus, the physical environment in which students lived, and the effect on their general wellbeing, social interactions, online learning, teaching, and assessment.

RESULTS

Mental health issues were more prevalent among female students compared to males and this was more evident amongst BAME females who had returned to living at home, possibly due to lack of personal space. There was a reduction in personal hygiene in White females. There was an increase in the use of social media, particularly by BAME females. Students mostly disliked online learning and exams. Concerns were also raised about how universities communicated important information to the students.

CONCLUSION

Based on the recommendations of the WHO in relation to COVID-19, universities need to effectively manage the information they provide to students and build trust through risk communication and community engagement. One important area in this regard is addressing access to mental health services. The reasons why BAME females experience more mental health issues should be explored further.