Knowledge and Perceptions of COVID-19 Among Health Care Professionals, Medical Students, and Dental Students in the GCC Region: A Cross-Sectional Correlational Study

Abstract

Purpose The aim of this study was to assess the levels of awareness and knowledge regarding COVID-19 among healthcare professionals and students in Kuwait and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region. Materials and Methods An online cross-sectional survey using a previously validated questionnaire was used to assess the awareness and knowledge levels of COVID-19 in this study, which was distributed via various online platforms to include as many participants as possible. The study targeted medical doctors, dentists, medical students, and dental students from the GCC region. Participants were at least 18 years old, voluntarily consented to complete the questionnaire, and were assured that their responses would remain anonymous. Permission was obtained using a previously validated and applied questionnaire to assess their level of awareness and knowledge regarding COVID-19. To compare the proportional responses between groups in descriptive statistics, a proportion Z-test was used to find any significant differences, with a statistical significance set at p < 0.05. Results A total of 1621 participants responded to our questionnaire. Almost two-thirds of the respondents were female (64.4%), and the majority were less than 25 years old (67.2%). Dentists accounted for 12.6% of the total population, and their clinical experience ranged from 0.25 to 52 years (median: 3 years, IQR: 1–10 years). Meanwhile, medical doctors accounted for 24.5% of the responses, and their clinical experience ranged from 0 to 50 years (median: 13 years, IQR: 3–23 years). Among the dental students, 42.3% were in the pre-clinical years, while 57.7% were in the clinical years of study. However, among medical students, 57.5% were in the pre-clinical years, while 42.5% were in the clinical years of study. Conclusion Our results demonstrated that dental students, medical doctors, and medical students exhibited higher odds of having satisfactory COVID-19 perception scores than dentists.

Assessment of Jordanian health care professionals’ perception towards new COVID-19 variants of concern

“…Also, educating the public about the new COVID-19 VOCs was the responsibility of the Jordanian ministry of health, followed by physicians, pharmacists, and nurses. This was consistent with results from other studies [6,27,[31][32][33]. For example, a recent cross-sectional Jordanian study reported that healthcare professional's primary source of COVID-19 information is the Jordanian ministry of health and that physicians, pharmacists and nurses are responsible for educating the public [31].…”

“…According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), a variant of concern (VOC) is defined as "a variant for which there is evidence of an increase in transmissibility, more severe disease (e.g., increased hospitalizations or deaths), a significant reduction in neutralization by antibodies generated during previous infection or vaccination, reduced effectiveness of treatments or vaccines, or diagnostic detection failures" [5]. As of August 2022, one COVID-19 variant is regarded as a VOC by the WHO and the CDC [6]; i.e. Omicron (B.…”

Perceptions of Healthcare Professionals on COVID-19 in Lesotho: A Cross-Sectional Survey

“…As they are frontline workers, healthcare professionals must learn about and be aware of emerging knowledge regarding the COVID-19 pandemic [1]. In this study, they had the necessary knowledge to understand that COVID-19 could affect anyone, including themselves and is not a disease for any particular race.…”

“…The COVID-19 pandemic has been most devastating worldwide, causing medical, social, and economic impacts and posing significant challenges for health care professionals [1] and vulnerable populations such as the poor, girls, and rural communities who are exposed to educational inequalities due to the pandemic [2]. The SARS CoV-2 continues to mutate, further posing threats to the well-being of health care workers on the frontline.…”

Patient Perceptions Toward the Changes in Outpatient Oncology Service During the COVID-19 Pandemic

“…On the other hand, Olum et al suggested that such media, if used properly, could be beneficial in disseminating information on COVID-19 by the stakeholders (Olum et al, 2020). However, the reliance of the general public on such media indicated that healthcare professionals, need to invest a significant proportion of their time and resources to be active on social media to disseminate correct news (Abdulwahab et al, 2021).…”