Paradigms about the COVID-19 pandemic: knowledge, attitudes and practices from medical students

Abstract

Background As the disease caused by the novel coronavirus has spread globally, there has been significant economic instability in the healthcare systems. This reality was especially accentuated in Ecuador where, the shortage of healthcare workers combined with cultural and macroeconomic factors has led Ecuador to face the most aggressive outbreak in Latin America. In this context, the participation of final-year medical students on the front line is indispensable. Appropriate training on COVID-19 is an urgent requirement that universities and health systems must guarantee. We aimed to describe the knowledge, attitudes, and practices of Ecuadorian final-year medical students that could potentially guide the design of better medical education curricula regarding COVID-19. Methods This was a cross-sectional 33-item online survey conducted between April 6 to April 2020 assessing the knowledge, attitudes, and practices toward the diagnosis, treatment, prevention, and prognosis toward COVID-19 in Ecuadorian final-year medical students. It was sent by email, Facebook, and WhatsApp. Results A total of 309 students responded to the survey. Out of which 88% of students scored high (≥ 70% correct) for knowledge of the disease. The majority of students were pessimistic about possible government actions, which is reflected in the negative attitude towards the control of COVID-19 and volunteering during the outbreak in Ecuador (77%, and 58% of the students, respectively). Moreover, 91% of students said they did not have adequate protective equipment. The latter finding was significantly associated with negative attitudes. Conclusions Although a large number of students displayed negative attitudes, the non-depreciable percentage of students who were willing to volunteer and the coexisting high level of knowledge displayed by students, suggests that Ecuador has a capable upcoming workforce that could benefit from an opportunity to strengthen, improve and advance their training in preparation for COVID-19. Not having personal protective equipment was significantly associated to negative attitudes. Providing the necessary tools and creating a national curriculum may be one of the most effective ways to ensure all students are trained, whilst simultaneously focusing on the students’ most pressing concerns. With this additional training, negative attitudes will improve and students will be better qualified.

A Cross-Sectional Study to Assess Knowledge of COVID-19 among Undergraduate Students in North-Central Ecuador

“…Earlier works, using similar surveys, have reported higher rates among Ecuadorian (80.4%), Malaysian (80.5%) and Chinese (90%) citizens [20,23,24]. Similar results have been observed among Colombians (76.8%) and Ecuadorian medical students (≥70.0%) [27,36]. Therefore, the level of knowledge reported here cannot be considered sufficient, which demonstrates that there is plenty of work to be done if COVID-19 literacy is expected to increase in the country.…”

“…In general, research assessing the knowledge of COVID-19 among university students has revealed that information regarding symptoms, infection and prevention strategies are well understood. However, such studies did not include questions about the origin of the virus, its characteristics and the efficacy of unproven treatments [27,38,[45][46][47]. The current report shows that these subjects are not entirely understood by undergraduate students and so must be included in further investigations.…”

“…The statistical analysis revealed that students from programs related to social sciences obtained lower scores than those from careers in applied sciences, whose correct rate was 79.3% (22.2 ± 3 out of 28). A recent investigation reported COVID-19 knowledge among Ecuadorian medical students; the authors categorized knowledge scores of ≥16 out of 23 possible points as "high knowledge" [27]. Thus, they concluded that knowledge among these students was high.…”

“…This is dangerous because, in Ecuador, the national educational institutions have suggested reopening plans [26], and doing so could increase the number of infections. One study showed that medical students affiliated with a single university in Quito were knowledgeable about prevention, practices and symptoms [27]. However, no information is available for other regions of the country.…”

Knowledge, Attitude, and Practice Survey of COVID-19 Among Healthcare Students During the COVID-19 Outbreak in China: An Online Cross-Sectional Survey

“…Healthcare workforce shortages have resulted in healthcare students being strongly encouraged to volunteer (10). Several studies have found students to be highly motivated to volunteer in medical-related work (12), such as being community volunteers (15), ventilator therapy assistants, and nursing assistants (16,17) as this may provide an opportunity for them to continue their education efficiently by returning to clinical rotations. Moreover, healthcare students have taken up roles in educating the public and increasing their awareness of the COVID-19 pandemic (18).…”