Public Awareness Toward Coronavirus Disease-2019

Abstract

Background The emergence of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) infection has become a global issue of concern. Since its occurrence, about 18 million cases have been reported globally and about 280 000 in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Aim The aim of this study was to investigate the knowledge, attitudes, and practices of the general population toward COVID-19. Method A cross-sectional study was conducted. A questionnaire was built by the researchers that was composed of demographics, knowledge, attitudes, and practices sections. Results The sample was composed of 575 participants. The mean scores of knowledge, attitudes, and practices were 16.48 ± 2.90, 10.01 ± 2.18, and 8.91 ± 1.91, respectively. The Ministry of Health constitutes the main source of participants’ information. Conclusion The findings showed that participants have good knowledge, positive attitudes, and satisfactory practices toward COVID-19. Yet, areas of low knowledge and negative attitudes were noticed. However, further studies are recommended to design an effective measure to control the disease.

Awareness of COVID-19 among the General Population of the Northern Border Region of Saudi Arabia

“…These findings were consistent with the earlier published data on COVID-19 [13][14][15][16][17][18][19] in Saudi Arabia. The earlier publications [13][14][15][16][17][18][19] have mentioned the leading indicators of COVID-19 (fever, shortness of breath, cough, etc. ); its incubation period (2-14 days); the risk of COVID-19 in patients with associated diseases (hypertension, diabetes, and cancer, etc.…”

“…These articles have also stated that presently, there no active cure for COVID-19. The data of Table 2 and Table 3 is also in concurrence with the earlier studies [13][14][15][16][17][18][19], which discuss the initiation, spread, symptoms, & complications of COVID-19 in different populations. They also highlight the preventive measures to be followed, government strategic plans, and the importance of public education about the COVID-19.…”

“…Some studies related to the assessment of awareness among the Saudi population have been published [13][14][15][16][17][18][19]. The author believes that there exists no study that specifically assessed the level of awareness among the people of the NBRSA about the COVID-19.…”

Coronavirus and Cognitive Dissonance, Behavior of Pakistanis During Pandemic Peak: A Study of Educated and Uneducated Citizens of Lahore

“…Kharma, Alalwani, Amer, Tarakji, and Aws (2015) conducted a study from the perspective of the government to know the responsibility and concluded that healthcare providers were the primary persons who should educate public about the virus. Bdair, Alshloul, and Maribbay (2020) conducted a study with participation of 575 respondents aiming to know public perception, attitude and practices section of the public towards COVID-19. The findings showed that overall general public had adequate knowledge about the pandemic, however, there were negative tendencies and bad faiths (Bdair et al, 2020;Darnell, 2004) among the respondents towards the pandemic.…”

“…Bdair, Alshloul, and Maribbay (2020) conducted a study with participation of 575 respondents aiming to know public perception, attitude and practices section of the public towards COVID-19. The findings showed that overall general public had adequate knowledge about the pandemic, however, there were negative tendencies and bad faiths (Bdair et al, 2020;Darnell, 2004) among the respondents towards the pandemic. Chen, Xu, Paris, Reeson, and Li (2020) believed the people with greater awareness level had greater migration ties towards epicenter in Wuhan as compared to those who were with less information about the pandemic.…”