Abstract
BackgroundThe coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a novel virus that has rapidly spread across countries globally, and has been declared a pandemic by the World Health Organization (WHO). In South Africa, more that 1 million cases have been confirmed since case zero was detected in March 2020. South Africa is currently leading in the sub-Saharan African region in terms of COVID-19-related mortality and morbidity rates.AimThe aim of this study was to explore primary health care practitioners’ perceptions and understanding regarding the COVID-19 pandemic in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.SettingThe study was conducted at two selected primary health care facilities (a community health centre and satellite clinic) within a low-income rural context in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.MethodsA qualitative study was conducted to explore and describe perceptions and understanding of primary health care practitioners regarding the COVID-19 pandemic in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN), South Africa. Data were collected from a purposive sample of 15 participants at two different clinics situated in rural KZN, South Africa. Participants comprised of nurses, physiotherapists, pharmacists, community care givers, social workers and clinical associates. The participants were both men and women who were all above the age of 20. Data were collected through individual, in-depth face-to-face interviews using a semi-structured interview guide. An audiotape was used to collect data, which were transcribed verbatim. Data were analysed manually by thematic analysis following Tech’s steps of data analysis.ResultsParticipants reported pre-pandemic and pandemic perceptions of fear, denial, expectancy and a perceived poor preparation for the COVID-19 outbreak. The findings also revealed participants’ misperceptions regarding the nature of the COVID-19 pandemic and unrealistic expectations of occupational compensations for working during the outbreak.ConclusionThe findings of this study suggest that primary health care practitioners generally have negative perceptions and understanding regarding the pandemic because of misinformation obtained from social media. Interventions to support health care practitioners are necessary to mitigate the potentially negative implications of health practitioners’ misconceptions on service delivery and their mental health.
Highlights
In December 2019, the sudden onset of a severe pneumonia-like illness was reported in central China’s Hubei province in the capital city of Wuhan.[1]
Data analysis led to the identification of four main categories of description in participants’ perceptions and understanding of the COVID-19 pandemic in KZN, South Africa
These are as follows: (1) pre-pandemic perceptions, (2) pandemic perceptions (those when the pandemic occurred in South Africa, (3) perceptions regarding preparedness for COVID-19 and (4) perceived community attitudes towards the COVID-19 outbreak
Summary
In December 2019, the sudden onset of a severe pneumonia-like illness was reported in central China’s Hubei province in the capital city of Wuhan.[1] Initially, the World Health Organization (WHO) reported it as a cluster of pneumonia cases, the outbreak was later confirmed to be caused by a type of novel coronavirus called ‘severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2’ (SARS-CoV-2).[2,3] Infections spread rapidly across China and to other parts of the world, and later, the WHO named the illness as coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19); subsequently the spread of the virus was declared a pandemic.[4,5,6] Following a rapid rise in the incidence, prevalence and associated case fatalities related to SARS-CoV-2, the pandemic was declared a public health emergency of international concern.[7]. The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a novel virus that has rapidly spread across countries globally, and has been declared a pandemic by the World Health Organization (WHO). South Africa is currently leading in the sub-Saharan African region in terms of COVID-19-related mortality and morbidity rates
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