Abstract
Background: The aim of this study is to evaluate the knowledge, perceptions, and attitude of the public in Pakistan (using social media) towards COVID-19. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted amongst 1120 individuals nationwide. A self-developed, pre-tested questionnaire was used that comprised of sections covering demographic characteristics, medical history, hygiene awareness, COVID-19-related knowledge, and learning attitude. Descriptive statistics were used for frequencies, percentages, averages and standard deviations. Inferential statistics were done using the Student’s t-test and ANOVA. Results: The average age of participants was 31 years (range 18-60 years). In total 56 individuals (5%) had completed primary or secondary school education; 448 (40%) were employed (working from home) and 60% were jobless due to the COVID-19 crisis. Almost all the study subjects (1030 (92%)) were washing their hands multiple times a day. A total of 83% had awareness regarding quarantine time, 82% used face masks whenever they left their homes, 98% were aware of the origin of the disease, and 70% had knowledge regarding the most common symptoms of COVID-19. Conclusion: It can be concluded from the current study that female participants had higher level of education, and more awareness regarding the coronavirus. The majority of the participants followed proper hand washing regimes and washed their faces. Further knowledge and awareness should be promoted.
Highlights
The first case of COVID-19 was identified within the Wuhan city of China in December 2019.1 By February, a tremendous increase in the number of cases and number of deaths due to Covid-19 started being reported
Due to the rapid spread of infection from China to different countries, and with the number of cases exceeding the cases reported by the Chinese government, COVID-19 was declared a global pandemic by the World Health Organisation in March 2020.2,3 This epidemic has affected more than 200 different countries across the globe.[4]
The findings of the current study suggested that the majority of participants had good learning attitude towards COVID19; lower knowledge level and negative attitudes were recorded
Summary
The first case of COVID-19 was identified within the Wuhan city of China in December 2019.1 By February, a tremendous increase in the number of cases and number of deaths due to Covid-19 started being reported. COVID-19 is a highly contagious infection that spreads through human to human contact causing serious health problems within communities.[5] Currently very little scientific information is available regarding this novel virus. It has been identified as an enveloped RNA virus that is further categorised into alpha, beta, gamma and delta.[6] Depending upon the immune system of an individual it can cause symptoms ranging from mild to severe. A self-developed, pre-tested questionnaire was used that comprised of sections covering demographic characteristics, medical history, hygiene awareness, COVID-19-related knowledge, and learning attitude. Conclusion: It can be concluded from the current study that female
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