Abstract
Aim: This cross-sectional study aimed to investigate where Brazilian dental students seek information about COVID-19 by a self-administered web-based questionnaire. Methods: A social network campaign on Instagram was raised to approach the target population. The dental students responded to a multiple-response question asking where or with whom they get information about COVID-19. The possible answers were government official websites or health and education institutions websites, TV Programs, professors, social media, scientific articles, health professionals, and family members. The data were analyzed by descriptive statistics, and the frequency distributions of responses were evaluated by gender, age, type of institution, and year of enrollment. Results: A total of 833 valid responses were received. The main source of information used by the dental students were government official websites or health and education institutions websites, which were reported by 739 (88.7%) participants. In the sequence, 477 (57.3%) participants chose health professionals while 468 (56.2%) chose scientific articles as information sources. The use of social media was reported by 451 (54.1%) students, while TV programs were information sources used by 332 (39.9%) students. The least used information sources were professors, reported by 317 (38.1%) students, and family members, chosen only by 65 (7.8%) participants. Conclusion: Brazilian dental students rely on multiple information sources to stay informed about COVID-19, mainly focusing their information-seeking behavior on governmental and health professional’s websites.
Highlights
COVID-19 is a virus-mediated disease caused by a member of the coronavirus family SARS-Cov-2 originated in Wuhan, Hubei, China in December 20191,2
477 (57.3%) students referred to other health professionals as those with whom they seek information about the disease
More than half of the students, accounting for 468 (56.2%) respondents, used scientific articles as a source of information about COVID-19, while the use of social media was reported by 461(54.1%)
Summary
COVID-19 is a virus-mediated disease caused by a member of the coronavirus family SARS-Cov-2 originated in Wuhan, Hubei, China in December 20191,2. Even more impressive is the number of posts on social media platforms, which spread rapidly and [4,5] This social media content has a high potential to carry on misleading information, hindering public health policies. Recent reports revealed that individuals who get their news from social media are more likely to have misperceptions about COVID-19, whereas those who consume more traditional news media have fewer misperceptions and are more likely to follow public health recommendations like social/physical distancing[10]. Along with these concerning findings, the information-seeking patterns can modulate attitudes and behaviors towards this crisis[11]
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
