Knowledge, attitude and practice related to corona virus (COVID 19) among daily workers in Hawassa city administration, Southern Ethiopia

Abstract

Background: Currently COVID 19 pandemic is a big public health problem in the world. There is no scientifically proven drug treatment recommended for Corona virus. The most important interventions are creating awareness about the transmission ways and practicing the prevention measures. The aim of this study was to assess the awareness, attitude and practice related to COVID 19 among daily workers in Hawassa City administration, southern Ethiopia from March 23 to 28, 2020. Method: The cross sectional study design was employed to collect data from daily workers who were gathered at ten places/streets waiting for work opportunity at Hawasa city administration. The simple questionnaire prepared in local language was distributed to 384 daily workers and 10 observations were conducted using structured study tools. Data was analyzed using SPSS 23. Results: All of daily workers heard about the virus. About 96.9% know the name of virus. About 80% of daily workers have awareness about major prevention measures and virus transmission ways. Ninety three percent believe that virus can affect themselves but 28.1% does not believe that hand shaking can transfer virus. Only 14.8% practice hand washing required to prevent corona virus transmission recommended by world health organization. About 73% believe that social distancing is important to prevent virus transmission but 94.8% of daily workers do not keep the WHO recommended distance when they talk or sit with their friends. Age above 40, Married and urban residentsbetter perform prevention activities such as hand washingand physical distancing compared to counter parts. Conclusion and recommendation: All of daily workers participated in this study heard about corona virus and most know its prevention methods. But the practice of hand washing and physical distancing is very low. Keywords: knowledge; attitude; practice; corona virus; COVID 19.