Knowledge, Attitudes and Practices Towards COVID-19 Amongst Ethnic Minorities in Hong Kong.

Cho Lee Wong,Winnie K.W So,Dorothy N.S Chan,Jieling Chen,Bernard M.H Law,Alice W.Y Leung,Carmen W.H Chan,Ka Ming Chow

doi:10.3390/ijerph17217878

Abstract

This study assessed the knowledge, attitudes and practices (KAP) towards coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) among South Asians in Hong Kong and examined the factors that affect KAP towards COVID-19 in this population. This cross-sectional descriptive study recruited participants with assistance from South Asian community centres and organisations. A total of 352 participants completed questionnaires to assess their level of KAP towards COVID-19. The mean knowledge score was 5.38/10, indicating a relatively low knowledge level. The participants expressed certain misconceptions regarding the prevention of COVID-19 infection. They perceived a mild risk related to the disease, had positive attitudes regarding its prevention and often implemented recommended disease-preventive measures, such as maintaining social distance (88.1%) and wearing masks in public (94.3%). Participants who were male, had a secondary school education or lower and who perceived a lower risk of being infected and lower self-efficacy were less likely to implement preventive measures. Culturally and linguistically appropriate health education could be developed to increase the knowledge of South Asians, especially those with lower education levels, about COVID-19 and to encourage them to implement the necessary preventive measures.

Highlights

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), an emerging respiratory disease that was first reported in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China, in December 2019, is caused by the novel severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2)
The results indicate that South Asian residents held inadequate levels of knowledge about COVID-19 prevention, perceived a mild level of risk related to COVID-19 infection and held positive attitudes towards controlling the spread of COVID-19
By addressing these aspects within an ethnic minority population, our study expands on the knowledge generated by previous studies on KAP related to COVID-19, which were mainly conducted in general populations

Summary

Introduction

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), an emerging respiratory disease that was first reported in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China, in December 2019, is caused by the novel severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2). This virus is highly contagious, and symptoms of the related disease include fever, malaise, dry cough and dyspnoea [1]. The global COVID-19 pandemic is ongoing and has spread quickly, and confirmed cases have been reported in the majority of countries. Compared with other countries and regions worldwide, Hong Kong appears to be less severely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. According to the Center of Health Protection (CHP) [3], almost 5000 cases of COVID-19 have been recorded to date in the region, and 99 patients were reported to have died of the disease

Results

Discussion

Conclusion