The PERCEPTIONS AND BELIEVES OF HEALTH CARE PROFESSIONALS AND THEIR VIEWS ABOUT ROLE OF MEDIA DURING COVID-19 PANDEMIC IN PAKISTAN

Abstract

BACKGROUND: - After the start of COVID-19 pandemic from Wuhan city of China in December 2019 and appearance of first case in Pakistan in February 2020, health care professionals (HCPs) played the role of front-line soldiers around the globe especially in developing and limited resource nations like Pakistan. The understanding of HCPs played an important role in limiting the spread of this infection in Pakistan. METHODOLOGY: - It was an online cross-sectional study done by EAST Surgical ward MAYO hospital Lahore. An online generated proforma was created on Google forms and was sent through WhatsApp and Facebook contacts of authors to HCPs all over the Pakistan. This survey consists of total of 31 questions. Total 1000 questionnaires were collected. The completed questionnaires were compiled and analyzed by using SPSS software version 21. Frequencies of responses were calculated. RESULTS: 650 (65%) of the respondents were male and 350 (35%) were female. Majority of the respondents were from the age group of 25 to 40 years 431 (43.1%) and from the province of Punjab 490 (49%). Majority of HCPs (86.5%) believed they have enough knowledge about COVID-19 and they feel no reluctance in treating COVID-19 patients (75.9%). The news on media were not reliable (52.8%) and it caused anxiety and depression (62%) among society. CONLUSION: - Despite enough knowledge about Covid-19, more training sessions should be arranged for HCPs and they should be encouraged and media should be made responsible in reporting and spreading awareness in this pandemic.