Cross-sectional Online Research Articles

Perceived risk, preventive behavior and enabling environment among health workers during COVID-19 pandemic in Nepal: an Online Survey

Introduction: Perceived risk, preventive behavior and enabling environment play vital role to prevent COVID-19 transmission in health care settings. The study aimed to assess perceived risk, preventive behavior and enabling environment among healthcare workers of different cadre during COVID-19 pandemic in Nepal.
 Methods: A cross sectional online survey was conducted among 427 health workers from April 25 to June 10, 2020. A structured questionnaire was prepared in Google form. Perceived risk was measured using 10 items scale, value ranging from 10 to 50. Descriptive and inferential statistics were computed at 5% level of significance. Ethical approval was taken from Nepal Health Research Council.
 Results: Of total, 49.6% respondents were male; 38.4% were from government organizations and 48.0% were doctors. Mean perceived risk was 31.8, 32.8, 31.3 among doctors, nursing professionals and others respectively; and it did not have significant difference among them. However, significant differences were observed in different items of perceived risk across difference cadre of health workers. Most of the health workers reported practice of preventive behavior always or most of the time. Of total, 5.4% doctors and 6.9% other health workers reported they had sometimes access to soap and water. 11.7% doctors, 7.5% nursing professionals and 7.8% other health workers had sometimes access to hand sanitizer; 18.0% doctors, 10.4% nursing professionals and 12.1% other health workers had sometimes access to face mask.
 Conclusion: Perceived risk of COVID-19 was high, preventive behavior was satisfactory; but access to enabling environment was poor. Therefore, adequate attention should be given to ensure the availability of protective equipment at work place.

Prevalence, Intensity and Manifestation of COVID-19 Fear: A Cross Sectional Analysis.

Pandemics are direct antecedent of distinctive physical, psychological, social and financial impacts. A large number of researches are being conducted regarding previous epidemics and pandemics and lot more is currently in progress vis-?-vis COVID-19. The current research is an attempt to explore psychological impacts of COVID-19 specifically to find out the existence, intensity and dynamics of COVID-19 fear in non-clinical educated population. A cross sectional online study was conducted with non-clinical educated Pakistani citizens. Self-structured questionnaire comprising close and open ended questions was used for data collection from different cities of Pakistan. N=317 participants (men=121, women=196) were the sample for this study. Demographic information was also sought. The age range of sample was 18 to 50+ years. Most of the participants fall in the category of age group 23-28 of sample. All the participants were educated from Intermediate till PhD but majority of participants had 16 years of education. SPSS 22 was used for quantitative data analysis. Qualitative data were analyzed using thematic analysis and content analysis. Results yield significant age wise and profession wise difference in existence of COVID fear. Nine major themes were extracted regarding nature of fear i.e. Corona Fear, Loss, fear of isolation or quarantine, religion related fear, death, consequences of COVID-19, Under developed country, Psychological component of fear and empathy. Those who denied fear were asked the reasons and six major themes were extracted here i.e Religion, Inevitability of death, Precautions, Belief in self, Myths or misinterpretation of disease and Avoidant approach. Age and profession significantly influenced fear of COVID-19. Gender-wise exploration of themes yields interesting insights. Participants reflected positivity and empathy in crisis situation.

A SURVEY OF PHARMACY STAFF KNOWLEDGE RELATED TO ANTIBIOTICS IN SIDOARJO, INDONESIA

Antibiotics resistance still remains the problem in treating infection disease both in developing and developed country. One of the factor contribute to the increase of antibiotics resistance is irrational antibiotics use without prescriptions. There is still lack of information about factors related to the antibiotics dispense by pharmacy staff. This study was aimed to observe pharmacy staff knowledge about the pharmacology and the regulation of antibiotics. A cross sectional online survey using questionnaire was conducted to pharmacy staff who work for service in Sidoarjo from February to April 2020. The knowledge of antibiotics was classified into lack, enough, and good knowledge. A total of 233 respondents from 56 pharmacy recruited in this study. Of them, 17,17% were pharmacist; 10,73% were pharmacy technician; 52,36% were pharmacy assistant and 19,74% non pharmacy worker. Overall the majority of respondents had a good knowledge about antibiotics (48,93%). However, most of them did not know that only pharmacist who had responsible to dispense antibiotics based on prescriptions (58,37%), fail to describe antibiotics indications (46,35%) and had poor knowledge about the minimum length of antibiotics course (58,37%). Educating and upskilling pharmacy personel about antibiotics will minimize the irrational use of antibiotics which lead to the increase of antibiotics resistance caused by the lack information received by patients.

Assessing the knowledge, skills and effectiveness of e-learning among medical graduates amongst the COVID pandemic

Background: Introduction of e-learning as a new paradigm in medical education is gaining in the era of COVID pandemic as an alternative to traditional teaching where students and faculty skills are widely required in information and communication technology. Objectives were to assess the knowledge and attitude of medical students in application of e-learning in medical education. The level of satisfaction attained in gaining knowledge and availability of e resources were also assessed.Methods: A cross sectional online study was conducted for two months at Narayana medical college, Nellore among the medical graduates with a pre designed structured questionnaire after ethical committee approval. The questionnaire was designed to assess the Knowledge and attitude and was closed ended type. The questionnaire regarding level of satisfaction were assessed using 5-point Likert scale. The data was analysed by using SPSS version 17 and p valve<0.05 was considered significant.Results: Total 200 medical students with 50 in each phase were selected with 42% males and 58% females. Smart phone was the commonest device used (54%). 68.5% were familiar with e-learning in medical education, 55% accessed regularly, 47% were using for assessment with majority in phase 4 students. 81% agreed e-learning definitely improves their overall academic performance and 83% their self-assessment.Conclusions: Students had positive attitude towards e-learning and accepted supplementation of e-learning in regular traditional teaching method. Majority were satisfied with clinical material provided, knowledge gained in practical and theoretical aspects by online lectures in various formats and professional assistance provided.

IMPACT OF COVID-19 ON POST-GRADUATE DENTAL TRAINING PROGRAMME

The Coronavirus pandemic has affected all walks of life in an unprecedented manner and in order to curb the spread of the same the government imposed a stringent lockdown. This led to profound effects on the education and training of medical programmes including dentistry. The study was conducted as a cross sectional online survey circulated among dental post graduate students in Karnataka, India. This study assesses the impact of COVID-19 on the dental post graduate training programme considering various factors like impact on teaching, training, dissertation, various problems and difficulties faced by the residents and reasons for stress induced among them. It also addresses suggestions which would help in alleviation of the problems. The Government must ensure that the concerned teaching organisations should take the required measures in order to relieve the residents of the various problems faced and provide rational solutions for the same.

Awareness, anxiety, and depression in healthcare professionals, medical students, and general population of Pakistan during COVID-19 Pandemic: A cross sectional online survey

Awareness, anxiety, and depression in healthcare professionals, medical students, and general population of Pakistan during COVID-19 Pandemic: A cross sectional online survey

What Physiotherapists Specialized in Orthopedic Manual Therapy Know About Nocebo-Related Effects and Contextual Factors: Findings From a National Survey.

ObjectiveThe aim of this study was to investigate the knowledge of orthopedic manual therapists (OMTs) regarding context factors (CFs) capable of triggering nocebo effects during the treatment and how this knowledge is related to their socio-demographic features.DesignA cross-sectional online survey.SettingNational.Main Outcome MeasuresA 20 items questionnaire composed by open-ended and closed single-choice questions was administered to explore: (a) socio-demographic variables (10 questions); (b) the relation between different CFs and nocebo-related effects (2 questions); and (c) the knowledge of participants about nocebo-related effects and how they managed them in the clinical practice (8 questions).Participants1288 OMTs were recruited from the database of the Master in Rehabilitation of Musculoskeletal Disorders (MRDM) of the University of Genova from March to May 2019. Inclusion criteria were: (a) to possess a valid email account; (b) to understand and use as a native language the Italian; (c) to be graduated as OMTs; and (d) to be employed as physiotherapists specialized-OMTs during the survey.Results791 responses were received (61.4%); 473 of them were male (59.8%), with an average age of 31.0 ± 7.1 years. OMTs defined nocebo-related effects as the psychosocial context effects around therapy and patient with specific biological bases (72.2%). OMTs know that their clinical practice is pervaded by nocebo-related effects (42.5%), triggered by CFs. Participants communicated nocebo-related effects balancing the positive features of the therapy with the negative ones (50.9%), during the decision of the therapeutic plan (42.7%). They reported associative learning as the main mechanism involved in nocebo-related effects (28.8%). OMTs taught and trained patient’s strategies to manage nocebo-related effects (39.6%) through an evaluation and correction of patient’s anxieties, doubts and expectations (37.7%). OMTs most frequently considered themselves to have a “medium” education about nocebo-related effects (48.2%) and that their management should be taught during bachelor (78.6%).ConclusionOMTs believed that nocebo-related effects were present in their clinical practice and that they can be triggered by CFs.

Awareness, anxiety, and depression in healthcare professionals, medical students, and general population of Pakistan during COVID-19 Pandemic: A cross sectional online survey.

Background: COVID-19 (coronavirus disease 2019) pandemic has seriously affected the entire world. This study was aimed to assess prevalence and influencing factors of anxiety and depression during the pandemic in our Pakistani population, including healthcare professionals, undergraduate medical students, and general public. Methods: An online cross sectional survey was conducted; with a questionnaire having demographic profile, COVID-19-related knowledge/awareness, self-rating anxiety scale (SAS), and self-rating depression scale (SDS). A total of 1014 people responded to the survey. Chi square test was used to compare different groups, and logistic regression models were used to explore influencing factors for anxiety and depression symptoms. Results: Of the 1014 respondents, 92.6% were aware of COVID-19, and the prevalence rate of anxiety and depression symptoms was 4.6% and 14.3%, respectively. Healthcare professionals had more awareness about COVID-19 as compared to medical students and general public (p<0.001). Logistic regression models showed females, and people who were not aware of COVID-19 (≤ 6 points score) were more likely to have both anxiety and depression symptoms (p<0.05), the general public had more anxiety than healthcare professionals (p<0.05), while undergraduate medical students and young people had only depression (p<0.05). Conclusion: Although major mental health burden is not present in Pakistan, but there is a dire need to pay more attention to vulnerable groups like young people, undergraduate medical students, and women. Psychological interventions are required to reduce the psychological impact of COVID-19 pandemic.

Knowledge, Attitude and Practice Towards On Nail Tic Disorders

Nail tic disorder is one such disorder which has been reported in the nineteenth century. Nail tic disorder is a body focused repetitive behavior. Nail tic disorders are developed by individuals to cope up the stress and anxiety level. Nail tic disorder are effectively treated with the help of multiple aids like psychological methods, pharmacological methods. A cross sectional online survey was conducted between dentist and genital students with a self prepared questionnaire and the knowledge and awareness level among the participants about nail tic disorder was analyzed using online platform survey monkey. It is evident from the study conducted that most of the people develop this habit from childhood and it is practiced to cope up with stress levels and it is clear that most of them are aware about the consequences and treatment modalities of this disorder. Nail tic disorder is a example for overlap between dermatology and psychiatry. It is one of the problems that everyone practices in their life time but yet it is a poor studied topic and it is rarely understood.

Risk and Protective Factors Associated with Moderate and Acute Suicidal Ideation among a National Sample of Tribal College and University Students 2015-2016.

We examined the relationship between suicide risk and disability status, as well as risk and protective factors, adjusting for demographic characteristics, among students attending 22 Tribal Colleges and Universities (TCU; 20 rural and 2 urban) across the United States in fall 2015 and 2016. Tribal college students (N = 3,239) participated in a cross-sectional online or paper survey assessing alcohol use patterns and mental health outcomes, yielding a response rate of 31.3%. Of the students surveyed, 8.8% indicated moderate or high suicide risk. Hearing impairment was significantly associated with moderate/high suicide risk (OR = 2.11; 1.24-3.61, P=.006), as was vision impairment (OR= 3.03; 1.92-4.77, P<.001), having a physical/mental/or emotional condition (OR= 2.12; 1.75-2.57, P< .001), experiencing critical appraisal (OR= 1.30; 1.24-1.36, P< .001), and experiencing critical isolation (OR= 1.83; 1.66-2.01, P< .001). Scoring high on resilience (OR= 0.93; 0.92-0.95, P< .001), reporting higher emotional social support (OR= 0.75; 0.70-0.79, P< .001), and reporting higher levels of instrumental social support (OR= 0.69, 0.62-0.76, P< .001) were significantly associated with lower suicide risk. Students attending tribal colleges who experience hearing impairment, sight impairment, or a physical/emotional/mental condition have a greater risk of suicidality. Students experiencing critical appraisal and critical isolation may benefit from behavioral health interventions to reframe these experiences and develop resiliency skills. Developing avenues of emotional and instrumental social support within TCU settings offers key protective factors to buffer the risk of suicidality. Examining additional ways to build resiliency may also offer protection from suicide risk in this population.

Awareness, usage and perceptions of authorship guidelines: an international survey of biomedical authors

ObjectivesTo investigate authors’ awareness and use of authorship guidelines, and to assess their perceptions of the fairness of authorship decisions.DesignA cross-sectional online survey.Setting and participantsCorresponding authors of research papers submitted...

Evaluation of an online learning package developed to support the COVID-19 response of nurses working in Regional and Atoll Hospitals in the Maldives

In the global crisis of COVID-19 pandemic and the unparalleled health emergency, nurses are the largest healthcare professional group providing frontline care in hospitals as well as other areas such as quarantine and isolation facilities. Additionally, due to the nurses’ vital role in the care and management of the COVID-19 patients it is important that lifesaving information is delivered to them as well as other health professionals. Hence, School of Nursing (SN), Maldives National University (MNU) developed a short online learning course on nursing care of COVID-19 patients as per the request of the Ministry of Health (MoH), Maldives. The aim of the research was to evaluate the online learning package developed in the Maldivian context for nurses with little or no previous knowledge and skills in the care of COVID-19 patients. A cross sectional online questionnaire survey was used to collect data and an exploratory analysis was conducted. The quantitative findings showed that majority of nurses found the learning package more than satisfactory in each aspect evaluated. The overall consensus of the qualitative findings were the participants found learning online very helpful and informative. Therefore, the findings of this study can be considered as a useful baseline for developing short term online courses to address learning needs in emergency situations such as pandemics.

Knowledge, attitude and practice among health care professionals regarding COVID-19 and barriers faced by health care professionals in South India

Background: Corona virus disease or SARS-CoV-2 is the rapidly emerging pandemic in the present world. It has become a major concern for the front liners (health care professionals) globally. Aim of the study to assess the knowledge, attitude and practice among health care professionals regarding COVID-19 and barriers faced by HCP’s during practicing in south India.Methods: A cross sectional online survey was conducted during the month of May. The questionnaire was designed and validated and it was administered among participants. The statistical significance was calculated for collected data.Results: Total 658 subjects were responded. Gender distribution, females (64%) and males (36%). The questions included about profession, geographical distribution, age, source of information. Out of 658 samples, 418 (63.49%) with good knowledge and 240 (36.51%) with poor knowledge. Regarding attitude findings showed only few have positive attitude. Regarding practice 74.9% have good practice and 25.1% have poor practicing. By calculated the Chi-square test gives the statistical significance p&lt;0.0001 at 95% CI. Logistic regression analysis was done using gender versus knowledge (p&lt;0.0001), age versus knowledge (p&lt;0.0001) and area of residence versus knowledge (p&lt;0.438) hence. Whereas gender versus practice (p&lt;0.0001), age versus practice (p&lt;0.402) and area of residence versus practice (p&lt;0.0001) at 95% CI.Conclusions: In the present pandemic situation HCP’s were the front liners so, they must have proper knowledge, attitude and practicing skills. Our results showed positive outcome still the awareness should be created by conducting educational campaigns, journal clubs and continuous professionals programs for more positive outcome.

Self-medication during COVID-19 outbreak: a cross sectional online survey in Dhaka city

Background: Self-medication is a common practice in Bangladesh as it provides a low-cost alternative for people, which involves inappropriate and injudicious use of medicines treat self-recognized symptoms by the people.Methods: A cross sectional online survey was conducted on 626 citizens by structured questionnaires during COVID-19 outbreak from April to May 2020 in Dhaka city, to observe the prevalence, pattern and sources of self-medication among the respondents with high socio-economic standings and education.Results: The prevalence of self-medication amid the outbreak of COVID-19 was 88.33% and only 179 (28.59%) took medication with doctors’ advice and remaining 447 (71.40%) respondents took the drugs as “self-medication” by other sources. The most frequently used prescription-only drug during the outbreak were ivermectin (77.15%), azithromycin (54.15%), doxycycline (40.25%). The common symptoms for which the respondent took self-medications were fever, throat pain, dry-cough and total 105 (16.77%) respondents took medications without having any symptoms. Almost 355 (85.33%) had taken medication without doing any test for COVID-19. This could be due to unusual distress, caused by high self-awareness of their health and buying capacity of medication.Conclusions: The study revealed the causes of self-medication as news of spread, effects and remedies in media channels, internet; mental stress of lockdown and isolation, insecurity and panic about scarcity of drug and healthcare support. High risks of developing antibiotic resistance, adverse drug reactions and financial loss was predictable with absence of strict regulatory enforcement to protect people and proper utilization resources during COVID-19 outbreak in Dhaka city.

The Relationship between Women’s Peer and Social Networking Site Thinness Discrepancies and Body Dissatisfaction

ABSTRACT We explored the link between adult women’s peer and social networking site (SNS) thinness discrepancies on body satisfaction. We assessed discrepancies between women’s perceived actual thinness and the thinness ideal of close female and male peers, and the female thinness ideal of women and men on social networking sites (SNSs). A total of 253 women (M age = 37; SD = 11.41) completed a cross-sectional survey online. Discrepancies from SNS groups were significantly greater than peer groups. Also, all discrepancies were linked to body dissatisfaction. Finally, the discrepancy with SNS women was the most significant predictor of body dissatisfaction. Our findings also expand the use of self-discrepancy theory by examining SNS-specific discrepancies and do so alongside peer discrepancies to assess their relative effects on body satisfaction.

Compliance to Recommendations and Mental Health Consequences among Elderly in Sweden during the Initial Phase of the COVID-19 Pandemic-A Cross Sectional Online Survey.

Background (1): In the wake of COVID-19, elderly people have been labelled a risk group. As the pandemic is a new crisis in Sweden, we have no knowledge on how this group perceives the information and recommendations being provided. Complying with these recommendations entails physical distancing and, for some, isolation at home. Methods (2): From 16 April to 15 May 2020, we conducted an online survey targeting people aged 70 and older in Sweden (n = 1854). Results (3): A vast majority of the participants find the information and recommendations clear and reliable. Half of the participants report staying at home all the time, and up to half report decreased mental health in terms of, e.g., feeling depressed, having sleeping problems and that isolation makes them feel bad. However, elderly people are not a homogenous group, and there are gender and demographic differences. (4) Conclusion: At this point, we do not know the full extent of the ongoing pandemic, either in terms of duration or in terms of losses. The Swedish model for action on COVID-19 has not included a lock down. However, elderly people seem to comply with recommendations and practice social distancing to a high degree. This might lead to decreased mental health and long-term effects.

Examining the impact of the Respect in Sport Parent Program on the psychosocial experiences of minor hockey athletes

ABSTRACT Models of positive youth development suggest that athletes may be influenced by parent education programmes; however, there is little research examining the impact of such programmes on athlete outcomes. This study examined the impact of the Respect in Sport Parent Program on athlete outcomes among minor hockey players over three years. This study consisted of cross-sectional and longitudinal online surveys measuring athletes’ positive and negative developmental experiences, prosocial and antisocial behaviours, parental support and pressure, and sport enjoyment and commitment. Athletes completed at least one online survey during the study period (N = 366; 84.2% males; 14–19 years of age; M = 15.4 years), and 83 athletes completed multiple surveys for longitudinal analyses. Cross-sectional results comparing athletes in leagues adopting the programme at different time points indicated significant differences in prosocial behaviours towards teammates. Multilevel longitudinal analyses revealed improvements in athletes’ antisocial behaviours towards opponents, initiative, goal setting, and cognitive skills over time, regardless of whether they were in a league that implemented the programme. However, athletes in leagues that implemented the programme during the study reported greater improvements in antisocial behaviours towards opponents, and there were trends with respect to improved personal and social skills. These findings provide suggestions to improve the delivery and impact of parent education programmes in youth sport.

Risk perception of COVID-19 among Portuguese healthcare professionals and the general population

Risk perception assessment of COVID-19 among Portuguese Healthcare Professionals (HCPs) and the general population (GPop) was evaluated in a snowball sample of 3403 individuals, 54.9% of HCPs believed there was a high probability of becoming infected, in contrast with 24.0% of the GPop (P<0.001) and, in more than a quarter, that this could happen to their family. Regarding prophylactic isolation, more than 70% agreed with its effectiveness. A large proportion perceived that health services were poorly prepared (50.1% GPop vs 63.5% HCPs, P<0.001). Regarding health authorities' communication, about 60% were “moderately” satisfied. The opinion that the pandemic could be controlled in 3–6 months was held by 46.7% of the GPop and 52.8% HCPs (P=0.01).

Clinicians' and public acceptability of universal risk-of-death screening for older people in routine clinical practice in Australia: cross-sectional surveys.

Clinicians' delays to identify risk of death and communicate it to patients nearing the end of life contribute to health-related harm in health services worldwide. This study sought to ascertain doctors, nurses and senior members of the public's perceptions of the routine use of a screening tool to predict risk of death for older people. Cross-sectional online, face-to-face and postal survey of 360 clinicians and 497 members of the public. Most (65.9%) of the members of the public welcomed (and 12.3% were indifferent to) the use of a screening tool as a decision guide to minimise overtreatment and errors from clinician assumptions. Supporters of the use of a prognostic tool were likely to be males with high social capital, chronically ill and who did not have an advance health directive. The majority of clinicians (75.6%) reported they were likely or very likely to use the tool, or might consider using it if convinced of its accuracy. A minority (13.3%) stated they preferred to rely on their clinical judgement and would be unlikely to use it. Differentials in support for tools by seniority were observed, with more support expressed by nurses, interns and registrars than medical specialists (χ2 = 12.95, p = 0.044) and by younger (< 40years) clinicians (81.2% vs. 71.2%, p = 0.0058). The concept of integrating prognostication of death in routine practice was not resisted by either target group. Findings indicate that screening for risk of death is seen as potentially useful and suggests the readiness for a culture change. Future research on implementation strategies could be a step in the right direction.

Knowledge, attitudes, and practices towards COVID-19 among Nepalese Residents: A quick online cross-sectional survey

Background: Corona virus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a highly infectious disease. It is caused by a novel virus belonging to a family known as corona virus. This virus was first identified in the month December 2019 in Wuhan, China Hubei province. Since its first identification it has spread globally. It was declared a public health emergency of international concern on January 30, 2020 by WHO. Despite all efforts the virus continues to spread and WHO declared it a pandemic on March 11, 2020. In Nepal the first case was tested positive on23rd January and ever since numbers are increasing as days passed by. Residents of the country are the most important stakeholders to control the spread of such viruses. Nepal is a land locked country situated between India and China and is one of the vulnerable areas among SAARC nations. In spite of being such a vulnerable nation there was a lack of previous studies detecting the degree of awareness among Nepalese residents towards COVID 19.&#x0D; Aims and Objectives: This study aims to assess the current level of awareness towards COVID 19 among Nepalese residents and to analyze their attitudes and practices towards COVID 19 which is very important for people’s active participation to control this pandemic. In this study we investigated Nepalese residents KAP towards COVID-19. &#x0D; Material and Methods: This is cross sectional online study. A self-developed online questionnaire was completed by the participants. There were a total 29 questions among which 15 questions assessedknowledge, 6 questions assessed attitude and remaining 8 questions assessed practice.&#x0D; Results: Among the respondents (n=760), 65.7 % were male, 50.3 % were healthcare workers, overall range of correct answers for knowledge questionnaire was 60.0-98.7%, that for attitude was 77.9-96.4% and for practice was 78.2-95.0 %. Participants with a medical degree had statistically significant better practice against COVID 19 compared with the general population. &#x0D; Conclusion: Findings of this study show that knowledge among people of Nepal about COVID 19 is satisfactory. Yet a significant number of participants are lacking confidence when compared to other countries. Better practice against COVID requires a sense of responsibility, though the respondents with medical background had better sense of act against COVID prevention practice.