Knowledge, attitude, and practice of medical and non-medical professionals of Peshawar towards the COVID-19 pandemic: an online survey

Abstract

Introduction: The coronavirus later named severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), caused an illness known as COVID-19. This study was carried out to determine the KAP of medical and non-medical professionals of Peshawar towards COVID19.

Objective: To assess the knowledge, attitude, and practice of selected medical and non-medical professionals about coping with the COVID-19 pandemic through an online survey.

Materials & Methods: This cross-sectional online survey took place from March 1 to April 30, 2020 using purposive sampling due to COVID-19 pandemic-related constraints against a community-based survey. A questionnaire for recording knowledge, attitude and practice about COVID-19 pandemic was generated with the help of literature search and uploaded through google forms. Responses were collected in excel spreadsheets which were later converted to SPSS version 23 for descriptive statistical analysis. Chi Square test was used for comparison between medical and non-medical professionals keeping p ≤0.05 significant.

Results: A total of 366 participants responded to the online survey. The ratio of medical to non-medical professionals being 1.16:1. It was observed that majority of respondents had adequate knowledge regarding the current pandemic and no significant difference was seen between the two professionals (p<0.001). Both the professionals had a positive attitude with no difference (p<0.05). In practice, visiting marketplaces (p=0.754) showed significant difference in the practice however all the other practice measures did not show significance (p<0.05) and were being practiced by both the professionals.

Conclusion: There is no significant difference in the knowledge, attitude or practice of medical and non-medical professionals towards the current pandemic of COVID-19.

Keywords: COVID-19; Pandemic; Coronavirus; SARS virus.