Objective: To assess the level of knowledge and attitude toward the COVID-19 virus and the protective measures among different categories of healthcare workers (HCWs) in King Abdulaziz University Hospital in Saudi Arabia.
Methods: This was a cross-sectional study that included 130 physicians, nurses, and pharmacists in the internal medicine and surgery departments at King Abdul-Aziz hospital. A self-administered questionnaire that was adopted from WHO and official reports was used to assess the knowledge, attitude, and risk perception of HCWs toward COVID-19.
Results: The mean age of the studied group was 32.38 ± 12.13 and the majority were females (87.5%) with 26.9% having post-graduate education. About 71.5% had direct contact with COVID-19 patients and 66.9% received their information from WHO and official reports. The mean knowledge score was 11.32 ± 0.87 and 95.4% had sufficient knowledge. The mean attitude score was 6.46 ± 1.56 and 73.2% had a positive attitude. About 96.2% and 93.8% thought that the virus might be more dangerous for those with chronic disease and the elderly, respectively. There was a statistically significant relation among mean knowledge score and education, profession, and contact with COVID-19 patients with higher scores reported with a post-graduate education, physicians, and those with direct contact with COVID-19 patients.
Conclusion: HCWs had good knowledge and a positive attitude toward COVID-19, which is very essential for limiting the spread of the epidemic.
Key words: Knowledge, attitude, COVID-19, hospital, Saudi Arabia.
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