Objective: To assess knowledge and understanding that university students have about COVID-19 and its transmission
Methodology: An online questionnaire- based survey was conducted which included 384 students of a public sector medical university in Karachi. They were enrolled regarding their demographic details, knowledge, perceptions, and behaviors towards the pandemic using the convenient sampling technique.
Results: The results showed that 17.4% of the students had been infected with COVID-19 in the past and 13.43% of them opted for PCR testing. 91.04% of the infected student had quarantined themselves according to the guidelines of WHO. 69.8% always wore a mask when leaving their homes, while 80.7% reported that the pandemic affected their frequency of handwashing. Only 36.5% had used sanitizer before the pandemic and 50% started using it after. 47.1% maintained strict social distancing all the time, and 86.2% reported that the pandemic and SOPs had changed their lives to some extent.
Conclusion: A small percentage of students were infected and were greatly impacted by the pandemic in their social, academic, and personal lives. The pandemic altered the behaviors of the students greatly, and they opted for better hygiene, conformation to SOPs, and positive lifestyle changes to cope with the various effects of pandemic.
Key words: COVID-19, behaviors, medical students, World Health Organization.
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