An evaluation of the knowledge and attitudes of medical students in Istanbul towards COVID-19 at the beginning of the outbreak

Abstract

Objective: This short report examines the knowledge, attitudes and thoughts of medical students on outbreak management during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted between the 20th of February and the 4th of March 2020, via online survey. The study population was 593 students in a medical school. Frequency analysis, chi-square, Mann-Whitney U and binary logistic regression analyses were generated using the SPSS 23.0 software. Results: In total, the survey was completed by 285 students (48%). Mean age of the participants was 21.2±2.1 and 73% were preclinic students (1st, 2nd, and 3rd class). Of the students, 70% were taking updates from the media and 60% answered correctly that COVID-19 has a lower mortality rate compared to SARS and MERS. The most used protection amongst the respondents was hand sanitizers. Of the participants, 34% thought that COVID-19 was part of a biological war, 45% thought that the media made the outbreak look worse than reality and 43% thought they were at risk for COVID-19. Students who were Turkish citizens demonstrated less trust for information and the outbreak management processes of the World Health Organization and the Ministry of Health. Conclusions: The finding that most students get updates from media emphasized the importance of the effects of the media. Low trust levels of the students about the information and outbreak management of the worldwide and local health authorities should be evaluated by these organizations.

Keywords

• Coronavirus
• SARS-CoV-2
• COVID-19
• medical students

Salgının başlangıç döneminde İstanbul’da bir Tıp Fakültesi öğrencilerinin COVID-19 hakkında bilgi ve görüşlerinin değerlendirilmesi

Abstract

Amaç: Bu kısa rapor kapsamında, COVID-19 salgınının tıp fakültesi öğrencilerince ne kadar bilindiğinin, öğrencilerin salgına yönelik nasıl tutumlar aldıklarının ve sürecin yönetimi hakkındaki düşüncelerinin sunulması amaçlanmıştır. Yöntem: Kesitsel tipteki çalışma, salgının başlangıç aşamasında, 20/02/2020-04/03/2020 tarihleri arasında çevrimiçi veri toplama formu ile gerçekleştirilmiştir. Araştırmanın evreni bir tıp fakültesindeki toplam 593 öğrencidir. SPSS 23.0 kullanılarak frekans analizleri, ki-kare analizleri, Mann-Whitney U ve Binary lojistik regresyon analizleri gerçekleştirilmiştir. Bulgular: Toplam 285 öğrenci formu cevaplamıştır (%48). Katılımcıların yaş ortalaması 21.2±2.1’dir ve %73’ü preklinik dönem (1.,2. ve 3. sınıf) öğrencisidir. Öğrencilerin %70’i COVID-19 hakkındaki bilgileri medyadan elde etmektedir. COVID-19’un mortalite değerinin SARS ve MERS’ten düşük olduğunu %60’ı doğru olarak cevaplamıştır. En sık kullanılan korunma yöntemi el dezenfektanıdır (%66). Katılımcıların %34’ü COVID-19’un biyolojik savaşın bir parçası olduğunu, %45’i medya salgını olduğundan daha kötü gösterdiğini, %43’ü COVID-19 açısından risk altında olduğunu düşünmektedir. Türkiye Cumhuriyeti vatandaşı öğrenciler yabancılara kıyasla anlamlı olarak Dünya Sağlık Örgütü ve Sağlık Bakanlığının bilgilendirme ve salgın yönetimi süreçlerine daha az güvenmektedirler. Sonuç: Öğrencilerin çok büyük bir kısmının gelişmeleri medyadan takip etmesi salgında medyanın etkisinin önemini vurgulamaktadır. Öğrencilerin gerek dünya çapında gerek yerel sağlık otoritelerince yapılan bilgilendirme ve salgın yönetimine güven düzeyinin düşük olması ilgili kurumlarca değerlendirilmelidir.

Keywords

• Koronavirüs
• SARS-CoV-2
• COVID-19
• tıp öğrencileri

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