Knowledge, attitudes, and adherence to preventive measures of medical students regarding COVID-19

Abstract

Background Medical students are at the core of pandemic response as\nprospective health professionals. This study aimed to assess medical\nstudents’ knowledge, attitude, and practices toward the COVID-19\npandemic and measure their level of adaptation to infection control\nmeasures. Methods In this descriptive study, data was collected via an\ninternet-based questionnaire delivered to students through e-mail\nbetween 19 August-14 September 2020. Participants were students enrolled\nin medical school in Istanbul, Turkey. Descriptive statistics and\nChi-Square test were used to analyze data. Results Among 245 subjects\nenrolled in the study, the mean age was 21.8±1.7, and 58.0% were\nfemale, 49.0% were preclinical (1-2-3rd) grades. Most of the\nrespondents (85.3%) thought they have enough knowledge; 97.6% knew\nabout transmission routes. 31.8% of students used the World Health\nOrganization website, 22% of the students used official government\nwebsites, and 20.0% of students used the news as a primary source for\ncovid-related information. More than half of the students (60.8%) felt\nmore anxious and nervous than usual due to pandemic, with female\npredominance. Over 85.0% of students fulfill infection control and\npreventive measures, such as wearing masks, washing hands, maintaining\nsocial distancing, and avoiding being in crowds. 68.2% of the students\nwere following current guidelines prepared for COVID-19. We observed\nmore frequent behaviors in students who report more anxiety and\nnervousness than usual. Most of the students (84.9%) expressed that\nthey would be vaccinated when the vaccine is developed. Conclusions\nMostly, medical students were well-informed with expected levels of\nknowledge, attitude, and preventive measures towards COVID-19.\nAnxiety-reducing interventions are urgently needed for medical students.\nFurthermore, pandemic management should be included in the medical\nschool curriculum to increase knowledge, awareness, and protective\nbehavior.