Knowledge, attitude, practice and associated factors towards COVID-19 and its prevention measures among residents of Mekelle City, Tigray Region, Northern Ethiopia: a community-based cross sectional study

Abstract

Aim The emerging respiratory disease known as the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) became a global concern and was declared as a global health emergency by the World Health Organization (WHO) on March 11, 2022. This study aimed to assess knowledge, attitude, and practice and associated factors toward COVID-19 and its prevention measures among residents of Mekelle city, Tigray, Northern Ethiopia. Subject and methods A community-based cross-sectional study was conducted among 604 residents of selected kebelles in Mekelle city, Tigray region from April to February 2022. A structured questionnaire and observation check list were used to collect the data. Multivariable logistic regression analysis was used with SPSS version 25 to identify factors associated with the outcome variables. Results A total of 604 residents were participated in the study with 100% response. Among the total study participants (n = 604), 74.2%, 58.8%, and 39.2%, of them had good knowledge, a positive attitude, and good practice toward COVID-19 and its preventive measures, respectively. Results from the multivariate analysis showed that age, level of education, and family size were found to be significantly associated with good knowledge of study participants toward COVID-19. Additionally, occupation, family size, income level, and having knowledge about COVID-19 were significant factors associated with the attitude of the study participants toward COVID-19. Moreover, practice of study participants to prevent COVID-19 was also significantly associated with educational status, occupation status, income level, and having a positive attitude about the practice toward COVID-19 prevention. Conclusion This study result revealed that the study participants’ knowledge and attitude regarding COVID-19 were good. However, their practice toward COVID-19 and its preventive measure was poor, which will affect combating the pandemic. Therefore, continuous and effective public health education programs, community mobilization, law enforcements, and breaking siege and allowing all types of humanitarian aids in the region are urgently needed to improve knowledge, attitude, and practices toward COVID-19 and its preventive measures among the residents. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s10389-023-01826-3.

Prevalence and Antimicrobial Resistance of Campylobacter Species and Associated Factors Among Under-Five Children with Diarrhea at Randomly Selected Public Health Facilities in Mekelle, Tigray, Ethiopia

“…Mekelle owns one specialized hospital, two general hospitals, one primary hospital, and five health centers. 25 , 29 The study was conducted among randomly selected four public health facilities through a simple random sampling (lottery) method due to resource scarcity to encompass all.…”

“… 24 In Ethiopia, around 39 million diarrheal episodes occur every year, of which 230 thousand children die because of it. 25 The prevalence of Campylobacter species among under-five children with diarrhea is around 14.5% of which Campylobacter jejuni and Campylobacter coli account for 71.1% and 21.1%, respectively. 26–28 …”

“…24 In Ethiopia, around 39 million diarrheal episodes occur every year, of which 230 thousand children die because of it. 25 The prevalence of Campylobacter species among under-five children with diarrhea is around 14.5% of which Campylobacter jejuni and Campylobacter coli account for 71.1% and 21.1%, respectively. [26][27][28] Although Campylobacter diarrheal disease among under-five years of age is a huge problem in Ethiopia, particularly in Tigray, to our knowledge to date, few studies have been conducted to look into the prevalence, antimicrobial resistance, and associated factors with the incidence of campylobacteriosis.…”

Knowledge, attitude, and practice towards COVID-19 among chronic disease patients visiting public hospitals

“…According to the study done in Ethiopia, the level of knowledge (41.3%) and desirable COVID-19 practices among visitors to the Jimma University Medical Center were insufficient to combat this rapidly spreading virus [ 33 ]. Another study done to assess the knowledge, attitude, and practice towards COVID-19 among the general population revealed that the study participants' practice and attitude were poor, which will affect combating the pandemic [ 34 ]. Several other studies have been carried out to assess the KAP of study participants towards COVID-19 and its prevention measures [ [33] , [34] , [35] , [36] , [37] , [38] , [39] ].…”

“…Another study done to assess the knowledge, attitude, and practice towards COVID-19 among the general population revealed that the study participants' practice and attitude were poor, which will affect combating the pandemic [ 34 ]. Several other studies have been carried out to assess the KAP of study participants towards COVID-19 and its prevention measures [ [33] , [34] , [35] , [36] , [37] , [38] , [39] ]. According to a study [ 40 ] conducted in Ethiopia, a high incidence of inadequate awareness and poor practice for COVID-19 was found among patients with chronic diseases, accounting for 33.9% and 47.3%, respectively.…”