Association between well-being and compliance with COVID-19 preventive measures by healthcare professionals

1. Healthcare providers were found to have higher compliance with COVID-19 preventative measures and had more positive attitudes towards their well-being compared to non healthcare workers.

2. Healthcare providers were more knowledgeable with regards to personal hygiene, personal protective equipment, and COVID-19 transmission than non health care providers.

Evidence Rating Level:  2 (Good)

The COVID-19 pandemic is omnipresent and an international priority in 2021. While studies focus on understanding, controlling the virus, and vaccine distribution, prevention is of the utmost importance to limit propagation of the disease. Certain public health measures and preventative strategies have proven to be effective such as social distancing, wearing masks, and disinfecting surfaces. However, compliance and factors effecting adherence with these health measures had not been previously extensively studied. This multicentre cross-sectional study collected information regarding knowledge, attitudes, and practises (KAP) of COVID-19 preventative measures and respondents’ perceived risk and well being. More specifically, this cross-sectional study consisted of a multinational survey with 2703 respondents across 36 counties between May and June, 2020. The survey was disseminated on various social media platforms and reached individuals over 21 years of age working in healthcare (40.5%) or elsewhere (59.5%). Health care professionals (HCPs) were found to have significantly more knowledge on personal hygiene and COVID-19 risk transmission compared to non-HCPs ((mean knowledge score—1.88, SD– 0.35 vs. mean knowledge score—1.80, SD– 0.44 (p-value—<0.001)). In other words, HCPs were 1.21 times more likely to have a positive attitude towards personal hygiene such as hand washing compared to non-HCPs. HCPs were also more compliant with personal protective equipment such as face masks and 1.46 times more likely to use a contract tracing app to prevent future spread compared to non-HCPs (80.6% vs. 73.9%, p-value—<0.01). Additional factors leading to compliance may have included societal pressure, social media, and interpersonal relationships. Attitudes and compliance towards social distancing were not significantly different between the two groups but knowledge of the safe distancing measures was higher in HCPs. Individuals with higher job satisfaction had better perceived well being and higher perceived health status. HCPs were found to have significantly higher rates of good well-being compared to non-HCP (74.8% vs. 68. 6%, p-value—<0.001).  A limitation of this study was that wellbeing was evaluated with a continuous score that did not account for severity. The threshold created a dichotomous score of low or high compliance and low or high wellbeing with a cut-off score of 75%. Therefore, individuals with 74% would be classified as having poor or low well being. This study highlights the importance of targeting public health measures to individuals and communities with lower compliance through platforms such as social media. It is imperative for risk mitigation to target awareness and education towards these more at-risk and vulnerable individuals.  Additionally, efforts should be made to increase mental health services in order to promote wellbeing and ultimately compliance. It also emphasized the importance of prevention and adherence to public health guidelines, such as good hand hygiene and social distancing, as protective measures from COVID-19. Finally, preventive strategies should rely on attitudes, perceptions, and responsiveness of the public in order to increase compliance.

Click to read the study in PLOSONE

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