Perceptions of primary healthcare physicians in Jordan of their role in the COVID-19 pandemic: A cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: Following the remarkable spread of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), worldwide, it quickly became apparent that many public health systems worldwide were not prepared to manage such a pandemic. We aimed to assess the perceptions of primary care physicians (PCPs) in Jordan towards their role during COVID-19. METHODS: A cross-sectional study using a self-administered questionnaire was performed. The study participants included PCPs from the Ministry of Health, academic institutions, and the private sector in Jordan. RESULTS: A total of 221 PCPs participated in the study. Most participants reported not having received any training on infection control (59.7%) or COVID-19 (81%). More than half PCPs (53.4%) felt positive about the way patients received and/or complied with their instructions. More than half PCPs (55.7%) educated their patients on protective measures against COVID-19 infection and considered this as part of their role and responsibility. Over 80% of the participants would apply social distancing, hand sanitation, facial masks, and patient education, but only half (51.1%) reported planning to order COVID-19 test kits. CONCLUSIONS: PCPs had a positive attitude towards controlling COVID-19 infection and showed a willingness to educate patients on how to protect themselves. However, PCPs should be provided special training on COVID-19.

Exploring perception and hesitancy toward COVID-19 vaccine: A study from Jordan.

Vaccination against COVID-19 may present the most effective strategy to control current viral pandemic. The success of delivering mass vaccination, on the scale of what would be applied to contain COVID-19, largely depends on the compliance of the public to programs mandated by public health officials. This study was aimed to evaluate the perception and possible hesitance of people in Jordan toward a tentative COVID-19 vaccine using self-administrated online survey. During the study period, a total of 1287 agreed to participate in the study. More than half of the participants (n = 734, 57%) were females and the majority (n = 893, 69%) had a University degree. Most of the participants (n = 871, 68%) believed that scientists have adequate tools to develop a safe and efficacious COVID-19 vaccine and two-third of them (n = 861, 67%) believed that developing vaccines would end the pandemic. However, around half of them (n = 665, 52%) reported not having adequate information on the benefits of COVID-19 vaccination. Preference of study participants to achieve immunity against COVID-19 using natural way was the most commonly reported reason to refuse vaccination (n = 826, 64%), followed by their concern about adverse effects associated with the vaccine (n = 781, 61%). In conclusion, the sampled participants showed an overall positive attitude toward receiving a COVID-19 vaccine. Educational campaigns using television and social media are recommended to better inform the public of the benefits of COVID-19 vaccine in reaching a "herd immunity" based strategy to control the current pandemic.

Public Perception Regarding COVID-19, Nature of the Disease, Susceptibility to Complications, and Relationship to Influenza: A Study from Jordan Using Google Forms.

BACKGROUND: COVID-19 was declared by the World Health Organization (WHO) as a pandemic and had spread to most of the globe. In the current study, perception regarding the nature of the COVID-19 disease, susceptibility to its complications, and its relationship to seasonal influenza was investigated among the Jordanian population. METHODS: This was a survey-based cross-sectional study among public in Jordan. RESULTS: A total of 1863 participants agreed to participate in this questionnaire-based study. The results showed that more than half (55%) of the sample believed that COVID-19 is a naturally occurring virus which causes a serious and possibly fatal disease (50.7%). The majority (62.9%) did not accept that this disease is actually caused by bacteria, or is similar to seasonal influenza. Interestingly, 45.0% of the sampled population felt that the COVID-19 virus was engineered in the lab. Most of the participants (95%) agreed that the elderly or individuals with chronic illnesses such as diabetes and heart disease were more susceptible to severe COVID-19 infections. With respect to symptoms, about two-thirds of the participants (65.2%) felt that the symptoms of COVID-19 are to a large extent similar to those of seasonal influenza. In addition, the majority (82.7%) believed that only some COVID-19 patients develop symptoms that can be described as severe. Factors such as age, gender, and education were found to modulate some of the perceptions of Jordanians regarding different aspects of COVID-19 disease. CONCLUSION: The majority of Jordanians have a good perception about the nature, cause and symptoms of COVID-19 disease.

The psychosocial and clinical concerns of physicians treating patients with COVID-19.

OBJECTIVES: This study aims to assess the psychosocial and clinical issues affecting physicians who have been directly involved in treating patients with novel coronavirus (COVID-19). METHODS: We recruited physicians from four hospitals in Jordan. A structured 20-item, self-administered survey was used to gather data. Descriptive statistics were employed to represent the numbers and percentages of the participants' responses to the survey items. Multivariate logistic regression was used to examine the relationship between the participants' traits and items related to the level of fear, the quality of care provided to patients, and social distancing among family members. RESULTS: A total of 135 physicians participated; 65.9% were men. More than half reported moderate to high levels of fear (55.5%). The majority (71.1%) were moderately to highly concerned about becoming infected with COVID-19 from the patients they treated. Most physicians practiced adequate social distancing. While most of them thought that COVID-19 patients received a high quality of care, they generally perceived a shortage of specialised physicians and personal protective equipment (PPE). The ratings for the quality of care and social distancing practices were significantly associated with the presence or absence of training related to COVID-19. CONCLUSIONS: The degree of fear and concerns about COVID-19's impact on physicians and their families was high. There were also concerns about the long-term consequences of COVID-19 on medical services.