ABSTRACT
Introduction: In Burkina Faso, the first cases of COVID-19 were reported in March 2020. Health personnel are on the front line of COVID-19 control, and it is important to understand their perceptions and knowledge of the disease. The objective was to determine the knowledge and perceptions of healthcare personnel of COVID-19 in the city of Ouagadougou. Method: The study was conducted in five plots in the city of Ouagadougou. A total of 20 health workers from public and private health centers in the city of Ouagadougou were selected during May 2020. In-depth individual interviews were conducted, and a thematic analysis was performed using NVIVO. Results and discussion: The routes of transmission identified were promiscuity, respiratory tract, and physical contact. Various symptoms have been noted, such as fever, cough, and runny nose. However, they recognize that these symptoms are not sufficient to make a diagnosis of COVID-19. Similarly, the treatments mentioned are modern medicine and phytomedicine. Conclusion: The research has generated information on healthcare workers' knowledge and perceptions of COVID-19. Therefore, they are useful for decision-making regarding protective measures for health workers in the management of COVID-19.
ABSTRACT
Background: The population's adherence to public health recommendations depends on many individual and collective cultural, socioeconomic, institutional, and environmental factors and the perception of the risks involved. This study aimed to describe and analyze the perception of risk related to coronavirus in the general population. Methods: A qualitative, exploratory cross-sectional study was conducted in Ouagadougou, the capital city of Burkina Faso. It involved the general population (youth and adults, men and women, traditional practitioners, religious leaders, and opinion leaders). The data were analyzed using the thematic analysis method. Results: Respondents perceived COVID-19 as deadly, dangerous, and highly contagious. It emerged that respondents perceived themselves to be at risk of being infected by the virus. This risk exposure is linked to several factors. These include the dangerousness of the disease contaminated by direct contact, the feeling of vulnerability linked to working conditions (traders, exposing themselves and others to the disease), status (elderly, and sick,), gender (mobility of men compared to women), and the risk relationship (the individual perceived as being a potential danger to his family/relatives). Vulnerability depended on the immune status of the people (elderly people, pregnant women, and people with chronic diseases), working conditions (shopkeepers, and traders), and also socioeconomic categories (wealthy people). Conclusion: Policymakers and actors in the response to COVID-19 should develop communication strategies to better address ongoing challenges.