ABSTRACT
The COVID-19 pandemic influenced the lives of university students all across the globe. Indeed, the pandemic has impacted many aspects of their daily routine, changing their social and health habits and food-related behaviors. There is now no approved therapy, and vaccination is the only clinical preventative measure that provides the highest protection against the virus. While these vaccines have been beneficial in curbing the pandemic's effect, they may also influence food-related behaviors. Accordingly, this paper aims to investigate the impact of vaccination availability on university students' food shopping and consumption habits, vaccine-related opinions, and back on-campus behaviors in Jordan. The research is based on an online survey conducted in Jordan using a structured questionnaire and distributed through Google Forms between January 1 and March 20, 2022. A total of 624 valid answers were collected. The findings revealed no significant changes in the way students consumed, shopped, and handled food compared to the pre-vaccine period. However, there is a slight post-vaccine trend toward shopping more groceries online and ordering more meals via delivery apps and takeout services. Regarding health-related food choices, there was an increase in the consumption of healthy food, water, and fruits and vegetables. Further, following the availability of the vaccination, students' adoption of COVID-19 food-related habits was maintained. Gender, engagement in food preparation activities, and living status (e.g., whether or not living with parents) substantially affected several food-related behaviors. The findings are expected to guide both current emergency preparations and long-term food-related policies in Jordan. This information may also be helpful to researchers interested in the effects of COVID-19 vaccination on student nutrition and related food behaviors.
ABSTRACT
Introduction: Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is caused by a relatively new coronavirus strain known as severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), which has become a significant worldwide health concern. The hesitancy of people to accept vaccination or implement the preventive measures following vaccination can be considered a serious issue that increases the spread of COVID-19. The objectives of the current study were to assess the knowledge and attitudes toward COVID-19 vaccination and the adoption of preventive measures following vaccination among the general population in Jordan and to compare the perceived stresses between the vaccinated and unvaccinated groups. Methods: An online cross-sectional survey was conducted among adults above the age of 18 years in Jordan during the period June-October 2021. The survey has six sections: (1) socio-demographic characteristics, (2) vaccination status, (3) knowledge of participants about COVID-19 vaccination, (4) attitude of participants about COVID-19 vaccination, (5) implementation of preventive practices among participants following COVID-19 vaccination, and (6) perceived stress toward COVID-19 among vaccinated and unvaccinated participants. Results: 605 respondents (69.8% female and 30.2% male) aged between 30-49 years completed the questionnaire. More than half were married and 40.5% received one (29.8%) or two doses (10.7%) of a vaccine. Generally, they showed a positive attitude toward COVID-19 vaccination with a value of 12.7 out of 19. Most of them (>85%) showed proactive practices following vaccination by implementing some preventive measures such as implementing social distancing, avoiding crowded places, and shaking hands. The average perceived stress scale of the general population in Jordan was moderate with a value of 21.5 out of 40. However, fully or partially vaccinated individuals had a significantly (p=0.03) lower PSS (20.97) than unvaccinated people (21.87). Conclusion: The respondents have a good knowledge and positive attitude towards COVID-19 vaccination with good practices following vaccination. However, unvaccinated individuals were more likely to be stressed than vaccinated people. This study may assist policymakers to enhance the extent of COVID-19 vaccination and reduce the spread of this infection. © 2022 by Author/s and Licensed by Modestum.
ABSTRACT
Purpose This study examined the level of knowledge, attitudes and practices (KAP) of Jordanian dairy employees about coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) characteristics and the effect of precautionary measures on food safety risk during the pandemic. Design/methodology/approach A cross-sectional study was conducted between Dec 17, 2020 and Feb 22, 2021, involving a total of 428 participants across 34 random chosen dairy facilities in Jordan. KAP related to COVID-19 were measured by 46 items, while 13 items were used to examine perceived notions regarding COVID-19 precautionary measures on food safety. Findings The results indicated that 32.2% of the respondents had sufficient knowledge, 60.3% had a good attitude, and 27.1% followed correct practices concerning COVID-19. Moreover, female respondents had higher total KAP scores of COVID-19 characteristics than males. Furthermore, older and more experienced respondents had higher total KAP scores than younger respondents. This study also observed that the total KAP scores were not affected by education, marital status, and job position. Characteristics and measures taken by the dairy industry were at large significantly associated with (p < 0.05) knowledge and practice of employees about COVID-19 attributes. Results of this study suggested that Jordanian dairy workers were not adequately aware about COVID-19. Originality/value No such study on dairy workers has been conducted previously to the best of the authors' knowledge. Moreover, studies which analyse the association of industry response and characteristics on the KAP of employees are very limited.