Adherence to COVID-19 Preventive Measures among Dental Care Workers in Vietnam: An Online Cross-Sectional Survey.

An online cross-sectional survey using a "snowball" sampling method was carried out to assess the adherence to COVID-19 preventive measures among dental care workers (DCWs) during the pandemic. Six questions concerning the COVID-19 preventive guidelines issued by the Vietnam Ministry of Health were used to evaluate DCWs' adherence to preventive measures at dental care clinics. The quality of life of DCWs was assessed using the WHO-5 questionnaire and was defined as low if the total score was less than 13 points. Factors relating to adherence to COVID-19 prevention measures of DCWs were determined by multivariate linear regression analysis. In total, 514 DCWs completed the questionnaire. A total of 37% DCWs rated their quality of life as low. Regression analysis suggested that older age, a better quality of life, living in an urban area, and training on COVID-19 prevention were associated with better adherence to COVID-19 preventive measures, while being a dentist and lack of personal protective equipment was associated with less adherence to COVID-19 preventive measures. The pandemic had a significant negative impact on the physical and mental health of DCWs. Therefore, specific national guidelines for the prevention and control of the spread of COVID-19 in dental facilities should be issued.

Stress and Associated Factors among Frontline Healthcare Workers in the COVID-19 Epicenter of Da Nang City, Vietnam.

Frontline healthcare workers (HCWs) involved in the COVID-19 response have a higher risk of experiencing psychosocial distress amidst the pandemic. Between July and September 2020, a second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic appeared in Vietnam with Da Nang city being the epicenter. During the outbreak, HCWs were quarantined within the health facilities in a bid to limit the spread of COVID-19 to their respective communities. Using the stress component of the 21-item Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale (DASS-21), we assessed the level of stress among HCWs in Da Nang city. Between 30 August and 15 September 2020, 746 frontline HCWs were recruited to fill in an online structured questionnaire. Overall, 44.6% of participants experienced increased stress and 18.9% severe or extremely severe stress. In multivariable analysis, increased stress was associated with longer working hours (OR = 1.012; 95% CI: 1.004-1.019), working in health facilities providing COVID-19 treatment (OR = 1.58, 95% CI: 1.04-2.39), having direct contact with patients or their bio-samples (physicians, nurses and laboratory workers; OR = 1.42, 95% CI: 1.02-1.99), low confidence in the available personal protective equipment (OR = 0.846; 95% CI: 0.744-0.962) and low knowledge on COVID-19 prevention and treatment (OR = 0.853; 95% CI: 0.739-0.986). In conclusion, many frontline HCWs experienced increased stress during the COVID-19 outbreak in Da Nang city. Reducing working time, providing essential personal protective equipment and enhancing the knowledge on COVID-19 will help to reduce this stress. Moreover, extra support is needed for HCWs who are directly exposed to COVID-19 patients.

Well-Being of Healthcare Workers and the General Public during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Vietnam: An Online Survey.

The COVID-19 pandemic and associated restrictive measures implemented may considerably affect people's lives. This study aimed to assess the well-being of Vietnamese people after COVID-19 lockdown measures were lifted and life gradually returned to normal. An online survey was organized from 21 to 25 April 2020 among Vietnamese residents aged 18 and over. The survey was launched by the Hue University of Medicine and Pharmacy. The WHO-5 Well-Being Index (scored 0-25) was used to score participants' well-being. A multivariate logistic regression model was used to determine the predictors of well-being. A total of 1922 responses were analyzed (mean age: 31 years; 30.5% male; 88.2% health professionals or students in the health sector). The mean well-being score was 17.35 ± 4.97. Determinants of a high well-being score (≥13) included older age, eating healthy food, practicing physical exercise, working from home, and adhering to the COVID-19 preventive measures. Female participants, persons worried about their relatives' health, and smokers were more likely to have a low well-being score. In conclusion, after the lockdown measures were lifted, the Vietnamese have people continued to follow COVID-19 preventive measures, and most of them scored high on the well-being scale. Waiting to achieve large-scale COVID-19 vaccine coverage, promoting preventive COVID-19 measures remains important, together with strategies to guarantee the well-being of the Vietnamese people.

Preventive behavior of Vietnamese people in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

We sought to evaluate the adherence of Vietnamese adults to Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) preventive measures, and gain insight into the effects of the epidemic on the daily lives of Vietnamese people. An online questionnaire was administered from March 31 to April 6, 2020. The questionnaire assessed personal preventive behavior (such as physical distancing, wearing a face mask, cough etiquette, regular handwashing and using an alcohol hand sanitizer, body temperature check, and disinfecting mobile phones) and community preventive behavior (such as avoiding meetings, large gatherings, going to the market, avoiding travel in a vehicle/bus with more than 10 persons, and not traveling outside of the local area during the lockdown). A total adherence score was calculated by summing the scores of the 9 personal and the 11 community prevention questions. In total, 2175 respondents completed the questionnaire; mean age: 31.4 ± 10.7; (range: 18-69); 66.9% were women; 54.2% were health professionals and 22.8% were medical students. The mean adherence scores for personal and community preventive measures were 7.23 ± 1.63 (range 1-9) and 9.57 ± 1.12 (range 1-11), respectively. Perceived adaptation of the community to lockdown (Beta (ß) = 2.64, 95% Confidence Interval (CI) 1.25-4.03), fears/worries concerning one's health (ß = 2.87, 95% CI 0.04-5.70), residing in large cities (ß = 19.40, 95% CI 13.78-25.03), access to official COVID-19 information sources (ß = 16.45, 95% CI 6.82-26.08), and working in healthcare/medical students (ß = 22.53, 95% CI 16.00-29.07) were associated with a higher adherence score to anti-COVID instructions. In conclusion, this study confirmed a high degree of adherence to personal and community preventive behavior among Vietnamese people. Our findings are consistent with the epidemiology of COVID-19 in Vietnam, where there have been few infections and no recorded deaths up to the first week of July 2020.