Document Type : Original Article
Authors
Abstract
BACKGROUND: COVID‑19 is a contagious disease without any treatment, vaccine, or immunity,
which the only way out is the practice of preventive measures. This article assessed the perception
and factors influencing the practice of preventive measures to COVID‑19 among nurses in Anambra
State, Nigeria. The study objectives include to determine the perception of nurses toward COVID‑19
and to determine factors that influence the practice of preventive measures to COVID‑19 among
nurses in tertiary hospitals in Anambra State.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: The design for the study was descriptive cross‑sectional survey
conducted among 344 nurses in the two tertiary institutions.
RESULTS: Three hundred and three (88.1%) nurses had no formal training on COVID‑19 protocol.
They have a good perception of the disease as, among others, they (165 [48.0%]) see it to be highly
contagious, 207 (60.2%) can recognize symptoms easily, 168 (48.8%) believed that COVID‑19 could
be handled professionally based on their experience, 155 (45.1%) responded that there is no vaccine
yet for the disease, and 200 (58.1%) responded that patients should not hide their symptoms and travel
history to avoid infecting other people. The result on the false benefits has 323 (93.9%) who responded
that COVID‑19 preventive measures will predispose one to the disease, 319 (92.7%) who responded
that the preventive measures will not slow the spread of the disease, 288 (83.7) who responded
that it is independent of normalcy returning to areas affected, and 327 (95.1%) who responded that
COVID‑19 preventive measures are among the effective ways to mitigate the disease and enhance
life sustainability. Some work‑related/institutional and disease‑specific factors influence their practice
of preventive measures to COVID‑19. Such factors include the time to use personal protective
equipment (PPE) in an emergency (170 [49.4%]), remembering to use PPE (158 [45.9%]), insufficient
nursing staff during a shift (158 [43.0%]), and too many responsibilities during a shift (178 [51.7%]).
CONCLUSION: With the increasing death as a result of COVID‑19, of which health workers are not
immune to, it is essential to annihilate all negative factors that may impede the accurate practices
of the preventive measures and also support the nurses with the necessary tools and knowledge to
mitigate their exposure to the disease.
Keywords
Myth Busters Section Navigation; 2020. Available from: https://
www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel‑coronavirus‑2019/
advicee‑for‑public/myth‑busters. [Last accessed on 2020 May 11].
2. Worldometer. Death Toll from COVID‑19; 2020. Available
from: https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/
coronavirus‑death‑toll/. [Last acessed on 2020 Jul 09].
3. WHO. Coronavirus Disease (COVID‑19) Advice for the Public:
Basic Protective Measures Against the New Coronavirus; 2020.
Available from: https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/
novel‑coronavirus‑2019/advice‑for‑public [Last accessed on 2020
May 11].
4. NCDC. Public Health Advisory to Nigerians on Coronavirus
Disease; 2020. Available from: https://ncdc.gov.ng/
news/244/18th‑march‑2020%7C‑public‑health‑advisory‑to‑
nigerians‑on‑coronavirus‑disease‑%28%236%29. [Last accessed
on 2020 May 09].
5. Zhang M, Zhou M, Tang F, Wang Y, Nie H, Zhang L, et al.
Knowledge, attitude, and practice regarding COVID‑19 among
healthcare workers in Henan, China. J Hosp Infect 2020;105:183‑7.
doi: 10.1016/j.jhin. 2020.04.012.
6. Maysa N, Maha S, Mahmoud A (2017). Factors influencing
compliance to the infection control precautions among nurses and
physicians in Jordan: A cross‑sectional study. Journal of Infection
Prevention, 18(4). https://doi.org/10.1177/1757177417693676
7. KavookjianJ. Learning Healthy Habits Is Vital in the Time
of COVID‑19. Auburn’s Harrison School of Pharmacy;
2020. Available from: https://ocm.auburn.edu/
experts/2020/04/070958‑healthyhabits‑covid19.php. [Last
accessed on 2020 May 20].
8. Orabi E. Standard isolation precautions educational intervention
on undergraduate medical students of Zagazig University.
Zagazig Univ Med J 2017;23:1‑14. DOI: 10.21608/zumj. 2017.4699
9. Zegarra‑Valdivia J, Chino Vilca BN, Ames‑Guerrero RJ.
Knowledge, attitudes, and perception susceptibility towards the
COVID‑19 pandemic in Latin American region. 2020. Psyarxiv
Preprints.doi: 10.31234/osf.io/w9y6z].
10. Hashmi FK, Iqbal Q, Haider S, Din Ahmed F, Saleem F, Bashaar M.
Response to and perception of nurses during the COVID‑19:
A qualitative assessment. Infect Dis 2020; Research Square
Preprint.[Doi: 10.21203/rs. 3.rs‑26270/v1].
11. Parikh PA, Shah BV, Phatak AG, Vadnerkar AC, Uttekar S,
Thacker N, et al. COVID‑19 Pandemic: Knowledge and perceptions of the public and healthcare professionals. Cureus
2020;12:e8144. doi: 10.7759/cureus.8144
12. Zhong BL, Luo W, Li HM, Zhang QQ, Liu XG, Li WT, and Yi L.
Knowledge, attitudes, and practices towards COVID‑19 among
Chinese residents during the rapid rise period of the COVID‑19
outbreak: A quick online cross‑sectional survey. Int J Biol Sci
2020;16:1745‑52. doi: 10.7150/ijbs.45221.
13. Cochran WG. Sampling Techniques. 3rd ed. New York: John Wiley
& Sons; 1977.
14. BikdeliB, TalasazAH, RashidiF, Sharif‑KashaniB, FarrokhpourM,
Bakhshandeh H, et al. Intermediate versus standard‑dose
prophylactic anticoagulation and statin therapy versus placebo in
critically‑ill patients with COVID‑19: Rationale and design of the
Inspiration/Inspiration‑S studies. Thromb Res 2020;196:382‑94.
doi: 10.1016/j.thromres.2020.09.027.
15. Public Health England. Reducing the Risk of Transmission
of COVID‑19 in the Hospital Setting; 2020. Available
from: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/
wuhan‑novel‑coronavirus‑infection ‑prevention‑and‑control/
r e d u c i n g ‑ t h e ‑ r i s k ‑ o f ‑ t r a n s m i s s i o n ‑ o f ‑ c o v i d ‑ 1 9
‑in‑the‑hospital‑setting7. [Last accessed on 2020 May 14].
16. WHO. Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) for Novel
Coronavirus (COVID‑19); 2020. Available from: https://
openwho.org/courses/COVID‑19‑IPC‑EN. [Last accessed 2020
May 08].
17. WHO. Environmental Health in Emergencies; 2020. Available from:
https://www.who.int/environmental_health_emergencies/
disease_outbreaks/communicable_diseases/en/. [Last accessed
on 2020 May 16].
18. Efstathiou G, Papastavrou E, Raftopoulos V, Merkouris A.
Factors influencing nurses’ compliance with Standard
Precautions in order to avoid occupational exposure to
microorganisms: A focus group study. BMC Nurs 2011;10:1.
doi: 10.1186/1472‑6955‑10‑1.
19. Pearce L. How COVID‑19 is affecting nurses’ mental health
and what to do about it. Nursing Standard Publication,
by Royal College of Nursing UK. 2020, 36(1). Available
from: https://rcni.com/nursing‑standard/features/
how‑covid‑19‑affecting‑nurses‑mental‑health‑and‑what‑to‑do
‑about‑it‑159456. [Last accessed on 2020 Apr 30].
20. Aurang Z, Dildar M, Awal K. Factors Affecting Nurses’
Compliance to Standard Precautions in Resource Scarce
Settings. Am J Biomed Sci & Res. 2018‑4(5). DOI: 10.34297/
AJBSR.2019.04.000840.
21. Li Z, Ge J, Yang M, Feng J, Qiao M, Jiang R, et al. Vicarious
traumatisation in the general public, members, and non‑members
of medical teams aiding in COVID‑19 control. Brain Behav Immun
2020;88:916‑9.
22. Haskell B, Schroer M, Zsamboky M. Easing the psychological
impact of COVID‑19 for nurses. Am Nurse Today Nurseline.
2020. Available from: https://www.myamericannurse.com/
easing‑the‑psychological‑impact‑of‑covid‑19‑for‑nurses/[Last
accessed on 2020 May 18].
23. Nemati M, Ebrahimi B, Nemati F. Assessment of Iranian nurses’
knowledge and anxiety toward COVID‑19 during the current
outbreak in Iran. Arch Clin Infect Dis 2020;15:e102848.
24. European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control.
COVID‑19 Situation Update Worldwide As of May 9,
2020. Available from: https://www.ecdc.europa.eu/en/
geographical‑distribution‑2019‑ncov‑cases.[Last accessed on 2020
May 09].
25. Chan MF. Factors affecting the compliance of operating room
nursing staff toward standard and transmission‑based precautio
)