Knowledge, Attitude and Practice Towards COVID-19 Among Chronic Disease Patients at Addis Zemen Hospital, Northwest Ethiopia

PURPOSE: The recent outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is the worst global crisis after the Second World War. Since no successful treatment and vaccine have been reported, efforts to enhance the knowledge, attitudes, and practice of the public, especially the high-risk groups, are critical to manage COVID-19 pandemic. Thus, this study aimed to assess knowledge, attitude, and practice towards COVID-19 among patients with chronic disease. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 404 chronic disease patients from March 02 to April 10, 2020, at Addis Zemen Hospital, Northwest Ethiopia. Both bivariable and multivariable logistic regression analyses with a 95% confidence interval were fitted to identify factors associated with poor knowledge and practice towards COVID-19. The adjusted odds ratio (AOR) was used to determine the magnitude of the association between the outcome and independent variables. P-value <0.05 was considered statistically significant. RESULTS: The mean age of the participants was 56.5±13.5. The prevalence of poor knowledge and poor practice was 33.9% and 47.3%, respectively. Forty-one percent of the participants perceived that avoiding of attending a crowded population is very difficult. Age (AOR=1.05, (95% CI (1.01–1.08)), educational status of “can’t read and write” (AOR=7.1, 95% CI (1.58–31.93)), rural residence (AOR=19.0, 95% CI (6.87–52.66)) and monthly income (AOR=0.8, 95% CI (0.79–0.89)) were significantly associated with poor knowledge. Being unmarried (AOR=3.9, 95% CI (1.47–10.58)), cannot read and write (AOR=2.7, 95% CI (1.03–7.29)), can read and write (AOR=3.5, 95% CI (1.48–8.38)), rural residence (AOR=2.7, 95% CI (1.09–6.70)), income of <7252 Ethiopian birr (AOR=2.3, 95% CI (1.20–4.15)) and poor knowledge (AOR=8.6, 95% CI (3.81–19.45)) were significantly associated with poor practice. CONCLUSION: The prevalence of poor knowledge and poor practice was high. Leaflets prepared in local languages should be administered and health professionals should provide detailed information about COVID-19 to their patients.