Knowledge, Attitude, and Prevention Practices Toward Coronavirus Disease 2019 in Ethiopia: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

BACKGROUND: Coronavirus disease is a major global public health problem. The contagious disease caused by a newly discovered coronavirus, coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), was declared a pandemic following the outbreak of cases of respiratory illness during 2019. Although studies assessed COVID-19 knowledge, attitude, and practice in Ethiopia the findings were highly variable and inconsistent. OBJECTIVES: This study assessed the pooled status of knowledge, attitude, and prevention practices regarding COVID-19 in Ethiopia. METHODS: International and national electronic databases, including PubMed/MEDLINE, EMBASE, Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature, Google Scholar, Science Direct, and Google, were systematically searched. All observational studies on COVID-19 knowledge, attitude, and prevention practices in Ethiopia were included. We assessed heterogeneity among the included studies using the Cochrane Q test statistics and I(2) test. Lastly, a random-effects meta-analysis model was fitted to estimate the pooled proportion of knowledge, attitude, and prevention practices toward COVID-19 in Ethiopia. RESULTS: Our search identified 206 studies, 13 of which were included in the final analysis. Adequate knowledge, good attitude, and good prevention practice toward COVID-19 in Ethiopia were observed in 70.25% (95% CI, 61.82%–78.02%), 69.08% (95% CI, 55.42%–81.24%), and 41.62% (95% CI, 27.77%–56.17%) of total participants across studies, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: The results of this study revealed low proportions of adequate knowledge, attitudes, and preventive practices toward COVID-19 in Ethiopia. The lowest pooled proportion was observed in the Amhara region. These findings indicate the need to revise plans and policies to improve the knowledge, attitudes, and prevention practices of people toward COVID-19 in Ethiopia, especially in the Amhara region. (Curr Ther Res Clin Exp. 2021; 82:XXX–XXX) © 2021 Elsevier HS Journals, Inc.