Funders
Tropical Centre for Public Health Research, Navrongo Health Research Centre, Dodowa Health Research Centre, Research and Development Division
Objectives
The study seeks to assess the level of knowledge, attitude, perceptions and preventive practices regarding COVID-19 among community members in the northern, middle and southern zones of Ghana. In addition, the study determines the readiness and response to the COVID-19 pandemic at the primary health care level.
Findings
To ascertain how people’s misunderstanding and misconceptions, coupled with misinformation about the novel COVID-19 may delay controlling efforts to provide the necessary intervention with the potential to increase the rapid spread of infection in the community and health facilities. This situation may put community members’, patients’ and health care providers’ lives at risk.
Lessons
Lessons learned from the SARS outbreak in 2003 suggest that knowledge and attitudes towards infectious diseases are associated with the level of panic emotion among the population, which can further complicate attempts to prevent the spread of the disease.
Front line health care workers at the primary health care level play a critical role in disease surveillance and response to control and contain disease outbreaks.