COVID-19 and Saudi Arabia: Awareness, Attitude, and Practice

Manal S Fawzy,1,2 Sana A AlSadrah3 1Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Medicine, Northern Border University, Arar, 1321, Saudi Arabia; 2Department of Medical Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Faculty of Medicine, Suez Canal University, Ismailia, 41522, Egypt; 3Department of Preventive Medicine, Governmental Hospital Khobar, Health Centers in Khobar, Ministry of Health, Khobar, 31952, Saudi ArabiaCorrespondence: Manal S Fawzy, Tel +201008584720, Fax +20641326496, Email manal2_khashana@ymail.comAbstract: The Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome-CoronaVirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic has transformed our appreciation of healthcare awareness worldwide. The amount of related data accumulated during this time has surpassed any other outbreak of a viral pathogen. Healthcare awareness is related to one of the nine pillars of the “World health organization (WHO) operational planning guidelines to support country preparedness and response”. This review is structured around the awareness/knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP)-related publications in Saudi Arabia up to date to understand the impact of COVID-19 on these domains. The excellent communication effort response from governments, international, and individuals to keep the public informed about the outbreak is highlighted. Unraveling such impacts on the Saudi communities, including healthcare workers (HCWs)/professionals (HCPs), students, patients with different diseases, and non-professional individuals, is essential in containing the outbreak and planning preventive measures in case of future outbreaks.Keywords: attitude, COVID-19, healthcare awareness, knowledge, practices, SARS-CoV-