The appraisal of knowledge, attitudes and practice of residents of the Sisak-Moslavina County in relation to COVID-19 pandemic: cross-sectional study using KAP survey

Pandemija COVID-19 stvorila je javnozdravstvenu krizu, zarazila milijune ljudi i uzrokovala značajan broj smrtnih slučajeva. SARS-CoV-2 prenosi se s osobe na osobu na nekoliko putova, uglavnom putem respiratornih kapljica, što otežava obuzdavanje širenja u zajednici. Iako bolest još nije do kraja istražena, najpoznatiji simptom do sada koji su ljudi izrazili je gubitak okusa i mirisa. Liječenje je simptomatsko te je zbog toga individualno. U borbi protiv zaraznih bolesti postignut je ogroman napredak na polju cjepiva. Cjepiva protiv SARS-CoV-2 virusa su još uvijek pod povećalom te ih se ljudi još uvijek boje. U RH do sada postoje četiri registrirana cjepiva, a to su: Spikevax-Moderna, Comirnaty BioNTech Pfizer, Janssen-Johnson & Johnson i Vaxevria-AstraZeneca. Putem istraživanja i edukacija potrebno je razvijati svijest ljudi o korisnosti i benefitima cijepljenja, kako bi se smanjio strah u zajednici. Unutar ovog istraživanja koje je provedeno u periodu od 31.04.2022. do 25.07.2022. godine, obuhvaćene su sve teme koje zanimaju građane u smislu bolesti COVID-19 i samog virusa SARS-CoV-2. Cilj istraživanja je bio ispitati znanje stanovnika Sisačko-moslavačke županije o podrjetlu samog virusa i razvoju bolesti COVID-19. Od velike je važnosti uvidjeti koje mjere prevencije stanovnici koriste u borbi protiv bolesti. Na samom kraju bitan je postotak procijepljenosti ispitanika, kako bi se usporedio sa ostatkom registriranih cijepljenih unutar RH. Istraživanje sveukupno obuhvaća 30 pitanja koja su većinom zatvorenog tipa, dva pitanja su na otvorenog tipa. U istraživanju su sudjelovali isključivo stanovnici Sisačko-moslavačke županije i to stariji od 18 godina. Rezultati istraživanja nisu neuobičajni te su sve tri postavljenje hipoteze potvrđene. Što se tiče pitanja postavljenih o znanju ispitanika o virusu, više od polovice njih 58,7% zna mjesto podrijetla virusa i čak njih 75% je točno odgovorilo kada se prvi put virus pojavio. Također, ispostavilo se da ipak većina ispitanika unutar Sisačko-moslavačke županije, njih 76% je procijepljeno te bi njih 68,3% preporučilo svojim bližnjima da se cijepe. Takve brojke ukazuju na dobru informiranost unutar županije i ojačanu svijest ljudi. Što se tiče mjera prevencija, 54,8% ljudi je tijekom pandemije nosilo zaštitne maske, 42,3% je pazilo na socijalnu distancu i njih 65,4% je vodilo više računa o higijeni ruku. Istraživanjem zaključujemo da je veliki broj ljudi dobro informiran i upoznat sa COVID-19 bolesti, načinu širenja i prevenciji od iste.The COVID-19 pandemic has created a public health crisis infecting millions of people and causing a significant number of deaths. SARS-CoV-2 is transmitted from person to person by several routes, mainly through respiratory droplets, making it difficult to contain the spread. Although the disease has not yet been fully researched, the most well-known symptom so far that people have expressed is the loss of taste and smell. Treatment is symptomatic and therefore individual. In the fight against infectious diseases, enormous progress has been made in the field of vaccines. Vaccines against the SARS-CoV-2 virus are still under the magnifying glass and people are still afraid of them. There are four registered vaccines in the Republic of Croatia so far, namely: Spikevax-Moderna, Comirnaty BioNTech Pfizer, Janssen-Johnson & Johnson and Vaxevria-AstraZeneca. It is necessary to develop public awareness of the usefulness and benefits of vaccination through research and education in order to reduce fear in the community. Within this research, which was conducted in the period from 31st of April 2022 until 25th of July 2022, all topics of interest to citizens in terms of the disease Covid-19 and the SARS-CoV-2 virus itself were covered. The aim of the research was to examine the knowledge of the inhabitants of Sisak-Moslavina County about the origin of the virus itself and the development of the disease. It is of great importance to see what preventive measures the inhabitants use in the fight against disease. The percentage of vaccinated research participants is important so it can be compared with the rest of the registered vaccinated individuals within the Republic of Croatia. The survey includes a total of 30 questions most of which are of the multiple choice question type, two of which are open questions and a few yes/no questions. Only residents of the Sisak-Moslavina County who were over 18 years of age participated in the research. The research results are not unusual and all three hypotheses were confirmed. Regarding the questions asked about the research participants knowledge about the virus 58.7% know the place of origin of the virus and even 75% of research participants correctly answered when the virus first appeared. It turned out that the 76% of research participants in the Sisak-Moslavina County have been vaccinated and 68.3% would recommend their relatives to get vaccinated. Such figures indicate good information within the county and strengthened people's awareness. As for prevention measures 54.8% of people wore protective masks during the pandemic, 42.3% were careful about social distancing and 65.4% of research participants took more care about hand hygiene. Through research, we conclude that a large number of people are well informed and familiar with the diseases of COVID-19, the way it spreads and how to prevent it