Knowledge, Attitude, and Practices of Healthcare Workers Regarding the Use of Face Mask to Limit the Spread of the New Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19).

Introduction Many countries including Pakistan are currently using face masks in their pandemic control plans. Being highly prevalent, the correct use of these masks is particularly important, as an incorrect use and disposal may actually increase the rate of transmission. The purpose of this study was to investigate the knowledge, attitude, and practices of healthcare workers (HCWs) in wearing a surgical face mask to limit the spread of the new coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Materials and Methods This survey was conducted by interviewing HCWs using a questionnaire consisting of the basic demographic characteristics, and the knowledge, attitude, and practices regarding the use of surgical face mask to limit the new COVID-19 exposure. Each correct answer was scored 1 and each incorrect answer scored 0. The total number of questions was 16, and the final score was calculated and then labeled according to the percentage (out of 16) of correct responses as good (>80%), moderate (60-80%), and poor (<60%). Results A total of 392 participants with a mean age of 42.37 ± 13.34 years (341 males and 51 females) were included in the study. The overall final results were good in 138 (35.2%), moderate in 178 (45.4%), and poor in 76 (19.3%). Around 43.6% of participants knew about the correct method of wearing the masks, 68.9% knew that there are three layers, 53% stated that the middle layer act as a filter media barrier, and 75.5% knew the recommended maximum duration of wearing it. The majority (88.2%) of participants knew that a cloth face mask is not much effective, around 79.8% knew that used face mask cannot be re-used, and 44.8% knew about the yellow-coded bag for disposal. Conclusions Knowledge, attitude, and practice of HCWs regarding the use of face masks were found to be inadequate. Studied HCWs had a positive attitude but moderate-to-poor level of knowledge and practice regarding the use of face mask. HCWs and general public awareness campaigns regarding the proper use of face mask by utilizing all social media available resources would be helpful during this pandemic.
Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.
(Copyright © 2020, Kumar et al.)