Sah Guru Sharan, Shrestha Gambhir, Dhakal Aayush, Mulmi Rashmi, Sapkota Ashok, Poudel Shivaji
Department of Medical Oncology, B.P. Koirala Memorial Cancer Hospital, Bharatpur, Chitwan, Nepal.
Department of Community Medicine, Maharajgunj Medical Campus, Institute of Medicine, Tribhuvan University, Maharajgunj, Kathmandu, Nepal.
Cancer Manag Res. 2020 Oct 15;12:10173-10180. doi: 10.2147/CMAR.S271910. eCollection 2020.
Cancer patients are at higher risk of COVID-19 infection as they are highly immunocompromised. The patients' adherence to control measures is affected by their knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) towards COVID-19. This study assesses the KAP towards COVID-19 among the admitted cancer patients in Nepal and is first of its kind.
A cross-sectional study was conducted among the 224 admitted cancer patients in B.P. Koirala Memorial Cancer Hospital, Chitwan, Nepal, between April 20 and May 20, 2020, which was the early phase of the lockdown due to COVID-19. The study was conducted via face-to-face interviews taking optimum precautions. The research used a semi-structured questionnaire consisting of demographic characteristics, cancer-related information, 14 knowledge items, 4 attitude items, and 10 practice items. Independent sample -tests and one-way analysis of variance were used to assess the association of knowledge with demographic characteristics.
The overall correct response rate of the knowledge component of the questionnaire was 79.4%. Most of the participants (89.7%) had a positive attitude towards accepting isolation if they had the COVID-19 infection. Only 4.5% reported that they had visited the crowded places recently. More than 98% of the patients were found to be compliant with the recommended preventive behaviors such as using the face mask, avoiding touching the eyes, nose, and mouth, washing the hands more than usual, and avoiding close contact with other patients or the caretakers not using the face masks. A total of 21.9% of respondents were using the same face mask for more than 3 days. Male gender, younger age group, and higher education were the positive predictors of knowledge regarding COVID-19.
The overwhelming majority of the cancer patients had a good knowledge of COVID-19 and maintained positive attitudes and practice towards it. When tailored health education programs are planned, age, gender, and educational status should be taken into a consideration.
癌症患者由于免疫功能高度低下，感染新冠病毒的风险更高。患者对防控措施的依从性受其对新冠病毒的知识、态度和行为（KAP）的影响。本研究评估了尼泊尔住院癌症患者对新冠病毒的KAP，此类研究在该国尚属首次。
2020年4月20日至5月20日，在尼泊尔奇旺的BP柯伊拉腊纪念癌症医院对224名住院癌症患者进行了一项横断面研究，这是因新冠病毒实施封锁的早期阶段。该研究通过采取最佳预防措施的面对面访谈进行。研究使用了一份半结构化问卷，包括人口统计学特征、癌症相关信息、14项知识条目、4项态度条目和10项行为条目。采用独立样本t检验和单因素方差分析来评估知识与人口统计学特征之间的关联。
问卷知识部分的总体正确回答率为79.4%。大多数参与者（89.7%）对感染新冠病毒后接受隔离持积极态度。只有4.5%的人报告近期去过人员密集场所。超过98%的患者被发现遵守推荐的预防行为，如佩戴口罩、避免触摸眼睛、鼻子和嘴巴、比平时更频繁地洗手，以及避免与其他患者或未佩戴口罩的护理人员密切接触。共有21.9%的受访者使用同一个口罩超过3天。男性、较年轻年龄组和较高教育程度是新冠病毒知识的积极预测因素。
绝大多数癌症患者对新冠病毒有良好的了解，并对其保持积极的态度和行为。在制定针对性的健康教育计划时，应考虑年龄、性别和教育程度。
