Gidakom Hospital, Gidakom, Thimphu 11006, Bhutan.
Phuentsholing General Hospital, Phuentsholing 21101, Bhutan.
Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2023 Feb 8;20(4):2942. doi: 10.3390/ijerph20042942.
Bhutan is one of the few countries in the world to take unprecedented steps to control the spread of COVID-19 in the country. This study aimed to investigate knowledge, attitude, and practice (KAP) and their associated covariates among patients attending Phuentsholing Hospital, Bhutan. Therefore, a cross-sectional study was conducted among patients attending Phuentsholing Hospital in Bhutan between March 17 and April 9, 2021, using an interview-administered questionnaire. The multivariable logistic regression was used to identify statistically significant covariates of good KAP. Further, the association between levels of KAP scores was assessed using Pearson's correlation coefficient. Of the 441 participants, 54.6% (241) were female. Knowledge, attitude, and practice score were reported by 55.3%, 51.8%, and 83.7% of participants, respectively. Higher education, secondary education, monastic education, and non-formal education were 9 [adjusted odds ratio (AOR) = 9.23; 95% confidence interval (CI) 3.438, 24.797], 3.5 (AOR = 3.5; 95% CI 1.425, 8.619), and 4 (AOR = 3.8; 95% CI 1.199, 12.141) times more likely to report good knowledge than illiterates. A positive attitude was associated with higher (AOR = 2.97; 95% CI 1.154, 7.66) and secondary (AOR = 3.53; 95% CI 1.454, 8.55) education compared to illiteracy. The good practice was associated with higher (AOR = 12.31; 95% CI 2.952, 51.318) and secondary (AOR = 11.5; 95% CI 3.439, 38.476) education compared to illiteracy. Participants in the age groups 26-35 years (AOR = 0.11; 95% CI 0.026, 0.484) and >45 years (AOR = 0.12; 95% CI 0.026, 0.588) were less likely to exhibit good practice compared to those aged 18-25 years. Those working in the private or business sectors were 9 (AOR = 8.81; 95% CI 1.165, 41.455) times more likely to have good practice compared to civil servants. There was a weak but positive correlation between knowledge-attitude (r = 0.228), knowledge-practice (r = 0.220), and attitude-practice scores (r = 0.338). The need for health education on COVID-19 to increase knowledge and attitude is highly recommended, and should be focused on the less educated and other vulnerable groups such as farmers and students, as well as those older than 25 years.
不丹是世界上少数几个采取前所未有的措施来控制 COVID-19 在该国传播的国家之一。本研究旨在调查在不丹的 Phuentsholing 医院就诊的患者的知识、态度和实践（KAP）及其相关协变量。因此，2021 年 3 月 17 日至 4 月 9 日，在不丹的 Phuentsholing 医院，对患者进行了横断面研究，使用访谈式问卷调查。多变量逻辑回归用于确定 KAP 良好的统计学显著协变量。此外，使用 Pearson 相关系数评估 KAP 评分之间的关联。在 441 名参与者中，54.6%（241 名）为女性。分别有 55.3%、51.8%和 83.7%的参与者报告了知识、态度和实践评分。与文盲相比，受过高等教育、中等教育、僧侣教育和非正规教育的人报告良好知识的可能性分别高出 9 倍（调整后的优势比（AOR）= 9.23；95%置信区间（CI）3.438，24.797）、3.5 倍（AOR = 3.5；95% CI 1.425,8.619）和 4 倍（AOR = 3.8；95% CI 1.199,12.141）。积极的态度与更高的（AOR = 2.97；95% CI 1.154,7.66）和中等（AOR = 3.53；95% CI 1.454,8.55）教育相关，与文盲相比。良好的实践与更高的（AOR = 12.31；95% CI 2.952,51.318）和中等（AOR = 11.5；95% CI 3.439,38.476）教育相关，与文盲相比。与 18-25 岁年龄组相比，26-35 岁（AOR = 0.11；95% CI 0.026,0.484）和>45 岁（AOR = 0.12；95% CI 0.026,0.588）年龄组的参与者不太可能表现出良好的实践。与公务员相比，私营或企业部门的工作人员（AOR = 8.81；95% CI 1.165,41.455）进行良好实践的可能性高出 9 倍。知识与态度之间（r = 0.228）、知识与实践之间（r = 0.220）和态度与实践之间（r = 0.338）存在微弱但呈正相关。强烈建议开展关于 COVID-19 的健康教育，以提高知识和态度，重点应放在教育程度较低的人和其他弱势群体，如农民和学生，以及 25 岁以上的人。
