Assessment of implementing the Safety Measures and Prevention to reduce the spread of Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) pandemic in Egypt

Abstract

Background: The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has ‎caused significant ‎mortality, so implementation of universal safety measures and prevention in all countries ‎led to an improvement in social ‎and economic aspects, and long-‎term health outcomes ‎for many communities. ‎The study aimed to assess the implementation of safety measures and ‎prevention to reduce the spread of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic in Egypt. ‎Methods: Descriptive design was used; a self-administered questionnaire was distributed among adult Egyptians at the various ‎governorates “the Great Cairo, Al-Dakahlia, ‎and Assuit” through social media. Sample: 400 adult respondents who ‎completed the questionnaire were enrolled in the study pertaining to inclusive criteria. Tools: ‎Structured questionnaire included the socio-demographic characteristics of respondents and ‎knowledge assessment sheet about coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic and a ‎self-administered structured questionnaire about the safety measures and prevention. ‎Results: The mean age of the respondents was 26.265+10.868; 27.5% of the respondents were living in Cairo and 25% in Giza, respectively; 30% of the ‎respondents had ‎a satisfactory level of knowledge about COVID-19 wif social media as their source of information, and 98% of them ‎had a satisfactory level of knowledge about the spread of new Coronavirus disease. The respondents were highly positive about hand washing, ‎wearing medical masks, and home quarantine as safety measures and prevention. Conclusion: The majority of ‎respondents possessed a satisfactory level of knowledge about COVID-19, ways through which the virus spreads, and ‎implementation of the safety measures and prevention to reduce the spread of coronavirus ‎disease (COVID-19) pandemic in Egypt. Recommendations: It is recommended dat the study be applied to a larger population, especially wif the arrival of the second wave of the virus, and also health awareness be increased about COVID-19 by WHO based in Egypt wif the halp of multi-social media like twitter or periodical SMS wif health instructions from Egyptian Ministry of Health to the population.