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. 2021 Oct;15(5):e17-e25.
doi: 10.1017/dmp.2020.233. Epub 2020 Jul 14.

Response of the Public to Preventive Measures of COVID-19 in Iraqi Kurdistan

Deldar Morad Abdulah  1 , Salem Said Aziz Qazli  2 , Sherzad Khudeida Suleman  3   4
Affiliations

Response of the Public to Preventive Measures of COVID-19 in Iraqi Kurdistan

Deldar Morad Abdulah et al. Disaster Med Public Health Prep. 2021 Oct.

Abstract

Objectives: On March 1, 2020, the Kurdistan Region Government (KRG) announced 4 confirmed cases of coronavirus disease (COVID-19). We aimed to explore the response of the public toward the prevention principles against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection.

Methods: The investigators invited individuals from different geographic areas of Duhok Governorate of Iraqi Kurdistan in March 2020.

Results: The mean age of the participants was 25.74 (16-95 years). The mean score and prevalence of fear toward SARS-CoV-2 infection was 4.40 of 10 and 81.9%, respectively. A small percentage of participants did not minimize their exposures by reducing close contacts and transmission of respiratory droplets (14.5%) and visited public areas during the epidemic (28.7%). The study revealed that 30.8% of the participants do not use face masks or tissues when they sneeze in public areas. Most of the participants wash their hands when they suspect a possible transmission of the SARS-CoV-2 pathogen (94.6%) and clean or disinfect pathogen contamination-suspected areas at home (84.6%). The study also revealed that some participants (11.2%), due to a lower education, did not visit a medical clinic when they experienced possible symptoms of SARS-CoV-2 infection. Participants agreed with the health policies of KRG against the COVID-19 outbreak (90.8%).

Conclusions: Some individuals do not adhere to preventive measures against SARS-CoV-2 infection.

Keywords: Coronavirus; environmental exposure; infection control.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors have no conflicts of interest to declare.

Figures

FIGURE 1
FIGURE 1
Map of the Districts of Kurdistan Region.
FIGURE 2
FIGURE 2
Map of Kurdistan Region With its Estimated Population at Governorate Level – 2018.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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