Knowledge, Attitude and Practice of Gambians towards the Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) Pandemic in The Gambia: A cross-sectional study

Abstract

Introduction: The on-going global health threat of the respiratory disease recently named by the World Health Organization (WHO) as a novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) in December 2019 has spread across many parts of the world [1]. Reaching the African continent through travellers returning from hotspots in Asia, Europe, and the United States, Africa’s first COVID-19 case was recorded in Egypt on the 14th of February, 2020. Since then, it has spread across many countries in the African continent. Nigeria reported the first COVID-19 case on the 28th of February, 2020 making it the first confirmed case in sub-Saharan Africa. In The Gambia, the first suspected COVID-19 case was reported on the 15th March 2020 involving a 28-year-old Gambian female arriving from London, UK. This article, aims at shedding light on
the peoples’ knowledge, attitude, and practices towards COVID-19 in The Gambia.
Materials and Methods: This study was a cross sectional web-based survey, conducted among the general population of residents (aged 18 years and above) in The Gambia from August 24, 2020 to October 10, 2020. Four hundred and twenty-eight residents of The Gambia were asked 27 questions regarding their knowledge, attitude and practice (KAP) towards COVID-19.
Results: Among a total of 428 participants, the overall achieved score regarding COVID-19 knowledge towards the disease was 75.86%. Also, an overall score of 72% showed a positive attitude regarding the knowledge of the mode of transmission and groups at higher risk of COVID-19. There was no significant difference in mean knowledge, attitude and practice scores with respect to other demographic  variables, but, it is worth mentioning that sufficient COVID-19 knowledge scores, positive attitude, and adequate practice were found among the respondents. The multiple logistic regression results revealed two demographic factors i.e. qualification and occupation had association with knowledge towards COVID-19.
Conclusion: Our findings suggest that The Gambian population showed decent knowledge, appropriate practice, and positive attitude towards COVID-19 even though the government needs to do more in terms of COVID-19 education.

Keywords: Knowledge, Attitude, Practice, The Gambia, Novel, Coronavirus