Healthcare understanding of COVID-19 antibody

Health Policy Technol. 2022 Mar;11(1):100598. doi: 10.1016/j.hlpt.2022.100598. Epub 2022 Jan 10.

Abstract

Objective: : The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has shed light on the difficulties in spreading uniform information. We rely on national and international organizations to provide scientifically accurate information to the public at large. With so many different sources of information, often not scientific, there appears to be an incomplete understanding of many aspects of SARS-CoV-2 infection. We sought to gain information about healthcare worker understanding of the implications of a positive serum COVID-19 antibody test result. We identified a broad range of responses among all categories of healthcare workers in our facility. Most notably we found that there was not complete understanding that there can be asymptomatic spread of COVID-19 infection.

Methods: : We provided health literacy and opinion questions to the healthcare workers of our facility.

Results: : Upon analysis of the data, we identified many differences in level of understanding among our healthcare workers.

Conclusion: : We identified a lack of consensus on important details leading to potentially growing uncertainty with respect to SARS-COV-2 antibody. A diminished health literacy with respect to antibody testing could potentially suggest future issues with understanding the importance of vaccination benefits.

Keywords: Health literacy; SARS-CoV-2 antibody.