Knowledge, attitudes and practices of university students toward COVID-19 in Southern region, Afghanistan: a cross-sectional study

Rahmatullah Sirat; Mohammad Sediq Sahrai; Bilal Ahmad Rahimi; Abdullah Asady; Abdul Wahed Wasiq

doi:10.1186/s12909-023-04164-w

Knowledge, attitudes and practices of university students toward COVID-19 in Southern region, Afghanistan: a cross-sectional study

BMC Med Educ. 2023 Mar 20;23(1):171. doi: 10.1186/s12909-023-04164-w.

Authors

Rahmatullah Sirat¹, Mohammad Sediq Sahrai², Bilal Ahmad Rahimi³, Abdullah Asady⁴, Abdul Wahed Wasiq⁵

Affiliations

¹ Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Medicine, Kandahar University, Kandahar, 03801, Afghanistan.
² Department of Internal Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Kandahar University, Kandahar, Afghanistan. drsediqsahrai@hotmail.com.
³ Department of Pediatrics, Faculty of Medicine, Kandahar University, Kandahar, Afghanistan.
⁴ Department of Microbiology, Kabul University of Medical Sciences, Kabul, Afghanistan.
⁵ Department of Internal Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Kandahar University, Kandahar, Afghanistan.

Abstract

Background: Successful implementation of preventive measures and level of awareness in particular among university students in Afghanistan could play a crucial role in spreading the information for better control of the ongoing pandemic. Therefore, the aim of this study was to determine the level of knowledge, attitudes and practices (KAP) regarding COVID-19 among Kandahar university students.

Methods: A cross-sectional study conducted among undergraduate students to investigate their KAP regarding COVID-19 from January to March, 2021. The data were collected using a structured questionnaire (socio-demographic characteristics, KAP questionnaire) by phone call interviews.

Results: From 359 participants, 88.9% were males, 81.3% were single, 65.1% lived in urban areas, and more than 64% of the students were less than 23 years old. Overall, 86.6% of the study participants had adequate level of knowledge and 87.5% had positive attitudes toward COVID-19. Almost one-third of the participants had good practices regarding COVID-19. All KAP scores were higher in male students. Significant difference of good practice (p < 0.001) was observed among students who were in high socioeconomic status (SES) group. In univariate analysis, female sex (β: -0.75, p = 0.007) was negatively and watching television (β: 0.44; p = 0.014) was positively associated with knowledge score. However, in multivariate linear regression analysis, the knowledge score was significantly associated with age (β: -0.115; p = 0.004); attitude score was significantly associated with female sex (β: -2.776; p < 0.001) and radio use (β: -0.974; p = 0.031); and practice score was significantly associated with female sex (β: -3.704; p = 0.002) and urban area (β: 1.702; p = 0.016).

Conclusions: The overall knowledge and attitudes regarding COVID-19 among university students were desirable. Higher university year, young age, male sex and living in urban areas were significantly associated with good KAP regarding COVID-19. Good practices towards COVID-19 should be increased through awareness programs.

Keywords: Afghanistan; Attitudes; COVID-19; Knowledge; Practices; Second wave; University students.

MeSH terms

Adult
Afghanistan
COVID-19* / epidemiology
Cross-Sectional Studies
Female
Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice
Humans
Male
Students
Surveys and Questionnaires
Universities
Young Adult