Alak Paul: Department of Geography and Environmental Studies, University of Chittagong, Chittagong, Bangladesh.
Dwaipayan Sikdar: Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Chittagong, Chittagong, Bangladesh. ORCID
Mohammad Mosharraf Hossain: Institute of Forestry and Environmental Sciences, University of Chittagong, Chittagong, Bangladesh.
Md Robed Amin: Department of Medicine, Dhaka Medical College, Dhaka, Bangladesh.
Farah Deeba: Honorary Post-Doctoral Fellow at Macquarie University (Australia) and Department of Clinical Psychology, University of Dhaka, Dhaka, Bangladesh.
Janardan Mahanta: Department of Statistics, University of Chittagong, Chittagong, Bangladesh.
Md Akib Jabed: Department of Geography and Environmental Studies, University of Chittagong, Chittagong, Bangladesh. ORCID
Mohammad Mohaiminul Islam: Department of Geography and Environmental Studies, University of Chittagong, Chittagong, Bangladesh. ORCID
Sharifa Jahan Noon: Department of Geography and Environmental Studies, University of Chittagong, Chittagong, Bangladesh.
Tapan Kumar Nath: School of Environmental and Geographical Sciences, University of Nottingham Malaysia, Semenyih, Selangor, Malaysia. ORCID
The current novel coronavirus (nCoV) pandemic, COVID-19, was first reported in December 2019 in Wuhan, China, and has spread globally, causing startling loss of life, stalling the global economy, and disrupting social life. One of the challenges to contain COVID-19 is convincing people to adopt personal hygiene, social distancing, and self-quarantine practices that are related to knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) of the residents of respective countries. Bangladesh, a densely populated country with a fast-growing economy and moderate literacy rate, has shown many hiccups in its efforts to implement COVID-19 policies. Understanding KAP may help policy makers produce informed decisions. This study assessed KAP in relation to COVID-19 in Bangladesh. An online survey using a pre-tested questionnaire conducted in late March 2020 attained 1,837 responses across Bangladesh. Ultimately, 1,589 completed responses were included in a statistical analysis to calculate KAP scores and their interrelations with sociodemographic variables. The overall KAP was poor, with only 33% of the participants demonstrating good knowledge, whereas 52.4% and 44.8% of the subjects showed good attitudes and practices, respectively. Sociodemographic factors had strong bearings on the KAP scores. Significantly higher KAP scores were evident in females over males, among aged 45 years and older over younger participants, and among retired workers and homemakers over students and public service employees. This study indicated a panic fuelled by poor understanding of COVID-19 associated facts and the need for the government to ensure more granular and targeted awareness campaigns in a transparent and factual manner to foster public confidence and ensure more meaningful public participation in mitigation measures. This study provides a KAP baseline regarding COVID-19 among Bangladeshis.
