Research article

Providing care to patients with COVID-19 in a reference hospital: health care staff intentional behavior and factors that affect it

Running title: Intention to provide care to COVID-19 patients
  • Received: 12 April 2021 Accepted: 25 May 2021 Published: 31 May 2021
  • Objective 

    The investigation of intentional behavior of hospital staff to care for COVID-19 patients and the study of the factors that influences it.

    Method 

    This is a cross-sectional study, of 261 physicians and nurses working in a COVID-19 reference hospital. Data were collected by an anonymous questionnaire including demographic and professional characteristics and a scale measuring behavioral intention based on the Theory of Planned Behavior of Ajzen. Statistical analysis was performed by SPSS 21.

    Results 

    Mean age of participants was 40.8 years old, while most of them were nurses (75.7%). Behavioral intention mean score was 18.2 (5–21), which shows high intention to care for COVID-19 patients. Bivariate analysis between independent variables showed that behavioral intention mean score was higher for those that had cared for COVID-19 patients and those that did not (19.0% vs. 16.7%, p < 0.001). Multivariate linear regression analysis identified that increased subjective norms (the perceived social pressure to perform or not the behavior) score was associated with increased behavioral intention score (p < 0.001). Also, participants that provided care for COVID-19 patients had higher behavioral intention score (p < 0.001).

    Conclusion 

    Healthcare staff, that cared for COVID-19 patients had high behavioral intention to continue caring for them. This finding could be used to inform policies and training for staff that will be employed in COVID-19 units.

    Citation: Theodoros Pesiridis, Petros Galanis, Eleni Anagnostopoulou, Athena Kalokerinou, Panayota Sourtzi. Providing care to patients with COVID-19 in a reference hospital: health care staff intentional behavior and factors that affect it[J]. AIMS Public Health, 2021, 8(3): 456-466. doi: 10.3934/publichealth.2021035

    Related Papers:

  • Objective 

    The investigation of intentional behavior of hospital staff to care for COVID-19 patients and the study of the factors that influences it.

    Method 

    This is a cross-sectional study, of 261 physicians and nurses working in a COVID-19 reference hospital. Data were collected by an anonymous questionnaire including demographic and professional characteristics and a scale measuring behavioral intention based on the Theory of Planned Behavior of Ajzen. Statistical analysis was performed by SPSS 21.

    Results 

    Mean age of participants was 40.8 years old, while most of them were nurses (75.7%). Behavioral intention mean score was 18.2 (5–21), which shows high intention to care for COVID-19 patients. Bivariate analysis between independent variables showed that behavioral intention mean score was higher for those that had cared for COVID-19 patients and those that did not (19.0% vs. 16.7%, p < 0.001). Multivariate linear regression analysis identified that increased subjective norms (the perceived social pressure to perform or not the behavior) score was associated with increased behavioral intention score (p < 0.001). Also, participants that provided care for COVID-19 patients had higher behavioral intention score (p < 0.001).

    Conclusion 

    Healthcare staff, that cared for COVID-19 patients had high behavioral intention to continue caring for them. This finding could be used to inform policies and training for staff that will be employed in COVID-19 units.



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    Acknowledgments



    This study did not receive funding from any source. We would like to thank participants in the study for the time they spent for the completion of the questionnaire during a very distressing time for them and the patients they cared for.

    Conflict of interest



    All authors declare no conflict of interest in this paper.

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