Original Article
Year : 2020 | Volume : 8 | Issue : 1 | Page : 04 -07
Assessment of Knowledge and Anxiety among Dentists in the State of Himachal Pradesh toward the COVID‐19 Pandemic
Parveen Dahiya, Anushika Pajnoo1, Asheema Malhotra2 , Rajan Gupta3 Professor, 3
HOD and Professor, 1,2Department of Periodontology, Himachal Institute of Dental Sciences, Paonta Sahib, Himachal Pradesh, India
Address for correspondence:
Dr. Parveen Dahiya,
Department of Periodontology, Himachal Institute of Dental Sciences, Paonta Sahib, Himachal Pradesh, India.
E‐mail: parveen_132@yahoo.com
Abstract
Background:
During the early days of March, the surge of COVID‐19 patients was evident in India. Effective control measures were adopted timely to overcome this deadly pandemic, but the limited knowledge among the researchers as well as the healthcare professionals caused it to be a worldwide pandemic and created a scare throughout the world.
Aim:
In this survey, we aim to study the knowledge and anxiety among dentists in the state of Himachal Pradesh toward the COVID‐19 pandemic.
Materials and Methods:
An online survey was conducted among general dentists studying or practicing in the state of Himachal Pradesh, with a sample size of 670 dentists based on convenience sampling. A self‐developed online questionnaire was formulated comprising 24 questions. It was divided into demography, knowledge, and anxiety, with each having 4, 11, and 9 questions, respectively. Results: The survey revealed that the responders had adequate knowledge regarding COVID‐19 as well as effective preventive measures to protect themselves as well as their families. Around 70% of people were well aware of the clinical manifestations of the virus. Anxiety was observed among dentists due to the rapidly progressing nature of this virus throughout the world. Around 50% of the people were anxious about facing any health‐related issues due to corona infection. Conclusion: Thus, we feel there is a need for better sources of knowledge regarding this pandemic and methods to protect oneself, as well as care for the good mental health of the dentists.
Keywords: Anxiety, COVID‐19, dentists, knowledge, pandemic
Financial support and sponsorship
Nil.
Conflicts of interest
There are no conflicts of interest.
How to cite this article:
Dahiya P, Pajnoo A, Malhotra A, Gupta R. Assessment of knowledge and anxiety amongst dentists in the state of Himachal Pradesh towards the COVID-19 pandemic. Int J Comm Dent 2020;8:4-7.
