Awareness and practice of preventive measures among healthcare workers in medical institutions in Beijing during influenza season on the eve of COVID-19 epidemic: A cross-sectional survey

Background. Influenza is an acute respiratory infectious disease caused by the influenza virus, which poses a certain threat to humans due to its short incubation period, fast transmission and strong infectivity.Objectives. To evaluate the awareness and prevention behavior against influenza among healthcare workers on the eve of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) epidemic in Beijing, China.Materials and methods. Using the cross-sectional research design based on the principle of convenience sampling, an online questionnaire survey on the knowledge of flu, vaccination, medical protection behavior, and flu medication was conducted between January and February 2020. Healthcare workers from different healthcare facilities and different job positions in Beijing participated in this survey.Results. A total of 1910 healthcare workers from different medical institutions and jobs were included in the study. The mean age of the participants was 32.69 +/- 8.72 years (range: 18-64 years). There were significant differences in knowledge about clinical signs about flu and prevention approaches among different age groups, individuals with different work experience and job titles (chi 2 = 8.903-32.839; p < 0.05). Personnel with different job positions and education levels differed only in the knowledge about clinical signs of flu and identification of high-risk populations. A multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed that age (odds ratio (OR) = 0.979, 95% confidence interval (95% CI): 0.966-0.992) and education level (OR = 0.736, 95% CI: 0.588-0.921) were risk factors for hand hygiene practices, whereas job position (OR = 1.757, 95% CI: 1.146-2.695) and awareness of high-risk populations (OR = 1.405, 95% CI: 1.096-1.800) were protective factors influencing hand hygiene practices (p < 0.05). The only factor influencing mask wearing was the education level (OR = 0.610, 95% CI: 0.450-0.828).Conclusions. The knowledge level and preventive behavior of healthcare workers before the outbreak of COVID-19 has been insufficient.