Knowledge, Attitude, and Practices on the Use of Hydroxychloroquine on COVID-19 Patients among Physicians in Government Tertiary Hospitals

Abstract

This study aimed to assess the knowledge, attitude, and practices on the use of hydroxychloroquine on COVID-19 patients among physicians in government tertiary hospitals as well as to provide a list of currently administered drugs, vitamins or therapy to COVID-19 patients in order to alleviate the symptoms caused by SARS-CoV-2. It involved 100 licensed physicians working in a government tertiary hospital in the Philippines. An online survey was utilized for the informed consent and questionnaire. The respondents were screened in order to confirm if they fit the inclusion criteria. The respondents were assessed based on their demographic profile and knowledge, attitude, and practice towards the use of hydroxychloroquine on COVID-19 patients. In addition, the respondents were also asked about other drugs that had been prescribed or administered aside from hydroxychloroquine. Majority (42%) of the respondents belonged to the 26-30 age group, 54% were male, 28% specialized in internal medicine and 91% dealt with COVID-19 patients. The survey revealed that the overall weighted mean in terms of the knowledge of the respondents towards the use of hydroxychloroquine on COVID-19 patients was 3.14 which implies that the respondents have a moderate knowledge on the use of hydroxychloroquine. There were no significant differences on the knowledge of physicians when group according to sex, age and whether they have dealt with COVID-19 patients; moreover, the computed p-values are .720, .984, and .246 respectively. On the other hand, there was a significant difference in the knowledge of physicians when group according to specialization (p = 0.035). The overall weighted mean of the attitude of the respondents was 2.20 implies a negative attitude towards the use of hydroxychloroquine but the respondents are interested in reading journal articles and/or cases that tackles the use and effects of hydroxychloroquine on COVID-19 patients. The attitude of the respondents were not significantly different when grouped according to sex (p = 0.945), age groups (p = 0.554), specialization (p = 0.181) and whether they have dealt with COVID-19 patients (p = 0.874). The overall weighted mean of practices was 2.23 which implies disagreement on the use of hydroxychloroquine. There were no significant differences on the practices of physicians when grouped according to sex (p = 0.999), age groups (p = 0.958), and whether they have dealt with COVID-19 patients (p = 0.588), whereas there was a significant difference when grouped according to specialization (p = 0.006). The other drugs prescribed or administered in response to COVID-19 are remdesivir and azithromycin. To conclude, the knowledge of the respondents on the new living guidelines by the World Health Organization directly influenced the attitude and practices of the physicians and other drugs that can be effectively used in response to COVID-19 should be further investigated.