Shock Wave of a New Pandemic: Response of Antenatal Women in Ebonyi State, Nigeria to Corona Virus 19 Infection—Knowledge, Attitude and Practice

Background: There are no known effective vaccines or drugs for curing the corona 19 virus infection as at present knowlede. This leaves the world with mainly controlling the source of infection and cutting off the transmission route through preventive measures to contain the pandemic. These entail active participation of people, high level of discipline and strict and meticulous adoption of preventive measures. Since it is known that knowledge, precautionary behavior and active social participation of the public are important to control the pandemic, this study sets out to evaluate these in the antenatal population in Ebonyi State. Objective: To evaluate the Knowledge, attitude and practice of the respondents to the corona virus 19 infection and its prevention. Methods: A self-administered pre-tested questionnaire was administered to pregnant women attending antenatal clinics in the chosen Mission hospitals and the only tertiary health institution that offer antenatal care to the bulk of antenatal population in the state. The results were analyzed using SPSS version 20 and Microsoft Excel 2016. Result: The participants had very good knowledge of corona virus 19 infection and its prevention but there were some gaps and misconceptions in knowledge and some of their attitudes and perceptions that raised concerns. Their practice of corona virus 19 preventive measures was poor despite their good knowledge. Conclusion: There is need to fashion out programs and policies that will address the gaps and concerns unearthed in the study to enhance the protection of this vulnerable study population and the general public.