To what extent physical distancing and other COVID-19 preventive measures being implemented among people in Arba Minch town, Southern Ethiopia: exploring evidence for an urgent call for action?

Background The number of confirmed Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) cases surge substantially in resource-poor settings within the fragile health system. Since there are no proven vaccine and treatment in place against the disease, controlling strategy mainly rely on preventive measures. However, data on the extent of implementing physical distancing and other preventive measures were under estimated. This study, therefore, investigated these gaps among people in Arba Minch town, southern Ethiopia. Methods We conducted a community based cross-sectional study in Arba Minch town; from 15-30 June 2020. Data were collected using interviewer administered questionnaire and checklist. Then, data were cleaned, coded and entered to EpiData version 4.4.2, and exported to SPSS version 20 for analysis. Results Of the total participants (459), 43.6% achieved above the mean score (6) on preventive measures of COVID-19. Only 29.8% of participants kept the recommended physical distance, and surprisingly, in all public gathering places the distance was not kept totally. In addition, of the total participants, only 37.7% had face-mask use practice; 20.5% had hand sanitizer use practice, and 13.1% were measuring their body temperature every two weeks. Moreover, 42.5% of participants avoided attendance in public gatherings; 44.7% stopped touching their nose, eye and mouth; 55.6% practiced stay-at-home; and 60% had frequent hand washing practice. Majority of participants (66.7%) practiced covering their mouth and nose while coughing or sneezing; 68.2% had treatment seeking behavior if they experience flue like symptoms; 69.1% practiced isolating themselves while having flue like symptoms; and 89.3% avoided hand shaking. Conclusions The findings of this study suggest that physical distancing and other COVID-19 preventive measures were inadequately implemented among people in Arba Minch town. Thus, an urgent call for action is demanding to mitigate the spread of the COVID-19 as early as possible before it brings a devastating impact.