Covid-19 Prevention Practice and Associated Factors among Prisoners in Worabe Town Silte Zone, Southern Ethiopia 2022g.C

Abstract

BACKGROUND: preventive actions for Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) were among the means to tackle the transmission of the virus. However, reluctance to implement the recommended preventive measures has been reported to be a major problem everywhere including Worabe prison Southern Regional State of Ethiopia OBJECTIVE: To assess the practice of COVID-19 prevention and associated factors among prisoners in Worabe town, southern Ethiopia, in 2022. METHODS: Institution-based cross-sectional study was conducted from Jun 1–30, 2022 among 444 prisoners in Worabe town prison. Simple random sampling techniques were used to select study participants. Data were collected by using pre-tested structured self administered questionnaires and entered into Epi Data version (3.1) entry software and exported to SPSS version 26 software. A binary logistic regression analysis was used to identify factors related to COVID-19 prevention practice among prisoners. For statistical significance factors with p-value less than 0.05, an Adjusted Odds Ratio (AOR) with a 95% Confidence Interval (CI) was calculated and interpreted Result: Two hundred thirty-five participants [53%, 95% CI: 27 - 39%] had good COVID-19 prevention practices. Being male [AOR=0.297, 95%CI (0.15-0.58)], being history of alcohol intake [AOR=3.79, 95%CI:( 1.656- 8.675)], being Unfavorable attitude [AOR=0.429, 95%CI (0.27-0.68)], being knowledgeable about prevention[AOR=1.81, 95%CI (1.12- 2.92)], Information source [AOR=1.84, 95%CI (1.12-3.02)], and Stay at room [AOR=4.06, 95%CI (2.56-6.43)] were all factors associated with good COVID- 19 prevention practice Conclusion: COVID-19 prevention practices were low among prisoners in the study settings. Prisoners’ Sex, history of alcohol intake, being overall attitude, overall good knowledge of prevention, Information source and Stay at room were all associated with COVID-19 preventive measures practices among prisoners. Prisoners may need to improve the way and habit of practicing prevention methods towards COVID-19.