Public awareness, attitudes, and adherence to COVID-19 quarantine and isolation in Saudi Arabia

Abstract

Background: This study aims to assess the general population’s awareness, attitude, and adherence regarding COVID-19 and quarantine in Saudi Arabia. Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional design with a consecutive sampling method was used in this study. All accessible Saudi population during the study period were invited to participate in the survey from 1st April to 25th April 2020. The study questionnaire was constructed by the researchers based on experts’ consultation. Results: A total sample of 1998 respondents with complete data was included in the survey. A total of 1936 participants reported that they were aware of regarding COVID-19 outbreak (96.9%). The most identified symptom was fever (92.3%; 1843), followed by respiratory distress (90.8%; 1813). About 81% of the participants reported that quarantine should be applied with travel or contact with infected persons. Also, 98.3% of the participants reported that the quarantine period should be a minimum of 14 days. In total, more than three-quarters of the participants had good awareness levels regarding COVID-19 and quarantine. Conclusion: This study showed that the Saudi population had very high levels of awareness, adherence regarding COVID-19 quarantine and isolation measures.