Understanding of Young People About COVID-19 During Early Outbreak in Indonesia
Devina Adella Halim, Andree Kurniawan, Fransisca Handy Agung, Stella Angelina, Claudia Jodhinata, Sharleen Winata, Frenstan, Felix Wijovi, Cindy Monika Agatha
Abstract
To control the spread of COVID-19 transmission, Indonesia government has broadcasted information about the pandemic. The aim of this study is to evaluate the understanding of young people, about COVID-19 during the early outbreak in Indonesia. An online-based cross-sectional data collection was conducted from adolescents aged 10 to 25 years, based on 10 questions regarding general COVID-19 information. There were 355 subjects from 25 out of 34 Indonesian provinces who participated in the study, with mean age of 19.93 ± 2.91 years. Better understanding was found in the female and higher-income population. Largely, the subjects got the information from social media, instead of the official government site for COVID-19. Lack of understanding about crucial preventive measures was found, such as handwashing and physical distancing. In conclusion, the participants have an overall moderate-good initial understanding toward COVID-19 during the early outbreak in Indonesia. These results can be used as baseline data for development of awareness measurement tools.