Impact of coronavirus disease 2019 on professional practices of audiologists and speech-language pathologists in India: A knowledge, attitude and practices survey

Dhanshree R. Gunjawate, Rohit Ravi*, Krishna Yerraguntla, Bellur Rajashekhar, Ashwani Verma

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

13 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Background: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has spread throughout the world and become a global pandemic. This has hampered and led to drastic changes in the functioning of healthcare services, forcing the professionals to adapt and work efficiently. The present study aimed to explore the impact of COVID-19 on the professional practices of audiologists and speech-language pathologists in India using a cross-sectional knowledge, attitude and practices survey. Material and methods: The study was conducted in two phases; phase one involved development and validation of the questionnaire, while phase II involved data collection. A cross-sectional self-reported internet-based study using convenience sampling was carried out. Results: Two hundred and eleven audiologists and speech-language pathologists responded to the survey. Overall, the professionals exhibited good knowledge levels regarding the COVID-19 outbreak. However, there were differences in their attitudes towards service delivery in the midst of the pandemic. Further, poor practices towards infection control measures especially in terms of hand washing was noted. Conclusion: The findings of the present study are useful in highlighting the need to create better awareness among these professionals about appropriate and standard infection control measures. There is a need to have in place standard operating protocols for hand wash and infection control as well as inclusion in curriculum.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)110-115
Number of pages6
JournalClinical Epidemiology and Global Health
Volume9
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 01-01-2021

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

  • Epidemiology
  • Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health
  • Microbiology (medical)
  • Infectious Diseases

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