Preventive Practices of Ophthalmologists During COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

Purpose

To explore ophthalmologists’ preventive practices, and their perceived seriousness and perceived risk of transmission of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

Methods

In a cross-sectional study, a semi-structured questionnaire was distributed online among ophthalmologists. Questions about COVID-19 infection, perceived seriousness, perceived risk of transmission, and recommended COVID-19 preventive practices were asked. Based on the adoption of a preventive measure and its frequency, a maximum preventive score of 25 was computed.

Results

Among 126 respondents, the mean±SD age was 45.3±10.9 years, and 57.9% worked in a tertiary care hospital. Regarding preventive practices, 96.8% of ophthalmologists wore face masks, 89.6% avoided talking during the slit lamp examination, and 72.2% wore gloves during the ophthalmic examination. Availability of plastic barriers and regular disinfection of slit lamps were reported by 78.6% and 43.7% of ophthalmologists, respectively. The mean preventive score increased with increasing age (p=0.001), and was higher for males (18.96±4.60) compared to females (17.81±4.96). The mean score for perceived severity was higher (p<0.0001) among ophthalmologists with more than 10 years of experience (8.76±1.58) than those with experience of 10 years or less (7.49±1.86). Out of 29 ophthalmologists who had been tested for COVID-19, 11 were found to be positive, giving an overall incidence of COVID-19 infection of 8.7%.

Conclusion

The ophthalmologists were generally compliant with recommended preventive measures. Some preventive measures, such as the wearing of gloves and regular disinfection of slit lamps, need improvement. We recommend creating awareness of and monitoring for COVID-19 infection control measures in healthcare settings.

Keywords:

• coronavirus
• infection control
• perceived risk
• perceived seriousness
• SARS-CoV-2
• transmission

Acknowledgments

We would like to thank Aliba Omar Syed, an MPH student at the University of California, Irvine (UCI), for reviewing and making valuable suggestions to the manuscript. The authors are grateful to all respondent ophthalmologists for their valuable time and effort in completing the survey.

Disclosure

The authors report no conflicts of interest in this work.