‘85% Know What Needs to be Done Against Covid-19, Only 55% Do it in Practice’

* Photo: Anadolu Agency (AA)

Click to read the article in Turkish

KONDA Research and Consultancy has announced that it conducted a field research on new coronavirus (Covid-19) in Turkey on March 7-8.

Accordingly, though a considerable part of the society know what needs to be done against coronavirus as a precaution, only over half of the society do adopt these precautions in their daily lives.

Moreover, the rate of those who think that the state has taken necessary measures against the coronavirus outbreak and sufficiently informed the public about it is below fifty percent.

According to KONDA's field research:

• 97 percent of the society have heard about the virus.
• While 86.5 percent know how the virus spreads and how people contract it, 85 percent know what needs to be done to protect oneself from the virus. However, the rate of those who follow these preventive measures in their daily lives is only 55 percent.
• 45 percent of the society are of the opinion that the Ministry of Health and state institutions have taken necessary precautions against the virus. Similarly, 45 percent think that the institutions have informed the public about the virus correctly and sufficiently.

Findings

KONDA General Manager Bekir Ağırdır has shared the following observations based on this recent field research:

• The risk as well as what needs to be done about it are known by the society; however, almost half of them do not take measures or implement them in practice.
• It is understood that the political polarization and the resulting trust in state institutions manifest themselves even when it comes to public health and to an epidemic such as this.

Recommendations to decision-makers

Ağırdır has also made the following recommendations to the decision-makers within this context:

• Rather than solely focusing on informing the public about the virus and the outbreak, efforts need to concentrate on ensuring that the precautions are indeed implemented.
• It will be indeed beneficial if the precautions to be taken in your fields of responsibility are made obligatory.
• Since the eager and voluntary efforts of all stakeholders, namely workers and participants, are prerequisite to establish a safe environment against the outbreak, it needs to be noted that the establishment of an environment of trust as well as the principles of transparency and openness are indispensable in that regard.

(EKN/SD)