Kuala Lumpur, 5 March 2020: A recent global study has found that 95% of global population are aware of the COVID-19 outbreak. As much as 50% of the surveyed population say that they have changed one or more behaviors to cope with the threat of COVID-19, including increasing handwashing and sanitising as well as avoiding public places and cutting back on travel. The findings are part of a new multi-national public opinion poll by Harris Interactive and RB, the maker of Dettol and Lysol.
Globally, 77% are concerned of the virus outbreak, however the levels of concern about the personal risk from infection differ according to geography. The survey revealed that countries closer to the epicenter of the virus outbreak, including India, Malaysia, Thailand and China have expressed the highest levels of concern about contracting the virus (92%, 91%, 86% and 84% respectively). These countries also reported the highest levels of personal actions taken to prevent exposure to infection such as handwashing, with Malaysia recording the highest level of increased handwashing (76%) compared to other countries in this study.
The study also found some differences in attitudes and behaviors between gender, with women (57%) are more likely to have adopted increased handwashing and hand sanitising, in contrast to men (51%). Older respondents i.e. those of 65+ years of age who tend to be most at risk of complications from infections, were less likely to say they had changed their handwashing behaviour.
“This survey shows that whilst concern about the novel coronavirus is high, it is encouraging to see that people are already adapting their hygiene behaviors such as handwashing”, said Dr Lisa Ackerley, a Chartered Environmental Health Practitioner and Hygiene Expert. “Not only will this help protect against coronavirus infection, but the simple action of hand hygiene at key moments helps protect ourselves against other respiratory and gastrointestinal diseases.”
Dr Ackerley also advocates for the concept of ‘destination handwashing’ that centres around washing your hands when you arrive at a destination to help prevent the spread of infection. “When you arrive at home, at work, at a restaurant or at the gym, these are moments to trigger reminders for handwashing”, she said. “Simply keeping your hands away from your face when travelling is also a useful tip to reduce the risk of transferring viruses from dirty hands to the eyes, nose or mouth.”
The global spread of the novel strain of coronavirus (named SARS-Cov-2) has led to an epidemic of a different kind, the spreading of inaccurate news about the virus has been called an ‘infodemic’ by the World Health Organisationi.
With so much information about the global health emergency, there is also an increasing risk of misinformation or the proliferation of myths on how consumers can combat the virus. There is a clear need to make sure that information is accurate and from trusted sources. The study showed that most people turned to international and local health authorities as their most trusted source of information on COVID19, followed by international and local news outlets.
“Dettol Malaysia is working to educate the Rakyat on the importance of good hygiene through our #HygieneStartsWithYou campaign. We want to encourage more Malaysians to practice good hygiene behaviours as a preventive measure from infections, starting with proper handwashing. Good hygiene is important at all times, even more so during this time of uncertainty. Dettol Malaysia also wants to play an active role in ensuring the circulation of accurate, credible and timely information to the public via our website, social media and partnerships”, said Mr. Oguzhan Silivrili, General Manager of RB (Health) Malaysia.
The study was the latest in ongoing efforts to support the fight against the spread of the virus and to increase knowledge for consumers worldwide. The multi-national study consisted of 11,000 adults across 11 countries (Australia, China, Germany, India, Japan, Malaysia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Thailand, United Kingdom and United States of America).
