Personal protective behaviors of healthcare workers (HCWs) and dynamic changes in them are known to play a major role in the hospital transmission of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). In this study, 1,499 HCWs in Chinese hospitals completed an online survey about their knowledge on SARS-CoV-2 transmission and their personal protective behaviors before and after coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccination. Of all the respondents, 89% were vaccinated at the time of the survey and 96% believed that the vaccine was effective or highly effective. Further, 88% of the vaccinated HCWs expressed that they would get revaccinated if the vaccination failed. Compared with HCWs with a lower education level, those with a higher education level had less fear of being infected with SARS-CoV-2 and reported a lower negative impact of the pandemic on how they treated patients. Physicians and nurses were willing to believe that short-range airborne and long-range fomite are possible transmission routes. HCWs with a higher education level had a better knowledge of COVID-19 but worse personal protective behaviors. The fact that HCWs with a longer work experience had worse personal protective behaviors showed that HCWs gradually relax their personal protective behaviors over time. Moreover, vaccination reduced the negative effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on how the HCWs treated patients. Importantly, the survey revealed that after vaccination, HCWs in China did not relax their personal protective behaviors, and it may bring a low potential risk for following waves of variant virus (e.g., delta).
【저자키워드】 COVID-19, vaccination, Mask, transmission route, healthcare worker (HCW), personal protective behavior, hand hygiene, indoor ventilation, 【초록키워드】 coronavirus disease, SARS-CoV-2, Coronavirus disease 2019, coronavirus, pandemic, Healthcare workers, knowledge, COVID-19 pandemic, hospital, variant, Transmission, severe acute respiratory syndrome Coronavirus, virus, healthcare worker, Nurses, China, SARS-CoV-2 transmission, HCWs, Waves, higher education, respiratory, Protective, Transmission routes, Nurse, HCW, acute respiratory syndrome, acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus, acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2, potential risk, physician, treated patients, Chinese hospitals, Effect, effective, reported, reduced, less, changes in, expressed, the vaccine, Chinese hospital, infected with SARS-CoV-2, 【제목키워드】 China, Behavior, change, worker,