Introduction
The tumultuous year of 2020 bore witness to the global threat posed by the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) as it swept across the world, leaving nowhere untouched. Remarkably, the response in Africa was met with a degree of underestimation, resulting in the continent emerging as the least vaccinated region globally. Drawing upon past experiences with SARS and Ebola, it becomes evident that misconceptions and a climate of panic have contributed to a population reluctant to adhere to recommended preventive measures. This underscores the pressing need for comprehensive engagement with both healthcare and non-healthcare professionals in monitoring and enforcing pandemic control measures.
The spectre of ‘inequity’ has long haunted Africa, extending beyond the realms of the COVID-19 pandemic and permeating the distribution of vaccines, ultimately revealing the inadequacies of the global COVID-19 vaccine rollout within the continent. This complex scenario has driven African researchers to formulate effective strategies aimed at fortifying the continent’s response to present and future public health crises.
In the wake of the COVID-19 outbreak, healthcare professionals, scientists and researchers in Africa have rallied together, embarking on a relentless pursuit to pinpoint target populations for tailored policies and interventions during this and subsequent pandemics. This book serves as a compendium of cross-sectional survey findings. Our work illuminates the multifaceted dimensions of knowledge, attitudes and practices (KAP) pertaining to public health measures, chloroquine hydrochloride treatment uptake and COVID-19 vaccination acceptance among Africans, including healthcare workers and non-healthcare workers.
The comprehensive studies documented within the book underscore the gravity of false information surrounding COVID-19, which has perpetuated a climate of vaccine hesitancy, further underscoring the pivotal role of health education and targeted policy reforms in tackling this mounting challenge. Moreover, insights from a cross-sectional matched sample study reveal the critical link between marital status, misconceptions and risk perception among pregnant women, ultimately emphasising the necessity of understanding and motivating vaccination acceptance to catalyse effective public health initiatives.
Comprising 17 rigorously peer-reviewed journal articles, the book transcends conventional discourse, offering profound insights into the intricacies of the impact of COVID-19 on the African continent. It meanwhile champions the lessons learned and presents a roadmap for future collaborative research initiatives by the African Translational Research Group (ATReG).
Through this achievement, the group was able to obtain a Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TetFund) grant from the Nigerian government, and the first paper from this grant is presented in the last chapter of this book.
The first article provides a brief history of the emergence of the group, formation of the team, and challenges, strategies, achievements and dynamics in implementing research collaboration for the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) by the African Translational Research Group (ATReG). It also outlines the lessons learnt and future opportunities for global collaborative research. The following chapter provides context for the knowledge, attitude and perception of COVID-19 among healthcare and non-health workers in Sub-Sahara Africa (SSA) and identifies the sub-populations to target for appropriate intervention in future pandemics in SSA. Throughout the book we discuss topics including pregnancy, diabetes, misinformation and mental health impacts of the pandemic; we encourage you to take the time to dive into the book to enrich your knowledge.
Copyright © 2023-2024 Levi Osuagwu and Kingsley Agho. This collection of open access journal articles including the visual and text summaries is made available under a Creative Commons License Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0 [opens in new tab]).
