Attitudes and Behavior of Biomedical Students in Comparison With Other Students During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Matea Smajić*; Petra Smajić; Lada Zibar

doi:10.26332/seemedj.v5i2.212

Matea Smajić* Faculty of Medicine, Josip Juraj Strossmayer University of Osijek, Osijek, Croatia
Petra Smajić Clinical Hospital Centre Osijek, Department of Infectious Diseases, Osijek, Croatia
Lada Zibar Faculty of Medicine, Josip Juraj Strossmayer University of Osijek, Osijek, Croatia; Merkur University Hospital, Department of Nephrology, Zagreb, Croatia

DOI: https://doi.org/10.26332/seemedj.v5i2.212

Abstract

Aim: Since its beginning, the COVID-19 pandemic has affected many people’s usual activities and lifestyle, including Croatian students’ lives. The aim of the study was to examine whether the attitudes and behaviour of students in the biomedical (B) field differed from those in other (O) fields at the Josip Juraj Strossmayer University of Osijek (JJSUO). The hypothesis was that B students would behave more responsibly.

Materials and Methods: A 10-question anonymous online survey on attitudes and behaviour related to the COVID-19 pandemic was designed and conducted. The research was carried out in November 2020 and it included a total of 348 students (46 % of B students) at the JJSUO. The data were statistically processed by the IBM ® SPSS ® Statistics 25.0 software at the statistical significance level of P < 0.05.

Results: Twenty-five percent of B students and 11.17 % of O students (P = 0.001) responded that they did not go to nightclubs, in accordance with the Civil Protection Headquarters’ recommendations. Regarding their indoor socialising, 24.38 % of B students and 45.21 % of O students behaved the same as before the pandemic (P < 0.01). A total of 63.13 % of B and 39.36 % of O students (P < 0.01) responded that they would receive a vaccine against SARS-CoV-2.

Conclusion: B students behaved more responsibly than O students by reducing their socialising and going to crowded places, probably because of their education and awareness of the severity of COVID-19. Accordingly, more of them were willing to get the vaccine against SARS-CoV-2.