The effect of COVID-19 fear on hygiene behaviors in hemodialysis patients during the COVID-19 pandemic

Abstract

Aim: Current study aims to specify the fear levels and hygiene habits of hemodialysis (HD) patients infected or not infected with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in the course of the COVID-19 pandemic. Material and Method: This study was performed between 15-30 April 2021 as a case-control study whose population consisted of 124 dialysis patients treated in the dialysis unit of Batman Education and Research Hospital. In the dialysis unit, while 25 HD patients who were not present with COVID-19 were included in the control group, 25 dialysis patients were diagnosed with COVID-19 and agreed to participate in the study were included in the case group. “Patient Descriptive Form”, “COVID-19 Hygiene Scale (CHS)” and “COVID-19 Fear Scale (CFS)” were used to collect the study data. Results: While the mean score of the Changing Hygiene Behaviors sub-dimension of the HD patients in the case group was 23.72±4.90; the mean score of the same sub-dimension belonging to the HD patients in the control group was determined as 22.40±5.25, and there was no statistically meaningful difference between the two groups. The mean CFS score of the HD patients in the case group was 13.60±7.92; while the mean CFS score of the HD patients in the control group was found to be 17.72±7.43. No statistically meaningful difference was observed between the two groups. Conclusion: The mean CFS and CHS scores of the HD patients in the control group were higher, but no statistically meaningful difference was observed between the two groups.