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The connection between the experience of the disease and perceptions about COVID-19 in patients

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  27 August 2024

E. V. Deshchenko*
Affiliation:
1Lomonosov Moscow State University
J. E. Koniukhovskaia
Affiliation:
2Higher School of Economics, Moscow
O. B. Stepanova
Affiliation:
1Lomonosov Moscow State University
I. M. Shishkova
Affiliation:
3Ryazan State Medical University, Ryazan, Russian Federation
E. I. Pervichko
Affiliation:
1Lomonosov Moscow State University
O. V. Mitina
Affiliation:
1Lomonosov Moscow State University
E. R. Semenova
Affiliation:
1Lomonosov Moscow State University
*
*Corresponding author.

Abstract

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Introduction

Since the COVID-19 pandemic has had a serious impact on the psychological state of the population, the individual experience of COVID-19 disease may affect the content of perceptions about coronavirus in those who have been ill with it.

Objectives

The aim of the research was to study the connection between patients’ experience of the disease and their perceptions about COVID-19.

Methods

A Short questionnaire of Disease Perception (E. Broadbent) was used to study patients’ perceptions about COVID-19 disease. The wording “disease” was replaced with “COVID-19 disease”.

The study was conducted from January 2021 to November 2022. The sample consisted of 390 patients (64 men and 326 women), whose average age was 28.58±10.74.

Results

The subjective assessment of the duration of COVID-19 disease and its impact on the patient’s life is higher if the patient is still sick with COVID-19 (r=0.340, p=0.008; r=0.312, p=0.000), in a more severe form (r=0.341, p=0.000; r=0.298, p=0.000), less satisfied with the attitude of medical workers during illness (r=0.151, p=0.003; r=0.143, p=0.005), more afraid for the health of their loved ones (r=-0.194, p=0.000; r=-0.181, p=0.000). At the same time, greater concern about COVID-19 and a greater assessment of its impact on the emotional state is associated with patients’ fear for the health of loved ones (r=-0.267, p=0.000; r=-0.242, p=0.000) and more severe course of the disease (r=0.107, p=0.035; r=0.126, p=0.013). Less sense of control in a COVID-19 disease situation is associated with a more severe course of the disease and greater fear for the health of loved ones (r=-0.174, p=0.001; r=0.154, p=0.002).

Conclusions

Thus, whether the patient has recovered after COVID-19 or not yet, how severe this disease was, how satisfied he was with the attitude of medical workers towards him during the illness and how much he fears for the health of loved ones during the pandemic, is related to such perceptions about COVID-19 disease as an assessment of the disease duration, its impact on life, emotional state, concern about one’s own illness and understanding of its nature.

Disclosure: Research is supported by the Russian Science Foundation, project No. 21-18-00624.

Disclosure of Interest

None Declared

Type
Abstract
Creative Commons
Creative Common License - CCCreative Common License - BY
This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution licence (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Copyright
© The Author(s), 2024. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of European Psychiatric Association
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