Chen, X., Liao, Z., Huang, S., Huang, Q., Lin, S., Li, Y., Shao, T., Tang, Y., Hao, J., Qi, J., Cai, Y., Wang, M., & Shen, H. (2022). Stigmatizing attitudes toward COVID-19 among patients, their relatives, and healthy residents in Zhangjiajie. Frontiers in Public Health, 10. Web.
COVID-19 physical manifestations influenced and changed how community members viewed and interacted with those infected and affected. According to Chen et al. (2022), Zhangjiajie was an epicenter of COVID-19, and many new cases of infections were reported in 2021. Considering the physical symptoms of the disease, the victims and their families suffered severe social discrimination, and nobody in the community wanted to interact with those confirmed to have contracted the disease. COVID-19 is an airborne disease; without proper prevention measures, interacting with infected hasten the spread of the condition. Moreover, without vaccines or medicine, the victims were stigmatized and isolated from the community to quarantine chambers until they recovered (Chen et al., 2022). This research study assessed various types of COVID-19 stigma on patients and their families.
The authors included patients, relatives, and healthy individuals in their sample size to uncover the COVID-19 stigma in Zhangjiajie. Chen et al. (2022) used 186 participants, of which 43 were COVID-19 patients, 68 were close friends and relatives, and 75 were healthy Zhangjiajie residents. The authors used Stigma Scale and Social Distancing Scale to assess the stigma attitudes the sample population had toward COVID-19 patients and their families. The study found that COVID-19 patients were considered dangerous, and no one showed interest in interacting with people confirmed to be COVID-19 positive. Regarding social distancing, about 30 percent of the three distinguished groups confirmed that they were unwilling to interact with people with a history of COVID-19 infections. The research also found that the Zhangjiajie resident during the COVID-19 breakout showed low interest in participating in collective work as they feared being infected. It is evident that the COVID-19 outbreak in Zhangjiajie had been contained, and stigma and discrimination against COVID-19 patients and families still existed. Finally, it was recommended that proper education and anti-stigma campaigns were necessary to curtail the high COVID-19 infections in Zhangjiajie.
Shahrour, G., Dardas, L., & Aldalaykeh, M. (2022). COVID-19 related stigma, empathy and intention for testing in Jordan. PLOS ONE, 17(9). Web.
The COVID-19 pandemic began in late 2019 and terrorized the world through 2020, 2021, and 2022 before the experts could find a vaccine to control the disease. Considering that the population was misinformed regarding the disorders, stigma, and discrimination against those with COVID-19, their families, and those close to them was a significant issue. Shahrour et al. (2022) researched the stigma Jordanians had on COVID-19 patients, their families, and close friends. Furthermore, Shahrour et al. (2022) investigated how community members interacted with COVID-19 victims. Finally, this article strived to explain the impacts of the stigma on both the infected and affected victims. The authors employed quantitative, descriptive, and predictive designs to investigate Stigma among COVID-19 patients. The study reached about 1074 adults using a web-based survey in which they were expected to answer questions related to the COVID-19 pandemic (Shahrour et al., 2022). The study revealed that due to misinformation about the disease, various individuals, including healthcare givers, feared and perceived COVID-19 patients and their families as a source of threat.
The research findings revealed that misinformation was the primary cause of the stigma of COVID-19 patients and their families. According to Shahrour et al. (2022), it was noted that the public considered COVID-19 patients as sources of death. As such, the people, including the healthcare givers such as doctors and nurses, were reluctant to care for those patients. Moreover, isolation took its course and social distancing between healthy and infected members. Thus, the COVID-19 patient and family members suffered psychologically and mentally because they felt discriminated against. The research also found that COVID-19 stigma negatively influenced the willingness of Jordanians to get tested. According to Shahrour et al. (2022), most people were afraid because they would suffer the same as those who had already been tested. They feared isolation, discrimination, quarantine for 14 days, and being perceived as a source of danger.