Enfrentamento à pandemia: conhecimento acessível à comunidade

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic alters global health and puts the community and the group of visually impaired and deaf at risk. Professors and students at the Federal University of Minas Gerais decided to offer courses via e-mail and via an electronic page to disseminate knowledge about preventive measures and combating the fake news. The divulgation took place within the University community and in community groups. The objective of this study was to evaluate two courses’ methodologies (by e-mail and via electronic page), with assessment of the participants' profile, adherence, and performance. The course had 1,841 participants. Participants via e-mail presented in relation to the others: older age (p <0.001); greater number of disabled people (p = 0.008) and of women (p <0.001); higher education (p <0.001). There is an association between the course methodology and having or not receiving emergency financial aid due to the pandemic (p = 0.001) and having children (p <0.001). There was a progression in knowledge in both groups. Persistence to finish the course was more common in males with a positive correlation (p = 0.03; association strength of 5.1%). Those who did not finish the course had a higher average age (37.57 years) than those in the group that finished (35.66 years), with p = 0.04. The course had positive points, despite the low adherence, helped the community, the visually impaired and the deaf to have access to general knowledge about COVID-19.