ABSTRACT:

Backgroundnd: Health Care Associated Infections (HAIs) including COVID-19 are an ongoing challenge to the safety of patients and health workers as well as the quality of health services that require attention and ongoing efforts to prevent the risk of transmission. Radiographers who perform dental radiographic examinations are at high risk of spreading COVID-19 because of the examination requires close contact with patients and the risk of spreading droplets or aerosols. This research was conducted with the aim of studying and analyzing the relationship between the radiographer’s level of knowledge about COVID-19 and the preventive behavior of its transmission in dental radiographic examinations.
Methods: The research was conducted by collecting data using an online questionnaire via Google Forms that distributed to 99 radiographers in East Java. Data analysis was carried out using Spearman’s Rank Correlation to find out the correlation between radiographers’ level of knowledge about COVID-19 and preventive behavior towards its transmission in dental radiographic examinations. 
Results: Radiographers’ level of knowledge about COVID-19 showed 54% good, 42% moderate, and 4% less. Radiographers’ preventive behavior towards the transmission of COVID-19 in dental radiology installations showed 67% good, 30% moderate, and 3% less. Spearman’s Rank Correlation showed weak correlation between the level of knowledge and preventive behavior with the value of sig. (2-tailed) was 0,032 and correlation coefficient was 0,215(+).
Conclusions: The level of knowledge of radiographers in East Java about COVID-19 has significant correlation with the preventive behavior of its transmission in dental radiographic examinations with a very weak strength and unidirectional correlation.

KEYWORDS:

Knowledge, Behavior, Radiographer, COVID-19

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