CLOSE to nine out of 10 Filipinos are worried that a member of their families would contract the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), a May 4 to 10 mobile survey conducted by the Social Weather Stations (SWS) showed.
The survey involved 4,010 working-age Filipinos, or those aged 15 and up, and conducted using mobile phone and computer-assisted telephone interviewing (CATI). It had a sampling error margin of ±2 percent.
The SWS found that 87 percent of Filipinos are worried — composed of 73 percent who are worried a great deal and 14 percent somewhat worried — that anyone in their immediate family might catch COVID-19 while 13 percent (composed of 7 percent worried a little and 6 percent not worried) are not worried about catching the virus.
Worries about contracting the coronavirus was higher in Metro Manila (93 percent worried, 8 percent not worried) and the Visayas (91 percent worried, 9 percent not worried) compared to Mindanao (85 percent worried, 15 percent not worried) and Luzon (84 percent worried, 15 percent not worried).
The extent of worry about catching COVID-19 was almost the same among those living in areas under the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) with 88 percent worried and 12 percent not worried and those in the general community quarantine (GCQ) areas with 86 percent worried and 15 percent not worried.
The survey results also showed that Filipinos are most worried about catching COVID-19 with 87 percent compared to viral infections or diseases that were feared the most in previous years like Ebola with 82 percent in 2014, swine flu with 82 percent in 2009, bird flu with 83 percent in 2006 and 80 percent in 2004, and Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) with 78 percent in 2003.
The SWS also found that nine out of 10 people living in the ECQ (96 percent) and GCQ areas (92 percent) are aware of the COVID-19 and its symptoms.
Fever (87 percent), cough (86 percent), colds (50 percent), difficulty in breathing (46 percent), throat pain (33 percent), body pain (20 percent), headache (15 percent), diarrhea (11 percent) and constant fatigue (2 percent) were the most mentioned symptoms by the respondents.
