CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background to the Study
For more than three months ago now, the world has been experiencing an unimaginable threat from the COVID-19 pandemic caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus (also known as the COVID-19). Many countries are following the advice from the World Health Organization (WHO) regarding the introduction of physical distancing measures as one of the ways in which transmission of the disease can be reduced and encouraging those who are perceived to have contracted this to be in isolation for at least a period of fourteen days while the use of face mask has been encouraged by people when they are outside of the home and also to regularly wash hands with the use of soap and make use of hand sanitiser to disinfect the hands on a regular basis. The application of these measures has brought about lockdown of the many businesses, schools, and institutes of education, and restrictions on travel and social gatherings. For some people, working from home, teleworking, and on-line or internet discussions and meetings are now normal practices. The security personnel particularly the Nigeria Police, however, do not have the opportunity to work from home and are required to continue to work in their usual stations. Keeping all officers of the Nigeria Police healthy and safe is critical to surviving the current pandemic.
Currently, the officers of the Nigeria Police are at increased risk of contracting this virus and therefore their safety must be ensured. In addition, the safety of the officers of the Nigeria Police is very important in the face of this virus which often has a fatal outcome. In a bid to ensure that every citizen complies with the directives of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) that everyone who is in public places must make use of face mask and call the attention of the NCDC to anyone that is suspected to have contracted this virus to be taken to their isolation centres, there must be guidelines that must be properly followed by the officers of the Nigeria Police to ensure that they are protected from contracting this virus in the course of carrying out their duties during this period. They must practice the use of personnel protective equipment, such as surgical gloves, face masks, eye protection and normal hand washing known to confine the spread of the disease. This aspect of being aware and complying with guidelines spelt out by the Nigeria Police Commission to ensure the safety of the officers of the Nigeria Police is of significant importance in order to provide maximal protection to the officers.
Standard precautions are the minimum infection counteraction practices that apply to all patient care, independent of associated or affirmed case of the patient in this period of coronavirus. These practices aim to both protect the officers of the Nigeria Police and prevent them from transmitting the infections to their families, friends and acquaintances. Safety precaution practices by the officers of the Nigeria Police are essential in order to prevent from contracting COVID-19 and can be achieved when face mask are used, when social distancing is kept and frequent washing of their hands are imbed in their attitudes as recommended by WHO and also clearly spelt out in the guidelines provided for them by the Nigerian Police Commission.
With the constant spread of this virus globally in which the confirm cases of 11,844 and discharge case of 3,696 while death case stands at 333 have been recorded as at 5th of June 2020, in Nigeria, the officers of the Nigeria Police are among the highest risk of being infected as result of their duties to ensure that every citizen complies with the directives of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC). The highly contagious SARS-CoV-2 virus is an additional hazard for the officers of the Nigeria Police apart from the burden of extended work hours, physical and psychological stress, burnout, and fatigue. It is on these background that this study seeks to investigate the awareness, practice and compliance with the safety rules against COVID-19 among officers of the Nigeria Police by using police officers in Ibadan, Oyo State as a case study.
1.2 Statement of the Problem
Since the spread out of COVID-19 pandemic from Huwan, China, to almost all the nations of the world, there has been constant messages on the safety rules of this disease from WHO and other disease control bodies of the world like Centre for Disease Control and Prevention in the US and the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) as far Nigeria is concerned. In a bid to eradicate this pandemic in Nigeria by virtually all the sectors in Nigeria, they have now devised a means by which this virus can be curbed. This therefore does not exempt the Nigeria Police Force. Unfortunately, in the underdeveloped and developing (in the case of Nigeria) countries, safety measures are usually compromised in almost all the sectors of the countries. This is usually due to the fact that most of them cannot afford the cost of safety facilities or do not give their procurement adequate priority.
Since this virus is constantly spreading in the world right now and death rate is on the rise especially in Africa because of the awareness, practice and compliance with the COVID-19 safety rules in these countries of Africa, there is need to focus on the awareness, practice and compliance with the safety rules against this disease among officers of the Nigeria Police. In this study, concern will be limited to the officers of the Nigeria Police who ensure the security of lives, properties and maintenance of law and order especially during this lockdown to make sure that all is in order and that every citizen is complied with the safety rules on a daily basis in order to make sure that this virus is a thing of history in our nation. Besides, there has never been any study conducted on the awareness, practice and compliance with the safety rules against COVID-19 among officers of the Nigeria Police in Nigeria, therefore, this study will be first of its kind on the awareness, practice and compliance with the safety rules against COVID-19 among officers of the Nigeria Police by using police officers in Ibadan, Oyo State as a case study.
1.3 Objectives of the Study
The objective of this study is to investigate the awareness, practice and compliance with the safety rules against COVID-19 among officers of the Nigeria Police by using police officers in Ibadan, Oyo State as a case study. However, the specific objectives are:
i) To investigate the preventive guidelines provided by the Nigeria Police Commission to protect the officers of the Nigeria Police from contracting COVID-19
ii) To understand the causes of the spread of COVID-19 to the world
iii) To examine the risk factors associated with COVID-19
iv) To understand the various types of COVID-19 and their effects
1.4 Research Questions
The following questions were generated during the course of this study:
i) What are the preventive guidelines provided by the Nigeria Police Commission to protect the officers of the Nigeria Police from contracting COVID-19?
ii) What are the causes of the spread of COVID-19 to the world?
iii) What are the risk factors associated with COVID-19?
iv) What are the various types of COVID-19 and their effects?
1.5 Research Hypotheses
The followings are the research hypotheses that will be tested for this study:
i) There is a significant correlation between preventive measures taken by the Nigeria Police Commission and the control of COVID-19 among the Officers of the Nigeria police
ii) There is a significant relationship between the guidelines spelt out by Nigeria Police Commission and the control of COVID-19 among the Officers of the Nigeria police
1.6 Significance of the Study
The result of this study will serve as good base or guide for future reference and it will also encourage further research on the importance of staying healthy. Furthermore, this study will provide relevant information on the reasons for the spread of this disease from China to the rest of the world.
Also, this study would be of immense importance towards containing this deadly virus and its eventual eradication in Nigeria. Findings from this study would also help in tackling future outbreak of this kind of diseases in Nigeria. This study would also be beneficial to scholars, researchers and students who are willing to develop further studies on the subject matter.
1.7 Scope of the Study
This study is on the awareness, practice and compliance with the safety rules against COVID-19 among officers of the Nigeria Police by using police officers in Ibadan, Oyo State, Nigeria as a case study. This study will be conducted among the officers of the Nigeria Police in Ibadan, Oyo State.
1.8 Limitation of the study
Financial constraint: Insufficient fund tends to impede the efficiency of the researcher in sourcing for the relevant materials, literature or information and in the process of data collection (internet, questionnaire and interview).
Attitudes of Respondents: The researcher encountered the major challenge from the respondents on their typical reluctant attitude to fill the questionnaire or grant interview. In some cases, some respondents expect to be paid for the use of their time and knowledge; if otherwise, they were very reluctant in giving the required information. Some hoard information in keeping with the oath of secrecy. In spite of repeated assurance of confidentiality most of them fear the loss of their job and some were too busy to grant interview and fill the questionnaires correctly.
Time constraint: The researcher will simultaneously engage in this study with other academic work. This consequently will cut down on the time devoted for the research work.
1.9 Definition of Terms
The following terms were used in the process of carrying out this study. They included:
COVID-19: It is a respiratory illness that can spread from person to person. A novel coronavirus called SARS-CoV-2 is the cause of COVID-19 and the outbreak first recognized in China in December 2019. The clinical spectrum of COVID-19 ranges from mild disease with non-specific signs and symptoms of acute respiratory illness to severe pneumonia with respiratory failure and septic shock. Frequently reported signs and symptoms include fever, cough, myalgia or fatigue, and shortness of breath at illness onset.
Healthcare workers: They are any person working in health care settings and who has the potential for exposure to infectious materials including body substances, contaminated medical supplies and equipment, contaminated environmental surfaces or contaminated air. They include, but are not limited to, physicians, nurses, technicians, therapists, pharmacists, nursing assistants, laboratory personnel, autopsy personnel, emergency medical service personnel, dental personnel, students and trainees, contractual staff not employed by the healthcare facility and persons not directly involved in patient care but potentially exposed to infectious agents such as volunteer, dietary, housekeeping, maintenance and clerical personnel.
Pandemic: Widespread disease involving the entire planet, affecting a lot of people globally.
