AUTHOR=Shen Xin , Li Crystal Jingru , Dong Tianyi , Cao Hui , Feng Jing , Lei Zihui , Wang Zijian , Han Xiaotong , Lv Chuanzhu , Gan Yong 

TITLE=Public Opinion and Expectations: Development of Public Health Education in China After COVID-19 Pandemic

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Public Health

VOLUME=Volume 9 - 2021

YEAR=2021

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/public-health/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2021.702146

DOI=10.3389/fpubh.2021.702146

ISSN=2296-2565

ABSTRACT=Background: Policymakers must promote the development of public health education and human resources. As a feature of the political environment, public opinion is essential for policy-making, but virtually the attitudes of Chinese citizens towards human resources development in public health is unknown.
Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted in China from February 4th to 26th in 2021. Convenient sampling strategy was adopted to recruit participators. Participants have to fill out the questions which assess the attitudes of expanding public health professionals. And a binary logistic regression analysis was given to identify the risk factors affecting the subjects’ attitudes.
Results: A total of 2,361 residents finished the questionnaire. In the mixed-effect logistic regression analysis, Chinese residents who lived in urban (OR=1.293, 95%CI=1.051 ~ 1.591), “themselves or relatives and friends have participated in relevant epidemic prevention work” (OR=1.553, 95%CI=1.160 ~ 2.079), “themselves or family members engaged in medical-related work ” (OR=1.468, 95%CI=1.048 ~ 2.056), and those who “were aware of public health before the outbreak of COVID-19” (OR=1.428, 95%CI=1.125 ~ 1.812) were more likely to support the promotion of public health education and training.
Conclusions: The present study found that 74.50% of Chinese citizens supported the promotion of public health education and training in China, in which economic status, personal perception and comprehension are being the crucial factors that influence public opinion. COVID-19 has aroused the attention of Chinese residents to public health education, with only 22.11% of residents being aware of public health before the outbreak of COVID-19. The COVID-19 pandemic has profound implications for human society. Literally, this impact will feed back into future public health policies based on public opinion. This innovative perspective will also help us better understand the potential social impact of COVID-19 on human resources and development for health in the modern world.