HUBUNGAN TINGKAT PENGETAHUAN TENTANG PENCEGAHAN COVID-19 DENGAN STIGMA COVID-19 DI MASYARAKAT KOTA GUNUNGSITOLI [THE CORRELATION BETWEEN LEVEL OF KNOWLEDGE AND PUBLIC STIGMA OF COVID-19 IN GUNUNGSITOLI ]
Authors: Florensa Maria Veronika Ayu , Ndruru Alberta Adina , Zega Darman , Waruwu Westinci , Purimahua Dora Irene 
Published: December 2022

<p><em>The Covid-19 outbreak was declared a pandemic by the World Health Organization on March 11, 2020. The number of cases both in Indonesia and the world was increasing and impacting society and government policies. Stigmatization for patients suffering from Covid-19 happened in Indonesia, specifically in the </em>Gunungsitoli region<em>. There was a rejection by local people to COVID-19 patients and any burials in 2020. This study aimed to identify the association between the level of knowledge of Covid-19 prevention and the stigma of  Covid-19 among people in </em>Gunungsitoli<em>. This quantitative research was conducted with a cross sectional design. The population of study was people living in Gunungsitoli and about 399 sample size was obtained using purposive sampling technique. To obtain the data, the researchers generated a questionnaire using a guideline from the Ministry of Health regarding knowledge level and stigma of Covid-19 (Kemenkes, 2020). </em><em>The results showed that the residents had good level of </em><em>knowledge regarding Covid-19 prevention (47.4%), while as the stigma was considered low (59.1%). The results of data analysis using Spearman rank showed a relationship between the knowledge level and stigma of Covid-19, with a correlation value of -0.267. Dissemination of disease prevention that is evenly distributed suppresses the stigma to the patient and the health workers who treat the disease. Health education on Covid-19 prevention needs to be carried out frequently to reduce negative stigma toward Covid-19 patients or health workers who handle the disease.</em></p><p><strong>BAHASA INDONESIA ABSTRAK </strong>Penyakit Covid-19 di deklarasikan sebagai pandemi oleh <em>World Health Organization </em>pada 11 Maret 2020. Jumlah kasus di dunia dan di Indonesia meningkat dan memberikan dampak bagi masyarakat serta perubahan kebijakan yang diambil oleh pemerintah. Fenomena sosial berupa stigma bagi pasien yang menderita Covid-19 dialami di Indonesia secara spesifik di kota Gunungsitoli tahun 2020 dalam bentuk penolakan terhadap pasien dan pemakaman jenazahnya. Tujuan penelitian ini yaitu untuk mengidentifikasi hubungan antara tingkat pengetahuan dengan stigma pada pasien Covid-19 di Gunungsitoli. Penelitian kuantitatif ini dilakukan dengan desain <em>cross sectional</em>. Populasi yang diteliti merupakan masyarakat Gunungsitoli yang dengan menggunakan teknik <em>purposive sampling </em>didapatkan sampel 399 orang. Kuisioner pengetahuan tentang pencegahan Covid-19 dan stigma terkait Covid-19 dikembangkan oleh peneliti dengan panduan penatalaksnaan Covid-19 dari Kemenkes (Kemenkes, 2020). Hasil penelitian menunjukkan tingkat pengetahuan masyarakat di Kota Gunungsitoli tergolong baik (47,4%),sedangkan stigma masyarakat tergolong rendah (59,1%). Hasil analisis data menggunakan <em>rank spearman </em>menunjukkan ada hubungan antara tingkat pengetahuan tentang pencegahan dan pengendalian Covid-19 dengan stigma pada pasien Covid-19 dengan nilai korelasi -0,267. Pendidikan kesehatan tentang pencegahan Covid-19 pada masyarakat perlu terus dilakukan untuk menurunkan stigma pada pasien ataupun tenagakesehatan yang menangani penyakit tersebut.</p>