The perceptions on the recent COVID-19 pandemic: a study on health-care students in Malaysia

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to study the perception of health-care students on the recent COVID-19 pandemic in Malaysia. There was one study by Caliskhan et al. (2020) conducted among Turkish final-year medical students showed that the students were knowledgeable about and aware of the COVID-19 pandemic. To the authors' knowledge, there are limited number of studies conducted among health-care students in Malaysia. Design/methodology/approach The online questionnaire was randomly distributed to the health-care students in Malaysia. The questionnaire consists of socio-demographic data and perceptions on COVID-19. Descriptive analysis was used to analyse the perceptions of the health-care students on COVID-19. Findings Health-care students in Malaysia have positive perceptions on COVID-19, and it did not give huge impact of their interest in this health-care field. Thus, it is important that this issue is investigated, and the perceptions of health-care students on COVID-19 can be highlighted. Research limitations/implications The strength of this study was the participation from the health-care students from various institutions, which have different experience and backgrounds. The study was limited on the items of question utilised. Due to the limited time and urgency of the survey, the authors were unable to study their knowledge, attitudes and way they are going to cope with this kind of pandemic as the students and as future health-care workers. Originality/value The paper points out the effect on the recent COVID-19 pandemic on health-care students in Malaysia. It also points out the perceptions of health-care students in Malaysia on the current pandemic. It is expected that the results of this research would serve as baseline data for health-care institutions in Malaysia to continue equip the future front liners that can adapt future challenges.