Emergency preparedness knowledge and training needs among community volunteers in Shanghai, China, during the 2022 COVID-19 response: a cross-sectional questionnaire study
7 affiliations
- 1Department of Radiology, Dianjiang People's Hospital of Chongqing
- 2Department of Medical Administration, Dianjiang Health Commission of Chongqing
- 3Department of Radiology, First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University
- 4Department of Orthopedics, The First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical and Pharmaceutical College
- 5Department of Emergency Medicine, The First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical and Pharmaceutical College
- 6Department of Medical Affairs, The First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical and Pharmaceutical College
- 7Department of Critical Care Medicine, The First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical and Pharmaceutical College
Abstract
Background: Community volunteers support community-level emergency response, but in China they are typically mobilized on an ad hoc basis, without standardized entry requirements or systematic training. Their task-specific knowledge during actual public health emergencies has rarely been measured directly.
Objective: This study assessed emergency preparedness knowledge and its demographic and training-related correlates among community volunteers during the 2022 COVID-19 response in Shanghai, China.
Methods: A cross-sectional survey of community volunteers in Songjiang District, Shanghai, was conducted in May 2022 using convenience sampling. Knowledge was measured with an 18-item scale across five domains: COVID-19 transmission, hand hygiene, personal protective equipment (PPE) use, disinfection, and medical waste disposal; the maximum score was 18 points. Groups were compared using t -tests and one-way ANOVA with Bonferroni correction; multivariable linear regression identified independent correlates of the knowledge score.
Results: Of 600 questionnaires distributed, 514 (85.67%) were analyzed after excluding 33 that were not returned and 53 that were incomplete. The mean knowledge score was 14.11 (SD 2.19) out of 18 points; item accuracy ranged from 30.54 to 99.81%, with eight of 18 items below the 75% mastery threshold. Accuracy was highest for medical waste disposal (94.70%) and lowest for PPE use (70.96%). Scores rose with educational attainment ( P < 0.001) but not with age or training duration. Overall, 19.84% of volunteers received no training, and scores were higher with blended than with single-format training (mean 14.37 vs. 13.70–14.12; P = 0.049). Among trained volunteers, 49.39% considered training inadequate; the most requested topics were proper PPE use (77.63%) and infection control measures (60.51%). Multivariable regression ( n = 485) confirmed educational attainment as the only independent correlate, with scores 1.1–1.9 points higher than in the group with a high school education or less (all P < 0.001); gender, age, and training duration were not independently associated with knowledge scores (all P ≥ 0.10).
Conclusions: Emergency preparedness knowledge was uneven across domains: knowledge was adequate for medical waste disposal but below the mastery threshold for PPE use. About one-fifth of volunteers received no training. Educational attainment, not age or training duration, was the main independent correlate, and blended training was associated with higher scores. Education-stratified, hands-on training merits further study.
Related
- HIV Knowledge, Stigma, and Care Preparedness among Barangay Health Workers in Leyte: Implications for Community-based Interventions.
- Depression and anxiety, and associated factors among female community health volunteers in Parsa district, Nepal
- Integrating emergency medical services and hospital surge capacity for mass-gathering preparedness: a structured narrative review
- Empowering Community Health Volunteers to Strengthen Integrated Primary Care Posyandu Sustainability: A Quasi-Experimental Evaluation
- Associations of Objective Functional and Subjective Health Literacy with Reproductive Health Knowledge and Preconception Preparedness Among Pregnant Women in Hungary
BibTeX
@article{zhang2026emergency,
title = {{Emergency preparedness knowledge and training needs among community volunteers in Shanghai, China, during the 2022 COVID-19 response: a cross-sectional questionnaire study}},
author = {Hao Zhang and Yuan Mei and Zhou Jiang and Jie Liu and Jin Li and Rui Zhang and Xu-jue Ma},
journal = {Frontiers in Public Health},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.3389/fpubh.2026.1973068},
url = {https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2026.1973068/full},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Emergency preparedness knowledge and training needs among community volunteers in Shanghai, China, during the 2022 COVID-19 response: a cross-sectional questionnaire study
AU - Hao Zhang
AU - Yuan Mei
AU - Zhou Jiang
AU - Jie Liu
AU - Jin Li
AU - Rui Zhang
AU - Xu-jue Ma
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/05
JO - Frontiers in Public Health
DO - 10.3389/fpubh.2026.1973068
UR - https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2026.1973068/full
AB - Background: Community volunteers support community-level emergency response, but in China they are typically mobilized on an ad hoc basis, without standardized entry requirements or systematic training. Their task-specific knowledge during actual public health emergencies has rarely been measured directly. Objective: This study assessed emergency preparedness knowledge and its demographic and training-related correlates among community volunteers during the 2022 COVID-19 response in Shanghai, China. Methods: A cross-sectional survey of community volunteers in Songjiang District, Shanghai, was conducted in May 2022 using convenience sampling. Knowledge was measured with an 18-item scale across five domains: COVID-19 transmission, hand hygiene, personal protective equipment (PPE) use, disinfection, and medical waste disposal; the maximum score was 18 points. Groups were compared using t -tests and one-way ANOVA with Bonferroni correction; multivariable linear regression identified independent correlates of the knowledge score. Results: Of 600 questionnaires distributed, 514 (85.67%) were analyzed after excluding 33 that were not returned and 53 that were incomplete. The mean knowledge score was 14.11 (SD 2.19) out of 18 points; item accuracy ranged from 30.54 to 99.81%, with eight of 18 items below the 75% mastery threshold. Accuracy was highest for medical waste disposal (94.70%) and lowest for PPE use (70.96%). Scores rose with educational attainment ( P < 0.001) but not with age or training duration. Overall, 19.84% of volunteers received no training, and scores were higher with blended than with single-format training (mean 14.37 vs. 13.70–14.12; P = 0.049). Among trained volunteers, 49.39% considered training inadequate; the most requested topics were proper PPE use (77.63%) and infection control measures (60.51%). Multivariable regression ( n = 485) confirmed educational attainment as the only independent correlate, with scores 1.1–1.9 points higher than in the group with a high school education or less (all P < 0.001); gender, age, and training duration were not independently associated with knowledge scores (all P ≥ 0.10). Conclusions: Emergency preparedness knowledge was uneven across domains: knowledge was adequate for medical waste disposal but below the mastery threshold for PPE use. About one-fifth of volunteers received no training. Educational attainment, not age or training duration, was the main independent correlate, and blended training was associated with higher scores. Education-stratified, hands-on training merits further study.
SN - 2296-2565
ER -