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Australian understandings of infectious disease symptoms in the COVID era

  • Funded by National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC)
  • Total publications:0 publications

Grant number: GA137272

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Key facts

  • Disease

    COVID-19

  • Start & end year

    2020
    2023

  • Known Financial Commitments (USD)

    $122,056

  • Funder

    National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC)

  • Principal Investigator

    N/A

  • Research Location

    Australia

  • Lead Research Institution

    Macquarie University

  • Research Priority Alignment

    N/A

  • Research Category

    Policies for public health, disease control & community resilience

  • Research Subcategory

    Approaches to public health interventions

  • Special Interest Tags

    N/A

  • Study Type

    Non-Clinical

  • Clinical Trial Details

    N/A

  • Broad Policy Alignment

    Pending

  • Age Group

    Unspecified

  • Vulnerable Population

    Unspecified

  • Occupations of Interest

    Unspecified

Abstract

This project aims to study how Australians interpret symptoms of acute infectious diseases and how those beliefs shape their health-seeking behaviour. Using mixed social science methods, the project will document how Australians decide when to seek medical treatment at clinics or hospitals and when to stay at home, how they believe disease spreads and how they decide whether to go to work, school, social commitments, shops, or stay home when unwell, and what they think about government health policy regarding infectious disease in the wake of COVID-19. Humans spread diseases through culturally coded patterns of behaviour, and this project will offer critical public health insights in an era of infectious disease epidemics and pandemics.