The Impact of COVID-19 on Surgical Practice in Jordan During the Second Outbreak
The Impact of COVID-19 on Surgical Practice in Jordan During the Second Outbreak
Background: COVID-19 is an acute respiratory pandemic with no available effective antiviral
 treatment or widely available effective vaccine. Surgical practice has faced widespread
 problems due to the pandemic including viral transmission risk and cross-infection, staffing
 problems, prioritizations of surgical procedures and lack of beds due to occupancy of
 hospitals and ICU beds with COVID-19 patients; Methods: A survey was conducted between
 October 31 to November 4, 2020, through google forms. The questionnaire involved 16 questions
 sent to consultants and specialists of all general and special surgical specialties and
 subspecialties in Jordan;
A survey was conducted between October 31 and November 4, 2020. The questionnaire was made
 through google forms, and a consent was taken from the Jordan medical association to send the
 link to surgeons in Jordan through the social media and the official WhatsApp groups. The
 survey was introduced with the invitation to participate of surgeons of all general and
 special surgical specialties and subspecialties. The aim of the survey was mentioned in the
 introduction which was to evaluate the impact of COVID-19 on surgical practice in Jordan
 during the second outbreak of COVID-19, and it was explained that the aim of the survey was
 for research purposes only and that it was totally anonymous with privacy preserved, and no
 identifying information required. Also, it was noted that we have added spaces for written
 views and recommendations.

 The questionnaire involved 16 questions of the multiple-choice, the dropdown, the multiple
 check, and the short answer questions. The first 2 questions were about the specialty and the
 place of work whether it was the ministry of health, the royal medical services, the
 university hospitals, or the non-governmental organizations. The 3rd and 4th questions were
 about the hospital where the participant works whether it admits COVID-19 patients and/or
 ordinary patients. The Questions from the 5th to the 8th were about the volume of work in
 terms of the number of elective and emergency surgeries during the month of October 2020 in
 comparison to the average monthly rate during the year 2019. The questions from the 9th to
 the 15th were about the problems that might have been faced in managing elective and
 emergency cases during the month of October 2020 in relation to COVID-19. The last question
 was a multiple checkbox question with an added space for giving the possible recommendations
 to manage the situation.
Inclusion Criteria:

 -  Consultants and specialists of all general and special surgical specialties and
 subspecialties in Jordan

 Exclusion Criteria:

 -  None