DATA AVAILABILITY STATEMENT : The datasets used and/or analyzed during the current study are
available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIALS : TABLE S1: COVID-19 vaccination status in the four African countries as of 6th June 2023 [30]. TABLE S2: Association between the nationality of HCWs and their COVID-19 positivity, vaccination rate, and awareness of PCC.The impact of Post COVID-19 Condition (PCC) is ongoing despite the declaration that
the 2019 COVID-19 pandemic has ended. In this study, we explore the prevalence of PCC among
healthcare workers (HCWs) in four African Countries and its influence on their professional performance.
This study was conducted as an online cross-sectional survey of healthcare workers from four
African countries (Cameroon, Egypt, Nigeria, and Somalia) between the 20th of December 2021 to
12th of January 2022. We determined the prevalence of PCC based on the WHO case definition and
assessed variables associated with a higher prevalence of PCC in these countries using univariable
and multivariable logistic regression analyses. A total of 706 HCWs from four African countries were included in this survey. Most of the HCWs were aged between 18–34 years (75.8%, n = 535). Our
findings showed that 19.5% (n = 138) of the HCWs had tested positive for SARS-CoV-2. However,
8.4% (n = 59) were symptomatic for COVID-19 but tested negative or were never tested. Two-thirds of
the HCWs (66.4%, n = 469) have received a COVID-19 vaccine and 80.6% (n = 378) of those vaccinated
had been fully vaccinated. The self-reported awareness rate of PCC among the HCWs was 16.1%
(n = 114/706) whereas the awareness rate of PCC among COVID-19-positive HCWs was 55.3%
(n = 109/197). The prevalence of PCC among HCWs was 58.8% (n = 116). These changes include the
self-reported symptoms of PCC which included headache (58.4%, n = 115), fatigue (58.8%, n = 116),
and muscle pain (39.6%, n = 78). Similarly, 30% (n = 59) and 20.8% (n = 41) of the HCWs reported the
loss of smell and loss of taste long after their COVID-19 infection, respectively. Some HCWs (42%,
n = 83) believed that their work performance has been affected by their ongoing symptoms of PCC.
There was no significant difference in the prevalence of PCC among the vaccinated and unvaccinated
HCWs (p > 0.05). Of the socio-demographic variables, age (older HCWs between 45–54 years; OR:1.7;
95% CI: 1.06, 10.59; p = 0.001) and location (Egypt; OR:14.57; 95% CI: 2.62, 26.76; p = 0.001) were more
likely to have experienced PCC than other age groups and countries respectively. The study revealed
a low prevalence of PCC among the surveyed HCWs. In addition, it observed the need for adequate
medical and psychological support to HCWs with PCC and improved mass advocacy campaigns
on PCC.https://www.mdpi.com/journal/covidam2024Veterinary Tropical DiseasesSDG-03:Good heatlh and well-bein
