Table 1 COVID-19 health surveys by timing and crisis phase, recruitment, themes and participant number, Belgium 2020-2022
From: Data collection in pandemic times: the case of the Belgian COVID-19 health surveys
Timing & phase in the crisis | Recruitment strategy | Main themes included | Number of participants |
|---|---|---|---|
Survey 1 | |||
April 2 – 9, 2020 High level of new hospital admissions per daya Severe restrictions | River sampling trough Sciensano and press Snowball sampling via participants and Sciensano employees | Mental, social and general health Health related behaviors (consumption of alcohol, tobacco and illegal drugs) COVID-19 symptoms, tests and infections Contact with health care Perceived knowledge and compliance to measures Telework Information sources used for COVID-19 Trust in authorities | 49334 |
Survey 2 | |||
April 16 – 24, 2020 High level of new hospital admissions per day Severe restrictions | River sampling trough Sciensano, press, local community organizations, health insurance funds and elderly organizations Recruitment of previous participants via e-mail Snowball sampling via participants and Sciensano employees Offline recruitment via Coronavirus press conference | Mental and social health Quality of life Health related behaviors (physical activity, nutritional habits, nutritional status, consumption of alcohol, tobacco, illegal drugs and sedatives) COVID-19 tests and infections Domestic violence Perceived knowledge and compliance to measures Information sources used for COVID-19 Trust in authorities Telework and measures at work taken to reduce infections Financial situation | 42895 |
Survey 3 | |||
May 28 – June 5, 2020 Low level of new hospital admissions per day Moderate restrictions | River sampling trough Sciensano, press, local community organizations, health insurance funds and elderly organizations Recruitment of previous participants via e-mail Snowball sampling via Participants and Sciensano employees | Mental and social health Chronic conditions COVID-19 tests and infections Perceived knowledge and compliance to measures Telework and measures at work Financial situation and food security Health literacy | 33913 |
Survey 4 | |||
September 24 – October 2, 2020 Moderate level of new hospital admissions per day Light restrictions | River sampling trough Sciensano, press, local community organizations, health insurance funds and elderly organizations Recruitment of previous participants via e-mail Snowball sampling via participants and Sciensano employees Recruitment of diabetes patients via patient organization | Mental and social health Health related behaviors (consumption of alcohol, tobacco, illegal drugs and sedatives) Chronic conditions Impact COVID-19 on diabetes patients COVID-19 tests and infections Perceived knowledge and compliance to measures Telework and measures at work Attitude towards contact tracing centers and contact tracing app Attitude towards COVID-19 vaccination Trust in institutions COVID-19 related health literacy Impact on life domains Interpersonal trust | 30845 |
Survey 5 | |||
December 3 –11, 2020 High level of new hospital admissions per day Moderate restrictions | River sampling trough Sciensano, press, local community organizations, health insurance funds and elderly organizations Recruitment of previous participants via e-mail Snowball sampling via participants and Sciensano employees Offline recruitment via Coronavirus press conference | Mental and social health Health related behaviors (gambling habits, consumption of alcohol, tobacco, illegal drugs and sedatives) COVID-19 tests and infections Contact with health care Perceived knowledge and compliance to measures Telework Attitude towards (COVID-19) vaccination Trust in institutions Food security and difficulties paying health care expenses | 29855 |
Survey 6 | |||
March 18 – 25, 2021 High level of new hospital admissions per day Moderate restrictions | River sampling trough Sciensano, press, local community organizations, health insurance funds and elderly organizations Recruitment of previous participants via e-mail Snowball sampling via participants and Sciensano employees Offline recruitment via Coronavirus press conference | Mental and social health Health related behaviors (physical activity, nutritional habits, nutritional status and consumption of alcohol) Chronic conditions Frailty among elderly Quality of life COVID-19 tests and infections Compliance to measures COVID-19 vaccination adherence Impact on life domains Domestic violence | 20410 |
Survey 7 | |||
June 10 – 20, 2021 Low level of new hospital admissions per day Light restrictions | River sampling trough Sciensano, press, local community organizations, health insurance funds, elderly organizations, sports federations, higher education institutes and young adult organizations Recruitment of previous participants via e-mail Snowball sampling via participants and Sciensano employees | Mental and social health Chronic conditions Quality of life COVID-19 vaccination adherence Side effects related to COVID-19 vaccination Impact on life domains | 17774 |
Survey 8 | |||
October 4 – 18, 2021 Moderate level of new hospital admissions per day Light restrictions | River sampling trough Sciensano, press, local community organization, health insurance funds, elderly organizations, sports federations, higher education institutes and young adult organizations Recruitment of previous participants via e-mail Snowball sampling via participants and Sciensano employees | Mental and social health Health related behaviors (consumption of alcohol, tobacco and illegal drugs) Chronic conditions Frailty among elderly Quality of life COVID-19 infections and symptoms Compliance to measures COVID-19 vaccination adherence Perceptions of how well institutions handled the crisis Impact on life domains | 17347 |
Survey 9 | |||
December 13 –23, 2021 High level of new hospital admissions per day Moderate restrictions | River sampling trough Sciensano, press, local community organizations, health insurance funds, elderly organizations, sports federations, higher education institutes and young adult organizations Recruitment of previous participants via e-mail Snowball sampling via Participants and Sciensano employees | Mental and social health COVID-19 (self-)tests, infections and symptoms Compliance to measures Attitude on the effectiveness of measures COVID-19 vaccination adherence Attitude towards COVID-19 vaccination Perceived knowledge on vaccination Impact on life domains Use of digital health care platforms Digital health literacy | 22354 |
Survey 10 | |||
March 17 – 27, 2022 High level of new hospital admissions per day Light restrictions | River sampling trough Sciensano, press, local community organizations, health insurance funds, elderly organizations, sports federations, higher education institutes and young adult clubs Recruitment of previous participants via e-mail Snowball sampling via participants and Sciensano employees | Mental and social health Health related behaviors (consumption of alcohol, tobacco, illegal drugs and sedatives) COVID-19 (self-)tests and infections Presence of long COVID-19 Telework Impact on life domains Worries about COVID-19 pandemic, climate change, war in Ukraine… Food security and difficulties paying health care expenses | 13882 |