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Abstract

Objective                     
To explore the practices of personal protective equipment (PPE) amongst the surgeons and anesthetists during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Study Design               
Cross-sectional study.
Place & Duration of Study                                
Department of Surgery, Dow University of Health Sciences Karachi, from June 2021 to May 2022.
Methodology                
Anesthetists and surgeons from various specialties practicing in constituent institutions of Dow University of Health Sciences (DUHS) were approached via email. After taking institutional review board (IRB) approval and informed consent, a validated questionnaire was send via email which was filled out by all the participating surgeons and anesthetists. The data were entered and analyzed using SPSS version 26. Chi square test was applied to find out the significance of the study variables.  
Results:           
A total of 105 participants filled the questionnaire. Only forty-one (39%) participants had read WHO guidelines for surgery during COVID-19, pandemic. Forty-six (43.8%) healthcare professionals (HCPs) working in ORs had undergone training to don and doff PPE, and 46 (43.8%) reported any changes made to the ORs after the pandemic. More consultants were practicing donning coverall suits in OR compared to post-graduate trainees (PGTs) (p=0.004), whereas more PGTs underwent training for PPE-donning and doffing compared to the consultants.
Conclusion:     
There was a wide variation in the practices of PPE use among surgeons and anesthetists working in ORs during the COVID 19 pandemic.
Keywords:                   
COVID-19, Surgeons, Anesthetists, Personal protective equipment.