Intervention for improvement of knowledge on anemia prevention: A school-based study in a rural area of West Bengal

Abstract

CONTEXT: Adolescents are at a high risk of iron deficiency and anemia due to accelerated increase in the requirements for iron, coupled with poor dietary intake, high rate of infection, and worm infestation. AIMS: This study aimed to assess the effectiveness of health education intervention on baseline knowledge of anemia prevention among schoolgoing adolescents. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This was a quasi-experimental interventional study with before and after comparison group, conducted in one secondary school of Singur Block of Hooghly district, West Bengal, in September–October 2015. The study was conducted among 181 schoolchildren of standard VIII and IX by administering a predesigned self-administered questionnaire based on the following five domains – knowledge of anemia, role of diet, use of slipper, handwashing, health-seeking behavior, and management of anemia. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS USED: Data entry and analysis was done using SPSS software version 20, and both parametric (paired t- test) and nonparametric (McNemar-matched Chi-square test) test were applied for pre- and post-test comparison. To elicit the effect size, Cohen's d was calculated. RESULTS: Out of the 181 students, 84 (46.4%) studied in Class VIII and rest in Class IX. About 86 (47.5%) students were boys and 95 (52.5%) were girls; with 70.2% in 14–16 years' age group. Postinterventional score on the five domains significantly improved (P CONCLUSION: Health education will play an effective role in improving health of adolescents by increasing knowledge and changing their attitude.