6. BRIEF RESUME OF THE INTENDED STUDY
6.1 INTRODUCTION
“Practice good personal hygiene. Wash your hands before you eat. Be aware of good clean water and food sources.”
James Wright
The word “hygiene” is derived from Hygeia, the goddess of health in Greek Mythology. She is represented as a beautiful woman holding in her hand a bowl from which a serpent is drinking. In Greek mythology, the serpent testifies the art of healing which symbol is retained even today. Hygiene is defined as “the science of health and embraces all factors which contribute to healthful living.” Hygiene has two aspects – personal and environmental. The aim of personal hygiene is to promote standards of personal cleanliness within the setting of the condition where people live. Personal hygiene includes bathing, clothing, washing hands and toilet; care of nails, feet and teeth; spitting, coughing, sneezing, personal appearance and inculcation of clean habits in the young. Training in personal hygiene should begin at a very early age and must be carried through school age.1
Hygiene is more than just being clean. It is defined as the many practices that help people be and stay healthy. Practicing good personal hygiene is smart for two reasons. First, it helps prevent people from catching and spreading illness and disease. Second, it helps people feel good about themselves and their bodies. In American society, cleanliness is an important issue; poor hygiene is seen as unacceptable and unhealthy.2
Good hygiene includes thoroughly and regularly washing one's body (especially hands), washing one's hair, brushing and flossing teeth, and caring for gums. These grooming habits will reduce the threat of bacteria that constantly reside on the body. While a certain amount of bacteria are harmless, and even beneficial, to the body, a build-up of bacteria can harm a person's health. As children grow older, their bodies go through a number of changes. While good hygiene is important for everyone at any age, it can require greater care at the onset of puberty. When puberty arrives (usually between the ages of eight and sixteen), it means the body is becoming sexually mature. Hormones, certain chemicals made by one's body, produce both physical and emotional changes. It is the physical changes that require greater attention when it comes to hygiene. For a young girl or boy, this means taking more time and care cleaning one's body, especially the sexual organs, dealing with acne, bad breath, and a stronger body odor, as well as doing more to prevent cavities and gum disease.2
The best way to keep the body clean and free of infection is to wash on a daily basis. This means taking a shower or a bath and using soap and hot water to wash away the bacteria that build up over the course of the day. This also means washing one's hands several times a day. Since the hands touch many foreign objects as well as many familiar objects (like one's nose, mouth, and eyes), washing hands, especially after going to the bathroom, will prevent harmful bacteria from damaging one's health. One of the best ways to prevent bacteria from spreading and catching the common cold is to wash one's hands. While this procedure may sound simple, medical experts say that most people don't wash their hands properly or often enough. Skin is the largest organ on the body. It has two layers: the thin outer layer is made up of dead skin cells that are constantly shed and replaced by new cells. The thick inner layer is made up of blood vessels, nerves, and hair follicles, which contain glands. The glands in the hair follicles produce an oily substance called sebum, which keeps the skin and hair from drying out. Daily washing will keep the skin on the face and other areas of the body clean by removing the dirt, oil, and dead cells before they can accumulate.2
A study was conducted, to explore oral health counseling concerning changes of oral hygiene habits in 11- to 13-year-old schoolchildren within a theoretical framework of the transtheoretical model and the motivational interview. The samples were Thirty-one (n = 31) schoolchildren included in the counseling sessions that were conducted by four dental hygienists. The results revealed that, nearly every schoolchild needed to establish changes in oral hygiene habits but the assessment of schoolchildren's readiness for change often remained unclear. The researcher had concluded that, the theoretical framework might be useful in constructing and focusing on oral hygiene counseling for schoolchildren that concentrates on the personal dynamics of change. Further qualitative research is called for.3 The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that people wash their hands:
Ø Before and after eating
Ø After touching or playing with pets and other animals
Ø After sneezing, coughing, or blowing one's nose
Ø After touching trash or putting out the garbage
Ø Before and after treating a cut or wound. 2
6.2 NEED FOR THE STUDY
Every child must get good personal care to protect to him or her from any kind of physical, mental, emotional or social injury; to promote sound health, develop wholesome habits and life-style .It includes maintenance of personal hygiene that is care and cleanliness of the body from head to toe, adequate clothing and maintenance of body temperature , rest and sleep, exercise, education and training of the child regarding healthy habits ; providing opportunities to develop wholesome health behaviour and daily living etc. The child must be cared for with due respect for the family as a unit. The comprehensive needs of the child must be met within the context of the family. Health workers while supervising personal care of the child must make observation that mother is competent, cautious and concerned about good all round personal care. If not, she must be educated and trained about the same.4
Personal hygiene is very important for both boys and girls should take daily bath, wear clean under garments and clothes. The life style which is composed of cultural and behavioural patterns and lifelong personal habits are learnt through the process of socialization especially through interaction with parents, peer groups, friends, siblings and teachers etc. Healthy life style has direct relation with health promotion and include adequate nutrition, enough sound sleep, personal hygiene, sufficient physical activities. The parents and teachers should provide means and facilities and help adolescents to develop healthy life styles.4
Early American colonists in Virginia and Pennsylvania restricted bathing as a way to outlaw any type of nudity. These laws were very strict about how often one could bathe. One law stated that anyone who bathed, than once a month would be sent to prison.2
Because of these poor hygiene habits, many people died of disease. In the nineteenth century alone, millions of infant deaths were reported throughout Europe and America. The most common cause of death was infant diarrhea, which was caused by mothers who went to the bathroom, didn't wash their hands, and then passed on intestinal bacteria to their children. In the late nineteenth century two scientists, Robert Koch (1843–1910) from Germany and Louis Pasteur (1822–1895) from France, discovered that bacteria were the cause of disease that the health crises began to improve. Because of their discovery, doctors and nurses began washing their hands before examining patients or performing surgery, and vaccines were developed that fought bacteria and saved the lives of millions of people.2
When athlete's foot is diagnosed by a dermatologist (a doctor that specializes in skin), a patient will usually receive an antifungal cream to treat the problem, which generally heals in a short time. The American Academy of Dermatology recommends the following steps to prevent athlete's foot.
· Wash feet every day.
· Be sure to dry feet thoroughly, especially in between the toes.
· Only wear socks made of cotton, and change them if they get moist or damp.
· Go barefoot when at home.
· Try to wear sandals, and avoid tight shoes in warm weather.
· If possible, use an antifungal powder in tight shoes. 2
Head lice are tiny insects, or skin parasites, that burrow into the scalp. They cause itching of the scalp, which can lead to a bacterial infection because of repeated scratching. In children, however, head lice are often barely noticeable. Head lice are spread through personal contact and through sharing things such as combs, brushes, and hats. Often, the lice can make their way into a person's eyebrows, eyelashes, or facial hair. Head lice can easily turn into an epidemic (the rapid spreading of a disease to many people at the same time) at a school because children often share personal items. The problem is treatable by using a cream, lotion, or shampoo, all of which are available at pharmacies.Taking good care of one's teeth is one of the smartest investments a person can make in their health, helping to ensure that the teeth will remain strong, healthy, and white for a lifetime. While many advances have been made in dentistry and in replacing teeth, nothing can ever take the place of natural teeth. They are stronger than any artificial teeth a dental professional can make. This is why it is important to care for them properly.2
There are many important reasons to brush the teeth every day. Brushing removes the plaque (a sticky film of bacteria that grows around the teeth) that causes tooth decay, or cavities. Brushing also helps keep gums healthy and breathe fresh. To make the most of brushing, a person should choose a soft-bristled toothbrush with a shape that suits one's mouth and allows one to reach all of the teeth easily. The ear canal is self-cleaning. Wax is secreted into the ear canal by glands that are found in the skin of the canal. This wax and other particles, such as dust, travel down the ear canal and are washed away or fall out to make room for new wax being made. It is not necessary to use cotton swabs to clean the ear canal. In fact, using them can harm the ear by pushing wax toward the eardrum, where it can get stuck and cause blockage or an ear infection. While cleaning the pinna and behind the ear is good hygiene, the rest of the ear will usually take care of itself.2
A study was conducted, to prevent the transmission of microbes in child day care centers (CDCCs). A total of 82 children age 3.5 to 7.2 years (mean, 5.7 years) at 2 CDCCs rubbed their hands with AHG. They also conducted a questionnaire survey asking how commonly AHGs were used in CDCCs, obtaining 128 answers from 68 CDCCs (with more than 1 person responding in 6 CDCCs). The results revealed that, all of the alcometer readings were < 0.01 per thousand, although up to 30 contacts with the mucous membranes (mean, 2.4) occurred during the first 15 minutes. An AHG was used in all 68 CDCCs, but only by adults at 11 of them. The study had concluded that, the use of an AHG in CDCCs is safe. Even though children tend to put their hands into their mouth after disinfection, no significant amount of alcohol is absorbed.5
A study was conducted, to evaluate the effect of a pragmatic educational program on tooth brushing skills of young schoolchildren. The samples were 196 first grade children in Jerusalem. One dentist interviewed the children and evaluated base-line brushing skills, applying simple visual index, based on dividing the dentition to eight different segments. The results shows that, at base-line 92% of the children had brushed the labial surfaces of front teeth, but only 8% brushed the inner surfaces of posterior teeth. Only 32% brushed occlusal surfaces. These levels significantly increased after four months: 98% now brushed the labial surfaces; 43% brushed inner surfaces of posterior teeth, 87% brushed occlusal surfaces (p < 0.001).The study had concluded that, method of behavioural instruction emphasized improvement of personal manual skills specifically for those areas of the dentition which demand most efforts in oral hygiene promotion. These results are of practical help in improving future health education programs by the health promotion team.6
The investigator during the Community posting found inadequate knowledge among the Primary School Children regarding Personal hygiene. So it may further result into Dental caries, Skin disorders and Cross infection among the Primary School Children. So this information made the investigator to take this study, to improve the knowledge regarding personal hygiene among the Primary School Children.
6.3 PROBLEM STATEMENT
“A study to assess the the effectiveness of structured teaching programme regarding personal hygiene on knowledge of children who are studying in rural government primary school at Shantigrama Hassan, Karnataka
OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY
1. To assess the knowledge on personal hygiene among primary school children who are studying in rural government primary school at Shantigrama Hassan before the administration of Structured Teaching Programme.
2. To develop and administer structure teaching programme on personal hygiene.
3. To evaluate the effectiveness of Structured Teaching Programme on personal hygiene among primary school children who are studying in rural government school after the administration of Structured Teaching Programme.
4. To find out the association between the pre and post- test knowledge score with the demographic variables.
6.5 HYPOTHESIS:-
H1:- There will be significant difference between pretest and post test knowledge scores of
primary school children regarding personal hygiene.
H2:- There will be significant association between pretest and post test knowledge score and the demographic variable.