University of Sharjah
“Personal Hygiene among Primary School Students in Sharjah-UAE”
Nihar Ranjan Dash, University of Sharjah,
Mohammed J. M. Ghanim, University of Sharjah
University City Rd, Sharjah, UAE
Bashayer Abdullah, Hiba Issa, Rasha Albarazi, Zaid Al Saheli
ABSTRACT
Aim: we aimed to assess the knowledge and practices related to personal hygiene among primary school students in Sharjah. Methods: A cross-sectional study questionnaire based data collection was conducted among school children in Sharjah in the period between February 2013 and May 2013. A total of 428 children (224 boys and 204 girls) were selected using stratified random sampling. Results: The ability to define personal hygiene was significantly higher among girls (95%) as compared to boys (82%). Upon asking to define personal hygiene 68 % mentioned showering, 26% mentioned clean teeth and 25% mentioned clean hands. 27% mentioned that personal hygiene is important to “fight diseases” while 35% didn’t know why it is important (95% CI=30.3-39.3). Based on a quiz out of five, the average knowledge related to basic personal hygiene recorded among girls (4.45) was significantly higher than that in boys (3.83) (p<0.005). Conclusion: personal hygiene knowledge and practices are satisfactory among the school children in Sharjah. We recommend intervention programs raising the awareness of personal hygiene.
INTRODUCTION
The increased burden of communicable diseases among school children due to poor personal hygiene practices and inadequate sanitary conditions remains a concern on the public health agenda in developing countries [1, 2]. Health is a key factor in school entry, as well as continued participation and attainment in school [3]. School is the place where health education regarding important aspects of hygiene, environment and sanitation, as well as social customs, is being imparted [4]. The teacher is the guardian of the child in school and plays a pivotal role in the whole process of primordial prevention [5, 6]. Poor knowledge and practice of and attitudes to personal hygiene such as hand washing play major roles in the high incidence of communicable diseases and therefore has negative consequences for a child’s long term overall development [7].
School children are particularly vulnerable to neglect of basic personal hygiene [8]. The consequences in terms of morbidity and mortality are also more severe in them compared to adults [9, 10].
The hands are probably the single most important route for transmission of infection in the home and community, as they are often in direct contact with the mouth, nose and conjunctiva of the eyes) [11, 12, and 13]. They also come in contact with food and water that is consumed. Studies have revealed a strong and consistent causal link between poor hand hygiene and gastrointestinal infection [14, 15]. Certain respiratory infections (common cold, influenza virus infection, etc) have also been linked to poor personal hygienic practices [16]. Bearing in mind that school children have been consistently implicated in the spread of communicable diseases [17, 18] and that the school has been recognized as a vital setting for health promotion [19], we are planning to assess personal hygiene in primary school children in Sharjah.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
This is a cross sectional study involving 428 primary school students in Sharjah, United Arab Emirates (UAE). The students were selected based on the stratified random sampling technique, in which the schools were divided into male and female schools, and from each stratum we applied the systematic random sampling technique to choose the appropriate number. Using the formula n = [4 p (1 - p)] / ME^2 , and assuming that the expected prevalence is 50% and the margin of error is 5%, ‘n’ will be 385. Hence, our sample size is 400 students, after adding 15 to the 385 as a margin for non-response. The 400 students will equally be divided to 200 boys and 200 girls. As we picked grades 1, 3 and 5 to present the population, the 200 students divided by 3 will give approximately 67 students for each grade. Assuming that each class has between 20-25 students, we need to visit 3 schools for each gender. In other words, 22 students multiplied by 3 grades are 66, multiplied by 6 schools gives 396 students.A questionnaire containing 35 questions was used to collect data including information about knowledge and practices related to personal hygiene. In addition to that, subjective observations of variables related to personal hygiene were performed. The study used SPSS (21) was used to enter and analyze the data using Chi-square and ANOVA statistical tests.
RESULTS
A total of 428 students participated in this study, 224 boys (52.3%) and 204 girls (47.7%). 155 students were from grade 1 (26.9%), 164 were from grade 3 (38.3%) and 149 were from grade 5 (34.8%) The mean age for students was 8.6 years (SD=1.91). Student’s perception about personal hygiene was not answered in almost 35% of the students Fig 1. There was a significant lack of knowledge about the importance of personal hygiene in our daily life activities that out of 65% of the students who appreciate the roll of personal hygiene, only 26.5% of them mentioned that it’s important to fight the disease Fig 2.
Fig. 1: Student’s perception about personal hygiene
Fig. 2: Students’ knowledge about the Importance of Personal Hygiene
Out of all the students 4.2% ignored the importance of personal hygiene, majority of them were from the boys Fig 3. The ability to define personal hygiene was significantly higher among girls (95%) as compared to boys (82%).
Fig. 3: Personal hygiene reflection on daily health practice.
Based on a quiz out of five, the average knowledge related to basic personal hygiene recorded among girls (4.45) was significantly higher than among boys (3.83) (p<0.005) . As observed, the incidence of tooth decay in students brushing their teeth for at least twice a day was significantly lower than those doing it once a day, especially those who mentioned brushing after sweets intake Fig 4. Among the factors that contributed to lack of hand hygiene forgetfulness (56%) was the most striking one.
Fig.4: Frequency of teeth brushing
DISCUSSION
Regarding personal hygiene of school students in Sharjah, girls showed better knowledge and practices, related to personal hygiene, than boys. This was expected as girls take care of themselves, and care about their self image more than boys. This finding was also supported by a study done in South Kolkata [5]. It was also noted that the knowledge and practices of personal hygiene was correlated to their academic achievements, and this observation was unique. Showering was the most important aspect of personal hygiene, as defined by the students, and only a quarter of them mentioned clean hands Fig 2. The majority of students didn't point to the importance of personal hygiene which calls for stressing on this aspect in their school environment.
Less than half of the students mentioned their teachers as a source of information regarding personal hygiene and a minority mentioned TV as a source Fig 3. The current study had several potential limitations including inappropriate responses from children and relying on subjective observations by the researchers.
Fig 5: Hand Washing Practices as Reported by Students
Fig 6: Information Sources of Personal Hygiene
Conclusion
Personal hygiene is not an isolated behavior; instead it varies from person to person according to different factors. The study concluded that personal hygiene knowledge and practices are satisfactory among the school children in Sharjah. Among students, personal hygiene practices much be more pronounced in the male schools. We recommend intervention programs raising the awareness and importance of personal hygiene among school children in Sharjah through coordinated education measures by media, teachers and parents.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
I appreciate the help of my colleagues Bashayer Abdullah, Hiba Issa, Rasha Albarazi and Zaid Al Saheli For their impressive contribution and effective outcome testing. I acknowledge the support of our ethical committee and their contribution to our community based research.
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UGSRC - 1
Personal Hygiene among Primary School Students in Sharjah-UAE