HEALTH EDUCATION INTERVENTION STRATEGIES AND ITS IMPACT IN MALARIA PREVENTION AMONG NURSING MOTHERS

1.1 Introduction

Health education is the main, inherent and complementary at the same time element of health promotion (Woynarowska et al., 2007). Its aim is to raise awareness, expand knowledge, gain skills and shape a health-oriented attitude of particular individuals who are also perceived as elements of a society (Książek et al., 2008). Health education is a process in which people learn how to take care of their health and the health of their community. The process concentrates on making people realize the relation between one’s health, their lifestyle, physical and social setting.

As a prelude to other parts of this study, this chapter will discuss the background upon which this study was initiated, the statement of problems that led to this study, the Aim and Objectives of the study. Others are Significance of the study, Scope of work, Research hypothesis and questions, Limitations of the Study and Definition of technical terms.

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1.2 Background of Study

Today malaria is found throughout the tropical and sub-tropical regions of the world and causes more than 300 to 500 million acute illness and at least one million deaths annually (Salako et al., 2001). Approximately, 40% of the world’s population, mostly those living in the poorest countries, is at risk of malaria (FMOH et al., 2003). It affects five times as many people as Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS), leprosy, measles and tuberculosis combined (Najera, 2001). The malaria preventive behaviours among mothers of under-fives have been found to be generally poor across the six geo-political zones in Nigeria (Happi et al., 2004).

Malaria is the most prevalent parasitic endemic disease in Africa, which is preventable, treatable and curable (Najera, 2001), yet it remains one of the major health problems in Nigeria (FMOH, 2004). The malaria situation in the country is deteriorating despite numerous interventions that have been instituted so far (Sachs et al., 2002). The obstacles to the success of these interventions are socio-cultural, economic and political in nature (Nabarro et al., 2000). Malaria is currently the most important cause of death and disability in children under five in the country (Happi et al., 2004). Modern medicine has tended to interpret health in terms of medical interventions, and to over-emphasise the importance of medical technology. It is important to promote the concept of health as a result of the interaction of human beings and their total environment.

There are several reasons why Africa bears an overwhelming proportion of the malaria burden. Most malaria infections in Africa, South of the Sahara are caused by Plasmodium falciparum, the most severe and life-threatening form of the disease. This region is also home to the most efficient, and, therefore, deadly, species of the mosquitoes which transmit the disease. Moreover, many countries in Africa lacked the infrastructures and resources necessary to mount sustainable campaigns against malaria and as a result few benefitted from historical efforts to eradicate malaria (Happi et al., 2004).

As a result of health education, awareness increases, an ability to make decisions concerning health enhances knowledge and skills connected not only with health and sickness but also the prevention and coping with difficult situations improve. Malaria Drug Resistance to the cheapest and most widely used anti-malarial drug, chloroquine, is now common across Africa. New treatments have been developed but they come at a high cost. An adult dose of a newer drug may be 10 to 20 times more expensive than older anti-malarials. One reason for the rise of drug resistance is that people do not finish their course of treatment but stop when they start to feel better. Poorly trained pharmacists and store owners may also allow patients to buy just a portion of a course of drugs, as that is all they can afford, which contributes to dangerous drug resistance (Healthpovertyaction, 2021).

Therefore, in Umunede Community Ika North East Delta State where the research was carried out, the activities that was conducted is to know the Health Education Intervention Strategies and Its Impact in Malaria Prevention among Nursing Mothers.

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1.3 Statement of Problems

Malaria is a major public health problem in Africa; the disease is a significant contributor to the poor health situation in Africa, in which Africa alone is estimated to lose at least US$ 12 billion per year in direct losses e.g. illness, treatment, premature death. It is the 2nd leading cause of death from infectious diseases in Africa, after HIV/AIDS. Despite numerous interventions that have been instituted so far malaria situation in Nigeria is deteriorating (Fatungase, k., Amoran, O., Alausa, K., 2012). According to the Nigerian national malaria strategic plan 2014-2020, malaria is responsible for 60% of outpatient visits to health facilities, 30% of childhood deaths, 25% of deaths in children under one year, and 11% of maternal deaths. Hence, the researcher’s needs to assess the effect of nursing intervention on the Health Education Intervention Strategies and Its Impact in Malaria Prevention among Nursing Mothers in Umunede Community Ika North East Delta State.

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1.4 Aim and Objectives of Study

The aim of the study is to scrutinize the Health Education Intervention Strategies and Its Impact in Malaria Prevention among Nursing Mothers in Umunede Community Ika North East Delta State. In achieving this aim, the following specific objectives were laid out as follows:

1. To assess the effect of nursing intervention on knowledge of malaria prevention among Nursing Mothers in Umunede Community Ika North East Delta State
2. To determine the level of knowledge on malaria prevention among Nursing Mothers in Umunede Community Ika North East Delta State
3. To evaluate the effect of nursing intervention on knowledge of malaria prevention among Nursing Mothers in Umunede Community Ika North East Delta State

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1.5 Research Questions

The study came up with research questions so as to be able to ascertain the above stated objectives. The specific research questions for the study are stated below as follows:

• Does Nursing Mothers in Primary Health Care (PHC) aware about malaria in Umunede Community Ika North East?
• What is the level of knowledge of malaria prevention among Nursing Mothers in a selected PHC Umunede Community Ika North East?
• What is the effect of nursing intervention on knowledge of malaria prevention among Nursing Mothers in a selected PHC in Umunede Community Ika North East?

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1.6 Research Hypothesis

In order to pursue the objective of this study, the following generalized statements have been designed to guide and aids in obtaining the result for the experiment to be conducted. For this work, the null hypothesis will be represented with H0 while the alternative hypothesis will be represented with hypothesis H1.

Hypothesis One

• H0: There is no significant difference between knowledge of malaria and prevention of malaria among Nursing Mothers in Umunede Community Ika North East Delta State
• H1: There is significant difference between knowledge of malaria and prevention of malaria among Nursing Mothers in Umunede Community Ika North East Delta State

Hypothesis Two

• H0: Health Education Intervention Strategies does not have any significant impact in Malaria Prevention among Nursing Mothers
• H1: Health Education Intervention Strategies has a significant impact in Malaria Prevention among Nursing Mothers

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1.7 Significance of Study

The findings of this study would give an insight into areas where health education campaigns are required to influence and promote the adoption of Malaria Prevention. It will also be beneficial to health workers to develop special intervention measures on specific age ranges of mothers who are not aware about the damages caused by malaria exposure.

This study will be of immense benefit to other researchers who intend to know more on this study and can also be used by non-researchers to build more on their research work. This study contributes to knowledge and could serve as a guide for other study.

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1.8 Scope of Study

The study focuses on the Health Education Intervention Strategies and Its Impact in Malaria Prevention among Nursing Mothers in Umunede Community Ika North East Delta State.

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1.9 Limitations of the Study

During the course of this study, many things militated against its completion, some of which are:

1. Time Constraint: The time frame given to accomplish this project was very short due to school academic calendar and it was carried out under pressure which made the researcher not to implement some necessary features.
2. Research material: availability of research material is a major setback to the scope of the study.
3. Frequent power failure: This made the researcher append more money on fuel to ensure sustainable power.
4. Financial Constraint: Insufficient fund tends to impede the efficiency of the researcher in sourcing for the relevant materials, literature or information and in the process of data collection (internet, questionnaire and interview).