Research Article
Year 2025,
Volume: 8 Issue: 2, 108 - 116, 31.05.2025
Abstract
Objective: Communicable diseases are serious social problems that cause morbidity and mortality. Students studying health sciences face the risk of communicable diseases from the very beginning of their academic education. For this reason, the study aimed to examine the awareness of students studying health science on the risks of communicable diseases and the factors affecting this awareness.
Material and Methods: This is a cross-sectional, descriptive study. The study was conducted between April 2022 and 2023 in Istanbul. Two hundred fifty students studying health sciences were included. Data were collected using the socio-demographic characteristics questionnaire to determine the socio-demographic characteristics of the participants and Communicable diseases risk awareness and protection scale aiming to determine the risk awareness on communicable diseases, and the prevention scale.
Results: Results of the study revealed that the students studying health sciences were, in general, aware of the risks of communicable diseases and had a high level of protection. Furthermore, it was concluded that female students’ awareness of common life risk (p<0.05) and personal contact awareness were higher compared to males (p<0.05).
Conclusions: Consequently, different educational strategies may be developed to further raise male students’ awareness of the risk of communicable diseases.
Keywords
References
- Açıkel, U.D.C.H., Babayiğit, M.A. (2005). Knowledge levels of young adult men about sexually transmitted diseases. TSK Koruyucu Hekimlik Bülteni, 4(1), 16-24. https://www. researchgate.net/publication/26447990
- Afshari, A., Ghahnaviyeh, L., Khezeli, M., Daniali, S. (2019). Health promotion perception among health-care providers working in educational hospitals of Isfahan, Iran: a qualitative study. J Educ Health Promot, 8(1), 144. doi:10.4103/jehp.jehp_336_18
- Akalpler, Ö., Eroğlu, K. (2015). University students’ sexual behavior and knowledge levels on common sexually transmitted infections in the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus. J Hacettepe Univ Fac Nurs, 2(2), 64-74. https:// dergipark.org.tr/tr/download/article-file/88660
- Akça, B., Altınay, Z.Ö., Demirbaşoğlu, H., Kırdar, İ., Okol, B., Özkan, H.G., et al. (2016). Knowledge and attitudes of the third-year medical students in a university about sexually transmitted diseases and prevention methods. Fam Pract Palliat Care, 1(2), 48-52. doi:10.22391/920.256692
- Akel, M., Sakr, F., Haddad, C., Hajj, A., Sacre, H., Zeenny, R.M., et al. (2023). Knowledge, attitude, and practices of the general population toward the old-new outbreak of cholera in a developing country. Trop Med Infect Dis, 8(4), 236. doi:10.3390/tropicalmed8040236
- Aldahmash, A., Almutairi, S. (2023). The extent of incorporating health education requirements in middle school science textbooks. Sustainability, 15(14), 11005. doi:10.3390/ su151411005
- Altunışık, R., Coşkun, R., Bayraktaroğlu, S., Yıldırım, E. (2010). Sosyal bilimlerde araştırma yöntemleri (SPSS uygulamalı). In: Pegem Akademi, 7-253.
- Babaoğlu, Ü., Demir, G. (2017). Knowledge about Brucella in semi-urban regions. Acıbadem Univ Health Sci J, 4, 214- 219. doi:10.22391/920.256692
- Barlett, J.E., Kotrlik, J.W., Higgins, C.C. (2001). Organizational research: determining appropriate sample size in survey research. Inf Technol Learn Perform J, 19(1), 43-50. https:// www.opalco.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/Reading- Sample-Size1.pdf
- Demir, C., Yıldız, H., Yürektürk, Ş. (2020). Van Yuzuncu Yıl University vocational school of health services students’ knowledge level on infectious diseases. Van Med J, 27(4), 458-465. doi:10.5505/vtd.2020.74875
- Ebrahimi, B., Nazarinia, M., Molayem, M., Jokar, M.J., Nemati, M. (2023). Assessment of knowledge, attitude and practices (KAP) towards COVID-19 and the risks of SARS-CoV-2 infection among the Iranian EMS workers: an online cross-sectional survey. Air Med J, 42, 271-275. doi:10.1016/j. amj.2023.04.007
- Ener, D., Seyfeli, Y., Çetinkaya, F. (2022). A scale development and validation study: communicable diseases risk awareness and protection scale. J Istanbul Fac Med, 85(2), 258-269. doi:10.26650/IUITFD.973903
- Esposito, S. (2016). Infectious diseases: pathophysiology, diagnostics and prevention. Int J Mol Sci, 17(9), 1464. doi:10.3390/ijms17091464
- Filip, R., Gheorghita Puscaselu, R., Anchidin-Norocel, L., Dimian, M., Savage, W.K. (2022). Global challenges to public health care systems during the COVID-19 pandemic: a review of pandemic measures and problems. J Pers Med, 12(8), 1295. doi:10.3390/jpm12081295
- Hussein, M., Khalil, M. (2020). Assessment of primary schools teachers’ knowledge and attitudes toward communicable diseases prevention and control at primary schools. Indian J Forensic Med Toxicol. doi:10.37506/ijfmt.v14i2.3040
- Islami, R. (2023). Covid-19 prevention intentions of pre-science science teachers from South African and Indonesian universities. Eurasia J Math Sci Technol Educ, 19(8), em2305. doi:10.29333/ejmste/13426
- Karimi-Sari, H., Bayatpoor, M., Khotbesara, M., Ebrahimi, M., Sattari, Z., Sattari, P., et al. (2017). Knowledge, attitude, and practice of Iranian health sciences students regarding hepatitis B and C virus infections: a national survey. Am J Infect Control, 45(11), e135-e141. doi:10.1016/j.ajic.2017.07.012
- Kerr, A., Hughes, C. (2023). Midwives' and women's understanding of cytomegalovirus infection during pregnancy. Br J Midwifery, 31(5), 268-276. doi:10.12968/ bjom.2023.31.5.268
- Kurt, A.S., Yılmaz, S.D. (2012). The levels of knowledge and sources of information on HIV/AIDS of university health science students. J Educ Res Nurs, 9(3), 47-52. https://jag. journalagent.com/jern/pdfs/JERN_9_3_47_52.pdf
- Miller, N., Wick, J., Luther, V.P., Newman, J.R. (2023). Online Infectious Diseases Subspecialty Supplementary Curriculum for Medical Students and Residents: Moving Beyond "You Get What You Get". J Med Educ Curric Dev. Apr 26;10:23821205231171206. doi: 10.1177/23821205231171206. PMID: 37123078; PMCID: PMC10134105.
- Nii-Trebi, N.I. (2017). Emerging and neglected infectious diseases: insights, advances, and challenges. Biomed Res Int, 2017, 5245021. doi:10.1155/2017/5245021
- Patja, K., Veld, T., Arva, D., Bonello, M., Pees, R., Soethout, M., et al. (2022). Health promotion and disease prevention in the education of health professionals: a mapping of European educational programmes from 2019. BMC Med Educ, 22(1). doi:10.1186/s12909-022-03826-5
- Shravani, R. (2018). Awareness of risk factors for non-communicable diseases among adolescent girls aged 15-17 years in Koti, Hyderabad. J Med Sci Clin Res, 6(4). doi:10.18535/jmscr/v6i4.124
- Solmaz Avcıkurt, A. (2014). Evaluation of knowledge and attitudes on HIV/AIDS of Balikesir University students. Balikesir Health Sci J, 3(2), 79-86. doi:10.5505/ bsbd.2014.83703
- Suryasa, W., Rodríguez-Gámez, M., Herrera-Velázquez, M., Koldoris, T. (2022). Health education programs and their importance for disease prevention and health promotion. Int J Health Sci, 6(3):xi-xv. doi:10.53730/ijhs.v6n3.13788
- Taştan, R., Altıntaş, L., Cevizci, S. (2016). The determination of knowledge level of nurses working in the hospitals in the center of Kocaeli province about the zoonotic diseases. Turk Bull Hyg Exp Biol, 73(4), 365-78. doi:10.5505/ TurkHijyen.2016.62134
- Tulchinsky, T.H., Varavikova, E.A. (2014). Communicable diseases. The New Public Health, 149–236. doi:10.1016/ B978-0-12-415766-8.00004-5
- Wang, M., Han, X., Fang, H., Xu, C., Lin, X., Xia, S., et al. (2018). Impact of health education on knowledge and behaviors toward infectious diseases among students in Gansu Province, China. Biomed Res Int, 1-12. doi:10.1155/2018/6397340
- World Health Organization. (2020). Communicable disease. Available at: https://apps.who.int/gb/ebwha/pdf_files/ WHA73/A73_24-en.pdf [Last accessed: May 2023]
- World Health Organization. (2023). Coronavirus (COVID-19) Dashboard. Available at: https://COVID19.who.int/ [Last accessed: May 2023]
Sağlık Bilimleri Bölümü Öğrencilerinin Bulaşıcı Hastalık Riskleri ve Etkileyen Faktörler Konusundaki Farkındalıkları
Abstract
Amaç: Bulaşıcı hastalıklar, morbidite ve mortaliteye neden olan ciddi sosyal sorunlardır. Sağlık bilimleri okuyan öğrenciler, akademik eğitimlerinin başından itibaren bulaşıcı hastalık riskiyle karşı karşıyadır. Bu nedenle çalışmada sağlık bilimleri alanında öğrenim gören öğrencilerin bulaşıcı hastalık riskleri konusundaki farkındalıklarının ve bu farkındalığa etki eden faktörlerin incelenmesi amaçlandı.
Gereç ve Yöntem: Kesitsel ve tanımlayıcı bir çalışmadır. Çalışma Nisan 2022-2023 tarihleri arasında İstanbul’da gerçekleştirildi. Sağlık bilimlerinde okuyan ikiyüz elli öğrenci çalışmaya dahil edildi. Veriler, katılımcıların sosyo-demografik özelliklerini belirlemeye yönelik sosyo-demografik özellikler anketi, bulaşıcı hastalıklara ilişkin risk farkındalığı ve korunma önleme ölçeği kullanılarak toplanmıştır.
Bulgular: Araştırmanın sonuçları, sağlık bilimleri okuyan öğrencilerin genel olarak bulaşıcı hastalıkların risklerinin farkında olduklarını ve korunma düzeylerinin yüksek olduğunu ortaya koydu. Ayrıca kız öğrencilerin ortak yaşam riski (p<0.05) ve kişisel temas farkındalıklarının erkeklere göre daha yüksek olduğu sonucuna varıldı. (p<0.05).
Sonuç: Sonuç olarak erkek öğrencilerin bulaşıcı hastalık riskine ilişkin farkındalığını daha da artırmak için farklı eğitim stratejilerini geliştirebilir.
Keywords
Ethical Statement
Çalışmaya başlamadan önce Atlas Üniversitesi Girişimsel Olmayan Etik Kurulu’ndan etik izinler alındı. (03.30.2022/13571) Katılımcılardan sözlü ve yazılı onamları alındı.
Thanks
Yazarlar tüm katılımcılara teşekkür ederler.
References
- Açıkel, U.D.C.H., Babayiğit, M.A. (2005). Knowledge levels of young adult men about sexually transmitted diseases. TSK Koruyucu Hekimlik Bülteni, 4(1), 16-24. https://www. researchgate.net/publication/26447990
- Afshari, A., Ghahnaviyeh, L., Khezeli, M., Daniali, S. (2019). Health promotion perception among health-care providers working in educational hospitals of Isfahan, Iran: a qualitative study. J Educ Health Promot, 8(1), 144. doi:10.4103/jehp.jehp_336_18
- Akalpler, Ö., Eroğlu, K. (2015). University students’ sexual behavior and knowledge levels on common sexually transmitted infections in the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus. J Hacettepe Univ Fac Nurs, 2(2), 64-74. https:// dergipark.org.tr/tr/download/article-file/88660
- Akça, B., Altınay, Z.Ö., Demirbaşoğlu, H., Kırdar, İ., Okol, B., Özkan, H.G., et al. (2016). Knowledge and attitudes of the third-year medical students in a university about sexually transmitted diseases and prevention methods. Fam Pract Palliat Care, 1(2), 48-52. doi:10.22391/920.256692
- Akel, M., Sakr, F., Haddad, C., Hajj, A., Sacre, H., Zeenny, R.M., et al. (2023). Knowledge, attitude, and practices of the general population toward the old-new outbreak of cholera in a developing country. Trop Med Infect Dis, 8(4), 236. doi:10.3390/tropicalmed8040236
- Aldahmash, A., Almutairi, S. (2023). The extent of incorporating health education requirements in middle school science textbooks. Sustainability, 15(14), 11005. doi:10.3390/ su151411005
- Altunışık, R., Coşkun, R., Bayraktaroğlu, S., Yıldırım, E. (2010). Sosyal bilimlerde araştırma yöntemleri (SPSS uygulamalı). In: Pegem Akademi, 7-253.
- Babaoğlu, Ü., Demir, G. (2017). Knowledge about Brucella in semi-urban regions. Acıbadem Univ Health Sci J, 4, 214- 219. doi:10.22391/920.256692
- Barlett, J.E., Kotrlik, J.W., Higgins, C.C. (2001). Organizational research: determining appropriate sample size in survey research. Inf Technol Learn Perform J, 19(1), 43-50. https:// www.opalco.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/Reading- Sample-Size1.pdf
- Demir, C., Yıldız, H., Yürektürk, Ş. (2020). Van Yuzuncu Yıl University vocational school of health services students’ knowledge level on infectious diseases. Van Med J, 27(4), 458-465. doi:10.5505/vtd.2020.74875
- Ebrahimi, B., Nazarinia, M., Molayem, M., Jokar, M.J., Nemati, M. (2023). Assessment of knowledge, attitude and practices (KAP) towards COVID-19 and the risks of SARS-CoV-2 infection among the Iranian EMS workers: an online cross-sectional survey. Air Med J, 42, 271-275. doi:10.1016/j. amj.2023.04.007
- Ener, D., Seyfeli, Y., Çetinkaya, F. (2022). A scale development and validation study: communicable diseases risk awareness and protection scale. J Istanbul Fac Med, 85(2), 258-269. doi:10.26650/IUITFD.973903
- Esposito, S. (2016). Infectious diseases: pathophysiology, diagnostics and prevention. Int J Mol Sci, 17(9), 1464. doi:10.3390/ijms17091464
- Filip, R., Gheorghita Puscaselu, R., Anchidin-Norocel, L., Dimian, M., Savage, W.K. (2022). Global challenges to public health care systems during the COVID-19 pandemic: a review of pandemic measures and problems. J Pers Med, 12(8), 1295. doi:10.3390/jpm12081295
- Hussein, M., Khalil, M. (2020). Assessment of primary schools teachers’ knowledge and attitudes toward communicable diseases prevention and control at primary schools. Indian J Forensic Med Toxicol. doi:10.37506/ijfmt.v14i2.3040
- Islami, R. (2023). Covid-19 prevention intentions of pre-science science teachers from South African and Indonesian universities. Eurasia J Math Sci Technol Educ, 19(8), em2305. doi:10.29333/ejmste/13426
- Karimi-Sari, H., Bayatpoor, M., Khotbesara, M., Ebrahimi, M., Sattari, Z., Sattari, P., et al. (2017). Knowledge, attitude, and practice of Iranian health sciences students regarding hepatitis B and C virus infections: a national survey. Am J Infect Control, 45(11), e135-e141. doi:10.1016/j.ajic.2017.07.012
- Kerr, A., Hughes, C. (2023). Midwives' and women's understanding of cytomegalovirus infection during pregnancy. Br J Midwifery, 31(5), 268-276. doi:10.12968/ bjom.2023.31.5.268
- Kurt, A.S., Yılmaz, S.D. (2012). The levels of knowledge and sources of information on HIV/AIDS of university health science students. J Educ Res Nurs, 9(3), 47-52. https://jag. journalagent.com/jern/pdfs/JERN_9_3_47_52.pdf
- Miller, N., Wick, J., Luther, V.P., Newman, J.R. (2023). Online Infectious Diseases Subspecialty Supplementary Curriculum for Medical Students and Residents: Moving Beyond "You Get What You Get". J Med Educ Curric Dev. Apr 26;10:23821205231171206. doi: 10.1177/23821205231171206. PMID: 37123078; PMCID: PMC10134105.
- Nii-Trebi, N.I. (2017). Emerging and neglected infectious diseases: insights, advances, and challenges. Biomed Res Int, 2017, 5245021. doi:10.1155/2017/5245021
- Patja, K., Veld, T., Arva, D., Bonello, M., Pees, R., Soethout, M., et al. (2022). Health promotion and disease prevention in the education of health professionals: a mapping of European educational programmes from 2019. BMC Med Educ, 22(1). doi:10.1186/s12909-022-03826-5
- Shravani, R. (2018). Awareness of risk factors for non-communicable diseases among adolescent girls aged 15-17 years in Koti, Hyderabad. J Med Sci Clin Res, 6(4). doi:10.18535/jmscr/v6i4.124
- Solmaz Avcıkurt, A. (2014). Evaluation of knowledge and attitudes on HIV/AIDS of Balikesir University students. Balikesir Health Sci J, 3(2), 79-86. doi:10.5505/ bsbd.2014.83703
- Suryasa, W., Rodríguez-Gámez, M., Herrera-Velázquez, M., Koldoris, T. (2022). Health education programs and their importance for disease prevention and health promotion. Int J Health Sci, 6(3):xi-xv. doi:10.53730/ijhs.v6n3.13788
- Taştan, R., Altıntaş, L., Cevizci, S. (2016). The determination of knowledge level of nurses working in the hospitals in the center of Kocaeli province about the zoonotic diseases. Turk Bull Hyg Exp Biol, 73(4), 365-78. doi:10.5505/ TurkHijyen.2016.62134
- Tulchinsky, T.H., Varavikova, E.A. (2014). Communicable diseases. The New Public Health, 149–236. doi:10.1016/ B978-0-12-415766-8.00004-5
- Wang, M., Han, X., Fang, H., Xu, C., Lin, X., Xia, S., et al. (2018). Impact of health education on knowledge and behaviors toward infectious diseases among students in Gansu Province, China. Biomed Res Int, 1-12. doi:10.1155/2018/6397340
- World Health Organization. (2020). Communicable disease. Available at: https://apps.who.int/gb/ebwha/pdf_files/ WHA73/A73_24-en.pdf [Last accessed: May 2023]
- World Health Organization. (2023). Coronavirus (COVID-19) Dashboard. Available at: https://COVID19.who.int/ [Last accessed: May 2023]
There are 30 citations in total.
Details
| Primary Language | English |
|---|---|
| Subjects | Internal Diseases Nursing |
| Journal Section | Articles |
| Authors | |
| Publication Date | May 31, 2025 |
| Submission Date | August 22, 2024 |
| Acceptance Date | May 23, 2025 |
| Published in Issue | Year 2025 Volume: 8 Issue: 2 |
