Factors Associated with Hygiene Behaviours Among Students in Akuse Methodist High School in The Eastern Region of Ghana

Abstract

Background: A recent area of interest on a social scale is School Sanitation and Hygiene Education (SSHE) which is also attracting political attention. Hygiene is the discipline that supports health and well-being through simple activities. It is a determinant of health and could vary from one culture or society to another. General Aim: The primary aim of this research is to explore factors associated with hygiene behaviors among students in Akuse Methodist Senior High Technical School in the Lower Manya Krobo Municipality, Ghana. Methodology: A cross-sectional descriptive study design was conducted and a total of 271 students were selected from Akuse Methodist Senior High Technical School (AMEST) in the Lower Manya Krobo Municipality in the Eastern Region of Ghana. Data was collected using a questionnaire which included demographic characteristics of the selected sample. The Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS v.20) software was used for data analysis and frequencies with confidence intervals as well as chi-square with a p-value set as 0.05 were used. Results: A total of 271 respondents participated in the study. The result shown in Table 1 indicate that (42.1%) of the respondents were male students, while (57.9%) were female. 1.1% were African traditionalists, 11.1% were Muslims and 87.8% were Christians. The study also showed that 30.6% and 23.6% indicated their mothers and fathers have no formal education respectively while 69.4% have literate mothers 76.4% have literate fathers. According to the findings most of participants have correct knowledge of hygiene practices, majority of the students 265 (97.8%) indicated that boiling water kill germs and 6 (2.2%) indicated ix that boiling water does not kill germs. 269 (99.2%) revealed that water container needs cleaning and covering while 2 (0.8%) said water container does not need cleaning and covering. From the study findings, it is evident that 82% of the students indicated that their school did not provide them with soap. However, in some situations where provisions were made, the soap was located far from the toilets. In the study, the researcher discovered that location had the most significant impact on the implementation of hygiene practices when measuring hand washing after using the toilet and the proper use of toilets, out of the indicators of soap used (type, location, and provision). Conclusion: Based on the findings, it can be inferred that the majority of high school students practiced hand washing after using the restroom, before and after meals, and after using the toilet. However, it was noted that most of them did not use soap to wash their hands before eating.