Infection and Drug Resistance (Aug 2022)
Knowledge, Attitudes, and Preventative Behavior Toward Tuberculosis in University Students in Indonesia
Abstract
Irma Melyani Puspitasari,1,2 Rano Kurnia Sinuraya,1– 3 Arini Nurhaqiqi Aminudin,1 Rika Rahmi Kamilah1 1Department of Pharmacology and Clinical Pharmacy, Faculty of Pharmacy, Universitas Padjadjaran, Sumedang, Indonesia; 2Center of Excellence in Higher Education for Pharmaceutical Care Innovation, Universitas Padjadjaran, Sumedang, Indonesia; 3Unit of Global Health, Department of Health Sciences, University of Groningen/University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen, the NetherlandsCorrespondence: Irma Melyani Puspitasari, Department of Pharmacology and Clinical Pharmacy, Faculty of Pharmacy, Universitas Padjadjaran, Sumedang, Indonesia, Tel +62 22 84288888 Ext. 3510, Email [email protected]: This study aimed to assess the knowledge, attitudes, and preventative behaviors of university students in Indonesia toward Tuberculosis (TB).Patients and Methods: Participants included students from a university in West Java, Indonesia, who were aged ≥ 18 years, had access to electronic communication devices and the internet, and agreed to participate in this study. This cross-sectional study invited participants to fill an online questionnaire on Google Forms, and the study was conducted from February to March 2021. Descriptive statistics was used to describe the demographic characteristics of participants. Differences in participants’ knowledge, attitudes, and preventative behavior were analyzed using t-test. Spearman correlation coefficient was used to determine the relationships between variables. Characteristics of participants that influenced preventative behavior toward TB were analyzed using linear multiple regression analysis.Results: This study included 524 students. The average knowledge scores out of a possible 11 points of health and non-health students were 7.03 ± 2.36 (out of 11) and 4.98 ± 2.20, respectively. The attitude was 45.40 ± 4.17 (out of 52), 43.75 ± 4.09 respectively, and their average scores out of 44 for preventative behaviors toward TB were 33.08 ± 4.49 and 33.16 ± 4.40, respectively. Female students and students from health faculties demonstrated greater knowledge and better attitudes. Students with a postgraduate academic degree had better knowledge and attitudes and engaged in more preventative behavior. Students who did not smoke had greater knowledge than those who did, and students who had received information about TB engaged in more preventative behavior.Conclusion: Faculty, knowledge of symptoms, preventative examinations, and attitudes toward preventative examinations, treatment, and preventative education, were found to affect TB prevention behavior. These variables should be emphasized in the development of university TB socialization and education programs. The internet and social media should be used in TB education for students.Keywords: students, tuberculosis, symptoms, preventative education
