Effect of intervention on knowledge of E- waste management amongst dental students: An institution based study

Abstract

Background: The problem of E-waste has assumed great proportions and as a responsible member of the society, the dentist should be aware of the various aspects of E-waste. Objectives: The current study was proposed to assess the improvement in awareness of dental students regarding various aspects of e-waste hazards and management prior and subsequent to an educational intervention session on E waste. Methods: The study was carried amongst 100 first year dental students after prior administrative permission and consent from higher authorities. The knowledge regarding E-waste was assessed by a self-administered questionnaire before and after and educational intervention. After checking for completeness of data, the responses were entered and subjected to descriptive and inferential statistical analysis. Results: Majority 59 (62.1%) knew that improper E-waste disposal posed a serious threat to environment and this score further improved significantly to 90 (94.7%) after the educational intervention. There was a highly statistically significant increase in the knowledge (p <0.001) in all aspects of E-waste after intervention as compared to pre intervention data. Conclusion: The budding dentist like the general populace has been known to access a variety of electrical and electronic items for convenience, recreation as well as study of latest developments in the medical field. The findings of this study have implications for medical education, service, public health administration and research.

Keywords

• awareness
• dental students
• e-waste management
• e-waste
• intervention
• knowledge