EFFECT OF HEALTH EDUCATION INTERVENTION ON STUDENTS' ATTITUDE TOWARDS WATER-BORNE DISEASE PREVENTION IN HEALTH TERTIARY INSTITUTIONS IN KATSINA STATE

Abstract

This study investigated the impact of a structured health education intervention on the
attitudes of students toward water-borne disease prevention in health tertiary institutions in
Katsina State, Nigeria. Despite high levels of health awareness, recurring outbreaks of
typhoid and cholera suggest a persistent "attitudinal lag" among pre-service health
professionals. A quasi-experimental research design, utilizing a pre-test, post-test nonequivalent control group model, was adopted. The sample comprised 206 students in the
experimental group, primarily young adults (68.0%) with a female majority (60.2%). Data
were collected using the "Water-Borne Disease Attitude Scale (WBD-AS)," which
demonstrated high content validity (CVI = 0.92) and internal consistency (r = 0.88).
Descriptive statistics and inferential tools, including paired t-tests, ANCOVA, and quantile
regression, were used to analyze the data at a 0.05 level of significance. Findings revealed a
significant positive shift in attitudinal mean scores within the experimental group (t = 33.414,
p < .05). The intervention group also achieved significantly higher post-test scores compared
to the control group (F = 842.579, p < .001). Demographic analysis indicated that age was a
significant driver of attitude (p = .000), while gender and level of study were not. The study
concluded that structured health education is essential for bridging the gap between
knowledge and practice by fostering a proactive psychological mindset. It was recommended
that health curricula transition toward interactive, case-study-based learning to effectively
reshape the attitudes of future healthcare providers.