Effect of hand hygiene intervention on the absenteeism of pre-school children in Klang Valley, Malaysia: a quasi-experimental study

Nurul Azmawati Mohamed,Habibah Faroque,Tengku Zetty Maztura Tengku Jamaluddin,Farisha Nur Abd Samad,Mohd Dzulkhairi Mohd Rani,Abdul Rashid Ariffien,Aisyah Ar Redha Che Amir Farid,Shalinawati Ramli,Zarini Ismail,Ilina Isahak

doi:10.1007/s12519-019-00283-x

Nurul Azmawati Mohamed, Habibah Faroque + Show 8 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1007/s12519-019-00283-x

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Abstract

BackgroundAbsenteeism amongst pre-school children is often due to illnesses such as hand, foot, and mouth disease, acute gastroenteritis, cold and flu, which are easily spread amongst them. This is because of weak immunity and lack of knowledge on proper hand hygiene. This quasi-experimental study assessed the efficacy of an intervention consisting of a hand hygiene education programme, along with digital tools in bringing about a change in behaviour and health conditions amongst pre-school children in Klang Valley, Malaysia.MethodsA total of 377 school children, male and female, aged 5–6 years old, participated and were assigned to either the intervention or a control group. During the 2 months intervention period, children in the test group were trained on proper hand hygiene practices and techniques with the aid of the interactive android-based tablets. The numbers of absent days of all the children were recorded for 2 months before the intervention and during the intervention.ResultsIn the test group, there was a 25% increase in the total number of absent days from the pre-intervention period to the intervention period, a much lesser increment observed as compared to that of control group in which the increase was much higher at 89%. Results showed a significant difference (P < 0·05) between the absenteeism rates for the test and control group during the intervention period.ConclusionThese results suggest that proper education and intervention increase hand hygiene compliance, which may help decrease school absenteeism due to illness; however, a longer study duration may be necessary to evaluate the benefit further.

Highlights

Absenteeism is an important education issue, as students who are frequently absent may fall behind on the curriculum [1]
There was a 25% increase in the total number of absent days from the pre-intervention period to the post-intervention period, while in the control group, the increase was much higher at 89%
Absenteeism is a serious educational issue and appropriate measures need to be explored to prevent further deterioration. This is because absenteeism is one of the reasons for the decline in the academic performance of school children [1]

Summary

Introduction

Absenteeism is an important education issue, as students who are frequently absent may fall behind on the curriculum [1]. These diseases are transmitted between young children at pre-school because of Their naturally weak immune systems and the large amount of time they spend in close proximity to each other [4], in addition to the lack of knowledge on basic hygiene practices and habits [3] such as hand washing. It has been deduced in several other studies that infectious diseases can be prevented by performing proper hand washing using an antiseptic hand cleanser or hand rub [2, 5, 6]. Absenteeism amongst pre-school children is often due to illnesses such as hand, foot, and mouth disease, acute gastroenteritis, cold and flu, which are spread amongst them This is because of weak immunity and lack of knowledge on proper hand hygiene. Conclusion These results suggest that proper education and intervention increase hand hygiene compliance, which may help decrease school absenteeism due to illness; a longer study duration may be necessary to evaluate the benefit further

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Results

Conclusion