Health status and health seeking behaviour among urban and rural nursing students of a tertiary care hospital: a comparative study

Abstract

Background: Nurses play a very essential role as health care providers and taking care of their health is necessary. Nursing students are believed to be healthy and although morbidity and mortality from non-communicable diseases occur in adulthood, exposure to risk factors begin in early life. Early identification of risk factors is essential considering their role as future nurses and in public health interventions.Methods: A cross-sectional study was carried out among 280 nursing students of a tertiary care hospital of Mumbai, Maharashtra after the ethical clearance. Pretested questionnaire was used for collecting data by interview after obtaining informed consent.Results: Out of the total 280 students, 47% missed at least one of their meals. 67.8% were underweight (BMI <18.5). There was no consumption of dry fruits and non-veg food in 54.64% and 23.9% of the students respectively. 36.07% students consumed green leafy vegetables only once a week. Consumption of water was quite low among the students. 56.07%, were anaemic (Hb <12 gm/dl). Under-nutrition and anaemia was found to be more prevalent in students coming from rural areas. The health seeking behaviour was observed to be better among the urban students.Conclusions: Findings of this study demonstrated that there is a need to increase the awareness among the nursing students regarding the healthy lifestyle and to follow specific strategies for their comprehensive management.