Abstract
The growing incidence of hepatitis disease has become a perennial issue across the globe. Healthcare providers and communication experts agree that hepatitis disease is a highly infectious and deadly disease that has infected several millions of individuals in high and low-resource countries. This study examined the media reportage of hepatitis disease as well as the perception of Nigerians on the awareness and knowledge of the disease. This study was anchored on the Health Belief Model (HBM), which explains how attitude of individuals can be influenced by media and health communication messages. This study adopted a dual research method that made use of survey and content analysis to achieve the objectives of the study. The results indicated that 53.3% of the respondents had been previously informed about the hepatitis disease, with only 62 people getting to know through the mainstream media (television, radio and newspaper) and 42 people were informed through the internet (the new media). The study further revealed that just 55 stories were published in duo years of 2015 and 2016 by four national newspapers in Nigeria. This study recommends that the media in Nigeria need to urgently align with the Health Belief Model (HBM) by positively affecting the perception of the people to live a sensitive and conscious life against the hepatitis disease.
Highlights
The pandemic nature of the hepatitis disease in Nigeria is fast getting out of control
Beyond being a national issue, the hepatitis disease has become a global concern as the World Health Organisation (WHO) observes that over 400 million people are currently living with the disease
Research Question 1: What is the extent of coverage given to hepatitis disease by selected newspapers in Nigeria?
Summary
The pandemic nature of the hepatitis disease in Nigeria is fast getting out of control. Reports from the Centre for Disease and Aids Control revealed that one in every ten Nigerian citizens is infected with the disease which is deadlier than Human Immunodeficiency Virus and Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (HIV/AIDS); more so, carriers of this disease are largely oblivious of its existence and its consequences (Agada, 2016). Beyond being a national issue, the hepatitis disease has become a global concern as the World Health Organisation (WHO) observes that over 400 million people are currently living with the disease. WHO further estimated death rates from hepatitis related diseases is up to 1.4 million per-year, which is similar to HIV and tuberculosis (World Health Organisation Report, 2016). The goal is set with the objective of putting an end to the epidemics of AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria and neglected tropical diseases as well as combat hepatitis, water-borne diseases and other communicable diseases (WHO, 2016)
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