Assessment of Knowledge and Prevention Practices of Urinary Tract Infection (UTI) Among Female Students Residence in University Of Jos

Abstract

Urinary tract infection and its associated complications are the cause of nearly 150 million deaths per year worldwide. The disease can be developed in 40% - 50% of women and 5% of men. To assess the knowledge and prevention practices of urinary tract infection among female students resident in University of Jos. A descriptive survey design was adopted. A sample size was 185 respondents and structured questionnaire was used as an instrument for data collection. The findings of the study revealed that majority (82.2%) of the respondents have a knowledge about urinary tract infection. They are also aware that cleaning the perineum from front to back, keeping the genital area clean and dry, avoiding fluids that irritate the bladder such as alcohol and emptying the bladder frequently when full helps in the prevention of urinary tract infection. However, most of the respondents have never experienced urinary tract infection. It was concluded that health care professionals and facilities have the mandate of disseminating information about urinary tract infection to individuals especially females so that they will be aware of the causes, risk factors, symptoms and prevention practices of the infection. Based on the findings of this study, it was recommended that, there should be an awareness campaign to help adults, females and other communities to be knowledgeable about urinary tract infection, designing and implementation of educational programs to increase the awareness and susceptibility about chances of getting urinary tract infection among the females, and educating individuals on the causes of urinary tract infection by the healthcare professionals.