Impact of a single mass health education intervention on the knowledge of diabetes mellitus among people from a rural population in Vellore, India

Abstract

Abstract : Prevalence of diabetes is escalating at very
abnormal proportions in India. In India, around 40.9 million
people are affected by diabetes. This study was done to
assess the impact of a single mass educational intervention
program on the knowledge of diabetes mellitus among people
from a rural village in Vellore. A questionnaire was
administered to people who came for health education program.
Health education program included a skit lasting for
thirty minutes highlighting the symptoms, risk factors,
complications, treatment and prevention of diabetes mellitus.
The same questionnaire was administered to the same
people three days after the program. A score was calculated
for each of the domains-symptoms, risk factors,
complications, treatment and prevention. The scores were
compared before and after health education program using
paired t test. Both pre and post health education
questionnaires were available for sixty participants. The mean
total baseline score was 4.10 (SD 3.36) while the mean total
score after health education program was 10.18 (SD 3.2) and
the difference was found to be significant statistically (p
0.001). The improvement in scores has been noticed in all the
five domains of symptoms, risk factors, complications,
treatment and prevention. The study clearly demonstrated the
impact of a simple, 30-minute, educational intervention, in the
form of mass health education, on the knowledge and
awareness about diabetes mellitus among rural population.
This kind of mass health educational program could
potentially be replicated in other places.