EFFECT OF HEALTH EDUCATION INTERVENTION ON AWARENESS OF PERSONAL CLEANLINESS DURING PREGNANCY AS A PREVENTIVE STRATEGY AGAINST CHILD MORTALITY AMONG TRADITIONAL BIRTH ATTENDANTS IN KANO STATE, NIGERIA

Child mortality remains a major public health challenge in Nigeria, with preventable infections linked to poor hygiene practices contributing significantly to neonatal and under-five deaths. Traditional Birth Attendants (TBAs) play a vital role in maternal and child health care in Kano State, Nigeria yet gaps persist in their awareness of personal cleanliness during pregnancy. This study examined the effects of a health education intervention on the awareness of personal cleanliness during pregnancy among TBAs as a preventive strategy against child mortality in Kano State, Nigeria. A quasi-experimental pre-test and post-test design involving experimental and control groups was adopted. A total of 100 registered TBAs were selected through multistage sampling and evenly assigned to experimental (n = 50) and control (n = 50) groups. Data were collected using a validated and reliable questionnaire on awareness of personal cleanliness. The experimental group received a six-week structured health education intervention, while the control group received no intervention. Data were analyzed using paired and independent sample t tests at a 0.05 level of significance. The results showed a significant improvement in the level of awareness of personal cleanliness among TBAs in the experimental group after the intervention (p < 0.05), while no significant change was observed in the control group. Additionally, a significant difference existed between the experimental and control groups’ post-intervention awareness scores (p < 0.05). The study concludes that health education interventions are effective in improving TBAs’ awareness of personal cleanliness during pregnancy. It is therefore recommended that regular and mandatory hygiene-focused health education programs be implemented for TBAs to enhance maternal and child health outcomes and contribute to the reduction of child mortality in Kano State.