KNOWLEDGE AND PREVENTIVE PRACTICES OF MALARIA AMONG STUDENTS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF BENIN

The study dealt on the knowledge and preventive practices of malaria among students in University of Benin, Benin City, Edo State. To achieve the purpose of the study, five research questions were raised and answered. The descriptive survey research method was adopted for the study. The population for this study was made of forty thousand two hundred and eighty-nine (40,289) undergraduates in the University of Benin, Benin City, Edo State in the 2024/2025 academic session. The sample size for this study was 297 respondents. This was drawn using the multi stage sampling technique was adopted for the study. Firstly the systematic sampling technique was used to select five (5) faculties from the fifteen (15) faculties. Secondly proportionate sampling was used to select 3% from each selected faculty. Thirdly simple random sampling of balloting with replacement was used to select respondents for the study. The department names were written on a piece of paper, put in a hat, shuffled and then 5 departments were drawn from the hat. The selection process was random. The research instrument is a self-structured questionnaire. The instrument was validated by the researcher’s supervisor and two other experts in the Department of Health, Safety and Environmental Education. The Cronbanch Alpha method was used to determine the reliability of the instrument. The questionnaire was administered to a group of 20 respondents which were not part of the study. A Cronbach coefficient of .701 was obtained. This shows that the instrument is reliable. For data analysis, frequency, percentage, mean and standard deviation were used to calculate the research findings. Findings from the study revealed that there is high level of knowledge among university of Benin students regarding malaria. The study concluded that the preventive practices adopted by University of Benin students to combat malaria include sleeping under insecticide-treated mosquito nets, using mosquito repellents, wearing protective clothing such as long sleeves and trousers to reduce mosquito exposure, clearing bushes and stagnant water around their residences or hostels to prevent mosquito breeding, and participating in health campaigns or sensitization programmes on malaria prevention. The study recommended among others that the University of Benin management should intensify health education campaigns on malaria prevention through seminars, posters, and social media platforms to sustain and further improve students’ knowledge and awareness.