ATTITUDE AND PERCEPTION OF HEALTH COMMUNICATION TOWARDS JAUNDICE AMONG RURAL DWELLERS IN NSUKKA LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREA, ENUGU STATE

Abstract

The study looked at attitude and perception of health communication towards jaundice among rural dwellers in Nsukka local government area of Enugu state. Jaundice is a sickness that makes an infant’s skin to turn yellow in color, mucus membrane or of the eyes and this comes from what is known as bilirubin in the baby’s blood and tissues, a by-product of red blood cell which are broken down and replaced frequently. Common childhood diseases, including jaundice among infants persist without majority of parents knowing what exactly the cause of this sickness is due to their perception and attitude around its severity. Three objectives were raised which is to ascertain the perceptions of rural dwellers towards jaundice in Nsukka local government area of Enugu state. amongst others. The study made use of survey method with a population of 483,256 and a sample size of 384 with the help of the Australian Calculator, the instrument for this study was the questionnaire. The study was anchored on health belief model. Findings showed that, majority of rural dwellers had a good perception of what Jaundice is, other findings revealed that, rural dwellers of Nsukka local government area are conscious of the sickness and they look for solution for it amongst other findings. Some recommendations were made amongst others; Government should create an avenue for rural dwellers to have easy access to seek for health information from health workers without delay/stress rather than engaging in self-medication.