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Research Article
Blood donation knowledge, attitude, and practice among regular undergraduate medical and health science students at Wolkite University, Central Ethiopia: A cross sectional study
1 Department of Medical Laboratory Science, Wolkite University, Gubre, Wolkite, Ethiopia
2 School of Medical Laboratory Science, Jimma University, Jimma, Ethiopia
3 Department of Biotechnology, College of Natural and Computational Sciences, Wolkite University, Wolkite, Ethiopia
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Dereje Abebe Regassa
MSc, Lecturer, Department of Medical Laboratory Science, Wolkite University, Gubre, Wolkite 11330,
Ethiopia
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Article ID: 100085Z02DR2024
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Regassa DA, Nagaash RS, Habtu BF, Abdlshikure SA, Abagumbul ZH, Kiya GT, Medeksa AK. Blood donation knowledge, attitude, and practice among regular undergraduate medical and health science students at Wolkite University, Central Ethiopia: A cross sectional study. Int J Blood Transfus Immunohematol 2024;14(2):7–18.ABSTRACT
Aims: To assess the knowledge, attitude, and practice of blood donation among students studying medicine and health sciences, at Wolkite University, in 2024.
Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted with 407 participant’s selected using simple random sampling from each department. Data were collected through semi-structured questionnaires and self-administration. The collected data were entered into Epi-data 3.1 and analyzed using SPSS-25.A scoring system was used, with one point given for each correct response and zero for incorrect responses. Participants could score a maximum of 16 points. Knowledge levels were categorized as poor (less than 8 points or more). Data distribution was assessed for normality using histograms and the Kolmogorov–Smirnov test. Categorical data were presented as frequencies and percentages, while continuous variables were analyzed using means and standard deviations. A p-value of less than 0.05 was considered as significant.
Results: Of the 407 participants, 257 (63.1%) were males and 150 (36.9%) were females with a mean age of 22.47±1.77. 94.6% of respondents scored 8 or more correct answers, indicating good knowledge. 32.8% heard about blood donation through mass media, and (49.1%) identified voluntary donors and family as blood sources. 95.3% had a good habit of donating blood, and 85.3% recommended voluntary donation for safe blood supply. 28.7% had donated blood, with 54.8% donating once.
Conclusion: Opportunities, information, social responsibility, and motivation are key factors influencing students’ blood donation behavior. Increased information, education, and communication (IEC) activities and seminars can raise awareness among medical students, encouraging voluntary donation, and inspiring others. Involving influential figures like celebrities, religious leaders, regular donors, and blood recipients can further motivate students to participate in blood donation campaigns.
Keywords: Attitude, Blood donation, Knowledge, Practice
SUPPORTING INFORMATION
Acknowledgments
All authors would like to thank data collectors, supervisors, study participants, and questionnaire translators for their assistance in conducting this study.
Author ContributionsDereje Abebe Regassa - Substantial contributions to conception and design, Analysis of data, Interpretation of data, Drafting the article, Revising it critically for important intellectual content, Final approval of the version to be published
Rahel Shumi Nagaash - Acquisition of data, Analysis of data, Drafting the article, Revising it critically for important intellectual content, Final approval of the version to be published
Bisrat Fikadu Habtu - Acquisition of data, Drafting the article, Revising it critically for important intellectual content, Final approval of the version to be published
Seid Abrar Abdlshikure - Analysis of data, Drafting the article, Revising it critically for important intellectual content, Final approval of the version to be published
Zuber HajiKelil Abagumbul - Acquisition of data, Drafting the article, Final approval of the version to be published
Girum Tesfaye Kiya - Acquisition of data, Drafting the article, Final approval of the version to be published
Ayansa Kebenessa Medeksa - Acquisition of data, Analysis of data, Drafting the article, Revising it critically for important intellectual content, Final approval of the version to be published
Guarantor of SubmissionThe corresponding author is the guarantor of submission.
Source of SupportNone
Consent StatementWritten informed consent was obtained from the patient for publication of this article.
Data AvailabilityAll relevant data are within the paper and its Supporting Information files.
Conflict of InterestAuthors declare no conflict of interest.
Copyright© 2024 Dereje Abebe Regassa et al. This article is distributed under the terms of Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium provided the original author(s) and original publisher are properly credited. Please see the copyright policy on the journal website for more information.
