Effect of an Educational Intervention on Awareness, Knowledge, Perception and Intention to Uptake HPV Vaccination Among Female in-School Adolescents in Ibadan, Oyo State, Nigeria

Background: Globally, cervical cancer is considered to be a serious public health concern and is the second most prevalent cancer afflicting women in Nigeria. The primary protection provided by the HPV vaccination would be the most effective prevention strategy for adolescent females between the ages of 9 and 15. Adolescents constitute a significant proportion of the population of Nigeria and they are particularly vulnerable to cervical cancer due to several factors, but educational interventions among this population are sub-optimal. This study investigated the effect of an educational intervention on the awareness, knowledge and intention to take HPV vaccination among adolescent female students in secondary schools in Ibadan, Nigeria. Methods: The intervention study was conducted in two randomly selected public and private secondary schools located in a randomly selected Local Government Area (LGA) of Ibadan, Oyo State, Nigeria. Female students (277 vs 267) between ages 10 and 18 years in randomly selected classes were selected from each school to participate in the study. A 44-item structured questionnaire was administered at baseline and immediately post-intervention. Descriptive and inferential analyses were carried out at p-value <0.05. Results: The mean age of the respondents was 14.1 ± 1.4. Awareness of cervical cancer was low before the intervention but increased significantly after the intervention (35.2% to 94%, p<0.001). Paired t-test analysis results showed a statistically significant difference in knowledge, perception, and intention means scores between baseline and immediate post-intervention (p-value<0.001). Conclusion: Educational interventions among secondary school adolescents can significantly enhance the knowledge, perception and intention to uptake the HPV vaccination. Article visualizations: