The effect of a health education programme on Tuberculosis infection prevention and control practices among HIV-positive patients at three tertiary hospitals in Ogun state, southwest Nigeria

Abstract

Objective: This research evaluated the impact of a peer-support health education programme on tuberculosis infection prevention and control practices among HIV-positive patients receiving anti-retroviral therapy (ART) in a tertiary hospital. Methods: A quasi-experimental design was used for this study. Forty respondents were randomly selected between January and April 2023. Two tertiary health institutions in Ogun State, Nigeria with Direct Observation Treatment Shortcut programme were purposively selected. Systematic sampling was used to select the participants from the selected facilities and they were grouped into one experimental group (EG) and one control Group (CG). The intervention was implemented for six weeks and data were collected at baseline, immediate post-intervention and at 12th-week follow-up. Results: At the 12th-week follow-up, the peer-supported health education intervention had a significant effect (t78=14.21, effect size =3.09, p <0.05) on the Intervention Group with a mean score (X̅) of 6.85±0.86 compared to the Control Group (CG) with a mean score (X̅) of 3.95±0.96. Furthermore, among the Intervention Group, there is a significant difference (t39=19.0, effect size =3.06, p <0.05) in the effect of the peer-supported health education intervention program on TB infection prevention practices of participants at baseline (X̅ =3.98±0.73) and also at 12th weeks follow-up (X̅ =6.90±0.71). Conclusion: There was a significant association between the intervention and improvement in TB infection prevention and control practices. More focus should be placed on peer-supported health education TB prevention interventions among HIV patients. Also, the National Tuberculosis Control Programme should adopt peer-supported health education interventions to improve prevention practices.