Knowledge And Attitude Of Youth Corps Members In Lagos To Sickle Cell Disease

Abstract

Sickle cell disease has remained a public health problem in Nigeria. This study was carried out to determine the knowledge and attitudes of unmarried NYSC members in Lagos State to sickle cell disease and screening. This study was a cross sectional study. Multistage sampling technique was used to select the respondents. Data was collected from 220 Youth Corps Members in Lagos State using a self administered questionnaire. Almost all the respondents were aware of sickle cell but only 25.3% had good level of knowledge about it. Most of the Sicklerespondents had positive attitudes to many aspects of sickle cell disease. However, their perception of risk of the trait in relatives and partners, as well as the risk of the disease in children was very low. There was a significant relationship between level of knowledge on sickle cell and having a genotype test (p<0.05). Many respondents have a poor level of knowledge and a low perception of the risk of sickle cell in their proposed children. Health education and screening programmes should be targeted at undergraduates and new graduates to improve their knowledge and attitude towards sickle cell disease so that they can make informed decisions concerning procreation.

Keywords: Knowledge, attitude, Sickle Cell Disease ,Screening, Youth Corps members.