Effects of planned education on genital hygiene behavior of adolescent females in a secondary school: A quasi-experimental study in northern Cyprus

Abstract

This study was conducted as a pretest -posttest quasi -experimental design to determine the effect of planned education on the genital hygiene behaviors of secondary school female students in northern Cypurs. The research was conducted with 290 adolescents. Data were collected by using a personal information form and the Genital Hygiene Behavior Scale (GHBS). The paired sample t-test was used to analyze the data. It was determined that only 55.2 % of the adolescents received genital hygiene training, 11.7% had a genital infection and 48.6% used cosmetic products for the genital area. After education, there was a statistically significant increase in the GHBS scores and its dimensions, indicating the effectiveness and necessity of genital hygiene education. Genital hygiene education had a positive effect on the knowledge and practices of adolescent females. Therefore, planned education on genital hygiene, in which nurses play an important role, can be conducted regularly educations and home visits.