Perceived Effectiveness of Insecticide-Treated Nets Use in the Prevention of Malaria among Students of a Tertiary Institution in Oyo State, Nigeria

Abstract

Introduction: Malaria fever has been found to be one of the major cause of morbidity and mortality especially in sub-Saharan African. However, malaria attacks can be prevented through consistent use of ITNs, but study had shown that its utilisation had been very low.
Objective: This study aim to examine the perceived effectiveness of the insecticide-treated nets in the prevention of malaria among students at the Oyo State College of Nursing Sciences, Eleyele, Ibadan, Nigeria.
Methods: The study utilised a descriptive cross-sectional design. The population size was 270 of the 200 and 300 levels of OYCNSE. Taro Yamane’s formula was used to determine 177 sample size. Participants were selected using a random sampling (balloting) technique. A self-constructed questionnaire with Cronbach’s Alpha Reliability Coefficient of 0.774 was used to collect data.
Results: The response rate was 100%, but 175 out of 177 questionnaires were analysed. Descriptive statistics was used to analyze the data using SPSS Version 26, and the results were presented with tables, frequencies, and simple percentages. The findings show that 169(96.6%) have heard about Insecticide treated nets before, and 139(79.4%) knew the primary purpose of ITNs use. 130(74.3%) owns ITNs, 106(81.5%) of those that owns ITNs use it, while only 75(42.9%) of them always sleep under ITNs. Most militating factors against ITNs use in the prevention of malaria are excessive heat production 147(84%), air flow reduction 134(76.6%), and chemical irritation and allergies 133(76%). However, 130 (74.3%) had a poor perception of the effectiveness of ITNs in preventing malaria. The Pearson chi-square test showed that no difference exist between level of education and utilisation of ITN (X2(2) = 0.581, P=.748).
Conclusion/Recommendation: The findings highlight a clear gap between knowledge and practice, emphasizing the need for nursing education and public health interventions to move beyond awareness creation to practical, behaviour-centered approaches. Therefore, Nursing students in Oyo State College of Nursing Sciences, Eleyele must be equipped with skills to demonstrate correct ITN use, address misconceptions, and act as role models and advocates in malaria prevention.