Sickle Cell Disease: Knowledge, Attitudes and Beliefs of Selected Senior High School Students in Greater Accra Region, Ghana

Stella Appiah, PhD, FGCNM

Abstract

Sickle cell disease (SCD) has been exerting enormous public health and economic burdens on many African countries. It is a disease acknowledged to affect people of African descent. The World Health Organization is urging countries, especially those in Africa with high incidence rates, to increase public awareness of this disease. Based on this, a study was conducted to assess the awareness of sickle cell disease among selected Senior High School (SHS) Student in Accra, Ghana. Using a cross-sectional quantitative approach, 220 SHS students were incidentally sampled to answer a questionnaire. Data was analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS). The findings revealed that, majority of the respondents, 68.6% had heard of SCD with the media been their main source of information. The findings also showed that 79.5% of the respondents had knowledge on the inheritance pattern of the disease. Some, 60% of the respondents were aware ofthe prevalence of SCD. It was also evident that 50% and 59.5% respectively, were aware of the cause of SCD and clinical complications. However, only 30.5% knew that sickle cell anemia (SS) indicated the genotype of SCD. It was found out that, respondents knowledge about the management and the prevention was low. About 50.0% had negative attitude towards SCD patient and indicated that they were not willing to help when in crisis. In addition, 49.5% were not willing to share items like food, knife and spoon with SCD patient. This showed that, the respondents had misconceptions about SCD. Some 70% believed that people with sickle cell disease were less confident in forming relationships due to stigmatization. It is recommended that the Ministry of Health commits resources into educational campaigns aimed at making SHS students aware of sickle cell disease and its effects. Further researches can be conducted in other schools to validate the findings.