Knowledge, Attitude, and Perception of Hepatitis-B Vaccine among Pregnant Women Attending Primary Health Facilities in Obio/Akpor LGA, Rivers State
<i>Background:</i> Pregnant women are at high risk of mother-to-child transmission, and a lack of education about the knowledge of the Hepatitis B vaccine (HBV), especially in developing countries like Nigeria, contributes to an increase in cases. The study aimed to assess the knowledge, attitude, and perception (KAP) of the Hepatitis B vaccine among pregnant women attending primary health care facilities in Obio/Akpor Local Government Area, Rivers State, Nigeria. <i>Methodology:</i> A facility-based cross-sectional survey was conducted in 8 primary health care facilities, between August and September 2024, using a well-structured questionnaire and analysed using descriptive statistics and analysis of variance (ANOVA) test. <i>Results: </i>The distribution of the respondents revealed a diverse educational background. While a significant proportion had no formal education (34.9%), the majority attained a tertiary education (40.1%). The KAP level showed that most respondents (76.1%) had moderate knowledge about the HBV, while only a few (3.7%) had high knowledge. While nearly half had a moderate attitude (48.0%) and perception (48.6%), only 21.6% and 15.9% had a high attitude and perception, respectively. The major source of information for the vaccine was the health staff (61.4%), followed by social media (19.9%) and town announcers (16%). All the socio-demographic characteristics were significantly associated with KAP of HBV, except marital status, educational level and occupational status, which were not significantly associated with perception towards HBV. <i>Conclusion:</i> This study revealed that most respondents had moderate knowledge, attitude, and perception towards the Hepatitis B vaccine, influenced by socio-demographic factors. Health education and promotion programmes should be strengthened to improve the knowledge, attitude, and perception of the Hepatitis B vaccine among pregnant women. We also recommend the integration of HBV and its awareness into routine antenatal care (ANC) services in the primary health facilities.
Authors
- Anthony Ike Wegbom (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5589-7714)
- Amaka Ogba (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9830-1271)
- Zorka Nwinee
Institutions
- Rivers State University (NG)
Publication Details
- Journal
- World Journal of Public Health
- Published
- 2025-10-18
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.11648/j.wjph.20251004.16
- Primary Topic
- Hepatitis B Virus Studies
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00