Attitude, Knowledge, and Willingness to Donate Blood Among Health Professional Students in Northern Uganda

Peninah Nannono,1 Brenda Nakitto,1 Ivaan Pitua,2 Joseph Baruch Baluku,3 Daniel S Ebbs,4 Felix Bongomin1,5 1Faculty of Medicine, Gulu University, Gulu, Uganda; 2Makerere University, College of Health Sciences, Kampala, Uganda; 3Division of Pulmonology, Kiruddu National Referral Hospital, Kampala, Uganda; 4Section of Critical Care Medicine, Department of Paediatrics, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut, USA; 5Department of Internal Medicine, Gulu Regional Referral Hospital, Gulu, UgandaCorrespondence: Ivaan Pitua, Makerere University, College of Health Sciences, P.O.BOX 7062, Kampala, Uganda, Email [email protected]: Blood transfusion is an essential component of healthcare systems, and blood donors play a critical role in saving lives and enhancing the well-being of others. This study explored blood donation practices among health profession students in northern Uganda.Participants and Methods: We conducted an institutional-based, cross-sectional study with a quantitative approach from November 2023 to July 2024 across five healthcare institutions in Gulu. Attitude toward blood donation was assessed with seven questions, each scored from 0 (negative) to 2 (positive), yielding a total score per participant ranging from 0 to 28. The mean of these total scores across all 408 participants was calculated, with a mean total score of ≥ 5.0 indicating a positive group attitude, reflecting moderate favorability on average. Knowledge of blood donation practices was evaluated with 16 questions, each scored from 0 (incorrect) to 4 (fully correct), yielding a total score per participant ranging from 0 to 64. The mean of these total scores across all 408 participants was computed, with a mean total score of ≥ 12.0 signifying adequate group knowledge, representing a basic proficiency level. Willingness to donate blood was determined by a single question, with a “YES” response indicating willingness. Data were cleaned and analyzed using STATA 18.0, with descriptive statistics presented in tables. This study was approved by the Gulu University Research and Ethics Committee (GUREC-2023-619) on 11/11/2023.Results: A total of 408 participants were recruited, with a median age of 23 years (IQR: 21– 24). Half of the participants identified as male, comprising 56.4% (n=230). Most participants demonstrated adequate knowledge about blood donation 73% (n=298). The overall positive attitude towards blood donation was 93.6% (n=382). Nearly all participants considered donating blood (99.0%, n=404), and 83.8% (n=342) expressed a willingness to donate blood in the future. However, only 48.8% (n=199) of respondents reported having donated blood in the past.Conclusion: While health profession students in northern Uganda exhibit adequate knowledge and positive attitudes towards blood donation, actual blood donation practices remain suboptimal. These findings highlight the need for interventions to translate knowledge and attitudes into consistent donation practices among this population.Keywords: healthcare students, knowledge, attitudes, blood, donation