Short-term outcomes of health belief model-based brief virtual education on HPV infection and vaccination among pharmacy students: a randomized controlled trial

Genital Human Papillomavirus (HPV) infection was a global public health concern, with low vaccination rates in Türkiye highlighting a critical need for effective interventions. Pharmacists, as future health advocates, were a crucial target population. This study evaluated the short-term outcomes of brief virtual education program based on the Health Belief Model (HBM) on pharmacy students’ knowledge and health beliefs on HPV infection and vaccination. A randomized controlled trial with a pre-test/post-test design was conducted with pharmacy students in Istanbul, Türkiye. Participants were randomized to an intervention group that viewed an educational video based on HBM which took almost five minutes or a control group. The primary outcomes were HPV knowledge and health beliefs, measured using validated scales at baseline and one day post-intervention, while the secondary outcome was vaccination intention. Statistical analyses, including the Mann-Whitney U test, Wilcoxon signed-rank test, Chi-square test, and McNemar test were performed to compare between and within groups, with a significance level of p < 0.05. The intervention group (n = 59) showed significant increases in HPV knowledge and positive changes in all HBM constructs (p < 0.05). No significant changes were observed in the control group (n = 68). While both groups increased their intention to get vaccinated after the assessments, there was no significant difference in the final intention rate between them (p > 0.05). The HBM-based brief virtual education program slightly improved HPV knowledge and health beliefs among pharmacy students in Türkiye, a population with critically low vaccination rates. NCT05175482 (date of registration 24/12/2021) https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT05175482?term=betul+okuyan&draw=2&rank=1.