Personal Hygiene Status of 31 University students

Objectives
• To know the level or status of personal hygiene practices in University of Papua New Guinea
• To know the significance difference of practicing different health and hygiene practices
• To know the overall health and hygiene practices of the 31 university students.

Abstract
A healthy mind is rooted in a healthy body, achievable through a balanced diet, regular
exercise, and proper personal hygiene practices. In this study, researchers aimed to assess the
personal hygiene status of high school students. A sample of 31 people including students from
University of Papua New Guinea was selected using convenient sampling. The researchers
developed and validated an observation questionnaire (2024) to evaluate the students' personal
hygiene. The data collected were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistical methods. The
findings indicated that the personal hygiene status of the students was slightly above average, with
significant differences observed between genders.

Introduction
Human beings are the most valuable resource in any society. The term "human resource"
refers to individuals who possess both physical and mental well-being. Maintaining good health is
achievable through the practice of proper personal hygiene. Personal hygiene can be defined as a
set of practices that promote cleanliness and sanitary conditions for the individual. These practices
are often learned behaviors, shaped by education and the influence of others. The primary goal of
personal hygiene is to prevent or reduce health issues and diseases. It is a crucial practice at the
individual level, commonly observed at home, in schools, and in various living environments. Personal
hygiene involves maintaining the cleanliness of one's surroundings, body, and clothing. However, the
importance of personal hygiene becomes even more apparent when considering global disparities in
access to sanitation. According to the World Health Organization (WHO) in 2017, around 2.4 billion
people worldwide lack access to any form of improved sanitation facilities. This issue is particularly
severe in developing countries, where poverty is widespread. The most affected are often those living
in semi-urban or rural areas, where conditions are harsh and sanitation resources are limited thus,
leads to low life expectancy.

Methods
The research was conducted at the University of Papua New Guinea. The data collection
process involved the following steps. Thirty one (31) university students were selected to participate
in the study. Participation was voluntary, and students were informed about the purpose of the
research. Data collection was done using structured questionnaire that was developed using Google
Forms. The questionnaire included questions related to various aspects of personal hygiene
practices, such as hand washing, use of sanitizers, and frequency of bathing. A link to the Google
Forms questionnaire was created and shared with the students through their whatsapp groups. This
method ensured easy access and convenience for the participants to fill out the questionnaire at their
own pace. The questionnaire was available online for a period of two weeks, allowing ample time for
all selected students to respond. Once the data collection period ended, the responses were
downloaded from Google Forms as a csv file. This file contained all the raw data collected from the
participants. The raw data in the csv file was processed using basic statistical methods average or
mean was calculated to analyze the personal hygiene practices of the students. The results were then
interpreted to draw conclusions about the overall hygiene status of the participants.

Materials
Aids employed to conduct the research include online Google forms, mobile phone or a
suitable personal computer and better internet connection. The mobile phone or the personal
computer will be used to develop the online questionnaire forms with the help of the high bandwith
internet connection to access and deploy the questionnaire electronically.

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Results
Table 1: Personal Hygiene Score
Items 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11
% 54.8 90.3 64.5 77.4 58.1 25.8 67.7 34.5 42.4 75.9 34.5
Score
Table 1 represents the percentage score of each item in personal hygiene questionnaire (checklist).

The 11 personal hygiene practices in the questionnaire are fluctuating as compared with each
other. The lowest percentage of score appears to “How often do you go for checkups at the clinic”
[item no. 8], thus as indication of university students lacking often medical checkup and consultation.
The highest percentage of score recorded was in “How often do you keep your finger nails and toe
nails short and clean” [item no. 10] and “Do you brush your teeth at least twice a day” [item no. 3]
signifies that students have sufficient practices of keeping their nails short and brush their teeth twice
a day.

Table 2: Personal hygiene questions used in the questionnaire with their response and average
S.No Items Response % Average
1 How often do you shower 54.8
2 Which of the following hygiene products do you use 90.3
regularly? (Select all that apply)
3 Do you brush your teeth at least twice a day? 64.5

4 What factors do you consider when choosing personal 77.4

care products? (select all that apply)
5 Do you wash your hands after using the rest room or 58.1
before eating?
6 On a scale of 1 – 10, how would you rate your overall 25.8 = 56.9 %
hygiene habits?
7 Do you smoke? 67.7

8 How often do you go for checkups at the clinic? 34.5

9 Do you have a daily workout exercise schedule? 42.4

10 How often do you keep your finger nails and toe nails 75.9
short and clean?
11 How long do you take to sleep in a day? 34.5

Table 2 depicts 11 questions from the questionnaire with their responses from 31 the
participating students. 54.8% of the students often shower regularly, 90.3% of the students use soap
as their sanitizing agents, 64.5% brush their teeth at least twice a day, 77.4% go for the ingredients
on the contents when choosing personal care products, 58.1% wash their hands after using the rest
room and before eating, 25.8% of the 31 students rate their overall hygiene habits at 8 from the scale
of 1 to 10, 67.7% are nonsmokers, 34.5% go for regular medical checkups, 42.4% do have daily
workout exercise plan, 75.9% often keep their finger nails and toe nails clean and finally 34.5% takes
8 hours or more to sleep in 24 hours.

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Figure a: Hygiene status of 31 university students

Discussion
The results in table 1, table 2, and the graph in figure a reveals the response acquired from
31 students comprising of 18 males and 13 females in the University of Papua New Guinea through
the online questionnaire created in the Google forms. The 11 questions from the questionnaire with
their responses from the 31 participating students are as follow; 54.8% of the students often shower
regularly, 90.3% of the students use soap as their sanitizing agents, 64.5% brush their teeth at least
twice a day, 77.4% go for the ingredients on the contents when choosing personal care products,
58.1% wash their hands after using the rest room and before eating, 25.8% of the 31 students rate
their overall hygiene habits at 8 from the scale of 1 to 10, 67.7% are nonsmokers, 34.5% go for regular
medical checkups, 42.4% do have daily workout exercise plan, 75.9% often keep their finger nails
and toe nails clean and finally 34.5% takes 8 hours or more to sleep in 24 hours. The average
response of the students deduced was 56.9%, thus an indication that hygiene status of the 31
students from the University of Papua New Guinea is above average, hence portraying efficient
practice of health and hygiene by individual student, thus fulfilling the objectives of the research.
Conclusion
The study revealed that the hygiene status of the 31 students from the University of Papua
New Guinea is approximately above average, with an average response rate of 56.9%. This suggests
that individual students are practicing health and hygiene efficiently. Personal hygiene plays a crucial
role in overall health management, and proper health education can foster better practices.
Implementing continuous health education and guidance may further enhance students’ adherence
to personal hygiene. To promote healthier behaviors among school children, teachers should offer
targeted health education interventions at various levels. Additionally, curricula should emphasize
personal hygiene education to contribute to the development of a healthier population and a brighter
future for the nation. Minor problems encountered in the research includes data redundancy and lack
of volunteer to participate, however appropriate measures have been taken to correct and adjust the
raw data for proper interpretation.

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 Acknowledgements

First of all, I would like to express my gratitude to Almighty Allah to enabling me to complete this report
on “Personal Hygiene Status of 31 University students”.
Successful completion of any type of project requires help from a number of person. I would like to
extend my sincere gratitude to my colleague, Goni Siromare for assisting me with a K3 Rait card for
data and internet connection and not forgetting Rapheal Bare aka Raphy Marley for sustaining me
with cigarettes to stay up all night. Finally, not forgetting myself for the tireless work for getting the
report done, credits to myself.

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References

i. Sax H, et al. ‘My Five Moments foe Hand Hygiene’: a user cantered design approach to
understand, train, monitor, and report hand hygiene. Journal of Hospital Infection. 2007;
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ii. Barker J, Vipond IB, Bloomfield SF. Effects of cleaning and disinfection in reducing the
spread of Norovirus contamination via environmental surfaces. Journal of Hospital Infection.
2004; 58:42–49. [PubMed]

iii. Lecture notes on personal hygiene for health extension workers_jimma university,
November-2004 _consequence of poor hygiene of finger nails (page 15), methods of skin
care (page 22), the mouth and teeth (page 24), the head nose and eyes (page 25)

iv. Gracia A Marbum, Murni SD Simanullang & Mardiatii Barus_The effect of health Education
on personal Hygiene on students’ knowledge_Aprial 2003 _ (pages 69-72)

v. Sudha Babel & Meenakshi Mishra Maharana Pratap University of Agriculture and
Technology Journal of Home Science Personal Hygiene Practices with special reference to
towel hygiene practices: an exploratory study _June 2020

vi. Research Article on Factors influencing sanitation and Hygiene Practices Among Students in
public University in Bangladesh by Shuvo Roy, Ashrafu abir and the Associates

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Appendices
Raw data acquired from online Google form

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______________________________________________________________________________

School Of Natural And Physical Scicence

Center For Brodening and Enrichment
Science Communication

________________________________________________________________

Major Assignment # 1: Research Report on Personal Hygiene

________________Group Members_______________________________

Name ID#
Kiri Junior Kobo 20191490
Raphael Bare 20191490
Goni Siromare 20191083

____________________________________________________________

Due 29th August 2024

Submitted on 30th August 2024

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