A Study To Assess The Effectiveness Of Planned Health Teaching On Knowledge And Attitude Among Students Towards Mental Illness In Selected Areas Of Pune City

Abstract

Introduction: Mental health refers to a person’s emotional, psychological, and social well- being. It affects how individuals think, feel, and behave, influencing how they handle stress, relate to others, and make choices. Good mental health is more than the absence of mental illness; it is about maintaining a state of balance where one can cope with life’s challenges, work productively, and build meaningful relationships. India has one of the highest suicide rates globally, with an age-adjusted suicide rate of 21.1 per 100,000 populations. Aims of the Study: The study to assess the effectiveness of planned health teaching on knowledge and attitude among students towards mental illness in selected areas of Pune city. Methodology: In present study, researcher adopted Quantative approach Quasi-experimental-Non-equivalent pre-test post-test control group design. It was carried out on 100 samples. The Non probability purposive sampling technique was used to data was collected using demographic profile. Data analysis was done mainly using descriptive statistics. Results: When comparing the pre-test and post-test results, data analysis revealed that the planned health teaching intervention significantly increased the participants' knowledge and improved their attitudes towards mental illness. A majority of participants' post-test scores were categorized as "Good" for knowledge and "Positive" for attitude, indicating a notable improvement in both areas and highlighting the positive impact of the health education intervention. The findings suggest that the educational program was effective in enhancing students' knowledge and shaping more positive attitudes toward mental illness. Conclusion: the analysis of demographic variables showed no significant correlation with the post-test knowledge and attitude scores. Age, gender, educational qualification and previous knowledge or training on mental illness did not significantly affect the outcomes at the 0.05 significance level. These results suggest that the planned teaching intervention was equally effective across different demographic groups, ensuring broad applicability of the findings.