The Relationship between Environmental Hygiene Practices and Community Awareness Related to Dengue Outbreaks in Alor Setar, Malaysia

Abstract

The practice of hygiene care in the environment is vital in human life since it can cause a variety of difficulties, particularly those related to health. This study focused on the issue of low environmental hygiene practices which cause the outbreak of dengue epidemics in a population area. This is important because previous studies did not explain a certain level of practices among communities. Thus, the objective of this study was to look at the correlation between environmental hygiene care practices and awareness among the community. Several residential areas in the Alor Setar City Council were selected as a study sample, involving the residential areas of Flat Tongkang Yard, Taman Berjaya, Taman Sultan Badlishah, Taman Indah and Kampung Tok Pasai. A total of 302 samples or respondents were taken to examine their practices and awareness of environmental hygiene practices to avoid dengue outbreaks. The analysis technique used is Pearson correlation to examine the level of relationship between the variables in the study. The results of the study found that the aspect of awareness significantly affects hygiene care practices with a value of r = 0.703 and p≤0.01; and the strength of the relationship through the value of the correlation coefficient is about 70 percent. This explains that the aspect of community awareness determines the occurrence of a dengue epidemic because the analysis shows that there is a positive relationship between the two variables. Therefore, control and prevention measures need to be implemented consistently, such as intensifying awareness campaigns for the public about the dangers of dengue epidemics and the importance of environmental protection.