Promoting Oral health in Elementary students: Implementing Presentation and Practical Methods

Recent studies show that the prevalence of oral diseases, as one of the non-communicable diseases, is rapidly increasing in Iran and its improvement necessitates an efficient educational program. Thus, the present study aims at investigating the effect of peer education using poster and presentation methods on perceived benefits of oral health based on the Health Belief Model (HBM).
This study is a quasi-experimental study which examines 118 elementary students, categorized into control and experimental groups, in Neyshabur, 2018. The data was collected using a researcher-made questionnaire that examined the participants’ performance as well as the perceived benefits concerning oral health based on HBM before and after the study. In addition, the data was analyzed using SPSS 20 through paired samples t-tests, independent t-tests and Chi Square analysis.
The results show that the perceived benefits mean score for the experimental group increased after the implementation of the treatment (Pretest M=10.83, SD=2.6 & Post Test M=21.69, SD=1.77). Therefore, it could be stated that the peer education approach along with using presentation methods to increase the average score of perceived benefits of the students in oral hygiene is highly effective and statistically significant (P <0.001).
The results revealed that the implementation of active educational methods that are done with the participation and focus of students, can lead to the improvement of oral health indicators in them.