Barrett Jeremy C, Dantas Jaya A R
Curtin School of Population Health, Faculty of Health Sciences, Curtin University, Bentley, Perth, WA 6102, Australia.
Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2025 Mar 28;22(4):516. doi: 10.3390/ijerph22040516.
Rural and remote communities often face significant challenges maintaining their health and well-being. In developing countries, these challenges are further compounded by (1) limited access to clean water, (2) ineffective sanitation, (3) low education and literacy levels and (4) low awareness of the role of personal hygiene practices in reducing communicable disease transmission. Existing health education materials distributed within such communities are often presented in a traditional written format, making them inaccessible to people with low literacy levels. Therefore, recent evidence supports an alternative health communication approach through the use of picture-based materials. This study has assessed the effectiveness of a cartoon-based pictorial educational tool (CBPET) in communicating key messages about hygiene and bacteria contained within the environment and bodily fluids. The CBPET that was developed was tested in a Tanzanian village, representative of a community with low literacy and a resource-poor setting. The CBPET was found to effectively deliver key health promotion messages to the local community. Developing healthcare education in a universal language format based on pictures or cartoons could be the way forward.
农村和偏远社区在维持居民健康和福祉方面常常面临重大挑战。在发展中国家，这些挑战因以下因素而进一步加剧：（1）获得清洁水的机会有限；（2）卫生设施效率低下；（3）教育和识字水平较低；（4）对个人卫生习惯在减少传染病传播中的作用认识不足。在此类社区分发的现有健康教育材料通常采用传统的书面形式，使得识字水平低的人难以理解。因此，最近的证据支持通过使用图片材料的替代性健康传播方法。本研究评估了一种基于卡通的图片教育工具（CBPET）在传达有关环境和体液中卫生与细菌的关键信息方面的有效性。所开发的CBPET在坦桑尼亚的一个村庄进行了测试，该村庄代表了一个识字率低且资源匮乏的社区。结果发现，CBPET能够有效地向当地社区传递关键的健康促进信息。以基于图片或卡通的通用语言形式开展医疗保健教育可能是未来的发展方向。
