Knowledge, Attitude and Practices Towards Household Solid Waste Management among Semi-Urban Residents-A Community based Cross Sectional Study from Southern Part of Coastal Karnataka, India Eshwari K1, Shetty Ranjitha S2,*, Akhila D3, James Beulah Sarah4, Pandey Akhilesh Kumar5 1Assistant Professor, Department of Community Medicine, Kasturba Medical College, Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Manipal, India 2Associate Professor, Department of Community Medicine, Kasturba Medical College, Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Manipal, India 3Postgraduate, Department of Community Medicine, Kasturba Medical College, Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Manipal, India 4Palliative Care Officer, E.D Hospital, District Health and Family Welfare, Mysore, India 5Lecturer/Statistician, Department of Community Medicine, Kasturba Medical College, Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Manipal, India *Corresponding author: Dr Ranjitha S Shetty, Associate Professor, Department of Community Medicine, Kasturba Medical College, Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Manipal, Email: ranjitha.shetty@manipal.edu
Online published on 13 November, 2019. Abstract Objectives To determine the knowledge, attitude and practices towards household solid waste management and the perceived barriers for its proper disposal among residents of a semi-urban area. Method A community based cross sectional study was conducted among semi-urban residents of field practice area of a Medical College in Karnataka, India. A total of 441 households were included in to the study. A face-to-face interview was conducted using a pretested semi-structured questionnaire to assess the knowledge, attitude and practices among the residents towards management of household solid waste. Data was entered using Epi info mobile app and was analyzed using Easy R(EZR) software. Results The overall knowledge (60.3%), attitude (61.5%) and practices (72.8%) towards solid waste among the participants was near satisfactory. More than 90% were aware about the effects of inappropriate management of waste on health and environment. It was identified that having a better education and holding a skilled and professional jobs were the independent predictors of knowledge and attitude. Conclusion The gaining momentum among public towards management of solid waste can be further strengthened by taking in to account the identified predictors like education and occupation of the residents. Top Keywords Solid waste, Household, Knowledge, Attitude, Practices, Waste management, Environment. Top |