تأثیر آموزش برنامه قلب سالم بر آگاهی و نگرش دانش‌آموزان مقطع راهنمایی شهر بیرجند، در مورد بیماری‌های قلبی- عروقی

Background and Aim: Nowadays, Cardiovascular diseases (CVD) are the most important cause of death in the world. Given the role of cardiac risk factors in the development of atherosclerosis in childhood, the present study was done to investigate the effect of “healthy heart education program.” on knowledge and attitude of junior1 students in Birjand during 2011. Materials and Methods: This pre-post quasi-experimental study was done on 395 first grade students of Birjand junior high schools. Multistage randomized sampling method was used. A self-designed questionnaire on the basis of the specified goals of the study was designed, after confirming its validity and reliability. The questionnaires were filled out in two stages, namely before and after interference. The obtained data was analyzed using SPSS .software (V:16) at the significant level of α=0.05. Results: Mean age of students was 12.48±0.57 years and 181 (45.8%) were male. Mean score of knowledge on risk factors of CVD was 8.26±3.21 before the education and 9.31±3.77 after it (P<0.001). Mean of the students’ attitude also increased from 38±4.93 to 39.1±5.78 (P<0.001). Conclusion: The impact of education on awareness and attitudes of the students was confirmed. Thus, healthy heart education programs in schools, as an educational priority, should be considered by the officials and managers in health and education systems.