Effect of premarraige counseling on girl's knowledge

Having healthy children is parents’ ambition. Having an ill infant with congenital and genetic disorders may be associated with lots of problems. Holding premarraige classes for girls is one of the most important duties of health care centers. The present study was conducted to determine the effect of premarraige counseling on girls’ knowledge in Kerman city. This quasi-experimental study of before and 2-8 week-after the counseling was carried out on 116 randomly selected girls attending the premarriage classes in Kerman. Having confirmed the validity and reliability of the questionnaire, personal characteristics and phrases assessing the girls’ knowledge were asked. It was composed of 4 separate parts (anomaly prevention, prenatal care, birth control, and breast feeding) each applied to 6 phrases with highest and least of mark 6 and 0. Paired t-test was used for data analysis. The mean age of the subjects was 22.1±4.2 years. The girls’ mean knowledge mark before and after the counseling was 3.9±0.1 and 4.6±1 for anomaly prevention, 4.3±1.2 and 4.6±1.1 for prenatal care, 2.4±1.7 and 3.9±1.6 for birth control, and 3.7±1.7 and 4.4±3.7 for breast feeding, respectively (p<0.00). Premarriage counseling does influence on girl’s knowledge. Special attention should be paid to prenatal care and birth control.