BACKGROUND: The low adherence to consumption of Fe tablets in adolescent girls illustrates that the iron supplementation program has not been maximized, so the proportion of anemia in the adolescent group is still high. School-based weekly Fe tablet intervention together with education is effective and ideal in preventing anemia.
AIM: This study aims to determine the effect of the PAKEM education model on adherence to Fe tablet consumption.
METHODS: This research was quasi-experimental with the randomized pre-test-post-test control group design. The population of this study was 249 young women in Class XI of several high schools, SMAN 12 Makassar and SMAN 1 Makassar, based on the results of the initial survey with low adherence to taking Fe tablets. The research sample was obtained by simple random sampling; 70 respondents were divided into intervention and control groups. Data were analyzed using paired t-test, Wilcoxon test, and Mann–Whitney U-test.
RESULTS: There was an increase after the PAKEM educational intervention on knowledge (10.91–17.88), attitudes (56.11–73.60), motivation (38.05–53.49), and actions (0.83–7.34). There was a significant difference between the PAKEM intervention group and the leaflet and audiovisual controls on all study variables with p=0.000 (p<0.05).
CONCLUSION: The PAKEM education model was more influential than a leaflet and audiovisual media on the compliance of female adolescent Fe tablet consumption. It is recommended for health workers and educators to apply the PAKEM education model to prevent anemia in adolescent girls.