Assessment of Knowledge and Practices towards Swine flu: A cross-sectional study among rural housewives

Background: Swine flu is an emerging public health problem in various countries including India and was declared a “Phase 6 Pandemic” by WHO in 2009. India ranks as 3rd most affected country for cases and deaths of swine flu globally. \ud Objectives: To assess the level of knowledge and practices regarding Swine flu among rural housewives of Jammu and to find out the association between the two. \ud Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted during the month of April 2015 using a pre-tested and semi-structured questionnaire among 310 housewives from two villages of Jammu district. \ud Results: Adequate knowledge was seen in 61.9% of the respondents and 53.5% had followed good practices. Mean (SD) for knowledge and practices score was 11.4(2.37) & 10.3(2.58) respectively. Literacy levels were identified as a positive predictor for adequate knowledge and good practice score. A linear relationship was evident both between knowledge / practices as well as age upto 40 years after which there was a declining trend. Also significant positive association was found between knowledge and practices (p