HEALTH EDUCATION ON PARENTS' KNOWLEDGE LEVEL IN ADMINISTERING TUBERCULOSIS MEDICATION TO CHILDREN IN INPATIENT AT MITRA PLUMBON HOSPITAL, CIREBON

West Java is one of the provinces with the highest number of tuberculosis (TB) cases
in Indonesia, including pediatric TB, with an estimated 233,334 new cases or 22%
of the national total. In Cirebon City alone, 1,906 new cases were recorded in 2022,
equivalent to 647 cases per 100,000 population. One important effort in managing
TB in children is ensuring medication adherence by improving parents' knowledge.
This study aims to determine the effect of health education on parents’ knowledge
regarding tuberculosis medication administration in children in Inpatient of Mitra

Plumbon Hospital, Cirebon. This research is a quantitative study using a quasi-
experimental design with a one-group pretest-posttest approach. The study

population consisted of 72 parents accompanying pediatric TB patients in the
inpatient ward. A total of 20 respondents were selected using accidental sampling.
The research instrument was a knowledge questionnaire administered before and
after the health education intervention. Results showed that before the health
education, most respondents had moderate knowledge (60%), which increased to
good knowledge (85%) after the intervention. Statistical analysis using the
Wilcoxon Signed Rank Test yielded a p-value of 0.000 (p < 0.05), indicating a
statistically significant difference. Health education effectively increased parents’
knowledge in administering TB medication to children. It is recommended that
hospitals integrate health education as a routine component in the care of pediatric
TB patients.