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Effect of Health Facility Waiting-Area Education on Patient Knowledge of Available Healthcare Services in Nigeria

Abstract

Awareness of available healthcare services is an important factor influencing appropriate healthcare utilization and timely access to preventive, diagnostic, treatment, and supportive services. Patients attending healthcare facilities in Nigeria may be unaware of the full range of services available within the facility, including health screening, immunization, antenatal care, family planning, chronic disease management, mental health services, laboratory investigations, health education, and referral services. Limited awareness may result in underutilization of available services, missed opportunities for preventive care, delayed treatment, and unnecessary referrals to other facilities. Health facility waiting areas provide a practical setting for delivering health education to patients while they wait for consultation or other healthcare services. Against this background, this study investigates the effect of health facility waiting-area education on patient knowledge of available healthcare services in Nigeria. The study will be anchored on the Health Literacy Framework, Health Belief Model, and Patient-Centred Care Theory. The Health Literacy Framework emphasizes patients' ability to access, understand, evaluate, and use information about available healthcare services. The Health Belief Model explains how patients' perceptions of health needs, perceived benefits of available services, perceived barriers, and cues to action may influence their knowledge and subsequent utilization of healthcare services. Patient-Centred Care Theory emphasizes effective communication, respect for patients' information needs, participation, and shared decision-making in healthcare delivery. Collectively, these theoretical perspectives provide a suitable framework for explaining how waiting-area health education may influence patients' knowledge of available healthcare services in Nigeria. The study will adopt a quantitative quasi-experimental or analytical cross-sectional research design. The study population will comprise adults attending selected public and private healthcare facilities across Nigeria. A multistage sampling technique will be used to select geopolitical zones, states, local government areas, healthcare facilities, departments, and eligible patients. Health facility waiting-area education will be assessed using indicators such as frequency of educational sessions, duration of education, availability of health information materials, use of posters and audiovisual materials, clarity of messages, language accessibility, relevance of information, range of services discussed, involvement of trained health educators, and opportunities for patients to ask questions. Patient knowledge of available healthcare services will be assessed using indicators such as awareness of preventive health screening, immunization, antenatal and postnatal care, family planning, chronic disease management, mental health services, laboratory and diagnostic services, health education, pharmacy services, emergency services, referral services, and other services appropriate to the participating facility. Data will be collected using structured questionnaires, healthcare-service knowledge assessment tools, waiting-area observation checklists, health education attendance records, information materials, and relevant facility documents. Descriptive statistics will be used to summarize participants' characteristics, exposure to waiting-area education, and knowledge scores. Inferential statistical techniques, including chi-square tests, t-tests, correlation analysis, and logistic or multiple regression analysis where appropriate, will be used to determine the effect of waiting-area health education on patient knowledge of available healthcare services. Where a quasi-experimental design is adopted, knowledge scores before and after the educational intervention may be compared with those of a comparison group to determine changes associated with the programme. Diagnostic tests will also be conducted to assess the reliability, validity, and robustness of the findings. The study is expected to find that health facility waiting-area education has a significant positive effect on patient knowledge of available healthcare services in Nigeria. Patients exposed to structured waiting-area education are expected to demonstrate greater awareness of the healthcare services available within their facilities than patients without comparable exposure. Repeated exposure to clear and relevant health messages may improve patients' understanding of preventive, diagnostic, treatment, and supportive services and encourage them to ask healthcare providers about services appropriate to their needs. Posters, digital displays, audiovisual presentations, group health talks, brochures, and interactive education may be particularly useful in reaching patients with different literacy levels and educational backgrounds. Improved knowledge may reduce missed opportunities for preventive care and encourage more appropriate use of available services. However, overcrowded waiting areas, limited time, inadequate educational materials, language differences, low literacy, insufficient health educators, noise, and inconsistent delivery of health education may reduce programme effectiveness. The study therefore expects well-structured, accessible, patient-centred, and regularly delivered waiting-area health education to contribute significantly to improved patient knowledge of available healthcare services in Nigeria. The study is expected to contribute to the literature on health facility education, patient health literacy, healthcare-service awareness, health promotion, patient-centred care, healthcare utilization, health education, and public health in Nigeria. The findings will provide useful information to the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, state ministries of health, primary healthcare authorities, hospitals, healthcare facility managers, health educators, nurses, community health workers, patient advocacy organizations, development partners, and policymakers regarding strategies for improving patient awareness of available healthcare services. The study will also provide evidence-based recommendations for integrating structured health education into waiting-area activities, improving the design of patient information materials, using local languages and audiovisual approaches, training healthcare workers in effective patient education, and strengthening communication about available services across Nigerian healthcare facilities.

Keywords: Health facility waiting-area education, patient knowledge, healthcare services, health literacy, patient education, health promotion, healthcare utilization, patient-centred care, healthcare awareness, Nigeria, public health.