The Correlation Between Students' Knowledge Levels and Erythrocyte Morphology Education on Peripheral Blood Smears Before and After Intervention at SMKN 3 Kuala Kapuas

Abstract

Microscopic evaluation of Peripheral Blood Smears (PBS) is the gold standard in hematological diagnosis, which heavily relies on the observer's subjective competence. This quasi-experimental study (one-group pre-test and post-test design) involving 53 students at SMKN 3 Kuala Kapuas aimed to analyze the relationship between students' knowledge levels and erythrocyte morphology education on PBS before and after a multimedia and atlas-based visual intervention. Data were analyzed using the Wilcoxon Signed-Rank Test. Results showed the mean pre-test score was 46.60 (62.26% in the poor category). Post-intervention, the mean post-test score significantly jumped to 80.38 (84.91% in the good category), with 100% of students showing individual score improvements (mean increase of 42.37%). The Wilcoxon test yielded an Asymp. Sig. (2-tailed) value of 0.000 (p < 0.05), rejecting the null hypothesis. In conclusion, there is a highly significant relationship and effect of erythrocyte morphology education on increasing students' knowledge. Image-based visual training is recommended to strengthen future healthcare professionals' competence.