PROGRAM PRE MARITAL EDUCATION (PME) MELALUI MEDIA ONLINE UNTUK PENINGKATAN PENGETAHUAN MENGENAI PENCEGAHAN STUNTING

Introduction: The problem of stunting is still widely found, especially in poor and developing countries. Data form World Health Organization (WHO) shows that Indonesia is the highest prevalence of stunting in the Southeast Asian region. The high incidence of stunting in Indonesia is caused by factors that are interconnected with each other. One of the risk factors for stunting is the level of knowledge. Objective: This study aims to determine the effect of providing Pre Marital Education (PME) programs through online media on increasing the knowledge of pre-marital couples in efforts to prevent stunting. Method: This study used a quasi-experiment research design with a pre-test design and a post-test design with a control group. The population is pre-marital couples in the Gunung Kidul Regency area registered at the Office of Religious Affairs (KUA) from December 2021 to January 2022. The study sample was 38 pairs of pre-marital age selected using purposive sampling techniques. The instruments used in the study were questionnaires in the form of google forms, as well as educational media in the form of posters and videos through Instagram. Data were collected using questionnaires and analyzed using the Wilcoxon and Mann-Whitney tests with a significance level of < 0.05. Results: The results showed that most respondents, both in the control group and intervention, had a good level of knowledge. The results of the different tests found significant differences in the intervention group after being given PME intervention. The results of the analysis also showed that there were substantial differences in the pre-test and post-test results in the control group. The results of the Mann-Whitney U test showed a p-value = 0.026 (p<0.05), which means that there were differences in recognition of pre-marital couples in the intervention group and control group after being given Pre Marital Education (PME). Conclusion: The Pre Marital Education (PME) program influences increasing knowledge of stunting prevention in pre-marital couples.