Investigating the effect of multimedia education based on the health belief model in preventing COVID-19 in pregnant women

BACKGROUND: Pregnant women are considered one of the high-risk groups during the COVID-19 pandemic, so paying attention to preventive behaviors among them is highly important. This study aimed to examine the effect of multimedia education based on the Health Belief Model (HBM) in preventing COVID-19 among pregnant women. METHODS: This quasi-experimental intervention study was conducted on 120 pregnant women referring to Comprehensive Health Services Centers affiliated with East and West health centres of Ahvaz city, Iran, in 2021. Participants were divided into two control (n = 60) and intervention (n = 60) groups. A researcher-made questionnaire was used for data collection. The intervention group was given the required educational content using social networks virtually and multimedia in 12 sessions. Both groups were reinvestigated after two months. Data were analyzed using SPSS software version 24, independent t-test and paired t-test tests. RESULTS: The mean age and mean gestational age of participants were estimated at 28 years old and 18 weeks, respectively. Before the educational intervention, there was no significant difference in mean constructs of HBM. In contrast, the mean of all constructs increased significantly in the intervention group after intervention. The greatest change was related to the constructs of self-efficacy and perceived susceptibility, and the lowest change was related to the perceived barriers construct. CONCLUSION: Our findings suggest multimedia education using the HBM to COVID-19 preventive behaviors among pregnant women can benefit behavior change. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12889-022-14965-1.