Bridging the Awareness Utilisation Gap in Reusable Menstrual Product Use Among Female Medical Students and Healthcare Professionals: A Cross-Sectional Study

Background: Reusable menstrual products provide sustainable and cost effective alternatives to disposable sanitary products; however, their adoption remains limited, even among healthcare professionals. Objectives: To assess awareness, knowledge, perceptions, and utilisation of reusable menstrual products among female medical students and healthcare professionals, and to identify predictors of willingness and use. Design: Cross sectional analytical study. Setting: An online survey was conducted among female medical students and healthcare professionals in Nigeria. Participants: A total of 203 female respondents aged 15 to 55 years. Intervention: Not applicable. Primary Outcome Measures: Utilisation of reusable menstrual products and willingness to adopt their use. Secondary Outcome Measures: Awareness, knowledge, perceptions, and barriers. Methods: Data were collected using a structured questionnaire and analysed using descriptive statistics, chi square tests, and logistic regression. Results: Awareness was high (96.06%), but utilisation was low, with 5.42% ever using and 4.43% currently using reusable products. About 31.53% were willing to use them. Respondent type was not associated with willingness (p = 0.735), although healthcare professionals had higher knowledge (p = 0.024). Positive perception predicted willingness (AOR = 7.58, 95% CI: 3.18 to 18.03, p < 0.001). Good knowledge (AOR = 14.96, p = 0.014) and increasing age (AOR = 1.28, p = 0.004) predicted utilisation. Conclusion: Despite high awareness, utilisation remains low. Perception influences willingness, while knowledge drives use. Targeted behavioural and educational interventions are needed. Keywords: Menstrual hygiene, reusable menstrual products, menstrual cup, sustainability, healthcare professionals