Chirdan O O, Zoakah A I, Ejembi C L
Department of Community Medicine, Jos University Teaching Hospital, Jos, Plateau State, Nigeria.
Ann Afr Med. 2008 Sep;7(3):112-9. doi: 10.4103/1596-3519.55667.
Malaria accounts for 1 million deaths among children under five annually. It has been shown that improving home treatment and preventing delays in seeking treatment, by teaching women to respond promptly when their children have fever, can decrease malaria related complications and mortality. This study looks at the impact of health education on knowledge of malaria: its recognition, treatment and prevention among caregivers of children under five in Jengre, North Central Nigeria.
The study was a community based intervention study conducted in three stages: A preintervention stage, where 150 caregivers, were selected through a multistage sampling te chnique from the households containing children under five. Information for the baseline was collected through an interviewer administered semi-structured questionnaire. The intervention consisted of a series of health education sessions designed based on findings from the pre-intervention stage. The postintervention impact assessment was conducted using a modified version of the questionnaire used in the pre intervention stage.
Malaria was recognized as one of the diseases that cause fever in community by all the respondents. Sixty-one (40.6%) had adequate knowledge concerning malaria causation, transmission, prevention and treatment. Twenty eight (56%) of respondents reported self-treatment. There was a statistically significant relationship between years of formal education and first line treatment option (P=.012). Thirty-four (68%) mothers acted within eight hours of onset of fever. The intervention had an effect on perception (P<.001), knowledge (P<.001), malaria prevention practice (P=.001), first line treatment option (P=.031) and the type of treatment given to the children with fever (P=.048).
Health education impacted positively caregivers' knowledge of malaria and their willingness to access antimalarial treatment when their children have fever. Malaria information should be made available to caregivers visiting child welfare clinics. Caregivers should also be integrated into malaria control activities at community level.
疟疾每年导致100万5岁以下儿童死亡。研究表明，通过教导女性在孩子发烧时迅速做出反应来改善家庭治疗并防止就医延误，可减少疟疾相关并发症和死亡率。本研究考察健康教育对尼日利亚中北部Jengre地区5岁以下儿童照料者疟疾知识（包括识别、治疗和预防）的影响。
该研究是一项基于社区的干预性研究，分三个阶段进行：干预前阶段，通过多阶段抽样技术从有5岁以下儿童的家庭中选取150名照料者。通过访谈员发放的半结构化问卷收集基线信息。干预措施包括根据干预前阶段的结果设计的一系列健康教育课程。干预后影响评估使用干预前阶段问卷的修改版进行。
所有受访者都将疟疾视为社区中导致发烧的疾病之一。61人（40.6%）对疟疾的病因、传播、预防和治疗有充分了解。28人（56%）的受访者报告进行过自我治疗。正规教育年限与一线治疗选择之间存在统计学显著关系（P = 0.012）。34名（68%）母亲在孩子发烧8小时内采取了行动。干预对认知（P < 0.001）、知识（P < 0.001）、疟疾预防措施（P = 0.001）、一线治疗选择（P = 0.031）以及给发烧儿童的治疗类型（P = 0.048）产生了影响。
健康教育对照料者的疟疾知识以及他们在孩子发烧时寻求抗疟治疗的意愿产生了积极影响。应向前往儿童福利诊所的照料者提供疟疾信息。照料者还应融入社区层面的疟疾控制活动。
