HIV/AIDS & Global Health Research Programme, and Department of Microbiology, University of Venda, Limpopo Province, Thohoyandou, South Africa.
Department of Public Health Sciences, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA, USA.
Malar J. 2021 Apr 17;20(1):188. doi: 10.1186/s12936-021-03724-z.
Malaria remains a global health concern and is endemic in Limpopo, Mpumalanga and KwaZulu Natal Provinces of South Africa, which aims to eliminate malaria by 2025. Community engagement plays a significant role in improving the acceptability and effectiveness of programmes aimed at reducing malaria transmission. The success of such intervention efforts depends on the knowledge, attitudes and practices (KAP) of the community, and understanding the KAP of community residents may support malaria control efforts in the locality. In this context, a cross-sectional household survey to assess community KAP on malaria transmission and prevention in the Ha-Lambani village, Vhembe District, Limpopo Province was conducted.
Data were collected between November 2018 and May 2019 by questionnaire of 261 consenting adults (213 females and 48 males, aged between 18 and 95 years) selected from different households. Also, a focus group discussion among 13 randomly selected participants was conducted. Pearson's Chi Square test was used to determine statistical differences by village.
Study participants (100%, 261/261) were aware of the presence of malaria in their community and 95% associated it with mosquito bites. The local health clinic was the most prominent source of malaria information (85%). Only 22% correctly identified headache, chills and fever as the three most common symptoms of malaria. The majority of participants (98%) knew that effective medication for malaria is available and had a positive treatment-seeking behaviour. Knowledge of malaria prevention measures was high (82%); contrarily, 97% of respondents did not sleep under a bed net the previous night. The focus group data concurred with these results and also revealed that poor bed net use resulted from lack of access to bed nets because community residents could not afford them.
The study demonstrates that participants have appropriate knowledge about malaria transmission and a positive treatment-seeking behaviour. However, economic barriers are responsible for the inadequate use of bed nets. Therefore, distribution of bed nets to the community should be considered to improve practice of malaria prevention measures. Furthermore, knowledge of signs and symptoms and appropriate malaria treatment was limited, and initiatives to improve awareness on these topics should be continued.
疟疾仍然是全球关注的健康问题，在南非的林波波省、姆普马兰加省和夸祖鲁-纳塔尔省流行，这些省份旨在到 2025 年消除疟疾。社区参与在提高旨在减少疟疾传播的项目的可接受性和有效性方面发挥着重要作用。此类干预措施的成功取决于社区的知识、态度和实践（KAP），了解社区居民的 KAP 可能有助于在当地进行疟疾控制工作。在这种情况下，在林波波省 Vhembe 地区的 Ha-Lambani 村进行了一项横断面家庭调查，以评估社区对疟疾传播和预防的 KAP。
数据收集于 2018 年 11 月至 2019 年 5 月间，通过问卷调查了 261 名同意的成年人（213 名女性和 48 名男性，年龄在 18 至 95 岁之间），这些成年人是从不同家庭中挑选出来的。此外，还对 13 名随机挑选的参与者进行了焦点小组讨论。通过村庄确定了 Pearson's Chi Square 检验的统计差异。
研究参与者（100%，261/261）都知道他们所在社区存在疟疾，95%的参与者将其与蚊子叮咬联系起来。当地诊所是疟疾信息的最主要来源（85%）。只有 22%的参与者正确识别出头痛、寒战和发热是疟疾的三个最常见症状。大多数参与者（98%）知道有效的疟疾药物是可用的，并且具有积极的治疗寻求行为。疟疾预防措施的知识水平较高（82%）；相反，97%的受访者在前一天晚上没有睡在蚊帐下。焦点小组的数据与这些结果一致，还表明由于缺乏经济条件，社区居民买不起蚊帐，导致蚊帐的使用不足。
研究表明，参与者对疟疾传播有适当的认识，并且有积极的治疗寻求行为。然而，经济障碍是导致蚊帐使用不足的原因。因此，应该考虑向社区分发蚊帐，以改善疟疾预防措施的实施。此外，对症状和适当的疟疾治疗的认识有限，应该继续开展提高这些主题意识的举措。
