Socio-demographic trends in malaria knowledge and implications for behaviour change interventions in Zanzibar
Abstract Background Zanzibar is among the few places within East Africa that have documented a significant reduction of malaria morbidity and mortality. Despite tremendous gains over the past decade, malaria transmission still persists in Zanzibar. This study aimed at understanding levels of malaria...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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BMC
2023-02-01
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| Series: | Malaria Journal |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1186/s12936-023-04472-y |
| _version_ | 1811171845300289536 |
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| author | Faiza Abbas Emmanuel Kigadye Fauzia Mohamed Mwinyi Khamis John Mbaraka Naomi Serbantez Abdul-Wahid Al-Mafazy April Monroe Samson Kiware |
| author_facet | Faiza Abbas Emmanuel Kigadye Fauzia Mohamed Mwinyi Khamis John Mbaraka Naomi Serbantez Abdul-Wahid Al-Mafazy April Monroe Samson Kiware |
| author_sort | Faiza Abbas |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Background Zanzibar is among the few places within East Africa that have documented a significant reduction of malaria morbidity and mortality. Despite tremendous gains over the past decade, malaria transmission still persists in Zanzibar. This study aimed at understanding levels of malaria knowledge to provide recommendations that can be used to reinforce and scale up targeted malaria social and behaviour change interventions. Methods A descriptive cross-sectional survey was conducted through an administered questionnaire to 431 households selected randomly. The interviewees were the heads of household or representative adults above 18 years. This study investigated the levels of knowledge about the causes, symptoms, and prevention of malaria in areas with high (> 1.9 per 1000) and low (< 1 per 1000) incidence of local malaria cases. The Principal Component Analysis (PCA) was used to compute the composite variable of each category. Descriptive statistics were calculated to understand variables of interest between low and high transmission areas. Multinomial logistic regression model was used to compare knowledge on malaria based on key variables. Results A total of 431 heads of households were interviewed. Respondent age, education level, and wealth status were significantly associated with variations in level of malaria knowledge. Old age was found to be significantly associated with low knowledge of malaria (P < 0.001). The majority of study participants who had secondary and higher education levels had good knowledge of malaria (P < 0.006). Participants characterized as middle-income had good knowledge compared to those characterized as low-income (P < 0.001). Conclusion The study identified existing gaps in malaria knowledge in low and high transmission areas. Low levels of malaria knowledge were documented among elderly and populations with lower education and income levels. There is a need to extend mobilization, advocacy, and expand channels of communication to reach all community members. The reported gaps in knowledge are important to consider when designing strategies to engage communities in malaria elimination in Zanzibar. Tailored social and behavioural change interventions aiming to increase malaria knowledge could enhance the uptake of malaria prevention services in the community. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-10T17:22:02Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-c94c2ad7cc9142909643f7a8de23920f |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1475-2875 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-10T17:22:02Z |
| publishDate | 2023-02-01 |
| publisher | BMC |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Malaria Journal |
| spelling | doaj.art-c94c2ad7cc9142909643f7a8de23920f2023-02-05T12:05:24ZengBMCMalaria Journal1475-28752023-02-0122111110.1186/s12936-023-04472-ySocio-demographic trends in malaria knowledge and implications for behaviour change interventions in ZanzibarFaiza Abbas0Emmanuel Kigadye1Fauzia Mohamed2Mwinyi Khamis3John Mbaraka4Naomi Serbantez5Abdul-Wahid Al-Mafazy6April Monroe7Samson Kiware8Zanzibar Malaria Elimination Programme (ZAMEP), Ministry of HealthThe Open University of TanzaniaThe Open University of TanzaniaZanzibar Malaria Elimination Programme (ZAMEP), Ministry of HealthIfakara Health InstituteUS President’s Malaria Initiative, U.S. Agency for International DevelopmentRTI InternationalJohns Hopkins Center for Communication ProgramsIfakara Health InstituteAbstract Background Zanzibar is among the few places within East Africa that have documented a significant reduction of malaria morbidity and mortality. Despite tremendous gains over the past decade, malaria transmission still persists in Zanzibar. This study aimed at understanding levels of malaria knowledge to provide recommendations that can be used to reinforce and scale up targeted malaria social and behaviour change interventions. Methods A descriptive cross-sectional survey was conducted through an administered questionnaire to 431 households selected randomly. The interviewees were the heads of household or representative adults above 18 years. This study investigated the levels of knowledge about the causes, symptoms, and prevention of malaria in areas with high (> 1.9 per 1000) and low (< 1 per 1000) incidence of local malaria cases. The Principal Component Analysis (PCA) was used to compute the composite variable of each category. Descriptive statistics were calculated to understand variables of interest between low and high transmission areas. Multinomial logistic regression model was used to compare knowledge on malaria based on key variables. Results A total of 431 heads of households were interviewed. Respondent age, education level, and wealth status were significantly associated with variations in level of malaria knowledge. Old age was found to be significantly associated with low knowledge of malaria (P < 0.001). The majority of study participants who had secondary and higher education levels had good knowledge of malaria (P < 0.006). Participants characterized as middle-income had good knowledge compared to those characterized as low-income (P < 0.001). Conclusion The study identified existing gaps in malaria knowledge in low and high transmission areas. Low levels of malaria knowledge were documented among elderly and populations with lower education and income levels. There is a need to extend mobilization, advocacy, and expand channels of communication to reach all community members. The reported gaps in knowledge are important to consider when designing strategies to engage communities in malaria elimination in Zanzibar. Tailored social and behavioural change interventions aiming to increase malaria knowledge could enhance the uptake of malaria prevention services in the community.https://doi.org/10.1186/s12936-023-04472-yKnowledge on malariaLocal malaria transmissionIncidenceZanzibarTailored SBCIntervention |
| spellingShingle | Faiza Abbas Emmanuel Kigadye Fauzia Mohamed Mwinyi Khamis John Mbaraka Naomi Serbantez Abdul-Wahid Al-Mafazy April Monroe Samson Kiware Socio-demographic trends in malaria knowledge and implications for behaviour change interventions in Zanzibar Malaria Journal Knowledge on malaria Local malaria transmission Incidence Zanzibar Tailored SBC Intervention |
| title | Socio-demographic trends in malaria knowledge and implications for behaviour change interventions in Zanzibar |
| title_full | Socio-demographic trends in malaria knowledge and implications for behaviour change interventions in Zanzibar |
| title_fullStr | Socio-demographic trends in malaria knowledge and implications for behaviour change interventions in Zanzibar |
| title_full_unstemmed | Socio-demographic trends in malaria knowledge and implications for behaviour change interventions in Zanzibar |
| title_short | Socio-demographic trends in malaria knowledge and implications for behaviour change interventions in Zanzibar |
| title_sort | socio demographic trends in malaria knowledge and implications for behaviour change interventions in zanzibar |
| topic | Knowledge on malaria Local malaria transmission Incidence Zanzibar Tailored SBC Intervention |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1186/s12936-023-04472-y |
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