Community Perception for Mass Drug Administration Towards Elimination of Lymphatic Filariasis: A Study in Jharkhand
Abstract
Introduction: Jharkhand conducts annual mass drug administration (MDA) with diethylcarbamazine citrate (DEC) and albendazole to combat lymphatic filariasis (LF), achieving over 85% coverage in ten rounds. However, no district meets the antigenemia target during Transmission Assessment Surveys (TAS). Independent assessments reveal subop- timal compliance, attributed to unsupervised drug distribution. This study aims to qualitatively explore community perspectives on MDA, compliance factors, reported side-effects, and community awareness of LF and MDA’s objectives, seeking insights to enhance the program’s effectiveness in LF elimination.
Methods: Two districts in the state were randomly chosen, and from each community health centre (CHC) within these districts, villages were randomly selected. In these chosen villages, 10% of the population participated in the survey after providing written informed consent. The compiled and analyzed data showed that 1,394 individuals were interviewed, representing a total eligible population of 14,675 across both districts.
Results: The drug compliance rate showed that over 75% of the pop- ulation in both districts took drugs, albeit inconsistently across MDA rounds. In Ramgarh, 359 respondents (84.21%) consumed drugs during MDA, with 191 (44.74%) in one round, 146 (34.21%) in two rounds, and 22 (5.26%) in three or more rounds. In Deoghar, 768 respondents (79.38%) consumed drugs, with 183 (23.82%) in one round, 193 (25.12%) in two rounds, and 392 (51.02%) in three or more rounds.
Conclusion: The study analysed the sources of awareness, reasons for non-compliance, and management of drug-related adverse events. It identified gaps in awareness generation and highlighted key areas requiring focused attention. The article suggests providing incentives to motivate service providers and drug administrators, fostering healthy competition to achieve desired drug compliance during MDA.
How to cite this article:
Singh S S, Manhas A S, Yadav G K, Sharma S
N, Srivastava P K. Community Perception for
Mass Drug Administration Towards Elimination
of Lymphatic Filariasis: A Study in Jharkhand. J
Commun Dis. 2024;56(1):184-191.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.24321/0019.5138.202424
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