Effectiveness of an intervention programm to improve complience to malaria chemoprophylaxis during pregnency in a malaria endemic area.

Abstract

This study was carried out in an endemic area in Sri Lanka to describethe existing knowledge and attitudes among pregnent woman and service provides assess the current level of complience to chloroquine prophylaxis in prophylaxis in pregnency and to plan ,implement and evaluate interventions to improve compliance.The survey of pregnency woman identified many deficiencies in knowledge .awareness of complications of malaria during pregnency and methos of prevention were poor.medical practitioners had poor knowledge of high risk groups in the populations and about the incresed risk of cerebral malaria associated with pregnecy.Similar deficiecies in knowledge were identified among field health staff.knowledge on high risk groups parasite vector and methods of prevention were poor .These deficiencies in knowledge were reflected in the population.Three inventions to improve complience health education leaflet strippacked chloquine tables and film-coted chloroquine tablets were identified using focus group discussions among several categories of stakeholdersthese were implemented and evaluated in the present study.The success of the health education leaflet in this population may be related to the high level of literecy seen in the community it apperas that increasing the mother's knowledge on complications of malaria during pregnency ,to herself and to the foetus was sufficient to improve complience Based on these findings it is recommended that this method be employed on a larger scale to improve compliance.