Rabies is a global problem, but the burden is higher in less developed or developing countries of Asia and Africa. In Nepal, rabies is reported to kill around 500 animals and up to 32 human beings in recent years, with possible under-reporting of cases and deaths. As a prophylactic measure, around 30,000 livestock and 300,000 humans get vaccinated each year in Nepal. This review summarizes the past, present and future perspectives of rabies control and prevention in Nepal. The global strategic plan of World Health Organization (WHO) aims to bring human deaths from dog-transmitted rabies to zero by 2030. To achieve this goal of ‘Zero by 30’, the concerned governmental and non-governmental agencies in Nepal should work together using the One Health concept.
Background: The emergence of the novel Coronavirus in December 2019 from Wuhan, China, now named SARS-COV-2, which causes COVID-19 disease has now reached the pandemic level. The ongoing pandemic has already infected more than fifteen million people and over hundred thousand people around the world has died. The knowledge, attitude, and practice (KAP) of people towards this disease is important to understand to limit its transmission. Methods: A purposive cross-sectional study was conducted among 101 secondary level students in Bharatpur, Chitwan, Nepal to assess their KAP. Results: The majority of the students were found to be knowledgeable of the timeline of the first outbreak (92.08%) and nearly three-fourth participants were aware of the hand-washing duration of 20 seconds (73.27%). The knowledge of the presence of disease in Nepal (50.50%), the causative agent of disease (65.53%), and symptoms (57.43%) showed that there is significant knowledge gap among participants. The good proportion of participants were found to have a positive attitude towards the prevention and control of the disease. The majority of the respondents reported using face mask (77.23%), adopting handwashing measures (79.21%) as preventive measures for COVID-19. The majority of the students were highly concerned about the disease. Conclusion: In summary, secondary level students of Chitwan, Nepal were found to have fair knowledge and understanding of the disease, showed a moderately positive attitude towards preventive measure and reported appropriate preventive practices against COVID-19. It is recommended that a similar
Vaccination is the most effective preventive measure of COVID-19 available at present, but its success depends on the global accessibility of vaccines and the willingness of people to be vaccinated. As the vaccination rollouts are increasing worldwide, it is important to assess public perception and willingness towards vaccination, so that the aim of mass vaccination will be successful. This study aimed to understand public perception towards COVID-19 vaccines and their willingness to get vaccinated in Nepal. This cross-sectional online survey was conducted among 1196 residents of Nepal in August 2021; most of the participants of this online survey were young adults (18–47 years) with university-level education. A total of 64.5% (771/1196) of the participants perceived COVID-19 vaccines to be safe and risk-free, while 68.6% (820/1196) agreed that vaccination would be efficient in the fight against this pandemic. Most of the participants (841/1196, 70.3%) disagreed that people are getting COVID-19 vaccines easily in Nepal, while they agree with the prioritization of older adults and healthcare workers for vaccination. A total of 61.1% (731/1196) of the participants had received at least one dose of the vaccine. Among the unvaccinated, 93.3% (434/465) were willing to get vaccinated when their turn came. The higher confidence of younger adults in vaccines and the vaccination process is encouraging, as that can help educate others who are hesitant or are not positive towards the idea of receiving vaccines. Dissemination of correct and current information, acquisition of enough doses of vaccines, and equitable distribution of vaccines will be required to achieve successful completion of the COVID-19 vaccination campaign in Nepal.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
hi@scite.ai
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.