An Epidemic of <i>Neisseria Gonorrhoeae</i> in a Somali Orphanage

Hj, Ahmed; Ilardi, I; Antognoli, Agnese; Leone, F.; Sebastiani, A.; Amiconi, Gino

doi:10.1177/095646249200300113

Cited by 6 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 3 publications

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“…Studies suggest that adult supervision of health practices can lead to improved infection control. Previous research in vulnerable child populations has focused on an outbreak of enterovirus among HIV-infected children in an orphanage in Nairobi (27), Neisseria gonorrhea transmission among children in an orphanage in Somalia (28), worm infections at an orphanage in Benin (29), and children with parasitic infections in an orphanage in Cairo (30). At an orphanage in Thailand, handwashing and sanitation education decreased incidence of diarrhea due to Giardia by 50% (31).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A pilot project: handwashing educational intervention decreases incidence of respiratory and diarrheal illnesses in a rural Malawi orphanage

et al. 2020

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Children who live in orphanages represent a population particularly vulnerable to transmissible diseases. Handwashing interventions have proven efficacy for reducing the rate of transmission of common infectious diseases. Few studies have analyzed the delivery of health interventions for children in orphanages in sub-Saharan Africa. To address this gap, we conducted an ecological assessment and piloted a handwashing intervention in an orphanage in rural Malawi, focusing on caregiver knowledge and behaviors, child handwashing behaviors, and disease incidence. A secondary study aim was to demonstrate program feasibility for a future randomized controlled trial. Orphanage caregivers participated in a three-module educational intervention on handwashing based on WHO recommendations and workshops on how to teach the curriculum to children. Seventeen orphanage caregivers and 65 children were monitored for handwashing behavior and child disease incidence. Friedman’s tests were conducted to compare changes in caregiver knowledge and behaviors. Child handwashing behaviors and surveillance of child disease incidence were measured pre- and post-intervention. There were significant increases in caregiver hand hygiene knowledge. At six months post-intervention, handwashing with soap increased significantly among caregivers ( p < 0.001) and was observed in children. The incidence of acute respiratory infections decreased from 30% to 6% post-intervention, resulting in an 80% decrease. The incidence of diarrhea decreased from 9.2% to 6.2% post-intervention, resulting in a 33% decrease. A brief educational intervention may improve handwashing knowledge and behaviors and help to decrease the incidence of common infectious diseases in an orphanage in rural Malawi. In addition, the caregiver uptake of the intervention demonstrated feasibility for future studies.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%