Epidemiology of Malaria in East Nusa Tenggara Province in Indonesia: Protocol for a Cross-Sectional Study
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
JMIR RESEARCH PROTOCOLS Guntur et al Protocol Epidemiology of Malaria in East Nusa Tenggara Province in Indonesia: Protocol for a Cross-sectional Study Robertus Dole Guntur1,2, SSi, MMathSc; Jonathan Kingsley3,4, BScAPP, BAppHSc(Hons), MHort, PhD, GradCertTeachLearn(HEd); Fakir M Amirul Islam1, BSc (Hons), MSc, MApp Science, PhD, GradCertTeachLearn(HEd) 1Department of Health Science and Biostatistics, School of Health Sciences, Swinburne University of Technology, Melbourne, Australia 2Department of Mathematics, Faculty of Science and Engineering, Nusa Cendana University, Kupang NTT, Indonesia 3Department of Health and Medical Sciences, School of Health Sciences, Swinburne University of Technology, Melbourne, Australia 4Centre of Urban Transitions, Swinburne University of Technology, Hawthorn, Melbourne, Australia Corresponding Author: Robertus Dole Guntur, SSi, MMathSc Department of Health Science and Biostatistics School of Health Sciences Swinburne University of Technology John St Hawthorn Melbourne, 3122 Australia Phone: 61 451361478 Email: [email protected] Abstract Background: Malaria is a global pandemic that results in approximately 228 million cases globally; 3.5% of these cases are in Southeast Asian countries, including Indonesia. Following the World Health Organization (WHO) initiative, Indonesia is in the process of achieving malaria-free zone status by 2030. However, the eastern part of Indonesia, including the East Nusa Tenggara Province (ENTP), still has a disproportionately high rate of malaria. Objective: The aims of this cross-sectional study are to determine the awareness and knowledge, attitude, and practice toward various aspects of malaria among rural adults and their associated factors, including sociodemographic factors and ethnicities; assess the gap between coverage of, access to, and use of long-lasting insecticide-treated nets (LLINs) among the households; estimate the prevalence of and factors associated with malaria in rural adults; and develop a risk prediction model for malaria. Methods: A multistage cluster sampling procedure with a systematic random sampling procedure at cluster level 4 was applied to recruit 1503 adults aged 18 years or older from the ENTP. Each participant participated in a face-to-face interview to assess their awareness and knowledge, attitude, and practice toward aspects of malaria, practices of sleeping under LLINs, and history of malaria. Information on sociodemographic, environmental, and lifestyle factors was also documented. The proportion of knowledge, attitude, and practice toward aspects of malaria and their variations across different sociodemographic and ethnic groups will be analyzed using descriptive statistics and chi-square tests. Coverage and access to LLINs will be evaluated based on the WHO recommendations. Malaria risk factors will be analyzed using logistic regression. Multilevel logistic regression will be applied to estimate the risk score for malaria. Results: Of the total participants, 99.46% (1495/1503) of rural adults from 49 villages in the ENTP participated in a face-to-face interview from October to December 2019. The study results are expected to be published in peer-reviewed journals. Conclusions: The best malaria risk prediction model will be developed in this study. In this protocol, we developed a methodology to provide new evidence to guide health policy in supporting the ENTP government's expectation to achieve the malaria-free rating by 2030. International Registered Report Identifier (IRRID): DERR1-10.2196/23545 (JMIR Res Protoc 2021;10(4):e23545) doi: 10.2196/23545 KEYWORDS malaria; rural population; awareness; risk factors; health policy; World Health Organization https://www.researchprotocols.org/2021/4/e23545 JMIR Res Protoc 2021 | vol. 10 | iss. 4 | e23545 | p. 1 (page number not for citation purposes) XSL·FO RenderX JMIR RESEARCH PROTOCOLS Guntur et al candidates to measure the level of knowledge of a particular Introduction community. Another study focused on the KAP toward aspects Background of malaria at the province level in Central Java provinces [9]. However, the practice of communities using LLINs was not Malaria is a major global health problem, with an estimated 3.9 investigated in that study. Studies in various settings have shown billion people living at risk of malaria infection [1]. In 2018, that the practice of communities sleeping under LLINs has the World Health Organization (WHO) reported 228 million reduced the transmission of malaria [10,11], and the WHO has cases, 3.5% of which were from Southeast Asian (SEA) recommended using LLINs as the best method to prevent countries [1]. The action plan of the region indicates that all malaria [12]. countries in the region will be malaria-free zones by 2030 [2]. Two countries, the Maldives and Sri Lanka, have been certified The increased coverage of LLINs is a key intervention strategy malaria-free areas by the WHO, whereas India and Indonesia to reduce malaria in Indonesia [13]. From August to October are still affected by malaria, contributing 85% and 13% to the 2017, the Indonesian government implemented a malaria control total number of malaria cases in the region, respectively [1]. acceleration program through the mass distribution of LLINs in 67 districts in 5 provinces in the eastern part of Indonesia Indonesia is a SEA country, with a total population of (Papua, West Papua, Maluku, North Maluku, and ENTP), and approximately 265 million [3]. It has a diverse ethnic of the 22 districts in the ENTP, 15 received the acceleration composition, with 1340 ethnic groups distributed from Sabang program [14]. However, despite a 76% increase in the to Merauke [4]. A significant reduction in the transmission of distribution of LLINs from 2015 to 2017, there has been limited malaria in various provinces in Indonesia has occurred since publication about access to and coverage of LLINs at the the country has implemented its national commitment to community level in Indonesia [15]. The universal coverage of eliminate malaria. As a result of this commitment, 285 of 514 LLINs [16] has not yet been investigated in the ENTP. A better districts (55.5%) achieved malaria elimination in 2018 [5]. understanding of the coverage of these indicators would play However, none of the districts in Papua, West Papua, Maluku, an important role in developing strategies for a stronger malaria North Maluku, and the East Nusa Tenggara Province (ENTP), control program in a country [17]. Indonesia, have met the malaria elimination area but are committed to elimination by 2030 [5]. Several epidemiological studies have been conducted to understand the etiology in Indonesia as part of the global effort The WHO stated that the entire Indonesian population is at risk to eliminate malaria in the country [18-26]. Studies on the social of contracting malaria and approximately 6.4% of this and demographic aspects of malaria have been conducted in population have a high risk [1]. The annual parasite incidence Papua province [18,19], Aceh province [26], Maluku province (API) survey in 2018 reported that the national API value was [20], and North Maluku province [21]. However, the effect of 0.84 per 1000 people and that it varied across the 34 provinces the use of LLINs on malaria infection in rural communities was [5]. The highest API value was found in Papua province at 52.99 not investigated in any of these studies. Several studies per 1000 people, and in the ENTP (the focus of the proposed investigated the risk factors for malaria in the ENTP [27,28]. study), the API is 3.42 per 1000 people [5]. Over the past However, either the sample sizes of those studies were too small decade, there has been a steady decrease in API at the national or the studies were conducted at the subdistrict and village level in Indonesia from 1.8 per 1000 in 2009 to 0.84 per 1000 levels. Moreover, although some studies have been conducted in 2018, with this trend observed in most provinces. Despite at the population level in the ENTP [22-25], they did not the consistent decrease in the API value in the ENTP from 13.7 evaluate the impact of malaria knowledge, ethnic variations, per 1000 people in 2014 [6] to 3.42 per 1000 people in 2018 and coverage of LLINs on the transmission of malaria. [5], the API value is well above the national API. As Examining the determinant factors of malaria more epidemiological malaria research as well as the knowledge of comprehensively would provide a better understanding of the significant value of API in the ENTP are limited, this study malaria epidemiology and enable experts to identify the focuses on malaria in the ENTP. important predictors of malaria risk in various environmental Problem Statement and Justification settings [29]. A recent study showed that factors associated with self-reported malaria varied between provinces, indicating that This study aims to address existing gaps in data focusing on the local determinants of malaria risk factors existed at the knowledge, attitude, and practice (KAP) toward aspects of individual, household, and community levels [20]. Therefore, malaria; access to and use of long-lasting insecticide-treated this cross-sectional study will fill these gaps with the following nets (LLINs); and malaria risk factors in the ENTP. Several objectives: KAP studies on malaria have been conducted in Indonesia [7-9]. However, most of these studies were conducted in western 1. Determining awareness and KAP among adults toward Indonesia, a categorized malaria-free zone, and most were various aspects of malaria and their associated factors, directed at the subdistrict and village levels. One including sociodemographic and ethnic groups. population-based study of 4050 respondents in North Maluku 2. Assessing the gap between coverage of and access to and province indicated that although 93.6% of the population use of LLINs within households. realized that malaria is a dangerous disease, almost all 3. Estimating the prevalence of and factors associated with respondents (98%) did not know the main causes of malaria malaria in rural adults in the ENTP. [8].