Unravelling the Perspectives of Day and Night Traders in Selected Markets within a Sub-Saharan African City with a Malaria Knowledge, Attitude and Practice Survey

Patience B Tetteh-Quarcoo; Nicholas T K D Dayie; Kevin Kofi Adutwum-Ofosu; John Ahenkorah; Emmanuel Afutu; Seth K Amponsah; Mubarak Abdul-Rahman; James-Paul Kretchy; Janet Y Ocloo; Nicholas I Nii-Trebi; Akua K Yalley; Oheneba C K Hagan; Benjamin P Niriwa; Chukwuemeka C Aghasili; Fleischer C N Kotey; Eric S Donkor; Patrick F Ayeh-Kumi; Emilia Asuquo Udofia

doi:10.3390/ijerph18073468

Unravelling the Perspectives of Day and Night Traders in Selected Markets within a Sub-Saharan African City with a Malaria Knowledge, Attitude and Practice Survey

Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2021 Mar 26;18(7):3468. doi: 10.3390/ijerph18073468.

Authors

Patience B Tetteh-Quarcoo¹, Nicholas T K D Dayie¹, Kevin Kofi Adutwum-Ofosu², John Ahenkorah², Emmanuel Afutu¹, Seth K Amponsah³, Mubarak Abdul-Rahman⁴, James-Paul Kretchy⁵, Janet Y Ocloo⁶, Nicholas I Nii-Trebi⁷, Akua K Yalley⁷, Oheneba C K Hagan⁸, Benjamin P Niriwa^{1

9}, Chukwuemeka C Aghasili¹⁰, Fleischer C N Kotey^{1

11}, Eric S Donkor¹, Patrick F Ayeh-Kumi¹, Emilia Asuquo Udofia¹⁰

Affiliations

¹ Department of Medical Microbiology, University of Ghana Medical School, P.O. Box KB 4236 Accra, Ghana.
² Department of Anatomy, University of Ghana Medical School, P.O. Box KB 4236 Accra, Ghana.
³ Department of Medical Pharmacology, University of Ghana Medical School, P.O. Box KB 4236 Accra, Ghana.
⁴ Department of Pathology, University of Ghana Medical School, P.O. Box KB 4236 Accra, Ghana.
⁵ Department of Physician Assitantship Studies/Public Health, School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Central University, P. O. Box DS 2305 Miotso, Accra, Ghana.
⁶ Department of Pathology, Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital, Korle-Bu, P.O. Box 77 233 Accra, Ghana.
⁷ Department of Medical Laboratory Sciences, School of Biomedical and Allied Health Sciences, University of Ghana, Korle Bu, P.O. Box KB 143 Accra, Ghana.
⁸ Department of Medical Biochemistry, School of Medical Sciences, College of Health and Allied Sciences, University of Cape Coast, Cape Coast, Ghana.
⁹ Holy Family Hospital, P.O. Box 36 Techiman, Ghana.
¹⁰ Department of Community Health, University of Ghana Medical School, P.O. Box KB 4236 Accra, Ghana.
¹¹ FleRhoLife Research Consult, Teshie, P.O. Box TS 853 Accra, Ghana.

Abstract

Background: Malaria is still endemic in sub-Saharan Africa, with a high disease burden. Misconceptions about malaria contribute to poor attitudes and practices, further increasing the burden in endemic countries. Studies have examined the knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) of malaria among different populations. However, there seems to be no available literature reporting on the perspectives of day and night market traders. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report on malaria KAP with a focus on day and night market traders.

Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study involving day and night market traders in 10 selected markets within the Greater Accra Region of Ghana was carried out. Data were collected from consenting respondents using a structured questionnaire.

Results: Of the 760 respondents (33.3% (n = 253) night and 66.7% (n = 507) day traders) interviewed, there was no significant difference between the day and night market traders in terms of malaria KAP. Although the market traders had an overall moderate knowledge (54.0% of the day traders and 56.5% of the night traders), misconceptions about malaria (especially that it could be caused by exposure to the sun) still existed among the traders. Moreover, the majority of the traders who demonstrated high knowledge (43.98%, n = 250) did not always take laboratory tests to confirm their suspicion, indicating poor attitude. Furthermore, the market traders' choice of drug for malaria treatment (p = 0.001) and preferred malaria treatment type (orthodox or herbal) (p = 0.005) were significantly associated with their knowledge level.

Conclusions: Despite the observation that no significant difference in KAP exists between day and night market traders, appropriate health education programs and interventions still need to be directed at misconceptions, poor attitudes, and poor practices revealed by this study. This will ultimately help in the prevention and control of malaria in Ghana, and globally.

Keywords: attitude; day; knowledge; malaria; market; night; perspectives; practice; traders.

MeSH terms

Cross-Sectional Studies
Ghana / epidemiology
Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice*
Humans
Malaria* / epidemiology
Surveys and Questionnaires