SOCIO-DEMOGRAPHIC FACTORS ASSOCIATED WITH TREATMENT AGAINST SOIL-TRANSMITTED HELMINTH INFECTIONS IN CHILDREN AGED 12–59 MONTHS USING THE HEALTH FACILITY APPROACH ALONE OR COMBINED WITH A COMMUNITY-DIRECTED APPROACH IN A RURAL AREA OF ZAMBIA

Abstract

SummaryA health facility-based (HF) approach to delivering anthelminthic drugs to children aged 12–59 months in Zambia was compared with an approach where community-directed treatment (ComDT) was added to the HF approach (HF+ComDT). This paper reports on the socio-demographic factors associated with treatment coverage in the HF+ComDT and HF areas after 18 months of implementation. Data were collected by interviewing 288 and 378 caretakers of children aged 12–59 months in the HF+ComDT and HF areas, respectively. Bivariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were used for data analysis. Statistically significant predictors of a child being treated were: a child coming from the HF+ComDT area, being 12–36 months old, the family having lived in the area for >20 years, coming from a household with only one under-five child and living ≤3 km from the health facility. It is concluded that socio-demographic factors are of public health relevance and affect treatment coverage in both the HF+ComDT and the HF approaches. The implementation and strengthening of interventions like ComDT that bring treatment closer to households will enable more children to have access to treatment.