School-Based Educational Interventions on Prevention and Control of Malaria—A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Abstract

ABSTRACT. Student messengers act as change agents for health and modify the behavior of their families as well as the community. Integration of the school health programs with malaria education enhances the participation of school teachers, parents, as well as the local community in malaria elimination. The objective of this review is to strengthen the evidence for school-based health educational interventions for malaria control and prevention activities. We searched six databases namely PubMed Central, Science Direct, CINAHL with full text, Google Scholar, Cochrane Library, and Pro-Quest to find relevant studies between January 2001 and March 2022 based on PRISMA guidelines. Randomized controlled trial, before–after intervention, and quasi-experimental study designs were included and a meta-analysis was carried out using the random-effect model to pool out the results by using Rev-man 5.4 software. In this review, 13 studies were included. The pooled outcome of school-based educational interventions on malaria was moderate (Standardized Mean Difference—2.59) and a significant difference was observed in intervention and control schools (Z = 7.33, P < 0.00001). In conclusion, this review identified the facts for the prevention and control of malaria through school-based educational interventions. Our findings strengthen the concept of malaria elimination through student messengers to mobilize the local community.