Rapid assessment of home management of malaria among caregivers in parts of south eastern Nigeria

BACKGROUND: This study was carried out to rapidly access the practice of home management of malaria by caregivers and community health workers in a rural part of South Eastern Nigeria between March and October, 2010. METHODS: Structured, pretested questionnaires, focus group discussions and oral interviews were used to collect data from 300 consenting individuals. RESULTS: Most of the participants/respondents were civil servants/teachers (44.3%). About 88.3% of them recognized malaria as an illness, 81.0% perceived it was transmitted by mosquito bites. Malaria diagnosis at home was mainly by noticing fever, headache, cough, and pains (86.0%). Most primary action was sought by going to hospitals/health centers (62.3%) and choroquine (46.7%) was the preferred antimalarial drug. Some of the factors hindering effective home management of malaria in the area included ignorance (13.0%); use of fake drugs (50%) and wrong diagnosis (19.1%). CONCLUSION: This study shows that there is some awareness about malaria and its management in the study area. There is however need to improve and sustain the strategy, placing more emphasis on educating the people on current drug protocols to achieve better results in controlling and combating malaria especially at the local levels.