Bed net coverage, usage and condition in fishing villages of Suba district, Western Kenya

Abstract

Background: Past studies showed that bed nets can reduce child mortality. Currently, the Kenyan government is subsidizing the price of bed nets, and several non-governmental organizations (NGOs) are distributing nets with little charge. However, information on coverage, usage and condition of nets is lacking, particularly in the remote areas. Methods: We investigated bed net coverage and condition in seven fishing villages on the shore of Lake Victoria, Western Kenya.Usage of bed nets was examined through direct observation in early morning. Residents were asked whether they were trained on proper usage and maintenance of nets. As locals have started to replace traditional papyrus mats with bed nets for spreading and drying small fish, we visited seven beaches to investigate how widely bed nets have been used for capturing and drying fish. Results: On overall, coverage was 71.9% and 41.1% for mainland and island villages respectively. Out of 262 nets only 100 (38.2%) were used. Seventy seven (29.4%) of them were hanged but not used, 51 (19.5%) were not hanged properly, while 34 (13%) were kept in boxes. We observed three types of nets; long-lasting treated bed nets (LLTNs) 47.8%, ordinary 38.5% and Insecticide treated nets (INTs) 13.7%. Eighty seven percent of the observed nets had holes more than 1 cm. On the beaches, 234 bed nets were used for drying fish and 194 (82.9%) of them LLTNs, while 40 (17.1%) were non-LLTNs. Forty one bed nets were used for capturing fish from the lake. Locals preferred LLTNs for drying or capturing fish because they were stronger and fish dry faster and straighter. An NGO distributed 150 LLTNs in one village eight months before this survey, and we counted 52 (36.7%) of them were used for either drying or capturing fish. Out of 244 residents interviewed 236 (96.7%) said they did not get any training on proper usage and maintenance of nets. Conclusion: In addition to pursuing high coverage of bed net more efforts should be made to ensure that nets are kept in good condition. Education component should be included in the ITN distribution to ensure proper usage and care. Abstracts for SupplementInternational Journal of Infectious DiseasesVol. 14Preview Full-Text PDF Open Archive