KNOWLEDGE, ATTITUDE AND PRACTICE OF DENGUE FEVER PREVENTION AMONG THE PEOPLE IN MALE', MALDIVES

A study was carried out in Male' the capital of Maldives with the objective of determining the current state of Knowledge, Attitude and Practices (KAP) of the people in Male' regarding dengue fever prevention. Purposive and random sampling was used for the study and 374 households were recruited in the survey. Head of the households were interviewed using a structured questionnaire. The mean age of the participants was 36 years with a standard deviation of 9.63. The respondents who participated in this study had low level of knowledge in the areas explored (mean= 8.60, SD = 2.45) and 48% had fair practice in preventing dengue fever (mean= 4.75, SD = 1.39). This study also revealed out few knowledge deficits such as 67% of the respondents who felt that dengue fever can be transmitted from one person to another. Significant associations were found between gender and practice (p<0.001) and knowledge and practice (p=0.05). The findings of the study indicate that if people are supplied with accurate knowledge through appropriate channels, they may eventually have good practices in preventing dengue fever. Public education is necessary to address the knowledge gap revealed in the study. Therefore educational programs should be organized for improving knowledge about dengue fever, ensuring that people are receptive to the messages and to make it easier for them to adopt desired behavioral changes.