Household responses to malaria and their costs: a study from rural Sri Lanka

✍ Scribed by F. Konradsen; W. van der Hoek; P.H. Amerasinghe; F.P. Amerasinghe; K.T. Fonseka

• Book ID: 104164627
• Publisher: Elsevier Science
• Year: 1997
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 568 KB
• Volume: 91
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0035-9203
• DOI: 10.1016/s0035-9203(97)90194-2

✦ Synopsis

A study of the cost of malaria at the household level, community perceptions, preventive measures and illness behaviour linked to the disease was undertaken in 5 villages in the dry zone of Sri Lanka. The surveyed community had a high knowledge of malaria, although side effects of antimalarial drugs were often confused with symptoms of the disease. The community sought prompt diagnosis and treatment at 'western-type' facilities, with 84% making use of government facilities as their first choice and 16% preferring private facilities. The preventive measures used were burning coils (54% of families) and special leaves (69% of families), and 93% of the families had their houses sprayed with insecticides. Average direct expenditure on a single malaria episode was $3 US, with some families spending more than 10% of the annual household net income per episode. The highest expenditure was on special diets for the sick person, to neutralize the perceived heating effect of the disease and its treatment.