title: Community perception and readiness for anti-helminth programmes in rural Nepal.
abstract: We report on the community perception of helminth infection and readiness to participate in and pay for a community-based anti-helminth programme in rural Nepal. For data collection, 28 focus group discussions (FGDs) were conducted in 28 communities. The FGD results revealed that community members were lacking in scientific knowledge about helminth infection. They also had an unusual perception about it--they believed that a 'mul juka' (vital worm) should reside in every person's stomach from birth, and must never be killed. Nonetheless, the results showed that the community members were willing to participate in and were ready to contribute their resources to the anti-helminth programmes as long as modern medicine would not kill the 'mul juka'. Such community readiness provides us with hope for developing a sustainable anti-helminth programme at the community level through effective health education.
authors.affiliation: Department of International Community Health, Graduate School of Medicine, The University of Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Amod Kumar
authors.initials: AK
authors.lastname: Poudyal
authors.forename: Masamine
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Jimba
authors.forename: Izumi
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Murakami
authors.forename: Jeevan B
authors.initials: JB
authors.lastname: Sherchand
authors.forename: Ram Chandra
authors.initials: RC
authors.lastname: Silwal
authors.forename: Susumu
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Wakai
mesh_terms: D000871:Anthelmintics / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D003153:Community Health Services; D005260:Female; D017144:Focus Groups; D006373:Helminthiasis / Q000191:economics / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009313:National Health Programs; D009390:Nepal / Q000453:epidemiology; D010342:Patient Acceptance of Health Care; D012423:Rural Health
chemical_list: D000871:Anthelmintics