title: The effectiveness of educational interventions to enhance the adoption of fee-based arsenic testing in Bangladesh: a cluster randomized controlled trial.
abstract: Arsenic (As) testing could help 22 million people, using drinking water sources that exceed the Bangladesh As standard, to identify safe sources. A cluster randomized controlled trial was conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of household education and local media in the increasing demand for fee-based As testing. Randomly selected households (N = 452) were divided into three interventions implemented by community workers: 1) fee-based As testing with household education (HE); 2) fee-based As testing with household education and a local media campaign (HELM); and 3) fee-based As testing alone (Control). The fee for the As test was US$ 0.28, higher than the cost of the test (US$ 0.16). Of households with untested wells, 93% in both intervention groups HE and HELM purchased an As test, whereas only 53% in the control group. In conclusion, fee-based As testing with household education is effective in the increasing demand for As testing in rural Bangladesh.
authors.affiliation: Department of International Health, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, USA. cmgeorge@jhsph.edu
authors.forename: Christine Marie
authors.initials: CM
authors.lastname: George
authors.forename: Jennifer
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Inauen
authors.forename: Sheikh Masudur
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Rahman
authors.forename: Yan
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Zheng
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D020261:Arsenic Poisoning / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000517:prevention & control; D001459:Bangladesh; D005251:Fees, Medical; D005260:Female; D006266:Health Education / Q000379:methods*; D006293:Health Promotion; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008402:Mass Media; D008875:Middle Aged; D055815:Young Adult