Rapid assessment of knowledge, attitudes, practices, and risk perception related to the prevention and control of Ebola virus disease in three communities of Sierra Leone.
BACKGROUND
The recent outbreak of the Ebola virus disease (EVD) in Sierra Leone has been characterized by the World Health Organization as one of the most challenging EVD outbreaks to date. The first confirmed case in Sierra Leone was a young woman who was admitted to a government hospital in Kenema following a miscarriage on 24 May 2014. On 5 January 2015, intensified training for an EVD response project was initiated at the medical university of Sierra Leone in Jui. To understand the knowledge, attitudes, practices, and perceived risk of EVD among the public, especially after this training, a rapid assessment was conducted from 10 to 16 March 2015.


METHODS
Interviews were conducted with 466 participants based on questionnaires that were distributed from 10 to 16 March 2015 by cluster sampling in three adjacent communities, namely Jui, Grafton, and Kossoh Town, in the Western Area Rural District of Sierra Leone.


RESULTS
It was found that knowledge about EVD was comprehensive and high. Positive attitude towards prevention was found to be satisfactory. Nearly all participants knew the reporting phone number 117 and had reported some change in behavior since learning about Ebola. More than half (62 %) of the participants had a history of travelling to urban areas, which increases the risk of infection. The multivariable logistic regression analysis showed that community and occupation were variables associated with perceived risk of EVD.


CONCLUSIONS
Our study showed that community level social mobilization and community engagement were an effective strategy in the special context.
State Key Laboratory for Infectious Disease Prevention and Control, Collaborative Innovation Center for Diagnosis and Treatment of Infectious Diseases, National Institute for Communicable Disease Control and Prevention, Beijing, 102206, China.|ITERP, Beijing, 102206, China.
Hai
H
Jiang
Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Beijing, 102206, China.|ITERP, Beijing, 102206, China.
Guo-Qing
GQ
Shi
Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Beijing, 102206, China.|ITERP, Beijing, 102206, China.
Wen-Xiao
WX
Tu
ITERP, Beijing, 102206, China.
Can-Jun
CJ
Zheng
ITERP, Beijing, 102206, China.
Xue-Hui
XH
Lai
ITERP, Beijing, 102206, China.
Xin-Xu
XX
Li
ITERP, Beijing, 102206, China.
Qiang
Q
Wei
ITERP, Beijing, 102206, China.
Mei
M
Li
ITERP, Beijing, 102206, China.
Li-Quan
LQ
Deng
ITERP, Beijing, 102206, China.
Xiang
X
Huo
ITERP, Beijing, 102206, China.
Ming-Quan
MQ
Chen
ITERP, Beijing, 102206, China.
Feng
F
Xu
ITERP, Beijing, 102206, China.
Long-Jie
LJ
Ye
ITERP, Beijing, 102206, China.
Xi-Chen
XC
Bai
ITERP, Beijing, 102206, China.
Tong-Nian
TN
Chen
ITERP, Beijing, 102206, China.
Shao-Hua
SH
Yin
District Health Management Team, Western Area, Ministry of Health and Sanitation, Freetown, Sierra Leone. ttsamba@yahoo.com.
Thomas T
TT
Samba
Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Beijing, 102206, China. liangxf@chinacdc.cn.|ITERP, Beijing, 102206, China. liangxf@chinacdc.cn.
Xiao-Feng
XF
Liang
D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D019142:Hemorrhagic Fever, Ebola / Q000517:prevention & control* / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012807:Sierra Leone; D055815:Young Adult
Attitude; Ebola; ITERP; Knowledge; Practice; Risk perception; Sierra Leone