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Evaluation of a Multiple Behaviour Programme for Diarrhoea Management

Not Applicable
Completed
Conditions
Diarrhoeal Disease
Interventions
Behavioral: Community behaviour change campaign
Registration Number
NCT02081521
Lead Sponsor
London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine
Brief Summary

Control of diarrhoeal disease requires a comprehensive package of preventive and curative interventions. in Zambia, the Programme for Awareness and Elimination of Diarrhoea (PAED) aims to reduce child deaths by combating diarrhoea in Lusaka province, Zambia. The behaviour change component of the PAED programme seeks to change behaviours important for diarrhoea prevention (handwashing with soap and exclusive breastfeeding) and improved treatment outcomes (use of oral rehydration solution (ORS) and zinc in home management of child diarrhoea).

The study aims to evaluate the feasibility of implementing a multiple behaviour change community programme to tackle diarrhoeal disease in children under-five and to assess the impact of this programme on practice of the target behaviours by caregivers of children under-five. The research questions will be answered through a a two-arm cluster-randomised trial (eight clusters per study arm).

Detailed Description

Specific objectives of the study are as follows:

* Evaluate the effect of the programme on ORS and zinc uptake and usage, exclusive breastfeeding and handwashing with soap (primary objective)

* Determine the extent to which the programme has positively influenced key mediating factors that determine behaviour (i.e. social norms, physical infrastructure, attitudes, and disease and treatment perceptions)

* Investigate which components of the community programme (i.e. specific activities in clinics, community events etc.) are linked to the success of the programme (most acceptable, feasible etc) and in what context

o Validate model of intervention theory that explains how the context and mechanisms of the intervention interact to produce behavioural outcomes

* Determine which target populations are more likely to uptake the desired behaviours and identify the supporting factors that might explain this

* Conduct process evaluation to assess i) if the programme has been implemented as intended, ii) if the desired levels of reach and coverage have been achieved, iii) costs of implementation, iv) the extent to which changes in behaviour are likely to be due to the intervention.

Recruitment & Eligibility

Status
COMPLETED
Sex
All
Target Recruitment
640
Inclusion Criteria
  • caregiver with child under six months (for assessment of handwashing and exclusive breastfeeding outcomes - healthy volunteers)
  • caregiver with child under five years with current or recent (last 7 days) diarrhoea (for assessment of ORS and zinc outcomes)
Exclusion Criteria
  • Not resident in study area

Study & Design

Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Study Design
PARALLEL
Arm && Interventions
GroupInterventionDescription
Community behaviour change campaignCommunity behaviour change campaignParticipants will be exposed to the community behaviour change intervention.
Primary Outcome Measures
NameTimeMethod
Change in target behaviour: Exclusive breastfeedingsix weeks post-intervention

Proportion of mothers exclusively breastfeeding infants 0-5 months of age.

Change in target behaviour: Handwashing with soapsix weeks post-intervention

Proportion of observed handwashing events where there is risk of faecal contamination (i.e. after latrine and when dealing with child stools) accompanied by handwashing with soap

Change in target behaviour: correct ORS preparationsix weeks post-intervention

Proportion of caregivers able to demonstrate correct ORS preparation.

Change in target behaviour: zinc usesix weeks post-intervention

Proportion of under-five diarrhoeal episodes receiving zinc.

The study aims to demonstrate the intervention can successfully change behaviour and therefore no health outcomes were chosen and there is a primary outcome for each behaviour.

Secondary Outcome Measures
NameTimeMethod
Change in target behaviours: exclusive breastfeeding 0-2 monthssix weeks post-intervention

Proportion of mothers exclusively breastfeeding infants 0-2 months of age.

Change in target behaviours: predominant breastfeedingsix weeks post-intervention

Proportion of mothers predominantly breastfeeding infants 0-5 months of age.

Change in target behaviours: ORS usesix weeks post-intervention

Proportion of under-five diarrhoeal episodes receiving ORS.

Change in target behaviours: ORS storagesix weeks post-intervention

Proportion of caregivers storing ORS sachets at home

Zinc awarenesssix weeks post-intervention

Proportion of caregivers who have heard of zinc for diarrhoea treatment

Change in target behaviours: handwashing with soap at key timessix weeks post-intervention

Proportion of observed handwashing events associated with food handling or faeces accompanied by handwashing with soap

Change in target behaviours: zinc trialsix weeks post-intervention

Proportion of caregivers of a child under-five who have ever used zinc to treat diarrhoea in a child

Change in target behaviours: use of soapsix weeks post-intervention

Proportion of observed handwashing occasions where soap is used

Trial Locations

Locations (1)

Centre for Infectious Disease Research Zambia

🇿🇲

Lusaka, Lusaka Province, Zambia

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