Pregnant Women and Malaria Preventive Measures: A Case of Tamale Teaching Hospital, Ghana.

BACKGROUND: In Saharan Africa, an estimated 25 million pregnancies are all at risk of malaria every year, with substantial morbidity and death effects for both the mother and the fetus. AIM: To investigate the use of malaria preventive measures among pregnant women patronizing antenatal services of Tamale Teaching Hospital. Methodology. This study was conducted using a descriptive cross-sectional survey of 250 participants. Data analysis was done with SPSS version 20. Graphs and tables were used to present the study data. Bivariate analysis was done using Chi-square use to determine the relationships and binary logistics regression used for identification of predictor variables. RESULTS: The mean age of the study participants was 30.0 ± 4.5 years and most of them (73.0%) were within the age group of 25-35 years. Respondents' favorable knowledge, a favorable attitude, and favorable practice were 78.0%, 62.0%, and 57.6%, respectively. And the following variables were associated with malaria preventive practice: age of the respondent (X 2 = 6.276, P=0.043), religion (X 2 = 6.904, P=0.032), level of education (X 2 = 41.482, P < 0.001), employment status (X 2 = 20.533, P < 0.001), monthly income (X 2 = 21.838, P < 0.001), and attitude level towards malaria prevention (X 2 = 35.885, P < 0.001). Further analysis revealed educational level and attitude level as predictors of malaria preventive practice. CONCLUSION: This study recorded favorable knowledge, attitude, and practice with regards to malaria prevention among more than half of the study participants.