Knowledge, attitudes, practices and risk perception of cattle farmers in Namibia to antibiotic use and resistance.

The misuse of antibiotics in livestock contributes to the emergence of antibiotic resistant bacteria. The development of antibiotic resistance in bacteria of animal origin is of public health concern since drug resistant pathogens in animals can spread to humans. Several countries have therefore introduced regulations to restrict the use of antibiotics in livestock. Namibia was the first African country to ban the use of antibiotics as growth promoters and restrict the use of antibiotics to the treatment of bacterial diseases with a prescription from a veterinarian. However, there are limited studies on antibiotic stewardship among farmers in the country. The aim of this study was to determine the antibiotic awareness and usage of cattle farmers in Oshikoto region Namibia. A questionnaire on antibiotic knowledge, attitudes and practices (KAP) was administered to 274 randomly selected cattle farmers in Namibia. To calculate the KAP scores, one mark was awarded for each correct answer and zero was awarded for incorrect or unsure responses. Respondents having ≥ 50% correct answers were considered as having good KAP scores. The KAP score ranged from 8 to 73%. Forty-three per cent of the respondents had good KAP scores. Good KAP was associated with age, farm type and education status. Semi-commercial/commercial farmers had significantly better KAP than post and homestead farmers. The findings of this study indicate that there is a need to improve antibiotic usage and resistance education programmes in order to promote rational antibiotic usage.

Community antibiotic consumption and associated factors in Lusaka district of Zambia: findings and implications for antimicrobial resistance and stewardship.

Introduction: Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a global public health crisis. This study assessed the general public's consumption of antibiotics and associated factors in the Lusaka district of Zambia. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted among 2038 participants between December 2022 and January 2023. Data were analysed using Stata 13.0. Multivariable regression techniques were used to determine the factors that influenced antibiotic consumption. Results: Of the 2038 participants, 53.4% were female, and 51.5% had attended at least secondary school. Antibiotic use was 99.2%, of which 40.9% were appropriately used. Overall, 79.1% of antibiotics were prescribed in hospitals, while 20.9% were used from leftovers and accessed without prescriptions. This study found that the appropriate use of antibiotics was associated with being female, being aged 35 years and above, attaining secondary school or tertiary education, having a monthly expenditure of 195 USD and above, being aware that antibiotics were not the same as painkillers, and being confident that when someone was hospitalized, they would get well. Conclusions: This study found that the appropriate use of antibiotics was low, and this is an urgent public health issue requiring community engagement in tackling AMR and adherence to treatment guidelines in healthcare facilities. Additionally, there is a need to implement and strengthen antimicrobial stewardship programmes in healthcare facilities to promote the rational use of antibiotics in Zambia. There is also a need to heighten community awareness campaigns and educational activities on the appropriate use of antibiotics.

Response of the social systems to Covid-19 in Mozambique, Tanzania and Zambia: A synthesis of the challenges and opportunities

Objective: This synthesis aimed to assess prevailing social systems and behaviours to identify challenges and opportunities towards COVID-19 responses in Mozambique, Tanzania and Zambia. Methods: We searched information using set of broad topic-related terms to include articles and documents reporting country specific information on the identified factions of the social systems. The sources included country specific websites, Pub-Med, Google and Google scholar, with full text documents retrieved from HINARI. Results: The challenges identified include media's overemphasis of contagious nature of the disease leading into resentment of the infected people in the community; the cultural practices such as greetings by shaking hands and large gatherings in weddings and funerals which are likely to increase risks of transmission of COVID-19; limited access to water challenging hand washing practices; and unreliable income sources to majority of the community members leading to reliance on daily informal activities to earn a living. All such activities make physical distancing less practical. The opportunities included involvement of religious institutions in provision of health education; enhancing risk communication with the public through different digital and traditional media channels; and the extended family living arrangements as protection to vulnerable elderly population. Conclusion: The synthesis has identified several challenges and opportunities of the social system in COVID-19 response in Mozambique, Tanzania and Zambia. The opportunities should be capitalized upon to inform context specific preventive measures and challenges be addressed for prompt prevention of infection transmissions..