{"study_desc":{"study_info":{"nation":[{"name":"Ghana","abbreviation":"GH"}],"notes":"Background\nLymphatic filariasis (LF) is endemic in Ghana, and the country has implemented the GPELF\nstrategy since 2000 with significant progress made in the control of the disease. However,\nafter several years of mass drug administration (MDA) implementation, there is persistent\ntransmission in 17 of the 98 endemic districts in the country. Current approaches to surveillance\nare clearly unable to target untreated individuals and new strategies are required to\naddress the endgame challenges to enhance LF elimination as a public health problem in\nendemic countries. Community registers are used during MDAs to enumerate community\nmembers, their age, gender, house numbers, and records of their participation in MDAs.\nThese MDA registers represent an untapped opportunity to identify and characterize noncompliance\nand inform appropriate programmatic actions. In this study, we analyzed the\ndata presented in the registers to assess the coverage and individuals\u2019 compliance in MDA.\n\nMethods\nThe information in the MDA registers were assessed to verify the reported coverages\nobtained from the district. The community registers were obtained from the district health\noffices and the data from each individual record was entered into a database. A simple questionnaire\nwas used to cross-check the participation of study participants in the 2017 MDA.\nThe questionnaire solicited data on: participation in the 2017 MDA, reasons for not taking\npart in the MDA, adverse events experienced, what was done for the adverse events, and\nwillingness to participate in subsequent MDAs.\n\nResults\nWe found that 40.1% of the population in the registers missed at least one MDA in 3 years\n(2016\u20132018) and the majority of them were between 10\u201330 years of age. The results of the\nquestionnaire assessment indicated that 13.8% of the respondents did not receive treatment\nin 2017 for various reasons, the most prominent among them being \u201cabsence\/travel\u201d\n(37.1%). Data in the registers were used to verify the treatment coverage for the years 2017\nand 2018, and reviewed against the reported coverage obtained from the district. Significant\ndifferences between the reported and verified coverages were only observed in four communities.\nHowever, the assessment also revealed that the reported coverage was only\naccurate in 33.3% of cases.\n\nConclusions\nThe MDA registers allow for the identification of eligible individuals who were not reached\nduring any MDA round. Thus, the MDA registers could be utilized at the community and programme\nlevels to identify missing and untreated individuals, appropriately address their\nnon-compliance to MDA, and thereby improve MDA coverage in each implementation unit\nand monitor the progress towards elimination of LF. The challenges observed through the\nreview of the registers also offer opportunities to improve the training given to the community\ndrug distributors.","data_kind":"sample survey data[ssd]"},"authoring_entity":[{"name":"Dziedzom K. de Souza","affiliation":"Department of Parasitology, Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research, College of Health Sciences, University of Ghana, Legon-Accra, Ghana"}],"production_statement":{"funding_agencies":[{"name":"EDCTP2 programme supported by the European Union","abbr":"EDCTP2","grant":"98595"}],"copyright":"Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research"},"method":{"data_collection":{"coll_mode":["Review of MDA registers and Questionnaire"]}},"data_access":{"dataset_use":{"contact":[{"name":"Dziedzom K. de Souza","affiliation":"Department of Parasitology, Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research, College of Health Sciences, University of Ghana, Legon-Accra, Ghana","uri":"www.noguchi@ug.edu.gh","email":"DdeSouza@noguchi.ug.edu.gh"}]}},"distribution_statement":{"contact":[{"name":"Dziedzom K. de Souza","affiliation":"Department of Parasitology, Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research, University of Ghana, Legon-Accra, Ghana","email":"DdeSouza@noguchi.ug.edu.gh"}]},"title_statement":{"idno":"NMIMR_LYPHATIC_FILARIASIS_2019","title":"Review of MDA registers for Lymphatic Filariasis: Findings, and potential uses in addressing the endgame elimination challenges"},"version_statement":{"version":"v1"}}}