Ownership, Coverage, Utilisation and Maintenance of Long-lasting insecticidal nets (LLINs) in Bamenda, Santa and Tiko Health Districts in Cameroon
AbstractIntroductionThe Bamenda, Santa and Tiko Health Districts are in the highest malaria transmission strata of Cameroon. The purpose of this study was to explore the indicators of ownership and utilisation as well as maintenance of long-lasting insecticidal nets (LLINs) in three health districts in Cameroon.MethodsA cross-sectional household survey involving 1,251 households was conducted in the Tiko Health District (THD) in July and June 2017 and in Bamenda and Santa Health Districts in March to May 2018. A structured questionnaire was used to collect data on LLIN ownership, utilisation and maintenance as well as demographic characteristics.ResultsThe average number of LLINs per household was higher in the Bamenda Health District (BHD) compared to the Tiko Health District (THD) (2.5±1.2 vs. 2.4±1.6) as well as the household ownership at least one LLIN (93.30% vs. 89.00%). The proportion of the de-facto population with universal utilisation was higher in BHD compared to THD (13.1% vs 0.2%). In multinomial regression analysis, households in the SHD (p = 0.007, OR; 2.8, 95% C.I; 1.3 – 5.8), were more likely to own at least one LLIN compared to those in THD.ConclusionOwnership of LLINs was low in SHD and THD in comparison to the goal of one for every two household members. Overall LLINs coverage and accessibility was still low after the free MDCs, as only 14.6% of children 0 – 5 years and 16.1% of the entire population used LLIN the night before the survey.