Participation in prevention and
control of dengue
Aedes mosquito breeding sites are
ubiquitous[12,16], explaining the continued
endemicity of DF. Women who participated in
interviews were asked what villagers should
do to prevent dengue. Many suggested that
villagers should clean up their own house yards,
collecting or burning rubbish such as tyres and
coconut shells, to get rid of mosquito breeding
sites. The majority believed that people knew
of the danger of such breeding sites, and that
they should work together to get rid of them
to prevent disease. Many said that they would
clean up their own yards if someone requested
them to do so but they were reluctant to ask
others. “I was afraid that they’d be angry. They
would say they didn’t need to be told to clean
their house. But if someone told me to do so,
I’d be happy to follow their advice” (In-depth
interview, 14). However, most women
complained that while they cleaned up their
own houses and yards, others did not, resulting
in indiscriminate garbage throughout in the
villages; they claimed too that neighbours
ignored them when they asked them to clean
their yards. Many villagers also felt that all
villagers should use temephos to prevent
dengue but this did not happen.
Mothers of children not infected with
dengue reported individual and collective
activities to prevent and control the disease
(Table). All but five of the women knew about
the disease and appropriate prevention and
control activities. Most perceived dengue
control to be a personal responsibility, with
about half (19/33) reporting that they regularly
cleaned their water jars and a third (10/33)
stating that they kept their houses clean to
discourage mosquitoes. Almost one of four
women (9/33) claimed that they used
temephos in water jars. A few women also
used other (ineffective) activities to prevent
and control dengue, such as using mosquito
nets at night, removing sewage, clearing bushes
and using mosquito coils. The majority
overlooked discarded containers, the most
common source of larval breeding in the rainy
season[12], and made no effort to get rid of
them. Only three women reported telling their
neighbours to turn coconut shells upside down,
or to remove discarded cans and plastic
packing bags. Hence despite claims of high
knowledge, few women undertook all
necessary tasks on a regular basis.