Public Health Results from the Sota Village Household
Health Survey: Tanzania, Africa
1David
1University
S. Black, M.P.H.,
1Dennis
of Southern California Keck School of Medicine, USA;
Mull, M.P.H., M.D.,
2Shirati
2Esther
Health Education and Development (SHED) Foundation, Tanzania
Table 1. Descriptive statistics for select health indicators
Abstract:
Results:
Introduction: Descriptive research in developing African countries is needed to
developing awareness about major pubic health issues. This study examined several
health indicators relevant to residents living in the rural village of Sota, Tanzania.
Methods: A trained interpreter and medical students from the United States collected
data at respondent’s homes. Face-to-face interviews were conducted to measure
socio-demographic, environmental health, maternal and child health, and disease
indicators.
Results: Data were obtained from 555 households in four subvillages. Results
indicate that residents rely heavily on lake water, and a significant percent of
residents do not treat their water prior to drinking. Less than 10% of households
report using family planning methods, which corresponds to the reported high rates
of childbirth. Almost 20% of households have a family member in treatment for a
disease, with hypertension and tuberculosis (TB) being cited most often.
Conclusions: Our findings elucidate several important issues that need to be
addressed with coordinated public health programming.
The mean age for head of households (HOH) (M=48.0, sd=16.6) was older than
wives (M=40.1, sd=16.6) for wives. A large percent (18.9%) of HOH’s were
deceased. Average education for HOH’s was 6.3 years (sd=3.2; range=0-14 years)
and for wives was 5.4 years (sd=2.8; range=0-12). The majority of HOH’s reported
their vocation as fishing (48.2%) followed by farming (29.8%), business (8.8%), and
government (5.1%). Of wives, 90.4% worked at home and 9.6% worked both at
home and at an additional vocation. Housing structures provided information about
the socioeconomic statues of residents. The majority of residents lived in a house
composed of an earth floor (65.5%), mud walls (48.8%) and grass roof (51.5%),
which all indicate lower socioeconomic than those who reported cement floor
(34.5%), brick (41.7%) or cement walls (8.1%), and corrugated metal roofs (48.5%).
The most frequently reported religion was Roman Catholic (42.3%) followed by
Seventh Day Adventist (24.5%), Apostle (13.4%), Mennonite (12.3%), and other
religions (7.6%; i.e., Rojo, Islam, Free Church, Pentecostal).
Figure 1. Percentage of respondents reporting select
socioeconomic and health issues
100
90.4
90
80
75.5
70
Introduction:
62.9
60
Percent
Tanzania, home to Mount Kilimanjaro and bordered by Lake Victoria, is one
developing country in East Africa requiring immediate public health attention. The
total population of Tanzania is 42.5 million, annual growth rate is 2.9%, life
expectancy is estimated between 45.2-55.9 years, infant mortality rate is 73.4 per
1,000 live births, and 1.6 million people have HIV/AIDS1. Tanzania is one of the
poorest countries in the world with an estimated 36% of the population living below
the poverty line.2 Residents living in rural areas, which often lack medical and public
health infrastructures, are vulnerable to malaria, diarrhea, upper respiratory
infections, tuberculosis, typhoid fever, schistosomiasis, and many other diseases.
This is important considering 70% of the Tanzanian population live in rural areas.
This study examined health indicators among residents living in the rural village of
Sota, located in northern Tanzania. Little to no public health research has been
conducted in this area even though major public health disparities are evident.
Kawira, M.D.
50
40
30
23.3
20
10
6.1
0
Lack Food
Economic
Hardship
Health Problems
Unsafe Water
School Issues
Sociodemographic or Health Issue
Variable
Environmental Health Indicators
Latrine on property (yes)
Water source
lake
well
Water purified (yes)
Water purifying method
boil
filter
sun
chemical
Maternal and Child Health
Indicators
Among those who had at least one
child, # ofÉ
children dead or alive
children who have died
female children alive
male children alive
children under 5
children under 5 immunized
months breastfed last child
# of other people in house
# of mosquito nets per household
Location where gave last birth
home
hospital
sota clinic or other
Family planning used (yes)
Family planning method among those
reported using family planningÉ
injection
oral
bilateral tubal ligation (BTL)
other
Disease Indicators
At least one family mem ber currently
has disease (yes)É .
physical disability
deafness
mental_disability
blindness
# of family members currently on
treatmentÉ
none
one or more
Type of disease being treated among
those on treatmentÉ
hypertension
tuberculosis (TB)
diabetes
HIV
other
Past one-year report ofÉ
malaria
diarrhea
pneumonia
measles
Percent
Mean (SD)
Range
51.9
99.3
0.7
81.6
74.2
12.8
7.1
6.0
5.9(4.8)
1.4(2.1)
2.4(2.0)
2.4(2.0)
1.1(1.6)
1.2(1.1)
19.1(5.1)
1.0(1.8)
1.4(1.2)
1-55
0-23
0-15
0-17
0-7
0-7
2-36
0-16
0-9
57.5
41.7
0.8
9.6
66.0
16.0
14.0
4.0
20.9
48.8
22.8
19.2
16.7
80.9
19.1
37.6
35.8
4.6
3.7
18.4
46.6
16.8
5.7
1.5
Approaching residents’ homes to conduct
survey. Residents typically raise animals and
farm land directly around their home.
Conclusions:
Our findings support previous monitoring reports that suggest residents in rural
villages in Tanzania are poverty-stricken and are greatly burdened by disease. Our
results provide information about environmental, maternal and child, and disease
indicators that are important for future public health efforts. For example, the vast
majority of residents obtain their drinking water from Lake Victoria, and most of these
residents do not treat their water before drinking. Because the lake contains high
levels of water-born bacteria, this behavior puts residents at risk for illness. Another
important finding is that very few residents use family planning methods. For the
small group that uses family planning methods, it appears that injections may be the
most acceptable or available treatment. Finally, our findings bring attention to several
conditions that need to be addressed with public health programming--hypertension,
tuberculosis, diabetes, HIV, and physical and mental disabilities.
Methods:
Participants and Procedures
A trained interpreter, fluent in native African languages and English, from the local
village and medical students from the United States collected data at homes of
respondents using a face-to-face interview method. The interviewer marked the
responses given by respondents on an interview survey using paper-and-pencil
techniques. Data were collected at respondent households (N=555) within four
different villages including Gingo (25.8%), Kirengo (26.0%), Sota (22.7%), and Sidika
(26.0%). The main language spoken by respondents was Luo (95.6%), followed by
Swahili (2.7%), and other languages (1.7%; i.e., Kikwaya, Kisuba, Kijita, Kisukuma,
Kikuria, Kisimbiti).
Measures and Analyses
Respondents were questioned on a range of socio-demographic and public health
questions. Public health questions were broadly categorized into environmental
health, maternal and child health, and disease indicators. Statistical analyses were
conducted in SAS 9.1 software. Descriptive statistics were calculated for all health
indicators. Frequencies were also calculated to determine the perceived importance
of socioeconomic and health issues cited by respondents.
Typical home where interviews were
conducted. Homes most often were made
of mud or brick with roofs made of straw.
Data recorder documenting respondent
answers during a face-to-face household
interview.
References
1. The World Bank (2010). Tanzania data and statistics. The World Bank Group.
2. Tanzania National Website (2010). Health. The Government of the United Republic of Tanzania.
Acknowledgements:
We would like to that the respondents for their time and eagerness to take our survey.