KNOWLEDGE AND ATTITUDE TOWARDS MALARIA KNOWLESI: A CASE STUDY AT SENANING VILLAGE, KETUNGAU HULU SUBDISTRICT SINTANG DISTRICT

Abstract

Malaria knowlesi was confirmed as an endemic zoonosis in Malaysian Borneo in 2004. The molecular analysis showed that 58% of malaria cases in Sarawak, Malaysia were caused by P. knowlesi. Because Senaning Village, Ketungau Hulu Subdistrict, Sintang Regency lies at the border with Sarawak, Malaysia, it is potential for this village to have a disease transmission from Sarawak. This study aimed to describe the knowledge and attitudes of the community towards malaria knowlesi. It was also designed to describe the respondent characteristics of Senaning Village, Ketungau Hulu Subdistrict, Sintang Regency. This study was an observational descriptive study. The sampling was done by purposive sampling technique. The instrument was a questionnaire with sample size of 93 respondents. The result of this study indicated that highest proportion of respondents were male (51.61%), early adult age group 26-35 years (26.88%), graduated from college (34.41%), and farmers/laborers (34.41%). The research respondents had a moderate level of knowledge (49,5%) and attitude (68,8%).

Keywords: Malaria Knowlesi, Knowledge, Attitude, Zoonosis