Educational cartoon boosts worm infection prevention

Cover of the Cartoon “The Magic Glasses.

Educational cartoon boosts worm infection prevention | Source: News-Medical, Apr 29, 2013 |

Researchers in China have found that a health education package targeted at schoolchildren can improve hygiene behaviors and reduce the incidence of soil-transmitted helminth infection.

The study, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, included 1718 school children aged 9 to 10 years, of whom 893 attended control schools (n=19), and 825 attended intervention schools (n=19). The research was conducted in rural Linxiang City District, Hunan province, where there is a high prevalence of helminth infection but limited awareness or educational activity about the risks.

Both control and intervention schools displayed an awareness poster. However, in the intervention schools, students also took part in an educational package, including a 12-minute cartoon promoting knowledge and prevention awareness, followed by classroom discussions. They also took part in drawing and writing competitions that reinforced the cartoon’s messages, and received a pamphlet summarizing the main points. All students received albendazole treatment at baseline.

Uganda – Sanitation message spreads through laughter

Harriet Achen stands in front of an expectant crowd, betraying no sign of nerves. The 14-year-old’s portrayal of a rural Ugandan mother of five is convincing. She busies herself setting children tasks to help prepare a family meal and her fellow actors scuttle around obeying Achen’s every command.

The floor is swept, each dish is properly covered with white cloth and, crucially, everyone washes their hands before the meal begins. Fellow actor Emmanuel Achibu looks hungry. He recites a rushed prayer, collapses on the floor and pretends to eat in one fluid movement. The crowd erupts in laughter.

There is a serious message being delivered alongside the comedy. Achen and Achibu, from Amorikot primary school in Katine sub-county in rural northern Uganda, are performing a series of plays and poems at a National Sanitation Week event, organised by the African Medical and Research Foundation (Amref). The aim is to help raise awareness of sanitation issues among the Katine community.

Read More – Guardian