Improving Compliance with Quinine + Tetracycline for Treatment of Malaria: Evaluation of Health Education Interventions in Cambodian Villages

To improve compliance with a 7-day quinine + tetracycline regimen against malaria, two health education interventions were tested on populations in two separate groups of villages. In one group, the use of posters and video improved the compliance rates from 0.5% to 20% (20% effectiveness; 95% confidence interval (CI), 13-26%); in the other, where posters alone were used, full compliance changed from 6% to 11% (6% effectiveness; 95% CI, 0-12%). The improved compliance in the first group occurred mainly among those who went to health practitioners (effectiveness 40%) rather than drug vendors (effectiveness 2%), although this could not be attributed to differences in the advice they gave to patients. After the poster plus video intervention, more patients bought quinine + tetracycline and received correct advice encouraging the use of a full course; however, not all of them actually completed the full course by self-administration.