Determinants Of Diarrhea Incidence In Children Under Five Using A Social Epidemiological Approach In Dom Aleixo District, Dili, Timor-Leste (June-July 2024)
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Abstract
Data from the Timor-Leste Ministry of Health indicates that the incidence of diarrhea in Dom Aleixo has continued to rise, with 23,621 cases reported in 2021, increasing to 66,652 cases in 2023. Despite ongoing efforts to improve WASH (Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene) infrastructure, diarrhea remains a significant public health challenge. This study aimed to investigate the factors influencing the incidence of diarrhea in children under five years old in Dom Aleixo, Dili, using a social epidemiological approach during June-July 2024. A cross-sectional study design was employed, with a sample size of 96 participants selected using the Lemeshow formula and a random sampling technique. Data was collected through household interviews and direct observations. Hypothesis testing included Chi-Square tests to assess relationships between variables and logistic regression to predict the likelihood of diarrhea based on factors such as water quality, sanitation, and socioeconomic status. The results indicated significant relationships between the presence of toilets in the house (p-value = 0.034 < 0.05), access to clean water for handwashing (p-value = 0.005 < 0.05), and the availability of handwashing facilities (p-value = 0.001 < 0.05) with diarrhea incidence. However, no significant relationships were found for the frequency of cleaning the toilet (p-value = 0.100 > 0.05), frequency of handwashing (p-value = 0.064 > 0.05), water storage method (p-value = 0.247 > 0.05), water source (p-value = 0.703 > 0.05), frequency of cleaning containers (p-value = 0.208 > 0.05), water safety measures (p-value = 1.00 > 0.05), income adequacy (p-value = 0.272 > 0.05), total income (p-value = 0.381 > 0.05), and education (p-value = 0.063 > 0.05).