Assessing Knowledge on Seasonal Malaria Chemoprevention; Sicapp Usability and Data Quality Amongst Community Health Workers in The Upper West Region of Ghana

Abstract

Background: Although Seasonal Malaria Chemoprevention ( was introduced in 2012 to mitigate challenges with early diagnosis and treatment manual documentation and logistics issues remain. To address these problems, the Seasonal Malaria Chemoprevention in Children Application ( was developed to enhance data management and streamline SMC implementation. This study was conducted to ass ess community healthcare workers' ( knowledge of SMC, SiCApp's usability, and to analy s e the quality of data from SiCApp in the Upper West Region of Ghana. Methodology A cross sectional survey using a structured questionnaire was conducted from March 2024 to August 2024. The study utilized a random sampling technique and had a sample size of 346 CHWs The study assessed SiCApp’s effectiveness by evaluating CHWs' SMC knowledge, usability and data quality in terms of timeliness and completeness Binary logistic regression analysed the influence of socio demographic factors and SMC knowledge on usability and data quality. Results The study found that 58.1% of CHWs had high knowledge of SMC, while 41.9% had low knowledge, and although the SiCApp's accura cy and completeness were high, 52% of users deemed its usability unacceptable. CHWs from Nadowli (AOR 0.262, 95% CI: 0.0956 0.718, p 0.009), Nandom (AOR 0.135, 95% CI: 0.0395 0.461, p 0.001), and Wa West (AOR 0.266, 95% CI: 0.1307 0.543, p 0.00 1) were more knowledgeable about SMC than those in Lawra. Additionally, those with 11 years of experience were more knowledgeable than those without experience (AOR 0.243, 95% CI: 0.0931 0.633, p 0.004). Conclusion: The study highlighted the need for specialised training for less experienced CHWs, improvements to SiCApp's user interface, and better resource allocation to underperforming regional districts to enhance malaria interventions and ensure the effectiveness and sustainability of digital health tools in public health.