INCIDENCE OF MALARIA AMONG STUDENTS IN MADONNA UNIVERSITY TEACHING HOSPITAL ELELE FROM 2018-2021

Abstract Malaria is a disease caused by a parasite called plasmodium which is transmitted from person to person by bite of an infected female anopheles mosquito. It is characterized by recurrent attacks of fever and rigor. This project work was set out to determine the incidence of malaria among students in Madonna University Teaching Hospital Elele, from 2018-2021.Five objectives and five research questions were developed to guide the study. The study is significant to medical health personnel (nurses), health institutions, government, social health workers, research institutions, etc. Retrospective research design was adopted for the study; data was collected using the pre-existing past medical record in Madonna University Teaching Hospital (MUTH). A sample size of 1500 was used. The data collected was analyzed using percentage and was presented in tables and bar charts. From the analyzed data, it shows that the incidence of malaria was higher in the year 2020 which is also as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. For the gender, male had the highest incidence. Recommendations were made like; the district coordinator in-charge of malaria control program should ensure that some of their personnel visit students in higher institutions to educate them on malaria prevention and control strategies.