KINTAMPO HEALTH DEMOGRAPHIC SURVEILLANCE SYSTEM(KHDSS)

Background

Health and demographic Surveillance in both the Kintampo North and South Districts started with the establishment of the Kintampo Health Research Centre (KHRC) in 1994. Until November 2003 when surveillance activities were upgraded to a full scale to cover the entire population, surveillance was on some target groups (young infants and mothers). The Kintampo North and South Districts have the following boundaries: The Nkoranza district and Techiman municipality bound to the South and South West respectively while the Black Volta forms the boundary in the North. In the West and North West are Wenchi and Tain districts respectively while the East is bounded by the Pru district. The study site has a surface area of 7,162 square kilometers which is 18.1% of the total land area of the region. Its strategic location makes it the geographical centre of Ghana. The vegetation is mainly of the forest-savannah transition type and there are two rainy seasons: the major rainy season from March-June, and the minor season from July-November. The major indigenous ethnic groups are the Bono and the Mo. There is however a large immigrant population from the three Northern Regions (Dagaaba, Dagomba and Konkomba) who are generally farmers. Some immigrants of Dangbe and Ewe origin, who are mainly fishermen, are settled along the banks of the Black Volta. The settlements are mostly concentrated in the Southern part and along the main trunk road linking the two district capitals (Kintampo and Jema) to Northern Region.

Field Operations

The fifth and sixth updates or rounds were conducted in 2007. During the fifth update, vital events (pregnancies, births, deaths, and migration) were covered as it was done in the previous rounds. The administration of appropriate Verbal Autopsy (VA) questionnaires by our specially trained field supervisors to the closest relative of a deceased person (who was nominated by the family) was continued as in previous updates. Also, a module on HIV/AIDS was introduced.  Updating of socio-economic variables of households within the study area was continued. During the sixth update, all the activities mentioned above except the HIV/AIDS module were continued. In addition, annual updates on education and immunization were repeated. Furthermore, modules on Intermittent Preventive Treatment of Malaria in Pregnant Women (IPTp), Bed net and Biomass fuel use were introduced. During each round, Household Registration Books (HRB) containing names and basic demographic data on all residents in the HDSS site were used together with event notification forms as the main data collection instruments for recording and updating of vital events. The field activities of the KHDSS during 2007 were carried out by 14 fieldworkers and 8 field supervisors (who were responsible for conducting verbal autopsies and reconciling migrations). In addition, two (2) data entry clerks and a filing clerk received and entered the data. All the KHDSS activities were directed by a demographer who was ably assisted by a team consisting of a research officer, a senior data manager, a data manager, a senior data supervisor and three field coordinators.

Contact: Charles Zandoh and Abubakari Sulemana
E-mail:charles.zandoh@kintampo-hrc.org and abubakari.sulemana@kintampo-hrc.org