Table 4. Study participant attitudes about podoconiosis in Musanze District, Rwanda.
| Frequency N (%) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Attitude | Agree | Disagree | IDK1 |
| Health professionals N = 298 | |||
| Health care providers are in danger of contracting podoconiosis | 10 (3) | 283 (95) | 5 (2) |
| People will isolate me if they knew I treated podoconiosis patients | 8 (3) | 289 (97) | 1 (0) |
| People will appreciate me if they knew I treated podoconiosis patients | 293 (98) | 5 (2) | 0 (0) |
| People will isolate my family members if they knew I treated podoconiosis patient | 4 (1) | 294 (99) | 0 (0) |
| Health professionals and environmental officers N = 336 | |||
| People get podoconiosis because they have sinned | 3 (1) | 331 (99) | 0 (0) |
| Podoconiosis patients have poor hygiene | 139 (41) | 197 (59) | 0 (0) |
| Podoconiosis patients deserves love and support | 328 (98) | 8 (2) | 0 (0) |
| I buy food or items from a shopkeeper with podoconiosis | 323 (96) | 12(4) | 1 (0) |
| I am comfortable if my food server has podoconiosis | 306 (91) | 25 (7) | 5 (2) |
| I am at risk of acquiring podoconiosis if I am in contact with a podoconiosis patient | 10 (3) | 324 (96) | 2 (1) |
| It is a person`s own fault if they develop podoconiosis | 46 (14) | 286 (85) | 4 (1) |
| People with podoconiosis should be ashamed of themselves | 30 (9) | 306 (91) | 0 (0) |
| People with podoconiosis can remain competitively productive members of society | 246 (73) | 89 (27) | 1 (0) |
| Our society does not provide enough help to people with podoconiosis | 146 (44) | 129 (38) | 61 (18) |
| People who say they are podoconiosis patients are brave and strong | 167 (50) | 168 (50) | 1 (0) |
| People with podoconiosis are a threat to their own health and their family’s health | 254 (76) | 82 (24) | 0 (0) |
| People with podoconiosis deserve sympathy | 324 (97) | 12 (4) | 0 (0) |
| People with podoconiosis deserve treatment and care | 332 (99) | 4 (1) | 0 (0) |
| The family of the person with podoconiosis should be blamed for passing on the disease | 17 (5) | 317 (94) | 2 (1) |
| The family of the person with podoconiosis is cursed | 4 (1) | 332 (99) | 0 (0) |
| The family of the person with podoconiosis should be isolated | 1 (0) | 335 (100) | 0 (0) |
| People with podoconiosis should be legally separated from others to protect the public health | 5 (2) | 330 (98) | 1 (0) |
1IDK: I don’t know