Response of Undergraduates to Institutional Emergency Strategies on Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) in Kwara State University, Nigeria

ABSTRACT Background: The challenge of Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) outbreak prompted the need for the development and implementation of strategic alertness and emergency response intervention in prevention and containment of future threats and epidemics. Objective: This work was designed to assess knowledge, perception, attitude, behavioural practices, risk vulnerability and effectiveness of some selected surveillance interventions strategic responses and measures among undergraduate students in prevention and containment of Ebola Virus Disease epidemics. Also, to analyse the associations amongst root causes, vulnerability, risk factors, mode of spread, symptoms, prevention, and response patterns. Materials and Methods: The study employed a carefully-structured, closed-ended, interviewer-administered, paper-based questionnaire designed to capture information on socio-demographic characteristics, active knowledge on EVD, perception, behavioural attitude and responses from undergraduate students to selected strategic surveillance and intervention measures towards containment of EVD in Kwara State University, Nigeria. This is expected to enhance qualitative understanding of perceived misconceptions, and bottlenecks in relation to EVD root causes, mode of transmission, prevention and control programs and strategies. Data were entered and analysed using IBM® SPSS® Statistics Version 22. Descriptive statistics were reported as frequencies and percentages, and presented graphically using bar graphs and pie charts. Data were analysed further with Pearson Chi-Square test to determine associations between variables from which inferences were drawn and reported at a significance level of p