Preparedness for Imported Malaria in Non-Endemic Europe: Healthcare Workforce Knowledge and Travel-History Practice in Poland.

Authors

Anna Bogacka, Jan Grzybek, Patrycja Krzysztoń, Beata Biernat, Ravi Kant, Maciej Grzybek

Published in

Tropical medicine & international health : TM & IH. Nov 09, 2026. Epub Nov 09, 2026.

Abstract

Imported malaria remains a diagnostic challenge in non-endemic countries, where timely recognition depends on healthcare workers eliciting recent travel history and initiating appropriate testing. We assessed malaria knowledge, training exposure and self-reported travel-history practice across healthcare worker roles at two reference centres in northern Poland.
We conducted an online cross-sectional survey between October 2023 and April 2024 among doctors, nurses, paramedics and allied healthcare personnel. A 25-item instrument covered aetiology, transmission, prevention, pharmacology, diagnosis and epidemiology. Knowledge scores were compared using non-parametric tests. Regression models exploring sociodemographic and occupational predictors were unstable because few respondents scored highly and are reported as supplementary sensitivity analyses.
Among 402 respondents, the mean knowledge score was 7.4 of 25 (29.6%); 91.3% scored below the predefined threshold and no respondent exceeded 64%. Knowledge gaps were greatest for complete transmission routes (4.0% correct), prevention measures (8.7%), diagnostic methods (12.7%) and contemporary pharmacology. Only 14.4% of doctors reported always asking febrile patients about travel to malaria-endemic regions. Malaria exposure in training was limited: 22.1% recalled coverage in parasitology classes and 3.5% had attended relevant symposia or conferences. No sociodemographic or occupational factor was independently associated with knowledge in any model specification.
Preparedness for imported malaria was weak across this non-endemic healthcare workforce. Strengthening case detection requires routine travel-history prompts in febrile-patient assessment, targeted continuing education and structured coverage of imported tropical infections in pre-graduate curricula.

PMID:
43003495
Bibliographic data and abstract were imported from PubMed on 10 Nov 2026.

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