Rationale and Background: : Parasitic infections remain a significant public health concern in developing countries. According to the World Health Organization, more than 1.5 billion people worldwide are affected by soil-transmitted parasitic infection. These infections are particularly prevalent in tropical regions, with over 267 million preschool-aged children and 568 million school-aged children infected. Objectives: : To establish the prevalence of parasitic infections and associated factors among the riverside Mekong communities in Sangthong District, Vientiane Capital. Methodology: : This study employed a cross-sectional analytic approach to determine the prevalence of helminthic infections, and factors associated with infections in humans in the Mekong Riverside communities of Sangthong District, Vientiane Capital, in 2023. Data were collected using questionnaires and stool examinations conducted with the modified Kato-Katz technique. Descriptive and inferential statistical analyses, including logistic regression, were performed using STATA version 14. Results: : Among the 327 participants, 94 individuals (28.7%) were found to have intestinal parasitic infections. The most common parasite was Taenia spp. (22.3%), followed by Hookworm (20.2%), Ascaris lumbricoides (12.7%), Opisthorchis viverrini (11.7%), Strongyloides stercoralis (4.2%), Fasciola spp. (4.2%), Hymenolepis nana (3.1%), and Trichuris trichiura (2.1%). Co-infections were observed in several cases: Hookworm + Opisthorchis viverrini (4.2%), and Hookworm + Strongyloides stercoralis (4.2%), Fasciola spp. + Hookworm (2.1%), Taenia spp. + Ascaris lumbricoides (2.1%), and Taenia spp. + Hookworm (2.1%). Triple infections were found in a small percentage of participants (1.0%), involving Hookworm, Opisthorchis viverrini, and Ascaris lumbricoides. Risk factors for intestinal parasitic infections included the consumption of raw food (AOR = 2.394, 95% CI: 1.011–5.667, p = 0.047) and walking barefoot during farm work (AOR = 4.563, 95% CI: 1.000–20.819, p = 0.050). Conclusion: This study highlights that consuming raw food and walking barefoot during farm work are key risk factors for parasitic infections. However, it also demonstrates that in Santhong District, Vientiane Capital, the prevalence of intestinal parasitic infections (27.8%), particularly Taenia spp., Hookworm, Ascaris lumbricoides, and Opisthorchis viverrine, are lower than the previously reported national average of 75.8%.

Background and rationale: Infections caused by bacteria are significant public health problems and the roots of much illness and death in Laos. Hemoculture is the gold standard for the diagnosis of septicemia and the aetiological agents. However, the result of blood culture depend on many factors, from the collection of blood by nurses until completing and reporting the laboratory analysis. The process of blood collection by nurses plays an important role for optimizing culture yields in the laboratory and the result will be more accurate with a lower contamination rate, if performed using strict sterilized techniques. Correct blood collection and culture practices will also reduce the risks of needle-stick injuries and harm. Objective: To study behavior on blood collection from patients by nurses for culture at Microbiology Laboratory of Mahosot Hospital, Vientiane Capital. Methodology: The study was descriptive, cross-sectional quantitative study to the nurses who were performing blood collection for culture and who answered questionnaires. The reported behavior of the nurses was also compared to that observed by the researcher. Data entered into the Excel and analyzed with STATA. Results: The majority of the study nurses were female (92%) with a mean age of 33 years, a mid-level of nursing study (82.4%), and with an average duration of working of 7 years. The awareness of nurses about the importance of blood collection technique for culture was in the range from 43.3% and 30.0% rating as high and intermediate respectively. Right attitude towards accurate practices was 27.0%. The reported correct practice of blood collection by the nurses was 38% however the correspondent figure by observation was only 12%. Older age, longer work experience, better work knowledge, attitude were significantly associated with correct blood collection procedures (P-value <0.05). Conclusion The techniques and knowledge of the nurses for collecting blood cultures remains low due to lack of knowledge, techniques, procedures and methods to collect and deliver samples. Therefore, adequate and regular trainings are urgently needed.