SURVEY OF US ARMY SOLDIERS KNOWLEDGE, ATTITUDES, AND PRACTICES REGARDING PERSONAL PROTECTION MEASURES TO PREVENT ARTHROPOD-RELATED DISEASESAND NUISANCE BITES

This study examined U.S. Army soldiers' knowledge, attitudes, and prac tices regarding personal protection measures (PPMs) to prevent arthrop od-related diseases and nuisance bites. Soldiers attending 1 of 13 U.S . Army training courses either completed a written questionnaire (N = 1,007) or participated in a group interview (N = 65). Respondents prim arily used repellents to prevent nuisance insect bites (55%) rather th an to prevent disease (38.7%). Less than one-third correctly identifie d the military-issue repellents to be used on skin (31.7%) or clothing (26.1%), More than half (57.6%) thought that commercial products were better than military-issue repellents, but most (14.2%) reported that they did not have enough or any information about the U.S. military's system of PPMs. Soldiers have poor knowledge of U.S. military doctrin e regarding PPMs and still prefer to use commercial products. A focuse d strategy to ensure the appropriate use of PPMs by service members sh ould be developed, implemented, and evaluated.