Structural barriers in the prevention and control of leptospirosis in a municipality in southern Brazil: a qualitative study

Structural barriers in the prevention and control of leptospirosis in a municipality in southern Brazil: a qualitative study | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article Structural barriers in the prevention and control of leptospirosis in a municipality in southern Brazil: a qualitative study Suellen Caroline M. SILVA, Bianca C. BOHM, Ravena S. HAGE, Alessandra T. SOARES, and 5 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-4288919/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Published Journal Publication published 30 Sep, 2025 Read the published version in BMC Health Services Research → Version 1 posted 4 You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Background This article aimed to describe the structural barriers to the prevention and control of leptospirosis in a municipality in southern Brazil. Methodology A qualitative approach, specifically a case study design, was employed in this study conducted within primary care, surveillance, and management settings of a municipality. Thirty-three workers were selected through purposive sampling, and semi-structured individual interviews were conducted from August 2022 to March 2023. Data analysis followed a thematic sequential approach managed using the Etnograph program. In this stage, five categories were constructed, describing barriers related to leptospirosis knowledge and prevention measures, lack of training, insufficient infrastructure, inadequate human resources, absence of information production, and changes in the notification protocol. Results Through the identification of barriers, it was possible to highlight local healthcare access bottlenecks, which impact the management of leptospirosis cases and control efforts. Conclusions While the results may not be representative of the entire national territory, they can serve as a starting point for further studies on leptospirosis, prompting inquiries into its impact in areas with high disease risk and fostering the development of interventions on a larger scale. Zoonosis Primary Health Care Health surveillance Training Qualitative research Full Text Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. Cite Share Download PDF Status: Published Journal Publication published 30 Sep, 2025 Read the published version in BMC Health Services Research → Version 1 posted Editorial decision: Revision requested 22 Apr, 2024 Submission checks completed at journal 18 Apr, 2024 Editor assigned by journal 18 Apr, 2024 First submitted to journal 18 Apr, 2024 You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. Our growing team is made up of researchers and industry professionals working together to solve the most critical problems facing scientific publishing. Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-4288919","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":294141724,"identity":"0e5979bd-d2e9-4281-97a9-d2271aec5dff","order_by":0,"name":"Suellen Caroline M. 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