MAGNITUDE, IT’S ASSOCIATED FACTORS, AND ANTIBIOTIC SUSCEPTIBILITY OF BACTERIAL ISOLATES FROM PAPER CURRENCY NOTES IN TRANSACTION BY FOOD HANDLERS IN BALE GOBA TOWN, SOUTH EAST ETHIOPIA

Abstract

Paper currency is a highly exchangeable material. Different studies identified various pathogenic bacteria on paper currencies like S. aureus, E. coli, Salmonella and Shigella spp. However, a few studies were conducted in Ethiopia on bacterial contamination of paper currency, their antimicrobial susceptibility pattern, and associated factors from the food handlers. Objective:To assess magnitude, associated factors, and antibiotic susceptibility of bacterial isolates from paper currency notes in transaction by food handlers in Bale Goba, South Eastern Ethiopia. Methods: Community-based cross-sectional study design was conducted on 346 paper currency notes with denominations of 5,10, and 100 Ethiopian birrs in the hands of 115 food handlers from April 17 to July 17, 2021. Data on socio-demographics and bevavioral factors were collected by face-to-face interviews. The samples were collected by letting the selected individuals drop a selected currency note into sterile polythene bags. Then the Swab from each currency note were cultured on blood, MacConkey agar, xylose lysine deoxycholate agar, and Mannitol salt agar and antimicrobial susceptibility were made by Kirby-Bauer disc diffusion technique. Data were analyzed by Statistical Package for Social Science version 20.0. A p-value <0.05 was considered statistically significant. Result: A total of 340 (98.3%) (95%, CI: 96.3,99.2) of currency notes were contaminated with bacteria. About 66.5% (95% CI: 61.3,71.2) of total collected currency notes were contaminated with potentially pathogen that includes S. aureus, E. coli, Enterobacter aerogenes, Salmonella spp., Klebsiella spp., Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Shigella spp. Those currency notes in the hands of food handlers who are male, age-category <=25, educational status=<primary school, wetting of finger with saliva to count money, touching money while eating, having no handwashing practice after toilet and before eating and preparing a meal, and do not disinfecting hands with sanitizer after touching money were highly contaminated with enteric pathogens (p-value<0.05). High percentage gram-positive and gram-negative isolates were resistant to Tetracycline (35.1%); and Ampicillin (51.0%). The overall magnitude of multi-drug resistance was 17.6%. Conclusion: More than half percent of studied paper currency notes were contaminated with the potentially pathogenic bacteria. Almost one-fifth of isolates were multidrug-resistant. High pathogenic bacteria were found in paper currency notes of food handlers who do not washing their hands after toilet, before eating and preparing food.