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Article History

Received: 29 July 2025

Accepted: 16 March 2026

First Online: 24 March 2026

Declarations

:

: The study was conducted in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki and all principles of ethics were adhered to. We got an ethical approval from the College of Medicine Research Ethics Committee (COMREC), Malawi (reference number P.07/24–0937). The two institutions from where data was collected, namely Queen Elizabeth Central Hospital and Zomba Mental Hospital, permitted us to carry out the study upon review of our study protocol. Participants voluntarily consented to participate in the study by signing written informed consent forms.

: Study participants voluntarily consented to publish our study findings without necessarily including personal identifiers. The study findings were shared with the participants to ensure that the findings are a true reflection of what they said.

: The authors declare that they have no competing interests.