Document is current

Article History

Received: 9 January 2026

Accepted: 29 May 2026

First Online: 6 July 2026

Declarations

:

: The study protocol has received ethical approval from the Review Board of the Ethics Committee of the Medical Faculty, Heidelberg University (S-042/2025); and the Institutional Review Board of the Navrongo Health Research Centre (NHRCIRB). The study will be conducted in accordance with the principles of the Declaration of Helsinki. All personal data and responses from participants will be handled with medical confidentiality and managed in accordance with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and relevant national and federal data protection laws.Substantive protocol changes will be documented as formal amendments and submitted to the ethics committee for approval before implementation, as required. All amendments will be dated, version-controlled, archived, and communicated to the team, funders, and partners. Minor administrative changes that do not affect safety or study integrity will be noted but may not require formal ethics approval. Participants will be identified only by unique ID numbers in all data forms and databases. Identifiable data will not be shared or published. Written informed consent will be obtained from all study participants. For illiterate participants, consent will be recorded via thumbprint in the presence of an impartial witness.

: Written informed consent will obtained from the participants. The document is available upon request to the corresponding author.

: The authors declare no competing interests.