Indoor air bacterial quality and associated factors in prison inmate cells of East Hararghe Zone and Harari Regional State, Eastern Ethiopia

Background: Bacterial indoor air load refers to the level of bacteria within and around dwellings and other structures. Pathogens, bacterial cell fragments, and bacterial organisms’ byproducts can all pose major issues indoors, especially in prison inmate cells. However, there is lack of data on bacterial load and contributing factors in the East Hararghe zone and Harari regional state. The lack of studies on microbiological indoor air quality in prisons with contributing factors will therefore be filled by this investigation. Objectives: The study aimed to assess bacterial indoor air load and contributing factors in prison inmate cells from October 1 to October 30, 2020. Methodology: An institutional cross-sectional study was employed. All of the prisons in the East Hararghe zone and the Harari regional state served as the study’s and source population. 62 prison cells were used in the investigation. Samples were obtained using the passively settling plate technique. The data were evaluated through the use of SPSS statistical software, Excel, and the statistical procedures of ANOVA, correlation, and chi-square test. Results: The maximum and minimum bacterial loads, were recorded at 8:00 am (3027 CFU/m3) and 2:00 pm (1048 (CFU/m3) respectively. The correlation between the temperature and bacterial load was strongly positive (r = 0.680, p = 0.047), and the correlation of the moisture content and bacterial load was strongly negative  (r = -0.671, p = 0.039). Conclusion: The levels of bacteria were higher than the guideline (2000 CFU/m3). While the relative humidity of indoor air was negatively correlated with bacterial load, temperature and bacterial load were significantly positively correlated. Harari regional state and East Hararghe zone prison commissions should be alarmed to alleviate these problems. The building standards need to be completely updated to the latest standards.