2.9. Data Quality Assurance, Management, and Statistical Analysis

The handling and analysis of samples and bacterial isolates were done following standard operating procedures to ensure the quality and reliability of the study findings. The sterility of culture media was maintained and confirmed by the incubation of uninoculated culture media as a negative control. Based on CoPS count (colony-forming units/gram), the food samples were classified as satisfactory (<20 CFU/g), borderline (20– ≤ 10⁴ CFU/g) or unsatisfactory (potentially injurious to health and/or unfit for human consumption, >10⁴ CFU/g). Data were entered into Microsoft Excel 2010, exported into SPSS V27.0.1.0, and analyzed using descriptive statistics such as prevalence, percentages, mean, and standard error. The CoPS counts were transformed to log₁₀ CFU/mL prior to statistical analysis. Data on the prevalence of S. aureus and multidrug-resistant isolates were analyzed using a chi-squared test to determine whether there were significant differences in their prevalence between sample types. The confidence level was held at 95% and the p value at less than 5% for all analyses.