A Cross Sectional Study of the Knowledge and Practice of Self-Breast Examination among Market Women at the Makola Shopping Mall, Accra, Ghana

Background: Breast cancer is one of the most common cancers in women worldwide. With an estimated incidence of 1,676,633 with 521,817 deaths in the year 2012, the figure is expected to hit the 82.5 millionth mark by 2015. Breast cancer screening is reported to be extremely low in most low-middle income countries like Ghana. This study was to determine the knowledge and practices of self-breast examination among market women at Makola Shopping Mall in Accra, Ghana. Methods: The study was conducted at the Makola Shopping Mall in Accra among women above the age of 20 years who owned a store and sell at the mall. Data were collected using mixed method involving in-depth interviews and questionnaire survey. Random samples of 170 participants were selected from a population of 400 for the quantitative survey. A total of eight in-depth interviews were conducted to generate qualitative data to complement the survey data. Results: Majority (60%) of the respondents were between the ages of 20 - 40 years. There’s a high literacy rate among the participants. Though awareness of self-breast examination was very high (93%), only 27% practiced self-breast examination in line with the recommended one week period after menses due to lack of knowledge of the basic skills to do self-breast examination. Conclusion: In view of the lack of knowledge resulting in non-performance of self-breast examination, continuous education on breast cancer screening should be given to the women to enable them acquire the skills of performing self-breast examination to promote early detection of the disease.

Knowledge, Attitude and Practice of Breast Self-Examination amongst Women in Two Communities of Cameroon

Breast cancer is a major health problem in the world. It is the most common cancer in women and is equally the leading cause of cancer death in women. Though in controversy Breast self-examination (BSE) remains a useful tool in early diagnosis of breast cancer. The aim of this study was to evaluate the knowledge, attitude and practice of BSE amongst women in Yaoundé and Monatele. We carried out a cross sectional study in two communities of Cameron over a period of eight months, targeting females older than 15 years. After obtaining authorization, we randomly interviewed 402 consenting participants, using a pretested questionnaire. Data were entered using CS Pro 7.3 and analysed using SPSS 23. Of a total of 402 participants, 256 (63.7%) in Monatele and 146 (36.3%) in Yaoundé VI, the mean age was 26.55 ± 9.57 years. Exactly 50% (201) had earlier heard of BSE. Health personnel and media represented the main sources of information on BSE. Of the total, 46 (11.4%) knew BSE should be done monthly. Fifty-three percent had poor knowledge and 51.0% had a generally low attitude towards BSE. Out of 402 participants, 65.2% reported not practicing BSE. For those practicing, 71.6% had poor practices. The main reason for not practicing was lack of knowledge. Poor knowledge increased poor practice. In conclusion half of the women had heard about BSE even though the majority had a poor knowledge on BSE and very low overall attitude and practice. Health personnel and media played a key role in passing of information. Increasing the number of health campaigns, multiplying TV shows and health talks about breast self-examination will improve knowledge and hence attitude and practice.

Persistent effect of nurse-led education on self-care behavior and disease knowledge in heart failure patients

Purpose:The guidelines on the management of patients with heart failure support intensive patient education on self-care.The present study aimed to evaluate the short-term and long-term impacts of a structured education provided by a qualified heart failure nurse on patients'self-care behavior and disease knowledge.Methods:One hundred fifty patients(66±12 years)hospitalized for heart failure participated in a structured one-hour educational session by a heart failure nurse.Patients completed a questionnaire comprising 15 questions(nine questions from the European Heart Failure Self-Care Behavior Scale[EHFScB-9]and six on the patients'disease knowledge)one day before and one day and six months after the educational session.Possible responses for each question ranged from 1(complete agreement)to 5(complete disagreement).Results:After the educational session,the total EHFScB-9 score improved from 24.31±6.98 to 14.94±6.22,and the disease knowledge score improved from 18.03±5.44 to 10.74±4.30(both P<0.001).Scores for individual questions ranged from 1.26±0.81(adherence to the medication protocol)to 3.66±1.58(everyday weighing habits)before the education.The greatest improvement after education was observed on response to weight gain(-2.00±1.57),daily weight control(—1.77±1.64),and knowledge on the cause of patients'heart failure(-1.53±1.43).At 6-month follow-up,EHFScB-9 score was 17.33±7.23 and knowledge score was 12.34±5.30(both P<0.001 compared with baseline).No factor was predictive of an insufficient teaching effect.Conclusions:The educational program led by a qualified nurse improves patients'self-care behavior and disease knowledge with a persistent effect at 6-month follow-up.There are no patient characteristics which preclude the implementation of an educational session.

Evaluation of Nutrition and Physical Activity Knowledge, Attitudes, Self Efficacy and Behaviors in Teachers and Children after Implementation of the “Healthy Active Kids” Online Program in Australian Elementary Schools

The aims were to examine change in nutrition and physical activity knowledge, self efficacy and attitudes in a cohort of 23 teachers and 304 year 5 and 6 children after the “Healthy Active Kids” online program and to assess any behavioral change in children’s self reported nutrition and physical activity behaviors and investigate the predictors of nutrition knowledge gain in teachers and children. Results found significant (p < 0.0001) increases in teacher and student knowledge of the five food groups;key nutrients provided by each food group, The Australian Guide to Healthy Eating;food labelling laws, identification of common names for fats, sugars and salts on food labels, food proportions on the Healthy Food Plate and the level and percentage of water in the human body and human brain. Teacher attitudes towards the importance of nutrition and diet and self efficacy related to teaching nutrition in class improved (p < 0.01). The final regression model for predictors of the dependent variable, knowledge gain in students was R = 0.53, Adjusted R square = 0.28 (F = 4.76, p < 0.01) indicating that 28% of the variation in knowledge gain was predicted by the negative (low) Time 1 knowledge. Changes to eating habits reported by children were “drinking more water each day” (89.1%) and “eating foods from the five food groups each day” (76.2%);“sharing information about food labels with your family” (52.4%);“reading food labels when you go shopping” (50.0%);“changing what is on your dinner plate each night” (44.2%);“vegetables that you eat now that you didn’t eat before” (42.1%) and “fruits that you eat now” (39%). Results suggest that the development of basic nutrition knowledge is still very important for both teachers and students, but that other factors such as self efficacy, empowerment and skill development also contribute to nutrition behavior change in children.

An Assessment of the Knowledge and Practice of Self Breast Examination (BSE) amongst University Students

Objective: This study sought to assess the knowledge and practice of breast self-examination (BSE) amongst students in the Department of Nursing Science of a tertiary institution in Benin City, Edo State towards self breast examination (SBE). Methods: A descriptive, cross sectional study was conducted in the nursing department of a tertiary institution in Benin City, Edo state. The age range of the study population was between 17-31 years. Convenient sampling technique was used to select 200 female students. The instrument used was a structured questionnaire. The questionnaire was divided into 4 sections: i) Bio-data;ii) knowledge of self breast examination;iii) practice self breast examination;iv) factors affecting SBE. Results: The results of this study indicated that majority of the students were knowledgeable about self breast examination and majority of them practiced self breast examination. The alternate hypothesis which stated that there was a significant difference between factors affecting SBE was retained and the mean values revealed that “forgetfulness” as a factor had the highest mean value. This meant that “forgetfulness” was a potent factor to SBE among the respondents studied. Conclusion: The students in this tertiary institution were aware of self breast examination and they did practice it. Studies like these could enhance the knowledge regarding BSE among nurses and other health professionals.

Narcissism： Theories of Self and Knowledge with Reference to the Notion of Reflection

This paper analyzes the concept of Narcissism which stands behind the theory and critique of particular psychological manifestations of personality. I argue that this concept is essentially a trope of reflection and that reflection is thought of itself as itself which involves a ＂turning around upon oneself.＂ But we do not see ourselves as we actually are, or in our entirety as a physical entity; self knowledge is limited by our nature. What we do not see or attend to is glossed over with the idealizations that are attached to our interest and these are informed by instinctual, or unconscious, intent. The relation between self and other is both contained by and expressed in interpersonal and societal interaction, but still there is an inner aspect that remains sovereign and intimate. Societal values inform our identity, but cannot touch the inner self （or intimate self）. We only ever experience ourselves no matter how similar or intimate we are to others. Although physically different from others we mostly aim to be known （identified） in accordance with our own sense of value and self estimation, yet we do not escape judgment from others. One may resist any evidence or opinions about themselves from others that are not in accord with this sense of self value whilst easily accepting ideas and values to be true or accurate facts about them that they only wish to be true. From these two sources of ideas of oneself, internal and externally derived, we form a sense of ourself in comparison to ideal others. This sense of identity informs our actions and choices. We may continually monitor the effect our self-belief has on others and adjust our self-attitude accordingly. Or we may fail to see that others do not share those beliefs we have about ourselves （e.g., a job interview）. Narcissism is a human tendency to either exaggerate or underrate one＇s power or beauty and this leads to false self beliefs. These ideas about oneself are ego-syntonic, within the boundary of the ego, and are thus not （immediately） experienced as being false. Thus, the question as to what is real and what is imagined is at stake in considering how we reflect upon a self which is essentially also a reflection of how others see them. The concept of Narcissism involves this inviolable choice to act for ourself or for others＇ sake in the pursuit of freedom and satisfaction in social interactions. Taken as an axiologicaUy neutral mode of analysis, Narcissism illuminates the problem of being self in the world of others and goes to the possibility of self determination and knowledge. Specifically, I aim to show that self reflection is the key element of the idea or thought of self, but that form of reflection alone is not enough to ensure error since it is based on a fundamental illusion of ego integrity. However, the attentive mindfulness or open ideation of a purer form of thought which I term ＂active reflection＂ allows the possibility of new perspectives hitherto unavailable to the self to form, ensuring that rectification can proceed from experience

A Longitudinal Study of Knowledge, Attitudes and Self-Efficacy in Pregnant Asthmatics

The objectives of this study of pregnant women with asthma are 1) to describe their knowledge and attitudes of asthma in pregnancy and their self-efficacy in carrying out their self-management plan during pregnancy, 2) to determine if their knowledge, attitudes, and self-efficacy changed as their pregnancy progressed, and 3) to ascertain the relationship between knowledge, attitudes, and self-esteem and age, education, trimester of pregnancy, weeks of pregnancy, the number of times pregnant and live births. Sixty-eight pregnant women who had an asthma diagnosis were given knowledge, attitudes and self-efficacy questionnaires initially during the point of first contact (first or second) trimester (Time I) and subsequently during the latter part of their pregnancy (third trimester) (Time II). A demographic data form was also administered at Times I and II. Data were collected in an urban academic medical clinic and analyzed using SPSS 17. Data analysis utilized frequencies, paired samples t tests, and linear regression. There were no significant differences between Time I and Time II in attitudes and self-efficacy. Significant differences were limited to the knowledge questionnaire (t = 4.370, p = 0.05). There was a significant relationship between education and knowledge. Pregnant women with asthma had gaps in their knowledge of asthma in pregnancy, although their knowledge increased as their pregnancy progressed from Time I to Time II. Also, the more education the women had, the better they understood asthma. Education for pregnant women with asthma is tailored to their needs and modified as necessary. Nurses are prepared to address this challenge.

Knowledge Level and Self-Reported Attitudes of Food Handlers: Case Study of a University Campus

This study was performed conducting surveys to assess the Knowledge Level (KL) and Self-Reported Attitudes (SRA) of Food Handlers (FH) in order to evaluate their food safety perception. Food handlers working in 5 cafes and 6 canteens in a university campus responded to a questionnaire about food hygiene. The knowledge level about food hygiene was obtained by answering five question groups (G): Agents involved in food borne diseases (G1), Food handling hygiene (G2), Cross contamination (G3), Heat treatment/cooling techniques (G4), Reduced temperatures (G5). The SRA level was obtained through seven questions with multiple choice options on behaviors of health and safety applied to the work routine, which were considered as percentage of hits. The hygiene’s knowledge average was 75%, ranging from 63.3% (G4) to 94.5% (G3). Significant associations between establishment type and G1 (p = 0.027), professional experience and G5 (p = 0.020), training and G5 (p = 0.037) were found. Food handlers knowledge did not have effect in FH attitude (p = 0.371). From 25 FH (46.0%) who had high KL, 17 had reported incorrect attitudes. The level of hits is, in general, more than 75%, except for matters relating to the use of different cutting tables (44.4%) and knives (51.9%). Significant differences of values and odds for handlers’ knowledge were observed between cafes’ and canteens’ FH. No difference (p > 0.05) was observed in FH SRA scores according to the type of establishment. The results reveal a reduced application of knowledge acquired by food handlers, evidenced by the low level of attitudes considered correct. This clearly justifies the implementation of additional measures, including on job training as part of an effective strategy to control establishment’s food safety.

Assessment of Physicians’ Knowledge of Clean Intermittent Urinary Self-Catheterization in an African Country: The Case of Senegal

Introduction: Clean intermittent self-catheterization is the gold standard for the management of urinary retention. But its use remains limited in our practice. Objective: We are conducting this study to assess physicians’ knowledge of its practice in order to promote its promotion. Material and Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional, prospective, descriptive and analytical study in two hospitals in Dakar for two months. The resident doctors were interviewed on the basis of a questionnaire developed based on the recommendations of the French Society of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (SOFMER). Results: 54 medical residents returned the questionnaire. 63% of physicians surveyed defined the clean intermittent self-catheterization as a sterile intermittent self-catheterization. 70.9% of the doctors surveyed had cited urinary retention as an indication for the clean intermittent self-catheterization;53.7% advocated sterile gloves for the catheterization;29.6% proposed a frequency of one to two times and 2 to 4 catheterizations per day. 70.4% of doctors recommended indicating Cytobacteriological examination of urine in case of symptoms of urinary tract infection. Antibiotic therapy from the outset was offered by 83.3% of doctors in case of symptoms of urinary tract infection under intermittent self-sounding. 59.3% were unaware of clean intermittent self-catheterization. Discussion and Conclusion: Apart from the indica-tions, the clean intermittent self-catheterization remains unknown by res-ident doctors and its practice remains to be mastered, hence the need to establish a course on its practice at the faculty of medicine.

Knowledge and Awareness of Breast Cancer among Young Women in the United Arab Emirates

Background: Breast cancer is the most common cancer among females in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). It carries poor prognosis when detected late. Patients usually present at late stages due to lack of awareness of various aspects of breast cancer. Aim: The objective of this study is to gain insight into the level of knowledge of breast cancer among young adult females in UAE. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among females aged 25 to 45. A total of 492 females were selected using a convenience sampling method. Data were collected through an interview-based questionnaire. Frequency distributions and percentages were used to describe the knowledge tested within the questionnaire. Results: The mean age of the participants was 33.5 years. Almost 27% of our participants received a high school degree. The average total knowledge of our population was 51%. The majority (89%) knew that breast cancer is common and 45% knew that it affects ages above forty. The knowledge of signs and symptoms was 53%, and more than half (57%) knew that the most common presenting sign is a breast lump. The knowledge of risk factors was 43%. Almost 94% knew that cancer can be detected early, and 93% knew that early diagnosis improves outcome. The total knowledge of screening methods was 67%. Conclusion: The study revealed that respondents’ knowledge of breast cancer is less than expected. The increased burden of the disease should be accompanied by powerful means of spreading awareness by implementing campaigns that would improve knowledge deficits.

Knowledge about Diabetes Mellitus and Self-Care Activities before and after an Educational Program: A Pilot Study

Background: Health education has proven to be an effective strategy to enable people with diabetes mellitus to manage this condition. However, few studies in Brazilian population samples have been conducted to evaluate the effects of educational programs on diabetes knowledge and self-care. Aim: To evaluate the knowledge about diabetes mellitus and the performance of self-care activities, before and after participation in an educational program. Methods: This is an intervention study, with a quantitative approach, in a single comparison group, for the analysis of “before and after” results related to an educational program focused on self-care and concurrent physical training. The study interventions consisted of 42 exercise sessions, as well as individual educational meetings, according to the needs of each participant and through nursing consultations, using educational material prepared from the literature. The sample was initially composed of 33 adults with diabetes mellitus, but 18 completed the study. For the assessment of knowledge and self-care activities, the revised Brazilian versions of the Diabetes Knowledge Scale and the Diabetes Self-Care Activity Questionnaire were used, respectively, in the two moments of the study, that is, prior to the first educational meeting and immediately before the first physical training session, and after the last educational meeting, which ran parallel to the 42nd physical training session, making a six-month interval between the two assessment moments for each participant. Results: The analysis of knowledge about diabetes showed significant improvement after the educational program and, as for self-care, there was clinical improvement in all dimensions, but only the dimension “general diet” obtained statistically significant improvement. Conclusion: The educational program has been shown to be beneficial for improving knowledge and self-care of the disease, which reiterates the need to maintain interventions of this nature for people with diabetes mellitus.

Study on the Effect of Web-Based Real-Time Interactive Intervention Teaching Model on Self-Efficacy of Gestational Diabetes Mellitus Patients

Object: To explore the effect of web-based real-time interactive intervention teaching model on self-efficacy of Gestational Diabetes Mellitus (GDM) patients. Method: Based on the hospital’s antenatal check-up archives from June 2018 to January 2019, patients diagnosed with GDM in the second trimester were randomly divided into the control group (100 cases) and the experimental group (121 cases). Patients in the control group received routine care following the diabetes mellitus one-day outpatient guidance, while patients in the experimental group received social media real-time interactive teaching intervention based on routine care, and accepted a nursing intervention scheme based on knowledge-attitude-practice mode. The knowledge of GDM, self-efficacy and self-management behavior indicators were compared between the two groups. Results: After the intervention, the self-efficacy scores, the blood glucose monitoring times and the blood glucose compliance rates of the experimental group were significantly higher than those of the control group (P < 0.05). The post-intervention GDM knowledge scores of the experimental group were higher than those of the control group, and the difference was not statistically significant (P = 0.072). Conclusion: Web-based real-time interactive intervention teaching model can effectively improve the self-efficacy of GDM patients and promote the formation of healthy behaviors.

Knowledge on breast cancer and its prevention among women household heads in Northern Ethiopia

Background: Breast cancer (BC) is one of the malignant diseases taking the lion’s share role in the devastating effects caused by cancer. BC related awareness and practice of females are known to have crucial contribution in the prevention and control efforts. The worst aspects of the disease in Ethiopia include absence of research and thus very limited information on any aspect. The study assessed knowledge and practice on BC among women household heads. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted on a sample of 845 women. The sample size was divided among five randomly selected kebeles (smallest government administrative units) proportional to the number of households. Samples were selected by systematic sampling technique. Data were collected by trained data collectors through a face-to-face interview using pre-tested, semi-structured questionnaire from female household heads. Pearson chi-square and logistic regression tests were used to assess the determinants of BC knowledge and breast cancer self examination (BSE) practice. Results: The respondents’ age ranged from 20 to 75 years with a mean age of 33.66 ± 10.8. Onefifth (19.8%) of the respondents were illiterate, while 257 (31.8%) had primary education. Majority of them were married 548 (67.7%), Orthodox Christians 649 (80.4%), and housewives 365 (45.1%). Only 675 (83.4%) of the respondents have ever heard/read about BC. Media 399 (59.1%) and colleagues/friends/neighbors 200 (29.6%) were the major information sources. Only 86 (12.7%) of the respondents had a high BC knowledge. Even though 304 (45%) of the BC informed participants had information on BSE, only 163 (53.6%) of them have ever done it. Both BC knowledge and BSE practice were significantly affected by educational level. Conclusion: Majority of women household heads in Mekelle town had low knowledge and insufficient BC related practices. The region’s health bureau and local mass-media need to work on breast cancer awareness and practice of the women in the town.

Assessing the reasons for increase in self‑medication and control measures among student nurses in University of Benin Teaching Hospital, Edo State, Nigeria

Background:Self‑medication among student nurses is the use of medicines without doctor’s prescription.This practice is a global phenomenon and potential contributor to human resistance to most drugs,associated with different types of health challenges.Despite the high knowledge on the complication of self‑medication,studies showed that most student nurses still practice self‑medication.Aims:The aim of this study was to assess the reasons for increase in self‑medication and and find ways on how to curbing the menace among student nurses in the School of Nursing,University of Benin Teaching Hospital,Edo State,Nigeria.Materials and Methods:A descriptive cross‑sectional survey was conducted with stratified simple random sampling technique to select ninety student nurses from three different levels in the School of Nursing,University of Benin Teaching Hospital in Benin City,Edo State.A self‑structured questionnaire with open‑type and Likert‑type scale questions used as instrument to assess the reasons for increase in self‑medication and the possible control measures.Data collected were analyzed using tables,percentages,means,standard deviation,and t‑test for inferential statistics at 0.05 level of significance,through Statistical Package for the Social Sciences software.Results:The result showed the reasons for increase in self‑medication and how to reduce its occurrence.It also showed that the gender of the student nurses is statistically related to the reasons why they practice self‑medication(t=6.82,P≤0.001).Conclusion:Self‑medication can be reduced among student nurses by empowering the law enforcement agencies against self‑medication,improving the availability of essential and quality drugs in school clinics,and inclusion of all student nurses in National Health Insurance Scheme(NHIS)program,where they can enjoy the benefit of paying only 10%of the treatment charges.

Structural choice based on knowledge discovery system

Structural choice is a significant decision having an important influence on structural function, social economics, structural reliability and construction cost. A Case Based Reasoning system with its retrieval part constructed with a KDD subsystem, is put forward to make a decision for a large scale engineering project. A typical CBR system consists of four parts: case representation, case retriever, evaluation, and adaptation. A case library is a set of parameterized excellent and successful structures. For a structural choice, the key point is that the system must be able to detect the pattern classes hidden in the case library and classify the input parameters into classes properly. That is done by using the KDD Data Mining algorithm based on Self Organizing Feature Maps (SOFM), which makes the whole system more adaptive, self organizing, self learning and open.

Information Needs and Self-Care Practices of Diabetic Patients in Mbala, Northern Province, Zambia

Introduction: Diabetes mellitus (DM) is a chronic disease that occurs either when the pancreas does not produce enough insulin or when the body cannot effectively use the insulin it produces. It is “a group of metabolic diseases characterized by hyperglycemia resulting from defects in insulin secretion, insulin action or both” manifested by carbohydrates, fat and protein metabolism abnormality. If untreated high blood sugar can damage the nerves, eyes, kidneys, and other organs. The purpose of this study was to assess the information needs and self-care practice of Diabetic Patients in Mbala, Northern Province Zambia. Methods: This was an analytical cross-sectional study where 105 respondents aged 18 years and above participated in the study. Participants were randomly selected. A structured interview schedule and a check list were used to collect data. Statistics Package for Social Sciences computer software package version 23.0 was used to analyze data. Chi square and fisher’s exact tests were used to test the significance of the association between Knowledge of Diabetes Mellitus, attitude towards self-care practices, self-care practices among Diabetic patients and the need for information among Diabetic patients. A 95% confidence interval and P value of 0.05 were used to ascertain the degree of significance. Multi-variate binary logistic regression model to determine predictors of self-care practices and need for information was also used. Result: On analyzing the dependent variables, more than half (61.9%), had high need for information and three quarters (85.7%) of respondents had poor self-care practices. Slightly more than half (58.1%) had high knowledge levels majority (78.1%), had a negative attitude. Significant associations were found P Conclusion: Negative attitudes and lack of information among Diabetic patients were the main reasons associated with poor self-care practices. Particular attention should therefore be given to ensuring that Diabetic patients are given adequate information on Diabetes self-care in order to improve the quality of life.

Realizing Knowledge Reuse in Standard Parts Library Management System

Knowledge reuse is a process for designing new product based on the embedded design knowledge and experience of existing products. In order to improve quality and efficiency of product design, a method to extract related knowledge from using standard parts in product design is introduced. Based on the characteristics of standard parts and their application, knowledge reusable standard parts library was built up through analysis of key techniques of standard part modeling such as knowledge expression, knowledge reuse and knowledge searching.

Breast self examination practices among female secondary school teachers in a rural community in Oyo State, Nigeria

The objective of the study was to assess female secondary school teachers’ knowledge and attitude of breast self examination (BSE) and to describe the extent of practice of breast self examination among them. This study employed a descriptive design and data was collected with the aid of validated semi structured questionnaire from 100 female teachers in all the five secondary schools in Oko, Oyo State, and analysis was done using Statistical Package for Social Sciences. The result showed that 82% of the respondents were aware of breast self examination practices and their source of this information was from mass media (55%) and friends (25%). Fifty-four respondents had poor knowledge of BSE and 48% had negative attitude towards practice of BSE and majority (62%) had a low practice. The study however, revealed that majority of the respondents who practice BSE do not know what to look for. The results further showed that, there is no significant relationship between age of the respondents and their awareness (X2 = 8.322;p = 0.0800;df = 4) and knowledge (X2 = 14.501;p = 0.264 and df = 8) of breast self examination. This study concluded that there is poor knowledge and attitude towards BSE practice among the secondary school teachers in Oko community and with unsatisfactory practice. It therefore, suggests that breast awareness campaign and self efficacy development is important for teachers in secondary schools to aid early detection and better prognosis of breast cancer in this community, and this will have a multiplier effect on female secondary school girls.

基于相互学习和SoftLexicon的中文命名实体识别模型

中文自然语言文本中实体边界区分难、语法复杂度大,中文命名实体识别(NER)难度往往比英文命名实体识别大。针对中文NER中分词误差传播的问题,提出一种基于相互学习和SoftLexicon的中文命名实体识别模型MM-SLLattice。首先,向字级别表示的句子中加入词信息的模型;然后,在词信息的引入过程中通过结合开放词典与领域词典信息来提高模型的精度;最后,在训练过程中,引入了深度相互学习减小泛化误差提高模型的性能。实验结果表明,该模型在不同类型的中文数据集的实体识别能力有提升,MM-SLLattice在MSRA数据集上F1值为94.09%,比独立网络提高了0.41个百分点,对比实验中F1值也优于其他主流模型协同图形网络(CGN)、卷积注意力网络(CAN)、LR-CNN。所提模型可以更精确地提取中文实体。

Awareness, self-management behaviors, health literacy and kidney function relationships in specialty practice

AIM To determine the relationship between chronic kidney disease(CKD) awareness(CKD-A), self-management behaviors(CKD-SMB) knowledge, performance of CKDSMBs, health literacy(HL) and kidney function. METHODS Participants were eligible patients attending an outpatient nephrology clinic. Participants were administered: Newest Vital Sign to measure HL, CKD self-managementknowledge tool(CKD-SMKT) to assess knowledge, past performance of CKD-SMB, CKD-A. Estimated GFR(e GFR) was determined using the MDRD-4 equation. Duration of clinic participation and CKD cause were extracted from medical charts. RESULTS One-hundred-fifty patients participated in the study. e GFRs ranged from 17-152 m L/min per 1.73 m2. Majority(83%) of respondents had stage 3 or 4 CKD, low HL(63%), and were CKD aware(88%). Approximately 40%(10/25) of patients in stages 1 and 2 and 6.4%(8/125) in stages 3 and 4 were unaware of their CKD. CKD-A differed with stage(P < 0.001) but not by HL level, duration of clinic participation, or CKD cause. Majority of respondents(≥ 90%) correctly answered one or more CKD-SMKT items. Knowledge of one behavior, "controlling blood pressure" differed significantly by CKD-A. CKD-A was associated with past performance of two CKD-SMBs, "controlling blood pressure"(P = 0.02), and "keeping healthy body weight"(P = 0.01). Adjusted multivariate analyses between CKD-A and:(1) HL; and(2) CKD-SMB knowledge were nonsignificant. However, there was a significant relationship between CKD-A and kidney function after controlling for demographics, HL, and CKD-SMB(P < 0.05). CONCLUSION CKD-A is not associated with HL, or better CKD-SMBs. CKD-A is significantly associated with kidney function and substantially lower e GFR, suggesting the need for focused patient education in CKD stages 1.