This study explored beliefs and actual practices of young women on utilization of Prevention of Mother to Child Transmission (PMTCT) of HIV services in Balaka district of Southern Malawi. The study design wascross sec...This study explored beliefs and actual practices of young women on utilization of Prevention of Mother to Child Transmission (PMTCT) of HIV services in Balaka district of Southern Malawi. The study design wascross sectional which utilized qualitative data collection and analysis methods. In-depth interviews were conducted on 12 young mothers of 15 to 24 years old. The respondents were drawn from 6 health centres in the district during their visits to either the under-five clinic, HIV and AIDS support groups or HIV follow up clinics. Data were analyzed using thematic analysis approach. Overall the respondents had positive beliefs on utilization of PMTCT services. They believed that adherence to PMTCT guidelines such as condom use, taking of Nevirapine (NVP) and exclusive breastfeeding protected the baby from contracting the virus. Nevertheless, all respondents believed that HIV testing was mandatory and that early weaning caused malnutrition and death of babies. Actual practice was very low. Very few young mothers breastfed exclusively, weaned their babies abruptly and took NVP as recommended. Not all positive beliefs translated into positive behavior. Lack of male support, inability of the midwives to provide comprehensive care to HIV infected mothers and their infants, and fear of stigma and discrimination were other factors that hindered utilization of PMTCT services. Culture was also a major barrier because traditionally babies are expected to be breastfed and supplements are fed to babies too. Therefore, there is a need to mobilize communities on PMTCT of HIV. Education programmes in HIV should emphasize behavior change interventions and should focus on both men and women and significant others. There is also need to intensify monitoring and evaluation of health workers’ activities to ensure that beliefs translate into positive behavior.展开更多
Pressure ulcers (PU) are one of the most common hospital-acquired problems that occur in patients with mobility limitations. Such wounds can produce pain and deterioration of the underlying condition. Sometimes, they ...Pressure ulcers (PU) are one of the most common hospital-acquired problems that occur in patients with mobility limitations. Such wounds can produce pain and deterioration of the underlying condition. Sometimes, they can be life-threatening, and their treatment can impose a financial burden on both the patient’s family and society. Nurses’ knowledge, attitude, and practice are the most important weapons to fight this preventable burden of PU among patients with impaired mobility. The purpose of this study was to assess nurses’ knowledge, attitude, and practice regarding PU prevention and treatment at Clinique Prince Louis Rwagasore (CPLR) in Bujumbura, Burundi. A cross-sectional study design was used. Convenience sampling was used to invite all 28 qualified nurses and nurses’ aids who work in the services where critically ill patients are admitted to participate. A questionnaire was created, and underwent evaluation of face validity before using it to collect data which was analysed using SPSS 21.0. Results revealed that nurses’ knowledge and practice scores were low as participants scored less than 50% on the six knowledge items and the six practice items. However, the attitude scores were greater than 65% on the five items used to evaluate attitude. A strong negative correlation was found between nurses’ knowledge and their attitude scores (r = ?0.479, p = 0.015). Education level was negatively associated with nurses’ knowledge and practice scores of PU prevention and treatment. A high attitude score did not correlate with a higher practice score which might be explained by low knowledge scores (less than 50% on knowledge items). Continuous professional development (CPD) was recommended to improve nurses’ knowledge scores and implementation of PU preventive practices at CPLR.展开更多
Cancer appears to pose a major threat to the health of the Sudanese population. It is the third leading cause of death in the Sudan after malaria and pneumonia, accounting for 5% of all deaths. In 2005, approximately ...Cancer appears to pose a major threat to the health of the Sudanese population. It is the third leading cause of death in the Sudan after malaria and pneumonia, accounting for 5% of all deaths. In 2005, approximately 22,000 people in the Sudan died from cancer and 17,000 of these people were less than 70 years old. This study was designed to: 1) assess nutrition knowledge and selected dietary beliefs related to cancer in Sudanese residing in Khartoum;2) identify perceived barriers to the adoption of eating behaviors consistent with those recommended for cancer prevention;and 3) describe the food preferences and dietary practices in Sudanese residing in Khartoum. An interviewer-administered questionnaire elicited demographic information, cancer-related food and nutrition knowledge, food preferences, selected dietary beliefs, barriers to healthy eating and food practices from 182 participants between the ages of 18 and 35 years. More than 50% of females and males correctly identified the food lowest in fiber from a given list. Respondents were knowledgeable about the fat content of their traditional foods, but unaware of the different types of fat. Only 8.8% of the respondents thought that consumption of fruits and vegetables reduced cancer risk. Resondents perceived nutritionists as the most reliable source of information about nutrition and cancer, and the media as the best source of information on nutrition and healthy cooking. “Samin”, feta cheese, a variety of stews, “Zalabia”, lean meat, brown bread, sesame oil, dried okra, fried fish, and chicken were described as preferred food items by respondents. Daily salt/ sodium intake was described by 44% and 39% of the male and female respondents, respectively, as “high” (>2400 mg/day). The findings of this study have clear implications for aggressive nutrition education intervention programs with emphasis on the traditional foods of the Sudan.展开更多
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 2...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.展开更多
文摘This study explored beliefs and actual practices of young women on utilization of Prevention of Mother to Child Transmission (PMTCT) of HIV services in Balaka district of Southern Malawi. The study design wascross sectional which utilized qualitative data collection and analysis methods. In-depth interviews were conducted on 12 young mothers of 15 to 24 years old. The respondents were drawn from 6 health centres in the district during their visits to either the under-five clinic, HIV and AIDS support groups or HIV follow up clinics. Data were analyzed using thematic analysis approach. Overall the respondents had positive beliefs on utilization of PMTCT services. They believed that adherence to PMTCT guidelines such as condom use, taking of Nevirapine (NVP) and exclusive breastfeeding protected the baby from contracting the virus. Nevertheless, all respondents believed that HIV testing was mandatory and that early weaning caused malnutrition and death of babies. Actual practice was very low. Very few young mothers breastfed exclusively, weaned their babies abruptly and took NVP as recommended. Not all positive beliefs translated into positive behavior. Lack of male support, inability of the midwives to provide comprehensive care to HIV infected mothers and their infants, and fear of stigma and discrimination were other factors that hindered utilization of PMTCT services. Culture was also a major barrier because traditionally babies are expected to be breastfed and supplements are fed to babies too. Therefore, there is a need to mobilize communities on PMTCT of HIV. Education programmes in HIV should emphasize behavior change interventions and should focus on both men and women and significant others. There is also need to intensify monitoring and evaluation of health workers’ activities to ensure that beliefs translate into positive behavior.
文摘Pressure ulcers (PU) are one of the most common hospital-acquired problems that occur in patients with mobility limitations. Such wounds can produce pain and deterioration of the underlying condition. Sometimes, they can be life-threatening, and their treatment can impose a financial burden on both the patient’s family and society. Nurses’ knowledge, attitude, and practice are the most important weapons to fight this preventable burden of PU among patients with impaired mobility. The purpose of this study was to assess nurses’ knowledge, attitude, and practice regarding PU prevention and treatment at Clinique Prince Louis Rwagasore (CPLR) in Bujumbura, Burundi. A cross-sectional study design was used. Convenience sampling was used to invite all 28 qualified nurses and nurses’ aids who work in the services where critically ill patients are admitted to participate. A questionnaire was created, and underwent evaluation of face validity before using it to collect data which was analysed using SPSS 21.0. Results revealed that nurses’ knowledge and practice scores were low as participants scored less than 50% on the six knowledge items and the six practice items. However, the attitude scores were greater than 65% on the five items used to evaluate attitude. A strong negative correlation was found between nurses’ knowledge and their attitude scores (r = ?0.479, p = 0.015). Education level was negatively associated with nurses’ knowledge and practice scores of PU prevention and treatment. A high attitude score did not correlate with a higher practice score which might be explained by low knowledge scores (less than 50% on knowledge items). Continuous professional development (CPD) was recommended to improve nurses’ knowledge scores and implementation of PU preventive practices at CPLR.
文摘Cancer appears to pose a major threat to the health of the Sudanese population. It is the third leading cause of death in the Sudan after malaria and pneumonia, accounting for 5% of all deaths. In 2005, approximately 22,000 people in the Sudan died from cancer and 17,000 of these people were less than 70 years old. This study was designed to: 1) assess nutrition knowledge and selected dietary beliefs related to cancer in Sudanese residing in Khartoum;2) identify perceived barriers to the adoption of eating behaviors consistent with those recommended for cancer prevention;and 3) describe the food preferences and dietary practices in Sudanese residing in Khartoum. An interviewer-administered questionnaire elicited demographic information, cancer-related food and nutrition knowledge, food preferences, selected dietary beliefs, barriers to healthy eating and food practices from 182 participants between the ages of 18 and 35 years. More than 50% of females and males correctly identified the food lowest in fiber from a given list. Respondents were knowledgeable about the fat content of their traditional foods, but unaware of the different types of fat. Only 8.8% of the respondents thought that consumption of fruits and vegetables reduced cancer risk. Resondents perceived nutritionists as the most reliable source of information about nutrition and cancer, and the media as the best source of information on nutrition and healthy cooking. “Samin”, feta cheese, a variety of stews, “Zalabia”, lean meat, brown bread, sesame oil, dried okra, fried fish, and chicken were described as preferred food items by respondents. Daily salt/ sodium intake was described by 44% and 39% of the male and female respondents, respectively, as “high” (>2400 mg/day). The findings of this study have clear implications for aggressive nutrition education intervention programs with emphasis on the traditional foods of the Sudan.
文摘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.
