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Features of Graduate Underemployment in South Africa: A Study in Mthatha, Eastern Cape Province
Get PDFThis paper articulates the patterns and feel of graduate underemployment in Mthatha, a South African town in the Eastern Cape Province. Foregrounded on Peter Blua’s Social Exchange Theory, this study adopted a quantitative approach. A sample of 60 respondents was drawn from underemployed graduate population through a combination of stratified and random sampling techniques. Data collected from survey (questionnaire) were analysed with appropriate tools in the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences. The study found that majority of underemployed graduates are between 21 and 25 years of age, married, hold bachelor’s degrees in Social Sciences. Gender, qualification type and level of qualification have no significant influence on determining underemployed graduates’ choice of occupation as single and combined variables or factors. While only very few (5%) of the underemployed graduates are never happy at work, femaleness, older graduates, Africans, higher qualification, higher basic salary and longer years of underemployment best predict happiness at work, although not at significant level, except for basic salary. A majority of graduates (73.3%) do sometimes consider leaving their current jobs, even when there are no alternatives. This is influenced by maleness, older graduates, being Whites, higher qualification, lower basic salary and lower years of underemployment. Lack of networking was found to be the most important factor in graduate underemployment, followed by lack of experience and gender not being significant. This study recommends policy intervention by state, where there is legislation that provides for entry level jobs that may not require previous experience. Also, there should be another legislation that protects the underemployed through salary regulation and incentivising of employers that engage workers in such capacity. Keywords: Underemployment, Youth, Graduates, South Africa
Prevalence and factors associated with suicidal ideation amongst college students in the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality, South Africa
Get PDFBackground: Suicidal behaviour amongst college students constitutes a significant social and public health problem globally. This study determined the prevalence and associated factors of suicidal ideation amongst students of higher education in the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality (NMBM), South Africa. Methods: In this institution-based cross-sectional study, a multistage cluster sampling of 826 participants, drawn from a college in NMBM, was conducted from January to March 2020. Data were collected with a standardised self-administered questionnaire. Multivariable logistic regression analysis was used to identify the factors associated with suicidal ideation. Results: Participants’ ages ranged from 18 to 24 years, with a mean age of 20.49 years (standard deviation, 1.88 years). The lifetime prevalence of suicidal ideation and plans in the preceding 12 months were 24.5% and 9.6%, respectively. The odds of suicidal ideation were higher in students who experienced bullying (adjusted odds ratio [AOR], 1.89; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.35–2.65), mental illness (AOR, 1.89; 95% CI, 1.35–2.65), a history of sexual assault (AOR, 2.50; 95% CI, 1.20–5.21) and experience of sexual assault by or to a close family member (AOR, 1.69; 95% CI, 1.01–2.82). Underlying chronic illness was associated with a twofold risk for suicidal ideation in both sexes. Conclusion: About a quarter of the students sampled at the college had experienced suicidal ideation and some had had suicidal plans in the preceding 12 months. Screening for the identified risk factors amongst the student population coupled with prompt interventions would mitigate the risk of suicide in the study population. Keywords: suicidal behaviour; suicidal plans; higher education; students; South Africa
Clinical outcomes of hospitalised COVID-19 patients at Mthatha Regional Hospital, Eastern Cape, South Africa: A retrospective study
Get PDFBackground: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a public health crisis that threatens the current health system. The sudden expansion in the need for inpatient and intensive care facilities raised concerns about optimal clinical management and resource allocation. Despite the pressing need for evidence to make context-specific decisions on COVID-19 management, evidence from South Africa remained limited. This study aimed to describe the clinical characteristics and outcomes of COVID-19 hospitalised patients. Methods: A retrospective cross-sectional study design was used to evaluate the clinical outcomes of hospitalised adult patients (≥ 18 years old) with laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 illness at Mthatha Regional Hospital (MRH), Eastern Cape. Results: Of the 1814 patients tested for COVID-19 between 20 March 2020 and 31 July 2020 at MRH, two-thirds (65.4%) were female. About two-thirds (242) of the 392 patients (21.6%) who tested positive for this disease were hospitalised and one-third (150) were quarantined at home. The mean age of the patients tested for COVID-19 was 42.6 years and there was no difference between males and females. The mean age of hospitalised patients was 55.5 years and the mean age of hospitalised patients who died (61.3 years) was much higher than recovered (49.5 years). Overall, 188 (77.6%) hospitalised patients had clinical comorbidity on admission. Diabetes (36.8%) and hypertension (33.1%) were the most common comorbidities amongst COVID-19 hospitalised patients. Conclusion: The majority of the patients who were hospitalised for COVID-19 were elderly and had high baseline comorbidities. Advance age and underlying comorbidities (diabetes, hypertension and HIV) were associated with high mortality in hospitalised COVID-19 patients. Keywords: COVID-19, diabetes; hypertension; hospitalised; co-morbidity
Prevalence and determinants of tobacco use amongst South African adults with mental illness in the Eastern Cape
Get PDFBackground: Given the physical and mental health consequences of tobacco use amongst individuals with mental illness, it was imperative to assess the burden of tobacco use in this population. Aim: This study examined the patterns and factors associated with tobacco use in individuals attending the outpatient unit. Setting: Cecilia Makiwane Hospital Mental Health Department in Eastern Cape province, South Africa. Methods: Lifetime (ever use) use and current use of any tobacco products were examined in a cross-sectional study of 390 individuals between March and June 2020. A logistic regression was fitted to determine the correlates of lifetime and current use of any tobacco products. Results: The rates of ever use and current use of tobacco products were 59.4% and 44.6%, respectively. Of the participants interviewed, lifetime tobacco use was more prevalent amongst individuals with schizophrenia (67.9%) and cannabis-induced disorders (97.3%) and lower in those with major depressive disorders (36.1%) and bipolar and related disorders (43.5%). Men were six times more likely to have ever used or currently use tobacco products in comparison to women. Also, those who had a salaried job or owned a business were over three times more likely to have ever used or currently use tobacco products compared with those receiving government social grants. Conclusions: The prevalence of tobacco use in this study was significantly higher than the general population in the Eastern Cape. Therefore, smoking prevention and cessation interventions targeted at the general population should target this often neglected sub-population in the region. Keywords: Eastern Cape province; mental health users; mental illness; South Africa; tobacco use
Chemical Profiling, Toxicity and Anti-Inflammatory Activities of Essential Oils from Three Grapefruit Cultivars from KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa
Get PDFIntroduction: This case report discusses the successful use of an improvised bubble continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) apparatus made using items commonly available in a poorly resourced district hospital. Case presentation: A 64-year-old female with no co-morbidities presented with respiratory failure due to pulmonary tuberculosis and was not accepted into the regional Intensive Care Unit (ICU) on referral. She required 8 days of improvised bubble CPAP to maintain adequate oxygen saturation before weaning and eventual discharge. Discussion: Improvised bubble CPAP is commonly used in neonatal care in developing countries and well described in literature however, there are no reports of its successful use in adult patients. In the absence of access to ICU or other Non-invasive ventilation (NIV) equipment, improvised bubble CPAP may provide some therapeutic benefit
The stories African lawyers could tell when analysing legal issues: Lessons for social sciences teachers
Get PDFActivists and academics have clamoured for the decolonisation of knowledge, including law. But, unfortunately hardly anyone has put forth strategies for how faculties should decolonise the law. A number of jurists have underscored the necessity to draw on customary laws and traditional values. Still, the #RhodesMustFall movement has, for the most part, been loud on the outcomes, but quiet on the methodologies. Joining the conversation on the decolonisation of epistemologies, this article contributes to the ongoing efforts to sanitise the law by proposing to revive African oral storytelling cultures as a way to analyse the questions of law facing society. To live up to this task, this article adopts decolonial theory and, through stylised examples, illustrates how lawyers and social scientists in Africa can utilise storytelling to contextualise, (de)construct, and comprehend those questions. This article assumes that lawyers can use African storytelling alongside the prevailing doctrinal method. That method, relaying the coloniality of law and captured by the acronym IRAC (issue(s), rules, application, and conclusion), trains students to approach conflict in society through a highly abstract and decontextualised problem-solving model. Lately, some (Western) social scientists have (re)discovered the practicality of storytelling in presenting analysis and research. However, in African oral traditions, stories worked differently from the manner in which those scientists employ them. African storytelling played a leading role, not only in conveying collective wisdom and social memory from one generation to the next, but also as a medium through which communities transmit the values that hold them together. Contribution: This article adds to the scholarship on storytelling and narratology by showing how educators can utilise stories to analyse legal questions. That rich scholarship in the humanities and the social sciences has so far not taken seriously the possibility of using stories to analyse research problems. Instead, scholars focus on storytelling mainly as a way of presenting science, not as an analytical tool. This article bridges that gap and demonstrates the analytical value of storytelling
Sustainable Human Resource Practices for Organizational Competitiveness Post the Covid-19 Pandemic
Get PDFThe study was formulated to tap into the future of HRM given the disruptions arising from the Covid-119 pandemic as well as the progression of the global technological environment to the fourth industrial revolution. The aim of the study was to: the Covid-19 induced HRM practices underpinning future organizational competitiveness. A literature review strategy was adopted to achieve the study objective. The study established seven emerging themes to inform HRM practices for the competitiveness of organizations in future following the Covid-19 disturbances. These themes are: primacy of HRM, increased cyber influences, digitalization, remote HRM, human-machine interface skills, human-organisation strategic links as well as human-technology interface competencies. Based on the study findings, the study recommended HRM departments to move to HR 4.0 through the adoption of industry 4.0 technologies, increased automation, and digitalization as well as strengthen virtualization systems
Mitigating the Implications of Covid 19 on the Academic Project at Walter Sisulu University in South Africa: A Proposed Framework for Emergency Remote Teaching and Learning
Get PDFWalter Sisulu University (WSU) in South Africa, like other universities worldwide, is faced with the challenges associated with the outbreak of the Covid‑19 pandemic. The challenge has changed our day‑to‑day lives, including the way we interact and conduct business. In the midst of this, WSU has had to change the way learning and teaching occurs. Traditional face‑to‑face tuition had to be adapted by moving to the online mode of teaching and learning to both minimise the time lost in the academic project and protect staff and students from the devastating effects of the virus. This article reflects the actions taken by the University and describes its pilot‑project approach to online learning and those processes it has put in place to ensure its effective implementation. While it is accepted that switching to an online mode of teaching and learning can facilitate flexibility in space and time, the reality is that the majority of students at WSU – mainly due to their geographical and socio‑economic environments – experience daily challenges ranging from poor network coverage, lack of internet connectivity, lack of electricity and other socio‑economic impediments that make online learning stressful or beyond their reach. In this article, we present a model that could be used by higher education institutions (HEIs) to respond to Covid‑19 in the short term. The proposed model is underpinned by a framework that caters for students who are readily able to access online learning, students with intermittent access to online facilities and finally, students who cannot access online education. First, we provide a brief description of online learning, highlighting the challenges presented to teaching and learning by this approach. We argue that our context and education policies present additional problems that militate against the adoption of online strategies by most HEIs. In the final instance, we present a framework that is better suited to our context and can be used during and after the lockdown. Data were collected using online questionnaires with both structured and open‑ended questions from both lecturers and students to determine their experiences with the testing project. Lastly, we draw conclusions based on the findings of the study
Women’s experiences on the use of Implanon as a contraceptive method in a selected primary healthcare facility in KwaZulu-Natal
Get PDFBackground: The South African department of health recently introduced subdermal Implanon contraceptive implant with the aim to reduce teenage pregnancy and maternal mortality. First used in all public healthcare facilities across the country since early 2014, this method of contraception has been described as highly effective. However, some women have reported unbearable side effects, forcing them to remove the contraceptive implant early before its expiry date. Negligible emphasis has been placed on staff training and development to equip the nurses with new protocol and policies on Implanon. Objectives: The objective of this study was to explore experiences of women using Implanon as method of contraception at a selected primary healthcare facility in KwaZulu-Natal province of South Africa. Methods: A qualitative, descriptive and exploratory study design was used. A purposive sampling technique was used and a sample of seven women aged between 15 and 50 years was selected for this study. Semi-structured interviews were used in the data collection process. The Tesch’s method for data coding and data analysis was utilised. Necessary ethical measures were taken to ensure that the study is trustworthy. The study was conducted at Community Health Centre, KwaZulu-Natal between June 2017 and December 2018. Results: The findings showed that some participants were still willing to continue using this method of contraception regardless of the unwanted side effects. Major side effects reported were heavy menstrual bleeding, pain and discomfort, weight loss, insomnia and decreased sexual interest, which resulted in most participants stopping the use of Implanon. Conclusion: Most of the participants’ experience unwanted side effects because of poor screening, counselling and support. There is a clear demand to develop a screening tool and facilitate training of healthcare workers when initiating the use of Implanon. Keywords: Implanon; Implanon users; experiences; perceptions; primary healthcar