53 research outputs found
The Global Cohort of Doctoral Students: Building Shared Global Health Research Capacity in High-Income and Low- and Middle-Income Countries
No full textDoctoral students in high- and low-income countries pursuing careers in global health face gaps in their training that could be readily filled through structured peer-learning activities with students based at partnering institutions in complimentary settings. We share lessons learned from the Global Cohort of Doctoral Students, a community of doctoral students based at the Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health, Haramaya University. University of Gondar, University of Botswana, and University of Rwanda College of Medicine and Health Sciences. Students in the Global Cohort program engage in collaborative research, forums for constructive feedback, and professional development activities. We describe the motivation for the program, core activities, and early successes.This work was funded by the Rose Traveling Fellowship and Deborah Rose Service Learning Fellowship at the Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health. The funding sources had no role in the writing of the manuscript or decision to submit it for publication.Iyer, HS (corresponding author), Harvard TH Chan Sch Publ Hlth, Dept Epidemiol, Boston, MA 02115 USA.
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Knowledge about Radiation Related Health Hazards and Protective Measures among Patients Waiting for Radiologic Imaging in Jimma University Hospital, Southwest Ethiopia
No full textBACKGROUND: Radiologic diagnostic and therapeutic procedures using ionizing radiation carry
potential health risks. Hence, clients’ knowledge about radiation would play a key role in reducing
unnecessary imaging and its impacts. However, information on client’s knowledge in low income
countries specifically in the Ethiopian context has been was limited. Therefore, the aim of this study was
to assess knowledge about radiation related hazards and protective measures among patients waiting for
radiologic imaging.
METHODS: Descriptive cross sectional study design was employed on 388 patients waiting for
radiologic imaging in Jimma University Hospital from Dec.25/2014 to Jan. 10/2015. Eligible participants
were interviewed using pretested questionnaire. Data were entered and analyzed using IBM SPSS
version 21. A descriptive analysis was conducted to get summary values of clients’ radiation related
knowledge.
RESULTS: A total of 386 clients were included to the analysis.Two hundred and three (52.6%)
participants had ever heard radiation related health hazards. Among these, 74.9% mentioned infertility,
64.0% indicated cancer followed by 26.6% who mentioned cataract as radiation related health hazards. A
large number of clients (75.6%) had no idea about radiation protective measures, whereas 22% of them
mentioned not entering examination room unless ordered by health professionals and 10.6% indicated
covering sensitive body parts with lead (pb). The majority (85.8%) of the clients did not support
unjustified repeated radiation imaging for diagnostic or other purposes.
CONCLUSION: The overall knowledge of clients about radiation imaging seems inadequate. Thus,
comprehensive awareness raising programmes targeted at different settinsg and levels should be
designed and implemented
Thematic area: Infectious, non-communicable Disease and Nutrition Sub-Thematic: Diagnostic Methods, Development and Evolution
No full textRadiologic Diagnostic and therapeutic procedures using ionizing radiation carries well-known potential health risks. The knowledge of the referring physician and patients on modalities of diagnostic imaging and procedures that use ionizing radiation varies widely. Their knowledge was generally inadequate. Patients’ radiation knowledge strongly influences their acceptance and preference of diagnostic imaging types. Objective: The main objective of the study is to assess knowledge on ionizing radiation associated hazards and protective measures during medical imaging among patients waiting for common radiologic imaging in Jimma University Specialized Hospital (JUSH), Ethiopia. Methods: Hospitals based cross sectional study design were conducted on 388 patients waiting for common radiologic imaging and procedures in JUSH, at radiology department. A structured questionnaire was used to collect data from voluntary patients. Data was cleaned, edited and entered to SPSS version 16.Data was expressed as frequency distribution and percentages. Categorical variables were compared using the chi-square test for association. A P value of less than 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results: A total of 386 voluntary patients were included, of which 225(58.3%) of them were male. Their age range was from 14 years to 85years. In 28.2 % importance of imaging and likely associated harmful effects of radiation were discussed with referring physician. All of imaging unit referral was by the physician. An half of the respondents 193(50%) had back ground information about radiation. The majority of the participants, 356(92.2%) responded that they knew conventional x-ray. Twenty nine (7.5%) patients did not indicate any one of the equipment. Only 203 (52.6%) patients indicated the association health hazard with radiation. Sixty five (16.8%) were incorrect in their assumption that ultrasound examinations uses of ionizing radiation and 32 (8.3%) of them were not aware of ionizing radiation free nature MRI imaging. Majority of the patients 152(39.4%) had indicated infertility followed by cancer, 130 (33.7%) as specific health effect of ionizing radiation. About 122(31.6%) of patients indicate gonads as highly sensitive organ. Ultrasound and MRI indicates as safe modality during pregnancy in 32(8.3%) and 4 (1%) respectively, where as plain abdominal x-ray and CT as safe for pregnant mother in 4(1%) and 5 (1.3%) respectively. More than 95% of the respondents had no idea about background radiation and radiation protection symbol was known only among 15 (3.9%) patients. A large number of patients 292 (75.6%) responded that they had no idea about protective measures while diagnostic imaging. Most of (96.1%) the patients had no idea about the application of radiation rather than for their imaging purpose use. An association of effect the education and information on patients’ knowledge about radiation was revealed. Conclusion This study has shown the inadequacy of patients’ knowledge on possible radiation associated health hazards, radiation protection measures and applications of radiation that is in general agreement with the results of other similar surveys. Thus intervention should be done on the line of improving our patients’ knowledge about radiation issu
Knowledge about Radiation Related Health Hazards and Protective Measures among Patients Waiting for Radiologic Imaging in Jimma University Hospital, Southwest Ethiopia
No full textBACKGROUND: Radiologic diagnostic and therapeutic procedures using ionizing radiation carry potential health risks. Hence, clients’ knowledge about radiation would play a key role in reducing unnecessary imaging and its impacts. However, information on client’s knowledge in low income countries specifically in the Ethiopian context has been was limited. Therefore, the aim of this study was to assess knowledge about radiation related hazards and protective measures among patients waiting for radiologic imaging.METHODS: Descriptive cross sectional study design was employed on 388 patients waiting for radiologic imaging in Jimma University Hospital from Dec.25/2014 to Jan. 10/2015. Eligible participants were interviewed using pretested questionnaire. Data were entered and analyzed using IBM SPSS version 21. A descriptive analysis was conducted to get summary values of clients’ radiation related knowledge.RESULTS: A total of 386 clients were included to the analysis.Two hundred and three (52.6%) participants had ever heard radiation related health hazards. Among these, 74.9% mentioned infertility, 64.0% indicated cancer followed by 26.6% who mentioned cataract as radiation related health hazards. A large number of clients (75.6%) had no idea about radiation protective measures, whereas 22% of them mentioned not entering examination room unless ordered by health professionals and 10.6% indicated covering sensitive body parts with lead (pb). The majority (85.8%) of the clients did not support unjustified repeated radiation imaging for diagnostic or other purposes.CONCLUSION: The overall knowledge of clients about radiation imaging seems inadequate. Thus, comprehensive awareness raising programmes targeted at different settinsg and levels should be designed and implemented.KEYWORDS: Radiation imaging, Knowledge, Radiation health hazards, Protective measures, Ethiopi
Knowledge on Ionizing Radiation Associated Hazards and Protective Measures during Medical Imaging among Patients Waiting for Common Radiologic Imaging in Jimma University Specialized Hospital.
No full textRadiologic Diagnostic and therapeutic procedures using ionizing radiation carries well-known potential health risks. The knowledge of the referring physician and patients on modalities of diagnostic imaging and procedures that use ionizing radiation varies widely. Their knowledge was generally inadequate. Patients’ radiation knowledge strongly influences their acceptance and preference of diagnostic imaging types. Objective: The main objective of the study is to assess knowledge on ionizing radiation associated hazards and protective measures during medical imaging among patients waiting for common radiologic imaging in Jimma University Specialized Hospital (JUSH), Ethiopia. Methods: Hospitals based cross sectional study design were conducted on 388 patients waiting for common radiologic imaging and procedures in JUSH, at radiology department. A structured questionnaire was used to collect data from voluntary patients. Data was cleaned, edited and entered to SPSS version 16.Data was expressed as frequency distribution and percentages. Categorical variables were compared using the chi-square test for association. A P value of less than 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results: A total of 386 voluntary patients were included, of which 225(58.3%) of them were male. Their age range was from 14 years to 85years. In 28.2 % importance of imaging and likely associated harmful effects of radiation were discussed with referring physician. All of imaging unit referral was by the physician. An half of the respondents 193(50%) had back ground information about radiation. The majority of the participants, 356(92.2%) responded that they knew conventional x-ray. Twenty nine (7.5%) patients did not indicate any one of the equipment. Only 203 (52.6%) patients indicated the association health hazard with radiation. Sixty five (16.8%) were incorrect in their assumption that ultrasound examinations uses of ionizing radiation and 32 (8.3%) of them were not aware of ionizing radiation free nature MRI imaging. Majority of the patients 152(39.4%) had indicated infertility followed by cancer, 130 (33.7%) as specific health effect of ionizing radiation. About 122(31.6%) of patients indicate gonads as highly sensitive organ. Ultrasound and MRI indicates as safe modality during pregnancy in 32(8.3%) and 4 (1%) respectively, where as plain abdominal x-ray and CT as safe for pregnant mother in 4(1%) and 5 (1.3%) respectively. More than 95% of the respondents had no idea about background radiation and radiation protection symbol was known only among 15 (3.9%) patients. A large number of patients 292 (75.6%) responded that they had no idea about protective measures while diagnostic imaging. Most of (96.1%) the patients had no idea about the application of radiation rather than for their imaging purpose use. An association of effect the education and information on patients’ knowledge about radiation was revealed. Conclusion This study has shown the inadequacy of patients’ knowledge on possible radiation associated health hazards, radiation protection measures and applications of radiation that is in general agreement with the results of other similar surveys. Thus intervention should be done on the line of improving our patients’ knowledge about radiation issue
Knowledge on Ionizing Radiation Associated Hazards and Protective Measures during Medical Imaging among Patients Waiting for Common Radiologic Imaging in Jimma University Specialized Hospital
No full textImproving Medium- and Long-Range Hydrological Forecasts with Ensemble Meteorological Forecasts and Climatic Information
No full textTitle: Improving Medium- and Long-Range Hydrological Forecasts with Ensemble Meteorological Forecasts and Climatic Information, Author: Getnet Y. Muluye, Location: MillsThe ability to provide reliable and accurate medium- and long-range hydrological
forecasts is fundamental for the effective operation and management of water resources
systems. The principal objectives of this thesis are (i) to develop a framework for
advancing the long-range forecasting skills of hydrological models by coupling pertinent
and leading climate information with regional hydro-meteorological variables; and (ii) to
develop effective mechanisms for integrating meteorological ensemble systems in a
hydrologic prediction system, which would be useful for risk analysis by policy makers
for operating both large-scale as well as small-scale water resources systems. This
research constitutes three principal components: long-range forecasts, downscaling, and
medium-range forecasts. For long-range hydrological forecasting, four data-driven models, including multilayer perceptron (MLP), time-lagged feedforward network (TLFN), Bayesian neural network (BNN) and recurrent multilayer perceptron (RMLP) were designed by
incorporating low-frequency climatic indices to forecast seasonal reservoir inflows. The
results indicated that the incorporation of modes of climatic indices in a hydrologic
forecasting model resulted in a considerable improvement in the seasonal forecast
accuracy. Furthermore, the extended Kalman filter approach was used to train the
recurrent multilayer perceptron for capturing the complexity associated with the long range
streamflow forecasting. Results showed that the proposed methodology was able to
provide a robust modeling framework capable of capturing the complex dynamics of the
hydrologic system. Different statistical methods were developed and evaluated for downscaling local scale information of precipitation and temperature from the numerical weather prediction model output. Three different methods were considered: (i) hybrids; (ii) neural networks; and (iii) nearest neighbor-based approaches. The findings revealed that the skills in the downscaled temperature forecasts were superior to those in the downscaled precipitation forecasts. In particular, for downscaling daily precipitation, the artificial neural network-logistic regression (ANN-Logst), partial least squares (PLS) regression and recurrent
multilayer perceptron trained with the extended Kalman filter (EKF) models yielded
greater skill values, and the conditional resampling method (SDSM) and K-nearest
neighbor (KNN) based models showed potential for characterizing the variability in daily
precipitation. For the case of medium-range hydrological forecasting, the downscaled and the raw numerical model outputs were forced into an HBV hydrologic model in order to
generate an ensemble of reservoir inflows. The simulation results indicated that the
downscaled-based flows had greater skill values, and yielded more accurate forecasts
than the raw-based flows. The potential economic values of flow forecasts were further
assessed based on a simple optimal decision-making, cost-loss analysis technique. The
principal outcomes emerging from the analyses included: (i) the economic benefits
associated with probabilistic flow forecasts were more useful than their deterministic
counterparts; and (ii) the downscaled-based flow forecasts offered greater benefits, which
are applicable to a much wider range of users, than the raw-based flow forecasts.ThesisDoctor of Philosophy (PhD
Ethnobotanical study of medicinal plants used against human ailments in Gubalafto District, Northern Ethiopia
No full textAbstract Background Traditional medicinal plant species documentation is very crucial in Ethiopia for biodiversity conservation, bioactive chemical extractions and indigenous knowledge retention. Having first observed the inhabitants of Gubalafto District (Northern Ethiopia), the author gathered, recorded, and documented the human traditional medicinal plant species and the associated indigenous knowledge. Methods The study was conducted from February 2013 to January 2015 and used descriptive field survey design. Eighty-four informants were selected from seven study kebeles (sub-districts) in the District through purposive, snowball, and random sampling techniques. Both quantitative and qualitative data were collected through semi-structured interviews, guided field walks, demonstrations, and focus group discussions with the help of guided questions. Data were organized and analyzed by descriptive statistics with SPSS version 20 and Microsoft Office Excel 2007. Results A total of 135 medicinal plant species within 120 genera and 64 families were documented. Among the species, Ocimum lamiifolium and Rhamnus prinoides scored the highest informant citations and fidelity level value, respectively. In the study area, Asteraceae with 8.1% and herbs with 50.4% plant species were the most used sources for their medicinal uses. A total of 65 ailments were identified as being treated by traditional medicinal plants, among which stomachache (abdominal health problems) was frequently reported. Solanum incanum was reported for the treatment of many of the reported diseases. The leaf, fresh parts, and crushed forms of the medicinal plants were the most preferred in remedy preparations. Oral application was the highest reported administration for 110 preparations. A majority of medicinal plant species existed in the wild without any particular conservation effort. Few informants (about 5%) had only brief notes about the traditional medicinal plants. Ninety percent of the respondents have learned indigenous medicinal plants knowledge from their family members and friends secretly. Orthodox Church schools were found the main place for 65% of healer’s indigenous knowledge origin and experiences. Elders, aged between 40 and 84 years, gave detailed descriptions about traditional medicinal plants. Conclusions Traditional medicinal plants and associated indigenous knowledge are the main systems to maintain human health in Gubalafto District. But minimal conservation measures were recorded in the community. Thus, in-situ and ex-situ conservation practices and sustainable utilization are required in the District
Dynamic Bayesian network modeling for longitudinal data on child undernutrition in Ethiopia (2002-2016)
No full textAbstract
Introduction:
Dynamic Bayesian networks improve the modeling of complex systems by incorporating continuous probabilistic relationships between covariates that change over time. This study aimed to analyze the complex causal links contributing to child undernutrition using dynamic Bayesian network modeling, examining both the best- and worst-case scenarios. The Young Cohort of the Ethiopian Young Lives dataset from 2002–2016 was used to analyze the complex relationships among various covariates influencing child undernutrition. We used a built-in Bayes server tool to identify potential features, followed by building the structure of the directed acyclic graph using a structural learning algorithm. The maximum posterior is determined using the relevance tree algorithm. The node with the highest values of mutual information and target entropy reduction, along with the lowest value of target entropy, was considered to have the strongest predictive power in the dataset.
Results:
This study revealed that long-term participation in programs increased the likelihood of children being in a normal nutritional state. Key factors influencing the nutritional status of children under two years of age include the mother’s education level, her subjective well-being, and the household’s wealth quintile. Children with educated parents were more likely to have a healthy nutritional status. Additionally, the causal pathway of intervention programs → wealth quintile → child nutritional status consistently exceeded 90% in Waves 3, 4, and 5, indicating a strong relationship. Similarly, the relationship between intervention programs → food security → child nutritional status was nearly perfect at 99.99% in Waves 4 and 5, indicating a strong association. Finally, the study revealed that household participation in intervention programs significantly reduces undernutrition in best-case scenarios, while the absence of support poses a higher risk in worst-case conditions.
Conclusion:
The comprehensive intervention program strongly improved household wealth, food security, and maternal well-being, which in turn affected children’s nutritional status.Abstract
Introduction:
Dynamic Bayesian networks improve the modeling of complex systems by incorporating continuous probabilistic relationships between covariates that change over time. This study aimed to analyze the complex causal links contributing to child undernutrition using dynamic Bayesian network modeling, examining both the best- and worst-case scenarios. The Young Cohort of the Ethiopian Young Lives dataset from 2002–2016 was used to analyze the complex relationships among various covariates influencing child undernutrition. We used a built-in Bayes server tool to identify potential features, followed by building the structure of the directed acyclic graph using a structural learning algorithm. The maximum posterior is determined using the relevance tree algorithm. The node with the highest values of mutual information and target entropy reduction, along with the lowest value of target entropy, was considered to have the strongest predictive power in the dataset.
Results:
This study revealed that long-term participation in programs increased the likelihood of children being in a normal nutritional state. Key factors influencing the nutritional status of children under two years of age include the mother’s education level, her subjective well-being, and the household’s wealth quintile. Children with educated parents were more likely to have a healthy nutritional status. Additionally, the causal pathway of intervention programs → wealth quintile → child nutritional status consistently exceeded 90% in Waves 3, 4, and 5, indicating a strong relationship. Similarly, the relationship between intervention programs → food security → child nutritional status was nearly perfect at 99.99% in Waves 4 and 5, indicating a strong association. Finally, the study revealed that household participation in intervention programs significantly reduces undernutrition in best-case scenarios, while the absence of support poses a higher risk in worst-case conditions.
Conclusion:
The comprehensive intervention program strongly improved household wealth, food security, and maternal well-being, which in turn affected children’s nutritional status
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