1,720,962 research outputs found
Life-Saving but Risky: Antiretroviral Therapy and Rising Diabetes Risk in Rural South Africa
Full text linkShort- story, Faculty of Health Sciences (Nursing)-- North-West University, Mahikeng CampusAntiretroviral therapy (ARVs), especially in the form of combination regimens (cARVs), has been one of the greatest medical achievements of our time. For people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHIV), these drugs transformed a once fatal illness into a manageable chronic condition, giving hope and extending life expectancy. Yet, this progress comes with a new challenge: an increased risk of type-2 Diabetes Mellitus (DM). This study, conducted in a rural South African district, provides compelling evidence that cARVs are strongly linked to the development of diabetes, underscoring the need for vigilance in long-term HIV car
Unveiling the Hidden Risks
Full text linkShort-story, Faculty of Health Sciences (Nursing)-- North-West University, Mahikeng CampusIn the rural expanse of South Africa's Eastern Cape, where healthcare resources are often limited, a silent epidemic is unfolding. People living with HIV (PLWHIV), who have long been the focus of antiretroviral therapy (ART) efforts, are now facing an additional threat: type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). A recent study conducted in the OR Tambo district has shed light on the lifestyle determinants contributing to this emerging crisis
When the unthinkable happens: protecting moms and babies in the hospital
Full text linkShort-story, Faculty of Health Science (Nursing)-- North-West University, Mahikeng CampusImagine a hospital’s maternity ward: new mothers are recovering, babies are nestled in cribs, and some, born too soon, are in incubators, fragile and dependent. Now, picture a sudden crisis, a fire, a flood, or a major power outage. What happens to these incredibly vulnerable patients and the dedicated nurses caring for them? Are they truly ready?
This vital research, from a Master’s research study supervised, explored this exact question in a public hospital in South Africa, where most of the nation's births occur. It uncovered a crucial reality: while our nurses are immensely dedicated and understand what a disaster is, they often feel profoundly unprepared to act effectively when one strikes in their obstetric unit
Fighting the COVID-19 “Infodemic” in South Africa: How Conspiracy Theories Undermined Protection
Full text linkShort-story, Faculty of Health Sciences (Nursing)-- North-West University, Mahikeng CampusWhen COVID-19 emerged, the world faced not only a deadly virus but also an “infodemic”, a flood of misinformation and conspiracy theories spreading as fast as the disease itself. In South Africa, these false narratives profoundly shaped people’s willingness to follow protective measures and accept vaccines, undermining efforts to control the pandemic
Harnessing the Power of Skin-to-Skin Contact: Policy, Education, and Support for Preterm Infant Care
Full text linkShort- story, Faculty of Health Sciences (Nursing)-- North-West University, Mahikeng CampusPremature birth remains a major contributor to neonatal mortality and morbidity, particularly in low- and middle-income countries such as South Africa. Skin-to-Skin Contact (SSC), or Kangaroo Mother Care, is an evidence-based, life-saving intervention that improves survival, growth, breastfeeding, and neurodevelopment in preterm infants. Despite its proven effectiveness, SSC is underutilized in many neonatal intensive care units (NICUs). This PhD study highlights the systemic and educational barriers to routine SSC implementation and offers a framework for sustainable integration. Three core requirements emerged: clear institutional policies, structured and continuous education for both healthcare providers and parents, and comprehensive counselling and support systems. Together, these elements provide a blueprint for ensuring that SSC becomes a consistent standard of care, thereby improving outcomes for both infants and their families
Understanding the motivations for Covid-19 vaccine hesitancy in South Africa: Narrative literature review
Full text linkOpen Access JournalWhile efforts to promote vaccine knowledge and acceptability in the global and local communities are applauded, affordability of the vaccines to the public is inadequate thus strategies that promote vaccine access and uptake will lead to increased usage of COVID-19 vaccines. To review the relevant literature obtained from a computerised database search that focuses on vaccine hesitancy in order to understand motivations for vaccine hesitancy with a view to address within a South African context. A comprehensive search from different databases, namely, Google Scholar and North-West University Library through the e-Link Catalogue, with journal and conference publications from 2010 to 2021, yielded qualitative, quantitative and mixed-method studies that addressed various topics on vaccine hesitancy. Inclusion and exclusion criteria were set and 25 publications met the inclusion criteria for the review. The motivations for COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy are described as complacency: anti-scientific attitude (unbelief in evidenced-based information) caused by conspiracy beliefs and distrust in information sources leading to lack of compliance to COVID-19 restrictions such as wearing of masks, social distancing and lack of hand hygiene: convenience/lack of access to COVID-19 vaccines; caused by delays in the distribution and use of vaccines till expiry dates were reached and lack of confidence and trust: caused by concerns on safety and effectiveness of vaccines. COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy can be addressed by ensuring that there are no constraints related to the supply and system that administers vaccines; building trust in the safety of vaccines, health services and government authorities and avoiding delays in distribution and use of vaccines. Future studies need to address the root causes of conspiracy beliefs that lead to complacency (anti-scientific attitudes) resulting in delays/refusal of COVID-19 vaccines and non-compliance to evidence-based information that if observed could curb the spread of COVID-19
Determinants of Type 2 diabetes mellitus among HIV/AIDS patients on antiretroviral drugs in the OR Tambo District, South Africa
Full text linkType 2 diabetes mellitus (DM) is a frequent adverse effect of antiretroviral drugs for those who are on ARVS. People with type 2 DM can suffer multiple complications that hinder the quality of life. In South Africa research has shown significant increase in neuropathy, heart and kidney diseases among patients living with type 2 DM and HIV/AIDS compared to DM without HIV. Accessed knowledge lacked consistency on the predictors of DM in HIV/AIDS patients with regards to the type of ARVS with higher risks of DM. Research needed to be done to find the determinants of type 2 DM in HIV/AIDS context. The purpose of this study was to describe the determinants of type 2 DM among HIV/AIDS patients on ARVS in the OR Tambo District, SA in order to develop intervention strategies to mitigate the long-term effects of type 2 DM. A quantitative research methodology using a case control retrospective study was used. A sample of 177 (33%) cases with HIV/AIDS and type 2 DM was selected using a one stage stratified sampling with allocation proportional to size of each stratum of the four sub-districts of OR Tambo District. Two non-diabetic patients with HIV/AIDS were selected as controls per case unpaired and totalled up to 354 (67%) controls. A self-administration questionnaire adopted from the WHO (2011) STEPwise surveillance tool for chronic diseases was used for data collection. Stata (standard version 13.0, Stata Corp., Lakeway Drive USA) was used for data management and analysis. Findings of the study revealed determinants of type 2 DM grouped as the socio-demographic determinants; tertiary education and marital status, levels of physical activities; lack of vigorous activity and sport, types of diets; high fruits and vegetables and healthy eating out at restaurants, arterial blood pressure; lack of routine BP check and known HPT and types of ARVS used in HIV/AIDS therapy. Compared with patients who received FDC, the risk of type 2 DM was 43 times and 22 higher when a tri-therapy regimen contained Ritonavir and Lopinavir respectively . The majority of DM patients (n=177) were diagnosed type 2 DM after ARVS at n=108 (61%). In managing the diabetic patients a shift from a single disease to multiple-chronic disease focus is required to mitigate the complex drug interactions that exist in the control of NCDs such as HIV/AIDS, DM, HPT and other long-term diseases. The HIV/AIDS and type 2 DM awareness and care intervention strategy is recommended as healthy lifestyle, monitoring of side effects and drug interactions, enhanced FDC roll out and elimination of unsafe ARVS to improve the health outcomes of type 2 DM patients in an HIV/AIDS context in OR Tambo District
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Full text linkThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Educational Programme to Implement Skin-to-skin Contact for Preterm Infants in the Intensive Care Units: Qualitative Study Proposal
Full text linkJournal Article, NuMIQ (Quality in Nursing and Midwifery), Faculty of Health Sciences, North-West University, PotchefstroomIntroduction
Skin-to-skin contact (SSC) has been widely adopted as an efficacious and useful approach to neonatal care. Despite the endorsement of this practice by the World Health Organization (WHO) over a decade ago, healthcare institutions in South Africa, particularly in the North West Province (NWP), have shown limited progress with regard to its implementation. Of particular concern is the fact that South Africa accounts for 60% of the global mortality rate among low birth weight (LBW) preterm infants. Therefore, an educational programme can be beneficial for both parents and nurses in implementing SSC for preterm infants in intensive care units, with the aim of reducing the neonatal mortality rate.
Aim
The aim of this research is to develop an educational programme to implement SSC for preterm infants in intensive care units of the NWP.
Methods
This study will be conducted in three phases. Phase 1: An integrative literature review (ILR) will be conducted by following these five steps: formulation of the review question, search strategy, critical appraisal, data analysis, synthesis and conclusion. Phase 2 represents an empirical study using a qualitative exploratory and descriptive design. Purposive sampling will be used to select two populations. Population one will be parents of preterm infants and population two will be registered nurses and midwives. Semi-structured focus group discussions (FGDs) with a minimum of six participants will be used to collect data in both populations until reaching data saturation. Data will then be analyzed using steps proposed by Creswell and Clark. Phase 3 consists of the development of an educational programme to implement SSC for preterm infants in intensive care units, using Kellogg’s Logic Model (KLM). The following three KLM steps will be used for the development of an educational programme: inputs and activities, identifying outputs, outcomes, and outcomes indicators.
Conclusion
The study furnishes an introduction to the research, the aim and objectives of the research as well as the research methodology that will be adhered to. The results obtained from phases 1 and 2 will be used to form the basis for the development of an education programme in phase 3
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