15 research outputs found
Establishment of reference intervals of thyroid function tests from cord blood of neonates in two selected hospitals, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
No full textPopulation Health Informatics: Summer Internship Experience at CDHA
No full textInternship Report - Summer 2008Internships give students of Health Informatics opportunities to receive on-the-job training and connect their academic health informatics knowledge with the real world. Furthermore, it gives them an opportunity for networking with future possible employers as well as other related future organizations in the area of health and/or informational technology. This internship done at CDHA is composed of different parts and tasks. The first one was to develop a campaign design; the second, which is the follow up of the first assignment, to research and develop strategy for CDHA obesity management initiative under population health theme; the third part was, data gathering about CDHA committees; and the last part was consulting communication tool for mid and high level managers. In addition to all these activities, the author also attended a number of board meetings as part of decision making experiences. The first and the second assignment, the author shared and worked with Masters of Health Administration resident, Mrs. Lynn Lowe. The third and the fourth assignment, however, was an exclusive assignment. As the experience was multi task and the majority of the activities were done with the MHA student, it was a good experience to work in a multi-task environment with other health professionals. This gives a chance to learn the real world scenario of health informatics, and also it was an opportunity to let others know about health informatics at the same time able to know about their field of expertise and profession.Office of Chief Operating Officer, Capital District Health Authority (CDHA
Additional file 1: of Establishment of reference intervals of thyroid function tests from cord blood of neonates in two selected hospitals, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
No full textTSH, fT4 and fT3 results of Study participants. (XLSX 15 kb
Adherence to Antiretroviral Therapy and Associated Factors Among HIV-Infected Children in Public Health Institutions of Adwa, Axum, and Shire Towns of Tigray, Northern Ethiopia: A Cross-Sectional Study
No full textTadis Brhane Tesfahunegn,1 Negassie Berhe,2 Teklehaymanot Huluf Abraha,1 Solomon Hintsa,3 Goitom Yohanes,1 Kahsay Desta,4 Haileselasie Berhane Alema,5 Elsa Hagos,6 Gebreamlak Gidey,7 Gebreyesus Brhane Teshahunegn8 1Department of Reproductive Health, College of Health Sciences, Aksum University, Aksum, Ethiopia; 2Department of Human Nutrition, College of Health Sciences, Aksum University, Aksum, Ethiopia; 3Department of Epidemiology, College of Health Sciences, Aksum University, Aksum, Ethiopia; 4School of Medicine, College of Health Sciences, Aksum University, Aksum, Ethiopia; 5Department of Public Health, College of Health Sciences, Aksum University, Aksum, Ethiopia; 6Department of Medical Laboratory, College of Health Sciences, Aksum University, Aksum, Ethiopia; 7Department of Midwifery, College of Health Sciences, Aksum University, Aksum, Ethiopia; 8College of Agriculture, Aksum University, Shire, EthiopiaCorrespondence: Haileselasie Berhane Alema Department of Public Health, College of Health Sciences, Aksum University, P.O.Box: 298, Aksum, Ethiopia Tel +251914006933 Email [email protected]: Antiretroviral therapy (ART) provision was among the major challenge of treatments. Maintaining the optimal level of adherence among children living with HIV/AIDS is a pivotal step towards achieving treatment success. However, there are limited studies on child’s ART adherence. Therefore, this study aimed to assess the level of adherence to antiretroviral therapy and associated factors among HIV-infected children in health institutions of Adwa, Axum, and Shire towns, Tigray, Northern Ethiopia.Methods: An institutional-based cross-sectional study was conducted among human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected children in between February and April, 2016. A total of 255 children who were taking antiretroviral therapy in the randomly selected three health facilities from Adwa, Axum and Shire towns were included. Data were collected using pretested and structured questionnaires using a face-to-face interview. The collected data were entered into Epi Info version 7 and then exported to SPSS version 21 for analysis. Bivariate and multivariate binary logistic regression models were used to determine the factors associated with adherence to antiretroviral therapy among HIV-infected children.Results: A total of the 255 study participants were included in the study. The level of ART adherence among HIV-positive children was 212 (84.8%). Knowledge of caregivers about ART treatment (AOR = 2.78, 95% CI: 1.18, 6.53), occupational status (AOR = 4.78, 95% CI: 1.26, 18.91), appointment to ART less than two months (AOR = 3.05, 95% CI: 1.21, 7.70) and use of memory aids (AOR = 4.58, 95% CI: 1.73, 12.13) were independently associated with adherence to ART.Conclusion: The level of adherence to antiretroviral therapy was low. Healthcare providers should reinforce adherence intervention and counseling sessions during follow-up and address the proper use of medication reminders to help children take their drugs appropriately.Keywords: HIV, adherence, ART, children, Ethiopi
Factors Associated with the Death of Preterm Babies Admitted to Neonatal Intensive Care Units in Ethiopia: A Prospective, Cross-sectional, and Observational Study
No full textHair Washing Formulations from Aloe elegans Todaro Gel: The Potential for Making Hair Shampoo
No full textThis study aimed to describe the gross phytochemical constituents of Aloe elegans Todaro gel and evaluate the characteristics and quality of lab-made hair washing formulations prepared from the gel to show its potential in formulating hair washing shampoos. A. elegans gel mass was prepared from mature, healthy leaves collected from natural stand. Samples of 100% methanol extract of the gel were subjected to standard phytochemical screening and gas chromatography-mass spectroscopy (GC-MS) analysis. Five hair washing formulations (Fs) were, likewise, prepared by mixing 4.0–10.0 mL of gel with one (0.05 mL) to two (0.10 mL) drops of six synthetic and natural ingredients, namely, coconut oil, jojoba oil, olive oil, pure glycerin oil, lemon juice, and vitamin E. The gel to the total ingredient ratios (v/v) of the five formulations were 93 : 7 (F1), 94.5 : 5.5 (F2), 96.4 : 3.6 (F3), and 96.6 : 3.4 (F4 and F5). The formulations were evaluated using sensory inspection and common physicochemical methods. The phytochemical screening and GC-MS analysis revealed that A. elegans gel is the source of important chemical constituents used in the formulation of shampoos and similar products including saponins, capric acid, lauric acid, myristic acid, palmitic acid, linoleic acid, stearic acid, and phytol. Lab-made A. elegans hair washing formulations, especially those with 96.4–96.6% gel, were found to have similar characteristics and qualities with a common marketed shampoo. All the formulations were turbid with characteristic odor as the marketed shampoo. The pH values of the hair washing formulations (6.4–4.6) were comparable to those of the marketed shampoo (6.7). Formulations with higher proportion of gel had better foam stability, higher solid content (26–29%), higher surface tension (33–38 dynes/cm), shorter wetting time (150–160 sec), equivalent viscosities (26.45–26.73 poise), and conditioning performance than the marketed shampoo. These findings demonstrate that A. elegans gel mass can be used in the formulation of good-quality hair washing shampoos. We recommend future studies that aim to develop the phytochemical profile of the plant and a refined protocol of hair washing shampoo formulation
Formulation and Physicochemical Evaluation of Lab-Based Aloe adigratana Reynolds Shampoos
No full textAloe L. species (Aloaceae) are ethnobotanically very valuable plants in many communities and civilizations. Nonetheless, very few species are extensively studied to explore their applications in the pharmaceutical and medical, cosmetic and personal care, food and beverage, and detergent industries. This study evaluated the characteristics and quality of lab-based shampoos formulated from the gel of Aloe adigratana Reynolds. Five shampoo formulations, 20 mL each, were prepared from A. adigratana gel in combination with one to two drops of coconut oil, jojoba oil, olive oil, pure glycerin oil, lemon juice, and vitamin E. Gel mass is prepared from mature, healthy leaves collected from the natural stand. The phytochemistry of the gel of the plant was also studied using phytochemical screening, proximate composition, and GC-MS analysis studies. Shampoo formulations with higher proportion (40 to 50% v/v) of A. adigratana gel were found to have comparable characteristics and qualities with a marketed shampoo. They fall within the range of acceptable quality parameters of commercial shampoos. The phytochemical studies of A. adigratana gel showed that the plant is the source of highly valued compounds for the preparation of shampoos. The gel was found to be rich in saponins as well as dodecanoic acid, hexadecanoic acid, and phytol. Future works should focus in the development of refined protocol towards formulating A. adigratana-based shampoos
Rabies mortality and morbidity associated with animal bites in Africa: a case for integrated rabies disease surveillance, prevention and control: a scoping review
No full textOBJECTIVE: The objective of this scoping review was to map the current situation and available evidence and gaps on rabies morbidity, mortality, integrated rabies surveillance programmes, and existing prevention and control strategies in Africa. METHODS: We conducted a systematic scoping review following the Joanna Briggs methodology and Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for scoping reviews checklist. Medline, Embase, CINAHL (EBSCOHost), Scopus, Web of Science and rabies web conferences were used to search for peer-reviewed publications between January 1946 and May 2020. Two researchers reviewed the studies and extracted data based on author (year) and region, study design and data collection duration, participants/comparators, interventions, control conditions/exposures and outcomes (rabies mortality and morbidity) and key findings/gaps/challenges. The results were reported narratively using Arksey and O'Malley's methodological framework. RESULTS: Electronic search yielded 2775 records, of which 43 studies were included. A total of 543 714 bite victims were censored through the included studies. Most of the victims were less than 15 years of age. The studies included rabies morbidity (21) and mortality (15) fluctuating in space and time across Africa depending on countries' rabies prevention and control practices (16). Others were surveillance (nine studies); surveillance and prevention (five studies); management and control (seven studies); and surveillance, prevention and control (six studies). We found challenges in rabies reporting, existing dog vaccination programmes and post-exposure prophylaxis availability or compliance. CONCLUSION: This study found challenges for dog rabies control and elimination in Africa and the need for a policy to drive the goal of zero dog-transmitted rabies to humans by 2030.This is an open-access article distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build on this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited, appropriate credit is given, any changes made indicated and the use is non-commercial (see http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/)
En-gendering theatre in Eritrea : the roles and representations of women in the performing arts
No full textThis thesis is a first attempt at writing a modern theatre historiography of Eritrea, with emphasis on the roles and representations of women. It covers a period of some fifty years, from the late 1930s to 1991, the year of the country's de facto independence. The study is divided into three major sections; Part One providing the context of theatre in Eritrea, Part Two dealing with the emergence of modern Eritrean theatre arts, and Part Three covering the rise of the fighter performing arts during the thirty-year liberation struggle against Ethiopia.
After an introduction to Eritrean history and theatre arts as well as the theoretical framework of the study, Chapter 1 examines women's roles and representations in Eritrean societies and selected traditional performing arts as the
matrix onto which modern performance practices are built.
Chapter 2 starts with a portrayal of early urban women performers in the late 1930s and early 1940s as singers and krar-players in local drinking houses, followed by the gradual expansion of Eritrean theatre arts under the British
Military Administration. Thereafter the establishment of three well-known Eritrean theatre associations is examined, with Chapter 3 focusing on the Asmara Theatre Association, Mahber Theatre Asmara, whose work was eventually brought to a halt by the rise of the Ethiopian Derg regime. An investigation into the cultural troupes of the two liberation movements, the Eritrean Liberation Front
(ELF) and the Eritrean People's Liberation Front (EPLF) is dealt with in Part Three.
Chapter 4 outlines theatre work in the ELF, while Chapters 5-7 present details of EPLF performing arts. Chapter 5 begins with early performance activities until
the strategic retreat in 1978/79, followed by Chapter 6 with an analysis of drama work after the reorganisation of the Division of Culture. Chapter 7 covers theatre
activities in mass organisations and supporting departments and outlines cultural developments during the final years of the liberation war. In conclusion, major trends and directions in post-independence Eritrean theatre arts are summarised as they continue to negotiate recent socio-political problems and developments
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A Prospective Study of Causes of Illness and Death in Preterm Infants in Ethiopia: The SIP Study Protocol
No full textBackground
With nearly 15 million annual preterm births globally, preterm birth is the most common cause of neonatal death. Forty to 60 % of neonatal deaths are directly or indirectly associated with preterm mortality. As countries aim to meet the Sustainable Development Goals to reduce neonatal mortality, significant reductions in preterm mortality are needed. This study aims to identify the common causes of preterm illness and their contribution to preterm mortality in low-resource settings. This article will describe the methods used to undertake the study.
Methods
This is a prospective, multi-centre, descriptive clinical study. Socio-demographic, obstetric, and maternal factors, and clinical and laboratory findings will be documented. The major causes of preterm mortality will be identified using clinical, laboratory, imaging, and autopsy methods and use the national Ethiopian guidelines on management of preterm infants including required investigations to reach final diagnoses. The study will document the clinical and management protocols followed in these settings. The approach consists of clinical examinations and monitoring, laboratory investigations, and determination of primary and contributory causes of mortality through both clinical means and by post-mortem examinations. An independent panel of experts will validate the primary and contributory causes of mortality.
To obtain the estimated sample size of 5000 preterm births, the study will be undertaken in five hospitals in three regions of Ethiopia, which are geographically distributed across the country. All preterm infants who are either born or transferred to these hospitals will be eligible for the study. Three methods (last menstrual period, physical examination using the New Ballard Score, and ultrasound) will be used to determine gestational age.
All clinical procedures will be conducted per hospital protocol and informed consent will be taken from parents or caretakers prior to their participation in the study as well as for autopsy if the infant dies.
Discussion
This study will determine the major causes of death and illness among hospitalized preterm infants in a low-resource setting. The result will inform policy makers and implementers of areas that can be prioritized in order to contribute to a significant reduction in neonatal mortality
