116 research outputs found
Risk Factors for Anaemia Among HIV Infected Children Attending Care and Treatment Clinic at Muhimbili National Hospital in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
No full textThere is paucity of data describing the risk factors for anaemia among HIV infected children in Tanzania. This cross sectional study was carried out to determine the contributing factors for anaemia among HIV-infected children attending Muhimbili National Hospital in Dar es Salaam. Both univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were performed to identify possible factors associated with anaemia in HIV-infected children. A total of 75 (44%) patients among 167 recruited HIV-infected children aged 6 months to 59 months of were found to be anaemic (Hg<11g/dl). Multivariate logistic regression demonstrated that not being on HAART (OR 3.40, 95%CI (1.20-9.60), having CD4% <25% (OR 2.30, 95%CI (1.20-34.60), having a history of tuberculosis (TB) (OR 3.23, 95%CI (1.10-9.70) and having hookworm infestation (OR 5.97, 95%CI (1.92-18.4) were independent risk factors for anaemia among HIV infected children. The analyses also showed that being HIV positive for ≥ 2.5 years resulted into a low risk of severe anaemia compared to being HIV positive for < 2.5 years. Taking multivitamins (OR 0.07, 95%, CI (0.020-0.30) and antihelminthics (OR 0.27, 95%CI (0.10-0.74) were also protective against anaemia in children. Similar factors (with exception of using antihelmintics) were associated with severe anaemia. In conclusion the factors associated with anaemia in HIV infected children were multifactorial in nature. Efforts to correct anaemia in HIV infected children should include use of HAART and treatment of infections such as TB and hookworms
Development of an impact assessment framework for lean manufacturing within SMEs
No full textThe main aim of the research work presented in this thesis, is the development of a
novel framework with the capability of assessing the impact of implementing lean
manufacturing within small-to-medium sized manufacturing firms (SMEs). By assessing
the impact of lean implementation, SMEs can make informed decisions on the viability
of lean adoption at the conceptual implementation stage. Companies are also able
determine their status in terms of lean manufacturing affordability.
Thus, in order to achieve the above-stated aim, the following were the main set research
objectives; (1) identifying the key drivers for implementing lean manufacturing within
SMEs, (2) investigating the operational activities of SMEs in order to understand their
manufacturing issues, (3) exploring the current level of lean manufacturing usage within
SMEs so as to categorise users based on their levels of involvement, (4) identifying
factors that determine the assessment of lean manufacturing, (5) developing an impact
assessment framework for justifying lean manufacturing within SMEs, (6) developing a
knowledge based advisory system and (7) validating the impact assessment framework
and the developed knowledge based advisory system through real-life case studies,
workshops, and expert opinions.
A combination of research methodology approaches have been employed in this
research study. This comprises literature review, observation of companies' practices
and personal interview. The data collection process involved ten SMEs that provided
consistent information throughout the research project life. Additionally, visitations to
three large size manufacturing firms were also conducted. Hence, the framework and
system development process passed through several stages. Firstly, the data were
collected from companies who had successfully implemented lean manufacturing within
their premise. The second development stage included the analysis and validation of the
dataset through company practitioners. An impact assessment framework was thus developed with the aid of regression analysis as a predictive model. However, it was
realised that there were few correlations between the dataset generated and analysis. The
reasons for this were unclear.
,a
knowledge based advisory system was adopted to
conceptualise, enhance the robustness of the impact assessment framework and address
the problem of the imprecise data in the impact assessment process.
Three major factors of impact assessment were considered in the framework and the
system development process, namely relative cost of lean implementation, a company
lean readiness status and the level of value-added to be achieved (impact/benefits).
Three knowledge based advisory sub-systems that consisted of the abovementioned
factors were built. Results obtained from them were then fed into the final system. The
three sub-systems were validated with the original set of data from companies. This
enabled the assignment of a number of input variables whose membership functions
aided the definition of the fuzzy expert system language (linguistic variables) used. The
final system yielded heuristic rules that enable the postulation of scenarios of lean
implementation. Results were sought and tested on a number of firms based within the
UK, for the purposes validation. These also included expert opinions both in academic
and industrial settings.
A major contribution of the developed system is its ability to aid decision-making
processes for lean implementation at the early implementation stage. The visualisation
facility of the developed system is also useful in enabling potential lean users to make
forecasts on the relative cost of lean projects upfront, anticipate lean benefits, and realise
one' degree of lean readiness
Numerical solution and asymptotic behavior for a nonlocal reaction-diffusion coupled systems
No full textChristiformitas in Nicholas of Cusa’s Roman Sermons (1459)
No full textNicholas of Cusa (1401-1464) served as vicar of Rome in the absence of Pope Pius II at the Congress of Mantua (1459). Cusanus held a synod and did visitations of major churches. His sermons for these events emphasized conformity with Christ as the means of knowing God.This is the Version of Record (VoR) of the article that was originally published in Perspectives in the Arts and Humanities Asia, Volume 1, Number 1 (2011
Seroprevalence of Human Immunodeficiency Virus, Hepatitis B and C Viruses and Syphilis Infections Among Blood Donors at the Muhimbili National Hospital in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.
No full textAccording to the latest Tanzanian National AIDS Control Programme (NACP) report a total of 147,271 individuals donated blood during the year 2002. However, blood safety remains an issue of major concern in transfusion medicine in Tanzania where national blood transfusion services and policies, appropriate infrastructure, trained personnel and financial resources are inadequate. Most of the donated blood is screened for HIV alone. We determined among blood donors at Muhimbili National Hospital (MNH), the seroprevalence of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), hepatitis C virus (HCV), hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) and syphilis by donor type, sex and age and to determine association, if any, in the occurrence of the pathogens. The sample included 1599 consecutive donors, 1424(89.1%) males and 175 (10.9%) females, who donated blood between April 2004 and May, 2005. Most of them 1125 (70.4%) were replacement donors and a few 474 (29.6%) voluntary donors. Their age (in years) ranged from 16 to 69, and most (72.2%) were between 20-39 years. Two hundred and fifty four (15.9%) of the donated blood had serological evidence of infection with at least one pathogen and 28 (1.8%) had multiple infections. The current seroprevalence of HIV, HBsAg, HCV and syphilis among blood donors at MNH in Dar es Salaam was found to be 3.8%, 8.8%, 1.5% and 4.7%, respectively. Respective seroprevalences among HIV seronegative blood donors were 8.7% for HBV, 1.6% for HCV and 4.6% for syphilis. The differences in the prevalence of HIV and syphilis infections between replacement and voluntary donors were statistically significant (P < 0.05). Syphilis was the only infection that occurred more frequently among HIV infected (12.1%) than non-infected (4.6%) blood donors (P < 0.05), and whose prevalence increased with age (X2 = 58.5 df = 5, P < 0.001). There were no significant sex differences in the occurrence of pathogens. Finally, there were significant associations in the occurrence of HBsAg and syphilis (OR = 2.2, 95% CI 1.1.-4.2) and HIV and syphilis (OR = 2.2, 95% CI 1.0-5.3). The high (15.9%) seroprevalence of blood-borne infections in blood donated at MNH calls for routine screening of blood donors for HBV, HCV, HIV and syphilis and for strict selection criteria of donors, with emphasis on getting young voluntary donors and for establishment of strict guidelines for blood transfusions
Intensive Education in The Secondary School
No full textTraditional, concurrent education is a system born of convenience and coincidence. In this paper, the author maintains that not only should the time structure of traditional education be adjusted, but that the concept of concurrent education should be replaced with intensive education.
After providing historical data on the evolution of time as an educational variable and describing intensive education programs throughout the country, the author presents a new intensive structure called The Pius Plan
'Dignitatis humanae' and the Development of Moral Doctrine: Assessing Change in Catholic Social Teaching on Religious Liberty
No full textVatican II’s Declaration on Religious Liberty, 'Dignitatis humanae' (DH), poses the problem of development in Catholic moral and social doctrine. This problem is threefold, consisting in properly understanding the meaning of pre-conciliar magisterial teaching on religious liberty, the meaning of DH itself, and the Declaration’s implications for how social doctrine develops. A survey of recent scholarship reveals that scholars attend to the first two elements in contradictory ways, and that their accounts of doctrinal development are vague. The dissertation then proceeds to the threefold problematic. Chapter two outlines the general parameters of doctrinal development. The third chapter gives an interpretation of the pre-conciliar teaching from Pius IX to John XXIII. To better determine the meaning of DH, the fourth chapter examines the Declaration’s drafts and the official explanatory speeches ('relationes') contained in Vatican II’s 'Acta synodalia'. The fifth chapter discusses how experience may contribute to doctrinal development and proposes an explanation for how the doctrine on religious liberty changed, drawing upon the work of Jacques Maritain and Basile Valuet. I argue that DH can be understood as a homogeneous development by clarifying the three elements of the problem in the following ways. First, two pre-conciliar developments in Catholic social teaching prepared for DH, namely, Pius XI’s personalistic doctrine of the common good and Pius XII’s articulation of the new demands placed upon nation-states in an international juridical order. Second, I argue that DH preserves in a new modality doctrines that some scholars assume were discarded by Vatican II, such as the duty of civil authorities toward the Catholic Church and the place of the objective moral law in limiting free exercise. Third, I draw upon Maritain and Valuet to argue that the inherent elasticity of society, being an operational and not substantial unity, indicates the limits and possibilities of change in Catholic social doctrine. In the process I introduce to the English literature Valuet’s theory of a development in the 'ius gentium' as a necessary condition for universal exercise of the natural right of religious liberty.Degree awarded: Ph.D. Moral Theology/Ethics. The Catholic University of Americ
Risk factors for anaemia among HIV infected children attending care and treatment clinic at Muhimbili National Hospital in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
No full textThere is paucity of data describing the risk factors for anaemia among
HIV infected children in Tanzania. This cross sectional study was
carried out to determine the contributing factors for anaemia among
HIV-infected children attending Muhimbili National Hospital in Dar es
Salaam. Both univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses
were performed to identify possible factors associated with anaemia in
HIV-infected children. A total of 75 (44%) patients among 167 recruited
HIV-infected children aged 6 months to 59 months of were found to be
anaemic (Hg<11g/dl). Multivariate logistic regression demonstrated
that not being on HAART (OR 3.40, 95%CI (1.20-9.60), having CD4%
<25% (OR 2.30, 95%CI (1.20-34.60), having a history of tuberculosis
(TB) (OR 3.23, 95%CI (1.10-9.70) and having hookworm infestation (OR
5.97, 95%CI (1.92-18.4) were independent risk factors for anaemia among
HIV infected children. The analyses also showed that being HIV positive
for ≥ 2.5 years resulted into a low risk of severe anaemia
compared to being HIV positive for < 2.5 years. Taking multivitamins
(OR 0.07, 95%, CI (0.020-0.30) and antihelminthics (OR 0.27, 95%CI
(0.10-0.74) were also protective against anaemia in children. Similar
factors (with exception of using antihelmintics) were associated with
severe anaemia. In conclusion the factors associated with anaemia in
HIV infected children were multifactorial in nature. Efforts to correct
anaemia in HIV infected children should include use of HAART and
treatment of infections such as TB and hookworms
Risk factors for anaemia among HIV infected children attending care and treatment clinic at Muhimbili National Hospital in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
No full textThere is paucity of data describing the risk factors for anaemia among
HIV infected children in Tanzania. This cross sectional study was
carried out to determine the contributing factors for anaemia among
HIV-infected children attending Muhimbili National Hospital in Dar es
Salaam. Both univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses
were performed to identify possible factors associated with anaemia in
HIV-infected children. A total of 75 (44%) patients among 167 recruited
HIV-infected children aged 6 months to 59 months of were found to be
anaemic (Hg<11g/dl). Multivariate logistic regression demonstrated
that not being on HAART (OR 3.40, 95%CI (1.20-9.60), having CD4%
<25% (OR 2.30, 95%CI (1.20-34.60), having a history of tuberculosis
(TB) (OR 3.23, 95%CI (1.10-9.70) and having hookworm infestation (OR
5.97, 95%CI (1.92-18.4) were independent risk factors for anaemia among
HIV infected children. The analyses also showed that being HIV positive
for ≥ 2.5 years resulted into a low risk of severe anaemia
compared to being HIV positive for < 2.5 years. Taking multivitamins
(OR 0.07, 95%, CI (0.020-0.30) and antihelminthics (OR 0.27, 95%CI
(0.10-0.74) were also protective against anaemia in children. Similar
factors (with exception of using antihelmintics) were associated with
severe anaemia. In conclusion the factors associated with anaemia in
HIV infected children were multifactorial in nature. Efforts to correct
anaemia in HIV infected children should include use of HAART and
treatment of infections such as TB and hookworms
The role of alternative press in mobilization for political change in Kenya 1982-1992: Society magazine as a case study
No full textThe purpose of this study was to investigate the role of alternative press in mobilizing Kenyans to regain a multi-party political system after 29 years of one-party rule that had turned into authoritarianism. The study focused on Society magazine, and touched on two other magazines, Finance and Nairobi Law Monthly. Unlike Society, these magazines were not intended to cover politics, although they changed their role later. Finance and Nairobi Law Monthly were examined through secondary sources and the author\u27s interactions with the publishers. Whereas Society was a weekly founded and run by journalists, Finance and Nairobi Law Monthly were monthlies founded and run by non-journalists. The other goal of this study was to find out how the alternative press affected the mainstream press, particularly the Nation. The study began with examination of Kenya\u27s history and government-press relationship from 1895 to 1992.
The period covered three major eras: The colonial period (1895-1963); the first era of the African government under President Mzee Jomo Kenyatta (1963-1978); and the second era of the African government under President Daniel arap Moi, who was in office from 1978 to 2002. I analyzed the first 14 of Moi\u27s 24-year rule, when the country reverted to a democracy. The Study found that by not giving in to government pressure and threats, the alternative publications encouraged the mainstream press to defy the government and to regain freedom. Here are two examples of how the alternative press encouraged the mainstream press. When Oginga Odinga announced his intentions to form the opposition National Development Party, and the political pressure Forum for Restoration of Democracy, the mainstream press did not cover the announcements for fear of the government. The alternative press covered the announcements weeks later, after which the Nation and the Standard began covering debate on the government\u27s refusal to register the two organizations.
Society pioneered publication of political cartoons of government leaders in Kenya, and now the dailies use such cartoons without fear
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