ABSTRACT Pregnancy-related complications contribute to more than half of deaths among women annually. The study exploredsocio-demographic factors, knowledge and attitude as determinants of antenatal care services utilization among pregnant women in Gesusu Hospital, Kisii County, Kenya. The specific objectives were: to examine the relationship of socio-demographic factors and utilization of antenatal care services in Gesusu Hospital; to evaluate how knowledge on antenatal care among pregnant w...
Abstract Malaria is a mosquito-borne disease caused by Plasmodium parasites. Epidemics occur in areas where most of the conditions for malaria transmission are present, contributing to over 90% of the estimated 650 million clinical malaria cases reported annually in the world, and approximately 41% of the world’s population which is at risk of contracting malaria. Detection by health care workers of a malaria epidemic depends on knowledge on malaria monitoring indicators that include vulner...
ABSTRACT Adherence to ART is a patient's ability take the prescribed medication and advises accordingly. Factors influencing adherence vary across different settings. Sustaining adherence presents a significant challenge at Kendu sub county hospital as evidenced by the defaulters’ rate (3 in 10) and high viral load (5 in 10) patients on ART treatment. This study determined factors influencing ART adherence in adult patients on care at Kendu sub-county hospital. The study determined the infl...
ABSTRACT Malaria is one of the leading causes of morbidity and mortality in Africa. In Kenya, malaria is the leading cause of morbidity and mortality, accounting for 30-50% of all out patient attendance and 20% of all admissions to health facilities. The Kenyan government encourages strategies such as; Indoor Residual Spraying (IRS), prompt treatment to confirmed malaria cases, clearing of bushes around residential places and use of Long Lasting Insecticide Treated Nets (LLITNs) in malaria pr...
Abstract Introduction: Children with steroid resistant nephrotic syndrome usually require treatment with second-line agents and calcineurin inhibitors such as cyclosporine are now recommended as initial therapy. These agents only recently become available in our environment and their impact on care is unknown. We reviewed the short-term treatment outcomes of their use in comparison with previous outcomes. Methods: Medical records of children managed for idiopathic steroid resistant nephroti...
ABSTRACT Water is a commodity which is essential for life as it has long been singled out globally as the most important factor in sustaining human health. Among other factors linked to human health; water has been implicated in the transmission of waterborne infectious diseases such as typhoid, bacillary dysentery and cholera in Kenya. Potable water scarcity in Maseno Township is common; moreover ready-to-eat food outlet operators rely on water vendors whose water sources are hardly known by...
ABSTRACT In 2011, 366 million people had diabetes worldwide and the prevalence of the disease in Africa is estimated to be 3.8% (14.7 million adults) with undiagnosed diabetes of about 78 percent. In Kenya, the prevalence of diabetes is 4.2% in the general population with prevalence of 2.2% percent in rural areas and 12.2% in urban areas. In Kisii Sub-County, the prevalence of diabetes is 11% which is higher than the national prevalence. Persons who have been diagnosed with diabetes become fr...
ABSTRACT Health Management Information System (HMIS) is a core component of a functioning Health System. Its role is to make available reliable, complete and timely health service data which is useful for the informed decision-making process in health services management. HMIS is also vital for assessing the health needs of populations and groups, and for planning, implementation, monitoring, and evaluation of healthcare interventions. Such management support capability is crucial especially ...
ABSTRACT Despite being preventable with early screening and treatment, Cervical Cancer (CC) is a leading cause of cancer-related mortality among women globally. Incidence rate of cervical cancer in the USA is 8.9 per 100 000, while in India, the incidence rate vary from 19 to 44/100 000. In the UAE there is incidence rate of 7 per 100,000 women, while current estimates indicate that 493 000 women in South Africa are diagnosed with (CC) per year and 274 000 die from the disease. In Kenya, esti...
ABSTRACT The research work investigated the possible antifertility effect of the methanolic seed extract of Momordica charantia (Mc). The morphological changes following administration of the extract on testes of Sprague-Dawley rats (SD-rats) were assessed using stereological parameters, hormonal assay and measurement of testicular 'stress indicators Methodology: 670 adult male SD rats weighing 162452 g were used for the study, which was carried out in two phases of 40 weeks. There were 335 a...
ABSTRACT The overall aim of this research is to examine if the bark extract of Carica papaya would serve as a male contraceptive agent by determining the morphological response of the testes of Sprague-Dawley rats using histological and stereological parameters. Methodology: 60 adult (6-8 weeks old ) male Sprague-Dawley rats were used for this experiment which was conducted in 3 (three ) groups of 4 weeks, 8 weeks and the reversal group. In each group, rats were subdivided into another group ...
ABSTRACT Childhood immunization remains a cost-effective public health intervention geared towards improving health status of infants and children hence reducing both morbidity and mortality associated with vaccine preventable diseases (VPDs).The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that 17% of the global 1.5 million deaths among children aged under one year are due to VPDs. In 2012 during the transition from Provincial administration to County governments, Nyanza Province had the highes...
ABSTRACT Postnatal care (PNC) is vital for the life of both mother and child as it reduces both marternal and infant morbidities and mortalities. However, in Kenya and Homa Bay County PNC utilization is low (48%) but the cause is not known. This Study determined factors influencing PNC utilization by 377 mothers having children aged 6-8 weeks old. Specifically, the study assessed knowledge, attitude and PNC health seeking behaviour of mothers in Homa Bay Town Sub County. A community based cro...
Abstract This is a study situated within the framework of discourse analysis that focuses on interaction between receptionists and patients at the reception of public health facilities and private hospitals in Kisumu County, Kenya. Hewitt (2006) posit that receptionist attend to patients exclusively through the spoken and written means. This is juxtaposed to doctors and nurses whose work to patients involves verbal, physical and technical examination. Using a tape recorder at one public healt...