ABSTRACT Objective: The study is aimed at determining the household treatment cost of breast cancer and the cost coping strategies of patients at the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital. Methods: This study is a cross-sectional study involving use of the cost of -illness method to estimate the direct, indirect and intangible costs and the cost coping strategies used by patients and their households during breast cancer treatment at the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital. Data was collected from the breast can...
ABSTRACT Background: Human papillomavirus (HPV) has been well established as the primary cause of cervical squamous intraepithelial lesion/cervical intraepithelial neoplasia and invasive cervical cancer. More than 100 genotypes of HPV have been identified and 40 types are sexually transmitted. Cervical cancer is the fourth most common cancer among women worldwide and about 85% of the cases occur in developing countries. In Ghana, cervical cancer ranks as the first most frequent cancer among w...
ABSTRACT Every year, four million infants die within their first month of life, representing nearly 40 per-cent of all deaths of children under age 5 globally. Also, over 99% of all newborn deaths occurs in developing countries with about two-thirds of them taking place in the Sub-Saharan Africa and Asia. Therefore, understanding factors that influence newborn care practices in the home environment where most newborns are cared for is essential in order to develop appropriate approaches and i...
ABSTRACT Background: Young people aged 10-24 years form the larger proportion of Ghana‟s population; with the majority being sexually active, and are exposed to adverse health outcomes. Among the young age group, undergraduate students in the university are faced with various challenges on campus including stress, risky sexual behaviour and use of drugs. Although a major public health concern, only few studies have examined mental health as a catalyst to risky sexual behaviour among young p...
ABSTRACT Background-Malnutrition is an underlying factor in many diseases for both children and adults and is particularly prevalent in developing countries, where it affects one out of every three preschool-age children. Under nutrition (malnourished) a form of malnutrition has been a worldwide problem which is being tackled in various ways and is usually prevalent among children in developing economies. One of the appropriate measures to support the fight against malnutrition in general and...
ABSTRACT Introduction: Antibiotic resistance is a global public health issue. Although antibiotic resistance will suffice naturally over time, increased use/misuse of antibiotics escalates the process. In Ghana there is a dearth of studies exploring the relationship between knowledge, attitude and practices on consumption of antibiotics by individuals within the community. The objective of this study was to determine the factors influencing antibiotic use among adults within the Greater Accra...
ABSTRACT One of the components of the Primary Health Care concept is the provision of essential drugs. Drugs form an important part of any health care delivery system to the extent that most people in Ghana associate the quality of care to the availability of drugs. To help improve the quality of care provided by the Ministry of Health(MOH) facilities in the district, Dormaa District Health Management Team(DHMT) established a District Medical Stores(DMS) in 1996. The study was carried out to ...
ABSTRACT INTRODUCTION: The intended and continued use of contraceptives is critical for attaining individual reproductive health goals and the prevention of unintended births that may be subject to induced abortions. Women who eventually overcome barriers and adopt a contraceptive method, encounter challenges that result in discontinuation, switching, or method failure. The occurrence of discontinuation for reasons other than the desire to conceive or switching to less effective methods, p...
ABSTRACT Introduction Eye injuries are one of the most common work-related injuries among certain occupations, including welders. The aim of this study was to determine factors associated with eye injuries among welders in Accra. Methods This was a descriptive cross-sectional study which was conducted among welders in Accra. Proportionate and systematic sampling was used to select 382 eligible welders from two welding sites in Accra Metropolis. Data was collected using a pretested questio...
ABSTRACT Introduction: Determination of oestrogen receptor (ER), progesterone receptor (PR) and human epidermal growth factor receptor-2 (Her-2/neu) has become part of the diagnostic tests for breast cancer. Results of ER and PR are used to select breast cancer patients who are most likely to respond to hormonal therapy whereas Her-2/neu results are used to select patients with invasive breast cancer most likely to respond to targeted therapy. Immunohistochemical (IHC) determination of ER, PR...
ABSTRACT Introduction: Community-Based Health Planning and Services (CHPS) is a national strategy for implementing community-based health care service by reorienting and relocating primary health care from sub district health centers to convenient community locations (Frimpong, 2018). As a step to make health services accessible to Ghanaians, the Government of Ghana in collaboration with the Ghana Health Service (GHS) and Ministry of Health adopted the CHPS concept in 1999 but it became opera...
ABSTRACT This was a descriptive cross-sectional study to ascertain the health and environmental implications of small-scale gold mining operations in the Bolgatanga District of the Upper East Region. Small-scale gold mining started actively in an area designated the Small-Scale Gold Mining Area about two (2) years ago. The three main types of gold mining operations were alluvial, colluvial and lode gold mining. Alluvial and colluvial gold mining involved both sexes but lode gold mining was th...
ABSTRACT Background: Malnutrition has plagued populations of developing countries for decades leading to severe increased risk in morbidity and mortality. Malnutrition has been observed to affect many vulnerable people in communities especially women and children. Individuals in any age group could be malnourished at different times but children under five are more likely to be malnourished because of their nutrient requirements for their developmental processes. The aim of this study is t...
ABSTRACT 300 selected households were visited in Zenu, a peri-urban town in the Tema municipality of the Greater Accra Region of Ghana from July to October 2001. Data was collected on the water related practices and diarrhoea recall by the administration of a simple questionnaire. A total of 293 completed responses were obtained. There were three main sources of water in the town; direct pipe (pipeborne), stored treated water (tank) and dam water. Though majority of households used the tank w...
ABSTRACT Background: The diets of women in reproductive age (WRA) are an important determinant of their health outcomes and quality of life especially in northern Ghana, where women’s diets remain persistently suboptimal. However, socio-cultural barriers, one of the multiple influences on WRA’s diets, are rarely addressed in existing interventions. This study identified the socio-cultural barriers to WRA achieving optimal diets, which, herein, represent beliefs, attitudes and actions that...