Abstract Supply Chain Management is a crucial activity that entails overseeing the movement of materials form the source, throughput, to the end consumer. However, in this endeavour, there are increased instances of uncertainties i.e. speeds of delivery, flexibility and environmental factors that affect the services rendered to the end consumer. This drives the concept of supply chain agility which focuses on the speeds of response to any changes in the consumer demands. The healthcare secto...
Abstract/Overview Maternal and neonatal morbidity and mortality are major public health concerns in most developing countries and in under resourced settings. Provision of safe motherhood is of utmost importance in the reduction of maternal mortality. Increasing the proportion of babies that are delivered in health facilities is an important factor in reducing the health risks to both the mother and the baby. This study explored maternal healthcare choices of expectant mothers in Lunga Lu...
Abstract/Overview Health Related Quality of Life (HRQoL) is an important health outcome in the holistic management of patients especially those suffering from life limiting conditions such as cervical cancer. In Kenya, Cervical cancer is the most frequent cancer among women. However, little is known and documented on HRQoL of cervical cancer patients. This study assessed HRQoL of cervical cancer patients in western Kenya. A cross-sectional study involving 334 cervical cancer patients was ...
Abstract Purpose: The post-pandemic management of COVID-19 infections and any emergent outbreaks is because this endemic disease remains a public health concern. Vaccine hesitancy may continue to hamper efforts to respond to any new disease outbreaks and future epidemics. This qualitative study aimed to explore the factors influencing COVID-19 vaccine acceptance and hesitancy in Kenya to gain deeper insights into this issue. Methods: This study was implemented in western Kenya using key info...
Abstract/Overview Maternal and neonatal morbidity and mortality are major public health concerns in most developing countries and in under resourced settings. Provision of safe motherhood is of utmost importance in the reduction of maternal mortality. Increasing the proportion of babies that are delivered in health facilities is an important factor in reducing the health risks to both the mother and the baby. This study explored maternal healthcare choices of expectant mothers in Lunga Lu...
Abstract/Overview Iron deficiency (ID) and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection frequently coexist. Little data exist on ID in HIV-infected individuals, partly because the iron marker ferritin is altered by inflammation common in HIV infection. We measured iron biomarkers (ferritin, soluble transferrin receptor [sTfR], hepcidin) and red cell indices (hemoglobin, mean corpuscular volume [MCV]) in newly diagnosed, antiretroviral therapy-naive, HIV-infected (N = 138) and uninfected (...
Abstract/Overview Robert Shihuzire Magomere, , Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious bacterial disease caused by bacillus Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Globally 9.6 million people fell ill with TB and 1.5 million died from the disease in 2014. Bumula Sub-County had 200 patients diagnosed with TB in 2016, with a case notification rate of 454 cases per 100,000 people. The main objective of this study was to establish the clinical and host related factors influencing prevalence of TB in Bumula Su...
Abstract/Overview Health workers competency is very critical in realization of quality health care which is a major pillar of Universal Health Coverage. This study assessed the influence of healthcare provider competency on Universal Health Coverage utilization in Seme Sub County, Kisumu County. The study targeted community households and health facility managers. The health facilities were stratified according to their tiers and randomly sampled. The catchment population was stratified b...
Abstract/Overview Despite the increase in the number of health services provided and Kenya’s commitment to equal access to quality healthcare for all by the year 2030, the physically challenged persons still find difficulty in accessing health services for reasons attributable to health care related factors. This study targeted the physically challenged persons in Gem Sub-county, Kenya. Stratified and systematic random sampling was used to select 108 people with physical disability. Dat...
Abstract/Overview In Kenya, approximately 3.3% to 4% of infants born annually are exposed to HIV due to lack of PMTCT interventions. Factors associated with mother – to – child HIV transmission as not been adequately investigated in Kenya. The study aim was to investigate factors associated with mother – to – child HIV transmission (MTCT) among HIV exposed infants in Siaya County. A retrospective cohort study design was adopted. Data involving 179 HIV exposed infants and their HIV...
Abstract/Overview Unmet need for contraception persists in Kenya despite an increase in awareness and availability of family planning services. There is a dearth of information on experiences and perceptions of contraception, specifically related to birth outcomes and menstruation patterns, in western Kenya. The aim of this study was to explore knowledge and perceptions on contraception, menstruation, and birth outcomes. In-depth interviews were conducted with 45 respondents; adolescent g...
Abstract/Overview In Kenya, no studies have attempted to model alternative scenarios of the cost-implications of reaching universal coverage (i.e. 95% population coverage) of the existing maternity health services network at the ward administrative level. A cross-sectional study design used publicly available geospatial data in combination with routine data from the web-based district health information software (DHIS2) platform. AccessMod (version 5) was used for scaling up analysis. Arc...
Abstract/Overview Background: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a malignant cancer of the liver and a leading cause of cancer-related mortality worldwide. Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) has not been known to have a direct causal relationship with HCC despite independently causing inflammation of the liver. However, little is known on risk factors for HCC patients in an HIV endemic area. The objective of this study was to ascertain the risk factors of HCC and its association with HIV i...
Abstract/Overview Globally, breast cancer incidence is on the rise, especially in developing countries and it is the most diagnosed cancer among women in Kenya. For the prevention and treatment, knowledge on early detection and risk factors is very important, however this has not been assessed among women of reproductive age attending Longisa County Referral Hospital Bomet County, Kenya. The study adopted a cross-sectional hospital based design to assess the knowledge on early detection a...
Abstract/Overview Tick-borne spotted fever group (SFG) rickettsioses are emerging human diseases caused by obligate intracellular Gram-negative bacteria of the genus Rickettsia. Despite being important causes of systemic febrile illnesses in travelers returning from sub-Saharan Africa, little is known about the reservoir hosts of these pathogens. We conducted surveys for rickettsiae in domestic animals and ticks in a rural setting in western Kenya. Of the 100 serum specimens tested from e...