Background: There is evidence that modern contraceptive use among adolescence in low-income countries, including Ghana, is very low. However, few empirical research has been done in the Sunyani municipality of Ghana - a place where teenage pregnancy is very high - to identify factors influencing non-use of modern contraceptives. This study therefore aimed to determine the factors influencing non-use of modern contraceptives among adolescents in the Sunyani municipality. Methods: The stud...
ABSTRACT Introduction: Depression and anxiety may affect quality of life (Qol) and levels of medication adherence in patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Very little data exist on the subject in sub-Saharan Africa. Objective: To identify the symptoms of depression and anxiety among patients with rheumatoid arthritis and assess the associations among depression, anxiety, adherence and quality of life. Methods: A hospital-based cross-sectional quantitative study was carried out on 93 patients wi...
ABSTRACT Background Antenatal care is an integral part of safe motherhood. The World Health Organization recommended a departure from the traditional routine non-evidence based to the four visit evidence–based focused antenatal care for low risk clients. The Ghana Demographic and Health Survey, 2014 reported that about 85 percent of pregnant women had four or more visits. However, whether these visits were consistent with the recommended gestational ages of visits or not is not known. This ...
ABSTRACT Overweight and obesity have reached unprecedented levels worldwide and the WHO has described obesity as an „epidemic‟. Of great concern are the data pointing to the recent increase in the prevalence of obesity regardless of age group and country. Childhood and adolescence obesity are on the rise worldwide. Several factors have been associated with overweight and obesity, some of which are; diet, physical inactivity, age, sex, familial, socioeconomic status, childhood obesity. The...
ABSTRACT Background: Postnatal period is the period that starts about an hour after the placenta is delivered and stretches to the next six weeks and this time is very important for the continued existence of the woman and her baby. So assessment of client satisfaction with post natal care services is needed to improve quality of health service delivery in the country and impact positively on the survival of both mother and baby during the postpartum period. The aim of this research was to de...
ABSTRACT Though Ghana has succeeded in halving poverty prior to the commencement of the new global agenda – Sustainable Development Goals, the country still faces high maternal and child mortality rates partly due to disparities in household wealth among other contextual factors. This study investigates the effect of household wealth on selected indicators of maternal and child health– antenatal care (ANC), modern contraceptive use and under-five mortality. In 2016, the WHO recommended a...
ABSTRACT Infant and young child feeding practices have been identified as one of the major determinants of children's nutritional status and account to a large extent for the high rates of malnutrition among children in Ghana. This study is aimed at determining infant and young feeding practices in relation to nutritional status of children under two years in the Kumbungu District of Ghana. This was a cross-sectional study conducted on 274 pairs of children and their mothers who were randoml...
ABSTRACT Factors that determine exclusive breastfeeding in Ghana are important, especially in line with recommendation by WHO/UNICEF. The difference between WHO/UNICEF recommendations of 90% and the level of coverage of exclusive breastfeeding in Ghana (45%) is wide. The study examines exclusive breastfeeding up to 6 months of age as recommended by WHO/UNICEF. It also determines possible factors that influence the progress of exclusive breastfeeding in Ghana, to inform possible strategies for...
ABSTRACT Remarkable increase in life expectancy in Ghana has resulted in a major health threat where there is a major shift from infectious and parasitic diseases to chronic non- communicable diseases that mostly affect older people and posing a great danger on global health. Modifiable lifestyles are major determinants of adult chronic diseases, morbidity and mortality. With a rapid increase in the prevalence of non-communicable diseases in most developing countries as a result of ageing and...
ABSTRACT Background: Malaria infection in pregnancy is an enormous public health problem in Sub-Saharan Africa. In areas of high malaria transmission, P. falciparum infection during pregnancy is usually characterized by malaria related anemia in the mother and placental malaria. This situation has been associated with poor pregnancy outcomes across many populations. The aim of this study was to determine the extent of asymptomatic P. falciparum infection and its relation with anemia in health...
ABSTRACT Undernutrition is the most dominant form of malnutrition among children in developing countries including Tanzania. Despite several studies on prevalence of undernutrition among children of 6-59 months old in Tanzania there is limited information on the differences in prevalence between the highland and lowland areas. This study aimed to assess nutritional status and its determinants, dietary intake as well as nutrients content in food consumed by children aged 6-59 months in the low...
ABSTRACT Community Led Total Sanitation (CLTS) is an innovative way to achieve communities free from open defecation. Globally 1.1 billion people still practice open defecation and are at risk of diarrhea resulting in 2 million deaths annually. In Kenya 75.7 % population lack improved sanitation facilities and of these, 17.1% experience diarrhea cases. In Siaya diarrheal diseases are ranked third among the top ten diseases. Boro Division with latrine coverage 55%. However, there is still limi...
ABSTRACT Community Led Total Sanitation (CLTS) is an innovative way to achieve communities free from open defecation. Globally 1.1 billion people still practice open defecation and are at risk of diarrhea resulting in 2 million deaths annually. In Kenya 75.7 % population lack improved sanitation facilities and of these, 17.1% experience diarrhea cases. In Siaya diarrheal diseases are ranked third among the top ten diseases. Boro Division with latrine coverage 55%. However, there is still limi...
ABSTRACT This study aimed at investigating community perceptions on cultural landscape as tourist attraction in Kondoa District, Central Tanzania. Specific objectives of the study included to examine the use and non-use value of gullies in Kondoa district; to examine community willingness to accept (WTA) for change to conserve gullies for tourism purpose; and to assess community willingness to pay (WTP) for visiting gullies. The study employed a case research design using descriptive researc...
ABSTRACT Chronic conditions are a significant source of disease burden in Ghana including The Tema General Hospital (TGH). When concurrent in an individual, the outcomes are poorer. Yet medical research, preventive and clinical services are focused on single disease entities. The few studies conducted have predominantly been in developed countries and the elderly. This research determined the prevalence, distribution and socio-demographic risk factors of concurrent chronic conditions in our ...