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Global Journal of Health Science
Journal Prestige (SJR): 0.416

Citation Impact (citeScore): 1
Number of Followers: 12

This is an Open Access Journal

Open Access journal
ISSN (Print) 1916-9736 - ISSN (Online) 1916-9744
Published by CCSE

[43 journals]

Factors Influencing Women’s Preferred Mode of Delivery in Kericho
County Hospitals, Kenya
- Authors: Caroline Chelangat
  Abstract: PURPOSE: To evaluate the factors influencing women’s preferred mode of delivery among postnatal mothers in Kericho County Hospitals.METHODOLOGY: Descriptive cross-sectional design was adopted and mixed methods used for data collection. A total of 310 participants were randomly selected using a systematic sampling for quantitative and qualitative approach that used Focus Group Discussion among postnatal mothers in both sampled private and public facilities of Kericho County Hospitals. Data entry and analysis was done with mean and standard deviation computed with results presented in tables. The study used descriptive and inferential statistical analysis. To determine association of variables bivariate and multivariate logistic analysis was adopted. Odds ratios were calculated and the p-value of
  PubDate: Sun, 31 Oct 2021 14:53:08 +000
Physiotherapists’ Perspectives Towards Using Telehealth for Acute
Concussion Care
- Authors: Sunddip Panesar-Aguilar
  Abstract: A traumatic brain injury reflects a heterogeneous description. The mildest form has been referred to as that of a concussion, with recent steps being taken to reclassify this as mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI). Management has developed in tandem with the understanding of what mTBI, as have methods that physiotherapists (PTs) may use to provide care. The most recent catalyst to the use of in-person versus virtual healthcare was observed during the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite its use, very little is known regarding the perceptions of the PTs who engaged in this method of care, or whether virtual physiotherapy (VPT) may be continued. The purpose of this basic qualitative study was to explore PTs’ perspectives around the use of VPT in their current practice in adult patients with acute mTBI. A framework that centered around the self-efficacy (SE) of the PT was applied. A single, semi-structured interview involvings nine PTs who were experienced in using VPT with mTBI patients. A study-specific questionnaire was developed to explore the PTs’ perceptions related to their SE, potential barriers, as well as factors affecting future use. The results indicated SE beliefs towards VPT use were related to patient and professional factors, technology, and perceived barriers. Barriers were reported at patient-, PT-, and technological-levels. Factors related to future use of VPT were noted as being both intrinsic and extrinsic. Physiotherapists developed their SE beliefs from a variety of intrinsic and extrinsic sources. This study presented a jumping off point to inform a knowledge gap in which more research is required to evaluate PT perspectives across a greater sample size and diverse population. Further study into the perspectives of other stakeholders may be beneficial to explore related to VPT application.
  PubDate: Thu, 28 Oct 2021 09:31:59 +000
Reviewer Acknowledgements for Global Journal of Health Science, Vol. 13,
No. 11
- Abstract: Reviewer Acknowledgements for Global Journal of Health Science, Vol. 13, No. 11, 2021.
  PubDate: Thu, 28 Oct 2021 09:02:34 +000
Needle Stick Injuries among Health Care Workers in AL-Madinah AL-Munawara
Governmental Hospitals in Saudi Arabia
- Authors: Eman Elsayed Abd-Ellatif
  Abstract: BACKGROUND: Needle stick injuries are a dangerous occupational hazard that threatens health care workers with serious consequences in many cases. Because of inadequate reporting of these incidents, the true magnitude of the problem is unknown. The study’s aim was to investigate the epidemiology of needle stick injuries (NSIs) among health care workers in Al Madinah Al Munawara, Saudi Arabia. METHODS: A representative sample of health care workers (n=268) were randomly selected from emergency departments of three general hospitals in Al Madinah Al Munawara for a cross-sectional study, and 219 responded to a predesigned questionnaire reflecting exposure to NSI, reporting, post-exposure reactions, and knowledge about NSIs.RESULTS: Almost one third of the participating medical professionals 70 (32%) had been exposed to stick injury during work. One half of the needles (52.9%) were blood stained. Nurses are significantly more likely to have stick injury (38.6%) followed by physicians (30.4%) if compared to laboratory technicians (13.9%) at the p-value of less than 0.05. The main purposes during injuries were drawing blood sample 33 (47.1%), injection 31 (44.3%) and suturing 23 (32.9%). Almost all injured personnel (97.1%) cleaned the injury site immediately and thoroughly. Out of the injured personnel, 50 (71.4%) reported the incident to authorities. A significantly higher proportion of physicians (91.3%) achieved above average score if compared to both lab technicians (72.2%) and nurses (76.3%) at the p-value of less than 0.05.CONCLUSION: Occupational needle stick injuries are fairly common among health care workers at Al Madinah Al Munawara’s governmental hospitals. In hospitals, deliberate efforts should be made to ensure adherence to safety guidelines governing needle stick injuries.
  PubDate: Tue, 12 Oct 2021 14:13:40 +000
HIV-Related Stigma and Discrimination (S&D) among Healthcare Workers (HCW)
in Government Healthcare Facilities in Malaysia: Is It Real'
- Authors: Zailatul Hani Mohamad Yadzir
  Abstract: Stigma and discrimination (S&D) undermine quality of life of people living with HIV (PLHIV) and their access to health services. In this context, an understanding of current stigmatizing attitudes among HCW towards PLHIV from the perspective of Malaysia healthcare setting is crucial to plan for service delivery improvement that is non-stigmatizing and non-discriminatory. The objective of this study was to examine and measure the level of S&D towards PLHIV among HCW in selected government facilities.A cross-sectional study was undertaken from July to August 2020 in five government hospitals and six government health clinics in Malaysia. Two sets of a validated self-administered questionnaires, one for HCW and another one for PLHIV were used to assess HIV-related S&D. This survey was conducted via web-based platform.Overall, 3880 HCW and 1173 PLHIV participated in this study. This study found significant proportion of HCW were having stigmatizing attitudes towards PLHIV. This includes fear of taking blood from PLHIV (87%) and double gloving when attending PLHIV (64%) probably due to fear of contracting HIV. In addition, 45% of HCW agreed that women living with HIV (WLHIV) should be prohibited from having children. Although HCW have fears for contracting HIV, their consciences and integrity allowed them to display some positive attitudes towards PLHIV with the majority of HCW 84% and 79% stated that they having observed others in their facility expressed willingness to care and providing good care to PLHIV. On PLHIV experience, only 12% of them reported that they had ever experienced stigma when accessing health services.The findings of this study shared a worrying magnitude of stigma towards PLHIV among HCW in Malaysia. Nevertheless, ethics and professionalism are upheld through giving good care and services to PLHIV. However, stigma reduction intervention programmes are still needed for HCW to ensure continuous excellent service delivery.
  PubDate: Tue, 12 Oct 2021 13:59:36 +000
Veganism and Feminism on Social Media Today
- Abstract: While not new, veganism has gained popularity via social media. In particular, certain individuals and social groups on social media seem to play an especially important role in the spreading information about veganism and encouraging acceptance of the lifestyle. Additionally, feminism is another key concern among those key individuals. In this paper, I investigate the correlation between veganism and feminism on social media. I find that while veganism and feminism are both popular, they are accepted as lifestyles, rather than for ideological reasons.
  PubDate: Tue, 12 Oct 2021 13:59:20 +000
Home Food Environments of Mothers in South-Eastern Africa and
California-An Illustration of Global Extremes
- Abstract: INTRODUCTION: The type and availability of food in the home is known to directly shape food intake and weight status, but cross-cultural differences remain poorly documented. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to describe and compare the home food environments of low-income, childbearing women living in a low-income country (Malawi) and a high-income country (United States). METHODS: A home food environment survey was available in 714 mothers in Malawi (mean BMI 19.5, mean age 22.1 years) and 371 in California (mean BMI 31.8, mean age 28.1 years). RESULTS: Mothers in California vs. Malawi had on average (SD) 22.8 (4.4) vs. 1.2 (1.4) different food items in the home. The women in California had an abundance of fruits and vegetables that were virtually absent in the homes of Malawian women. The most prevalent food in the homes in Californian women was rice (in 97% homes) and in Malawian women was corn flour (in 47% of homes). CONCLUSIONS: Given the global extremes in food availability, efforts to address over and under food availabilities in the homes of childbearing women need to move beyond country centric approaches. It is time to consider maternal and child health as a global priority.
  PubDate: Tue, 12 Oct 2021 13:59:13 +000
How Well Does Body Mass Index (BMI) Predict Undiagnosed Hypertension and
Diabetes in Indonesian Adults Community Population'
- Authors: Rofingatul Mubasyiroh
  Abstract: BACKGROUND: Previous studies have reported that Body Mass Index (BMI) cut-off was related to non-communicable diseases. This study aimed to give the latest evidence related to the accuracy of BMI cut-off towards undiagnosed hypertension and diabetes in the Indonesian population. METHODS: This was A cross-sectional study that involved data of the 2018 national population-based health survey, with the samples were 15,516 male and female populations aged between 19 years old and above. This study only included those claimed to have never been diagnosed as suffering from diabetes and hypertension by health workers. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis was conducted to assess the optimal BMI cut-off. The logistic regression was performed to assess the association of BMI on undiagnosed hypertension and diabetes controlled by several variables.RESULTS: The average BMI sample was 24 kg/m2 (SD = 4.6 kg/m2. The proportion of undiagnosed hypertension was 36.9%, and 12.3% for the proportion of undiagnosed diabetes. According to the ROC, the result shows BMI was more sensitive to hypertension conditions compared to diabetes. BMI cut-off points at 23.9 kg/m2 (AUC=0.59;Se=64.3%;Sp=53.4%) was the optimum value to predict hypertension and 24.9 kg/m2 (AUC=0.55;Se=53.1%;Sp=56.4%) was the optimum for diabetes. CONCLUSIONS: Based on the optimal AUC cut-off points for BMI which is around 0.5, BMI needs to be reconsidered as an anthropometric index in predicting undiagnosed hypertension and diabetes. And an assessment can be made using other anthropometric indices, such as waist circumference to predict undiagnosed hypertension and diabetes.
  PubDate: Mon, 04 Oct 2021 22:22:21 +000
Effects of Coronavirus Pandemic on Young Adults’ Ability to Access
Health Services and Practice Recommended Preventive Measures
- Abstract: Given the limited attention to young adults as key contributors to the spread of COVID-19 in Uganda, this study examines the effects of the outbreak on the ability of young adults aged 18-29 to access health services and practice preventive measures. A national population-based mobile phone survey was conducted in December 2020. Multivariable regression analyses were used to explore the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on access to health care services. Control variables included region, education level, parity, and source of health information. The majority (98%) perceived COVID-19 as a serious threat to Ugandans. Although the majority reported handwashing (97%) and masking (92%), fewer respondents avoided shaking hands (39%), ensured physical distancing (57%), avoided groups of more than four people (43%), stayed home most days (30%), avoided touching eyes, nose, and mouth (14%), and practiced sneezing/coughing into their elbow (7%). Participants noted that the COVID-19 pandemic affected their ability to access family planning (40%), HIV (49%), maternal health (55%), child health (56%), and malaria (63%) services. The perceived effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on services was higher for those in the Northern region (OR= 2.00, 95% CI 1.00-4.02), those with higher education OR= 2.26, 95% CI 1.28-3.99), those with five plus children (OR= 2.05, 95% CI 0.92-4.56), and those who trust radio for COVID-19 information (OR= 1.65, 95% CI 1.01-2.67). The findings show the pragmatic importance of understanding the dynamic characteristics and behavioral patterns of young adults in the context of COVID-19 to inform targeted programming.
  PubDate: Mon, 20 Sep 2021 20:41:44 +000
Psychological Changes and Adaptation: Primary Amenorrhea Associated with
Disorders of Sex Development
- Abstract: This qualitative study investigated the psychological changes and process of adaptation among women after a diagnosis of primary amenorrhea associated with disorders of sex development (DSD). Data were obtained of 20 patients aged ≥ 25 years via interviews and analyzed using the modified grounded theory approach. Six categories were created: increasing doubt about gender identity, questioning and exploratory behaviors, feelings of loneliness and confusion, searching for self with the help of support resources, control for coexistence in society, living at peace with one’s body, and liberation from a sense of alien existence. Participants experienced fluctuations in parameters of gender identity, loneliness, and confusion. Encountering good experiences during exploration of helpful resources made them more confident of their female gender identity, thus helping them adapt. For women with primary amenorrhea associated with DSD, the process of becoming liberated from an obsession with their condition after receiving a diagnosis was characterized by the phrase “regaining confidence in being a woman.”
  PubDate: Mon, 13 Sep 2021 09:46:46 +000