ABSTRACT
The pH changes; faecal contamination level; survival of nalidixic-acid resistant salmonella typhi in 'gari' soaked in water was examined. The pH values showed that 'gari' had a range of pH 3.76 to pH 6.24. The mean pH values showed that there were no appreciable change for gari types from various sources within the studied time period of 120 minutes. Faecal coliform contamination of 4 to 2;400/g using the MPN technique were recorded in 33of the 36 'gari' samples. This high faecal coliform contamination rate of gari; a popular fermented cassava food is unacceptable and it is of public health importance. Our survival experiment showed that the seeded enteric pathogen slightly decreased in colony-forming unit (cfu) with log(0.3 10) 0.3 within the studied 120 minutes. It is concluded that our local foods should be monitored regularly for public health safety; and improved hygienic practices should be emphasized as an intervention for diarrhoeal diseases in developing countries
Subject(s)
Community Health Services , Diarrhea , Feces , Food Contamination , Salmonella typhiABSTRACT
There is an understanding that greater availability of HIV treatment for the 40.3 million people currently infected with HIV is a humanitarian imperative that could prolong the lives of millions; restore economic productivity; and stabilise societies in some of the world's hardest-hit regions. The Nigerian government recognises that the country has the third highest burden of infection; with people living with HIV estimated to total 4.0 million; and so in 2002 commenced the implementation of one of Africa's largest antiretroviral (ARV) treatment programmes. A successful ARV programme requires that all components of a functional management system be put in place for effective and efficient functioning. This would include logistics; human resources; financial planning; and monitoring and evaluation systems; as well as sustainable institutional capacities. The Nigerian national ARV treatment training programme was conceived to meet the human resource needs in hospitals providing ARV therapy. This paper reports on the evaluation of the training programme. It examines knowledge and skills gained; and utilisation thereof. Recommendations are made for improved training effectiveness and for specific national policy on training; to meet the demand for scaling up therapy to the thousands who need ARV