ABSTRACT
Context: After thirty years of ratifying the child rights convention and nineteen years of the Child Rights Act, implementing child rights instruments remains challenging in Nigeria. Healthcare providers are well positioned to change the current paradigm. Aim: To examine the knowledge, perception, and practice of child rights and the influence of demographics among Nigerian doctors and nurses. Materials and methods: A descriptive, cross-sectional online survey was done using nonprobability sampling. Pretested multiple-choice questionnaire was disseminated across Nigeria's six geopolitical zones. Performance was measured on the frequency and ratio scales. Mean scores were compared with 50% and 75% thresholds. Results: A total of 821 practitioners were analyzed (doctors, 49.8%; nurses, 50.2%). Female-to-male ratio was 2:1 (doctors, 1.2:1; nurses, 3.6:1). Overall, knowledge score was 45.1%; both groups of health workers had similar scores. Most knowledgeable were holders of fellowship qualification (53.2%, P = 0.000) and pediatric practitioners (50.6%, P = 0.000). Perception score was 58.4% overall, and performances were also similar in both groups; females and southerners performed better (59.2%, P = 0.014 and 59.6%, P = 0.000, respectively). Practice score was 67.0% overall; nurses performed better (68.3% vs. 65.6%, P = 0.005) and postbasic nurses had the best score (70.9%, P = 0.000). Conclusions: Overall, our respondents' knowledge of child rights was poor. Their performances in perception and practice were good but not sufficient. Even though our findings may not apply to all health workers in Nigeria, we believe teaching child rights at various levels of medical and nursing education will be beneficial. Stakeholder engagements involving medical practitioners are crucial
Subject(s)
Right to Health , Child , Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice , Legislation as TopicABSTRACT
Background: Kidney disease is more common in people of African descent in developed countries. Studies reporting estimate Glomerular Filtration Rate (eGFR) in African populations and people living with HIV have been carried more frequently on adults than children. The study aimed to assess eGFR by use of the SCHWARTZ formula in HIV infected children seen at tertiary hospital.Methods: A descriptive, prospective and cross sectional study of 221 children with HIV infection. Schwartz formula was used to determine eGFR. The main outcome measures were eGFR. The study population comprised HIV infected children attending Paediatric out-patients' clinic and those admitted into the Paediatric wards, aged between 6 months and 15 years. Data was analysed using SPSS version 20 and results presented in tables and figures. Results: The age range of the study subjects was 12 months to 15 years with the mean age and SD of 8.21'3.61 years. There were 129 (58.4%) male and 92 (41.6%) female children with male to female ratio 1: 0.7.' The mean age for males was 7.87'3.49 years while that for females was 8.70'3.71 years. The eGFR for the study as determined by Schwartz formula had a range of 49.21 to 463.67 ml/ min/ 1.73m2 with the mean of 159.56'59.04 ml/min. The mean eGFR for the males and females were 166.39'63.54ml/ min and 149.99'45.01 ml/ min respectively. Conclusion: The study, in comparison with other studies, observed a lower prevalence of CKD in HIV infected children. Detection of CKD in HIV infection children may be more optimal if combined methods are employed.