Knowledge of final year undergraduate nursing students about HIV and AIDS in Eswatini

Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) are overwhelming health issues globally. They have caused many devastating and draining health issues, which have escalated a critical need for a well-trained and sustainable healthcare workforce in order to meet the needs of people living with HIV and AIDS (PLWHA). Health science students are the future healthcare providers who will implement proper preventive measures, as well as health educational and promotional sessions to promote information and knowledge among the public regarding HIV and AIDS in Eswatini. Methods: A quantitative cross-sectional study was conducted on 140 final-year undergraduate nursing students in three nursing universities in Eswatini. A questionnaire adapted from Othman and Ali in Malaysia with closed-ended questions was modified and used to collect data. The questionnaire consisted of questions on the virus structure, transmission, prevention and management of HIV and AIDS. Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 20 was utilised to analyse the data. Results: The level of knowledge about HIV and AIDS was high, as evidenced by a mean score and standard deviation of (91.02 ± 5.00). However, there were low scores on questions related to the transmission of the disease. Conclusion: Across all three universities in Eswatini, there were good nursing education programs on HIV and AIDS, evidenced by the high knowledge level about HIV and AIDS. However, there are still some knowledge gaps on HIV and AIDS transmission and management that need to be attended to contribution: This study contributed by providing knowledge of undergraduate nursing students' HIV and AIDS training and management of PLWHA.

The construction of public sports service guarantee system in a healthy community in the background of public health / A construção de um sistema de garantia de serviço desportivo público em uma comunidade saudável no contexto da saúde pública / Construcción de un sistema de garantía de servicios deportivos públicos en comunidades urbanas saludables en el contexto de la salud pública

ABSTRACT Community sports are a very important part of urban public service. It directly affects the quality of life of residents and plays an important role in improving the health level of the masses. However, there are still many problems in the current public sports service system, which hinders the provision of public health. In order to ensure the effectiveness of the indicators of community sports service guarantee system, this study uses the fuzzy analytic hierarchy process to construct the community public sports service guarantee system, and verifies the effectiveness of the system constructed by this method through an example application. The results show that the weight of each index from large to small is service effectiveness > residents' demand > service capacity > service content; the weight of service effectiveness is 48.46%, which is an important indicator of service guarantee system. In addition, the effectiveness of the community sports service system was verified, and the CR value of the evaluation index system was greater than 0.1, which showed that the consistency of the evaluation index system met the requirements. The public sports service guarantee system constructed by the research institute has good applicability and high practical value. I hope that the research results can provide some reference for the improvement of grass-roots sports service construction, and provide some theoretical support for the construction of grass-roots service evaluation system.

RESUMO O desporto comunitário é uma parte muito importante do serviço público urbano. Afeta diretamente a qualidade de vida da população e desempenha um papel importante na melhoria do nível de saúde das massas. No entanto, ainda há muitos problemas no atual sistema de serviço público de desporto comunitário, o que dificulta a prestação da saúde pública. A fim de garantir a eficácia dos indicadores do sistema de garantia do serviço desportivo, este estudo utiliza o processo hierárquico analítico difuso para construir o sistema de garantia do serviço desportivo público e verifica a eficácia do sistema construído por este método através de uma aplicação dada como exemplo. Os resultados mostram que o peso de cada índice, de alto para baixo, é a eficácia do serviço > demanda da população > capacidade de serviço > conteúdo de serviço; o peso da eficácia do serviço é 48.46%, que é um importante indicador do sistema de garantia do serviço. Além disso, a eficácia do sistema de serviços desportivos foi verificada, e o valor CR do índice de avaliação do sistema foi superior a 0.1, o que mostrou que a consistência do sistema de índice de avaliação satisfazia os requisitos. O sistema público de garantia do serviço desportivo construído pelo instituto de pesquisa tem boa aplicabilidade e elevado valor prático. Espero que os resultados da investigação possam servir de referência para a melhoria da construção de serviços desportivos de base e proporcionar algum apoio teórico à construção de um sistema de avaliação de serviços de base.

RESUMEN Los deportes comunitarios son una parte muy importante del servicio público urbano. Afecta directamente la calidad de vida de los residentes y juega un papel importante en la mejora del nivel de salud de las masas. Sin embargo, todavía existen muchos problemas en el actual sistema público de servicios deportivos, lo que dificulta la prestación de servicios de salud pública. Con el fin de asegurar la efectividad de los indicadores del sistema de garantía del servicio deportivo comunitario, este estudio utiliza el proceso de jerarquía analítica difusa para construir el sistema de garantía del servicio público deportivo comunitario, y verifica la efectividad del sistema construido por este método a través de una aplicación de ejemplo. Los resultados muestran que el peso de cada índice, de mayor a menor, es la eficacia del servicio> la demanda de los residentes> la capacidad del servicio> el contenido del servicio; el peso de la efectividad del servicio es del 48,46%, lo que es un indicador importante del sistema de garantía del servicio. Además, se verificó la efectividad del sistema de servicios deportivos comunitarios y el valor de RC del sistema de índice de evaluación fue mayor a 0.1, lo que mostró que la consistencia del sistema de índice de evaluación cumplió con los requisitos. El sistema de garantía del servicio público de deportes construido por el instituto de investigación tiene una buena aplicabilidad y un alto valor práctico. Espero que los resultados de la investigación puedan proporcionar alguna referencia para la mejora de la construcción de servicios deportivos de base y proporcionar algún apoyo teórico para la construcción de un sistema de evaluación de servicios de base.

Promoção da saúde e qualidade de vida: uma perspectiva histórica ao longo dos últimos 40 anos (1980-2020) / Health promotion and quality of life: a historical perspective of the last two 40 years (1980-2020)

Resumo Este artigo atualiza o texto anterior do autor principal publicado em 2000, revisitando as evidências científicas que reafirmam a contribuição da saúde para a qualidade de vida de indivíduos e populações. Mais do que o acesso a serviços de saúde de qualidade, é necessário enfrentar os determinantes da saúde em toda a sua amplitude, o que requer políticas públicas saudáveis, uma efetiva articulação intersetorial do poder público e a mobilização da população. Os autores revisitam a emergência e o desenvolvimento da promoção da saúde, centrando sua análise nas estratégias mais promissoras para o incremento da qualidade de vida propostas pelo setor saúde, sobretudo em formações sociais com alta desigualdade sociosanitária, como é o caso do Brasil, reforçada pela recente pandemia de COVID-19. É no movimento dos municípios saudáveis e em ações intersetoriais, na saúde em todas as políticas e no enfrentamentos dos determinantes sociais da saúde que tais estratégias se concretizam, através de seus próprios fundamentos e práticas, que estão estreitamente relacionados com as inovações na gestão pública para o desenvolvimento local integrado e sustentável, "vis a vis" a nova Agenda 2030 e seus Objetivos do Desenvolvimento Sustentável (ODS).

Abstract This article updates the previous text of the main author published in 2000, revisiting the scientific evidence that reaffirms the contribution of health to the quality of life of individuals and populations. More than the access to health services of any quality, it is necessary to face determinants of health in its entirety, which requires healthy public policies, an effective intersectoral articulation of public power and mobilization of the population. The authors revisit the emergence and development of health promotion, focusing on the analysis of the most promising health strategies for the increase in quality of life, especially in societies with high social and health inequalities, as in the case of Brazil, reinforced by the recent pandemic of COVID-19. Such strategies were concretized on healthy municipalities and intersectoral actions, in health and in all policies which confront social determinants, through their own foundations and practices that are closely related to innovations in public management for integrated and sustainable local development, in view of the 2030 Agenda and its Sustainable Development Objectives (SDG).

Determinants of serum 25-hydroxyvitamin d levels in healthy young adults living in the Western Cape, South Africa

Background: Vitamin D deficiency is fast emerging as a global pandemic. In South Africa few studies have been conducted to determine the vitamin D status of the healthy population.Methods: This prospective study with an analytical component investigated vitamin D status of healthy undergraduate students at two time points (winter and summer) at Stellenbosch University. Serum 25(OH)D was determined, anthropometric measurements taken and dietary vitamin D intake estimated (food-frequency questionnaire). Skin tone was determined (Fitzpatrick skin type classification), and a skin reflectometry device used to measure dermal melanin content.Results: Results of 242 students indicated a mean serum 25(OH)D of 63.80 ± 41.35 ng/ml and a high prevalence of vitamin D sufficiency (88%). Significantly more females experienced suboptimal vitamin D levels than males (18 vs. 5%; p < 0.01). Participants with lighter skin tones had higher levels of 25(OH)D than those with darker skin tones (chi-square = 24.02; p = 0.02). The majority (60.74%) had a normal BMI, although there was no significant relationship between BMI and serum 25 (OH)D (Spearman's r=­0.11; p = 0.09). Total mean dietary vitamin D intake was 7.99 ± 13.81 mcg, with 87.2% having inadequate intake (< 15 mcg). The relationship between total vitamin D intake and serum 25(OH)D was found to be significant in winter (p < 0.001) and summer (p = 0.01). Serum vitamin D levels were significantly higher in the winter phase (p < 0.001).Conclusions: A low prevalence of vitamin D deficiency was found amongst healthy young adults, despite low dietary vitamin D intakes. Significant relationships were found between serum 25(OH)D and gender, skin tone and vitamin D intake. Further studies need to be conducted, especially in high-risk groups, before results are applied to the greater South African public

Hyperhomocysteinemia and folate levels in normal healthy Nigerians living in Zaria: Subanalysis of ABU homocysteine cross-sectional survey

Background: This study aimed to determine the prevalence of hyperhomocysteinemia and folate status in a sample of normal healthy Nigerians living in Zaria as well as assess the relationship between homocysteine, folate, and blood pressure (BP) levels. Methods: It was a cross-sectional analytical study carried out among 65 normal healthy volunteers aged 18­65 years. Participants were randomly selected from willing patient escorts, hospital employees, and willing staff presenting at the Ahmadu Bello University Medical Centre, Zaria and Ahmadu Bello University Teaching Hospital, Zaria, Nigeria. The percentage of participants who had high homocysteine levels as well as their plasma folate status was determined. Results: There were 9.2% with hyperhomocysteinemia >15 µmol/L and 51% with hyperhomocysteinemia >10 µmol/L. The mean plasma homocysteine level was 10.8 ± 2.7 µmol/L with male and female values of 10.7 ± 2.6 and 10.8 ± 2.8, respectively (P = 0.87). The mean plasma folate level was high (116.7 ± 44.0 ng/mL) with male value of (111.5 ± 44.9 ng/mL) which did not differ significantly (P = 0.37) from that of females (121.4 ± 43.3 ng/mL). Homocysteine showed a positive significant (P = 0.01) relationship with folate but not with BP's (P > 0.05). Conclusion: There is a high prevalence of hyperhomocysteinemia in normal healthy Northern-Nigerians which cannot be accounted for by suboptimal folate levels. Hyperhomocysteinemia may not be a risk factor for cardiovascular disease in normal healthy Nigerians despite its high levels as it showed no significant relationship with BP

Beating Obesity: Factors Associated with Interest in Workplace Weight Management Assistance in the Mining Industry

BACKGROUND: Rates of overweight and obese Australians are high and continue to rise, putting a large proportion of the population at risk of chronic illness. Examining characteristics associated with preference for a work-based weight-loss program will enable employers to better target programs to increase enrolment and benefit employees' health and fitness for work. METHODS: A cross-sectional survey was undertaken at two Australian mining sites. The survey collected information on employee demographics, health characteristics, work characteristics, stages of behavior change, and preference for workplace assistance with reaching a healthy weight. RESULTS: A total of 897 employees participated; 73.7% were male, and 68% had a body mass index in the overweight or obese range. Employees at risk of developing obesity-related chronic illnesses (based on high body mass index) were more likely to report preference for weight management assistance than lower risk employees. This indicates that, even in the absence of workplace promotion for weight management, some at risk employees want workplace assistance. Employees who were not aware of a need to change their current nutrition or physical activity behaviors were less likely to seek assistance. This indicates that practitioners need to communicate the negative effects of excess weight and promote the benefits of a healthy lifestyle to increase the likelihood of weight management. CONCLUSION: Weight management programs should provide information, motivation. and trouble-shooting assistance to meet the needs of at-risk mining employees, including those who are attempting to change and maintain behaviors to achieve a healthy weight and be suitably fit for work.

Manual de técnicas participativas para promoción de la salud de adolescentes y jóvenes: programa de adolescencia y juventud / Manual of participatory techniques for the promotion of adolescent and youth health: adolescence and youth program

El documento pretende aportar actividades que contribuyan al proceso de autorrealización y crecimiento en la adolescencia y juventud; sin embargo agrega que es indispensable que las familias, comunidades y autoridades trabajen en acciones coordinadas. Los objetivos que propone son: Fortalecer al personal de salud responsable de la promoción y educación del primero y segundo nivel de atención del MSPAS con conocimientos, habilidades y técnicas participativas para promover la salud integral para adolescentes y jóvenes con énfasis en estilos de vida saludable. Favorecer el desempeño del personal de salud en el manejo y utilización eficiente de técnicas participativas y herramientas para la promoción de la salud en adolescentes y jóvenes sobre estilos de vida saludable.

Atención integral y diferenciada de adolescentes y jóvenes / Comprehensive and differentiated attention of adolescents and young people

Dirigida a médicos, enfermeras, profesionales, auxiliares de enfermería, nutricionistas, psicólogos y técnicos en salud rural, que realizan acciones de promoción, prevención, atención clínica y orientación a adolescentes y jóvenes, familias y comunidad en la red de servicios de salud del primero y segundo nivel de atención, esta guía de atención integral, pretende que el personal de salud esté actualizado con los conocimientos, capacidades y prácticas que le permitan brindar un servicio de calidad. Es un complemento de las Normas de Atención, que contiene los lineamientos técnico-normativos basados en evidencia científica para que sean aplicados por el personal de salud en los servicios del primero y segundo nivel de atención. Su objetivo principal es el de proporcionar lineamientos para que el personal de salud del primero y segundo nivel brinde a la población adolescente y joven, atención y orientación integral de calidad, basada en evidencia científica, con enfoque de género, pertinencia cultural y de derechos humanos. Contiene glosario e ilustraciones de desarrollo del adolescente y joven.

Fatores relacionados à qualidade de vida de idosos em programas para a terceira idade / Factors related to the quality of life of the elderly in programs for senior citizens

O envelhecimento populacional é um fenômeno social e requer atenção dos profissionais da saúde. O objetivo deste artigo foi analisar a influência de possíveis fatores intervenientes sobre a qualidade de vida de idosos.Trata-se de um estudo transversal, de natureza quantitativa, descritivo-exploratório, do qual participaram 182 idosos, de ambos os gêneros, ≥ 60 anos, matriculados em programas para a terceira idade de três universidades localizadas nos municípios de São Paulo, São Caetano do Sul e Mogi das Cruzes. Para avaliar a percepção subjetiva da qualidade de vida, utilizou-se o World Health Organization Quality of Life Questionnaire (WHOQOL-Bref). Foi realizada análise de regressão linear múltipla entre as variáveis dependentes e independentes. Adotou-se nível de significância de 5%. Os resultados mostraram que a ausência de doenças influenciou positivamente a qualidade de vida nos quatro domínios avaliados. No domínio ambiental, ensino superior completo, idade avançada, ausência de doenças e residência em São Caetano do Sul influenciaram positivamente a qualidade de vida dos idosos estudados. Os fatores associados à melhor qualidade de vida foram: ensino superior completo, idade avançada, ausência de doenças e residência em São Caetano do Sul, nessa ordem de importância.

Population aging is a social phenomenon that demands the attention of health professionals. This article seeks to analyze the influence of possible intervening factors on the quality of life of the elderly. It was a cross-sectional, quantitative, descriptive and exploratory study, in which 182 elderly of both genders participated. They were aged ≥ 60 years and were enrolled in programs for senior citizens from three universities located in the cities of Sao Paulo, Sao Caetano do Sul and Mogi das Cruzes. To evaluate the subjective perception of quality of life, the World Health Organization Quality of Life questionnaire (WHOQOL-Bref) was used. Multiple linear regression analysis was performed on the dependent and independent variables. A significance level of 5% was adopted. The results showed that the absence of disease positively influenced the quality of life on the four domains evaluated. In the environmental domain, full tertiary education, old age, the absence of disease and being a resident in Sao Caetano do Sul positively influenced the quality of life of the elderly. The factors associated with better quality of life were: full tertiary education, old age, the absence of disease and being a resident in Sao Caetano do Sul, in that order of importance.

Diabetes in older adults: experience from a rural community in south-east Nigeria

Diabetes is increasing globally with low- and middleincome countries bearing the greatest burden and the older population most affected. This study sought to highlight the problem of diabetes among older adults who participated in a health programme in a rural community. Fasting blood glucose levels and blood pressure of 147 people, aged between 40 years and above, in a rural community in south-east Nigeria were measured. The mean age of participants was 62±10y (1.SD) Thirty-seven (25.2%) were diabetic, 16 (43%) of which were undiagnosed. Most (67%) were aged 50 to 69 years. Twelve (8.2%) had impaired fasting glycaemia (IFG), of which 83% were aged 60 to 79 years. Male gender was moderately associated with the risk of diabetes, while family history was strongly associated. Twenty-five (67%) of the 37 diabetic patients were hypertensive, and only one (5%) of the 21 with known diabetes had a fasting glucose <7.0 mmol/L. This report showed a high prevalence of undiagnosed diabetes and impaired fasting glycaemia among these participants in a rural health programme. There is a strong implication for robust studies to validate these findings and an urgent need to improve access to healthcare for rural dwellers

Women empowerment and gender equity for poverty reduction in Adamawa state Nigeria

High levels of poverty, characterized by a poor record of economic growth and high inequality in income and asset ownership, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa, have become major development challenges. This study is focused on how women empowerment and gender equity can be used as tools far poverty reduction. Data were collected from randomly sampled 230 households in Adamawa State Nigeria, using structured questionnaires. The data were analyzed using the Logit Regression model. The result of the study revealed that there is a negative and statistically significant relationship between the education of household-head and the poverty status of the household. This suggests that the level of poverty can be reduced with improvement in the educational status of the household-heads. The result also showed that the gender of the household-head had a positive and significant relationship with poverty status. Female-headed households showed a considerable tendency towards poverty. It is recommended that the design of poverty reduction programme should focus more on improving access to education of the rural poor: Also poverty reduction strategies in Nigeria should be engendered to ensure that women are targets and beneficiaries of poverty alleviation programmes

Effect of health education program on promoting physical activity among diabetic women in Mashhad, Iran: applying social cognitive theory

Physical activity regularly is one of the important aspects of healthy life-style, which has an essential role in reducing the burden of disease and death. Diabetes is a typical general health problem. The aim of this study to determine the effect of education based on social cognitive theory on promoting physical activity among women with diabetes II in Iran. In this randomized control study, 82 diabetic females were randomly selected then were assigned into two groups: intervention [n=41] and control [n=41]. Educational intervention was planned then performed during 7 sessions of 60-min in accordance with social-cognitive theory [SCT]. The participants were asked to fill in the questionnaires in educational evaluation before and immediately after intervention and the follow up [10 weeks later]. The data were analyzed through Repeated Measures ANOVA, Friedman, independence t and Mann-Whitney tests. The mean age among the participants was 48.37 +/- 5.67 yr also the body mass index was 28.69 +/- 3.95. In the intervention group, light physical activity and sedentary behavior reduced from 56.1% [23 individuals] to 14.6% [6 individuals] in the following up stage. There was significant improvement across time in the mean of minute's physical activity [P=0.042]. There were significant differences in the mean's constructs of the Social-cognitive theory [SCT] [P<0.05]. Design and execution of training program based on social cognitive theory can lead to promote physical activity among women with diabetes II through changes in the theoretical constructs

[ comparative study on the myocardial infarction patients' quality of life and healthy people]

Nowadays, the incidence of Myocardial infarction is increasing day-to-day which in turn, it make s various functional, physical and emotional complications in daily living activities of patients after recovery of sever stages of disease. Consequently, the quality of life among these groups of patients is a main concern of all health care providers. Since, treatment results in medicine and nursing is depended on patients' points of view getting, this study was conducted to evaluate quality of life items between post myocardial infarction patients and peer healthy people in order to do necessary comparisons. Using a descriptive-analytic cross-sectional study, fifty post myocardial infarction patients after two months of recovery at 5-Azar hospital of Gorgan city, and fifty healthy people were adopted randomly with considering of matching criteria such as sex, age, social class, and educational level. Using SF-36 questionnaire, 8 items of quality of life were measured according to the respondents' perceptions. Data were analyzed statistically by using SPSS Version … according to parametric and nonparametric [Mann-Whitney U test]. Participants at each group consisted of 64 males and 36 females with a mean age of 57 year-of-old that the majority of them were low literacy, and the majority of women were housewife. The non-parametric analysis [Mann-Whitney U Test] indicated that seven items of quality of life such as Physical Functioning [PF], Role Physical [RP], General Health [GH], Vitality [VT], Social Functioning [SF], Role Emotional [RF], and Mental Health [MH] between these two groups of study were statistically significant [P<0.005]. In case, Bodily Pain [BP] was not significant statistically between two groups of study. The findings indicated despite of curing after myocardial infarction, there is a considerable decrease in the quality of life level of the patients which in turn call for effective follow-up and rehabilitative programs by all of the health care providers such as nurses and physicians

Application of the Information; Motivation and Behavioural Skills Model for Targeting HIV Risk Behaviour amongst Adolescent Learners in South Africa

This paper discusses the application of an information; motivation and behavioural skills (IMB) model in a school-based programme for the reduction of HIV risk behaviour among 259 Grade 11 learners in two high schools in Alexandra township; Johannesburg. School 1 was the Experimental group; while School 2 was the Control group. After a baseline study (Time 1) at both schools; a 3-week intervention programme was conducted at School 1. A post-test (Time 2) was conducted at both schools. The intervention was repeated at School 2; followed by another post-test (Time 3) at both schools. A final test (Time 4) was conducted at both schools. While there were positive changes in the levels of HIVetAIDS IMB in learner participants; these changes may not be entirely attributed to the intervention. If an IMB model-based intervention is to be maximally effective in reducing HIV-risk behaviour among adolescents; it must focus on the behavioural; structural and socio-cultural contexts in which adolescents live

Educación sexual: un pilar fundamental en la sexualidad de la adolescencia / Sex education as a cornerstone for a healthy teenage sexuality

Sexuality is more than reproduction, it is an intrinsic part of each of us, is how we develop and relate with others and with the environment of the society to which we belong. Adolescence is a period with special vulnerability for the development of risky behaviors. In Chile, a progressive decrease in the age of sexual activity onset is observed, particularly in lower socioeconomic strata. The main consequences in sexual health are teenage pregnancies and the risk of acquiring sexually transmitted infections such as HIV. The main strategy for the prevention of this risks is a thorough sexual education, that has to be timely, objective, based on scientific evidence, friendly and confidential.

Educar en conductas sexuales saludables: una innovación docente en promoción de la salud / Education about healthy sexual behaviors among high school students

Background: The need to educate adolescents about healthy sexual behavior motivated the development of an education program on sexuality. Aim: To describe the knowledge of students about sexuality and the implementation of a sexual education project. Material and Methods: Sixty students aged 14 years (34 females), attending the third year of secondary education participated in dynamic workshops about healthy sexual behaviors. Results: The most common reactions of students when facing situations related to sexual behavior were shame, anxiety, fear and lack of knowledge. Group dynamics improved the practical knowledge of students about sexual behavior, allowing them to make informed decisions. Conclusions: These innovative educational techniques should be expanded to other students.