Health care seeking behaviour of mothers towards diarrheal disease of children less than 5 years in Mekelle city, North Ethiopia.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the health care seeking behavior of mothers on diarrheal disease of under five children and associated factors in Mekelle City, Northern Ethiopia. RESULT: This study revealed that 72.5% (n = 58) of the mothers who reported their children had diarrhea had sought health care facilities. Three quarter, (75.9%) of them was seeking health in the public health care facility. Majority, 89.3% of those children who had severe diarrhea sought at health care facilities. In the multivariable analysis, severity of diarrhea (P = 0.04) and blood in stool) were the significantly associated factors with health seeking behavior of mothers for childhood diarrhea.

Adherence to insulin self administration and associated factors among diabetes mellitus patients at Tikur Anbessa specialized hospital.

BACKGROUND: The goals of diabetes treatment are to keep blood glucose levels as near normal as possible while avoiding complications. Despite the benefits of insulin therapy, many people with diabetes don't adhere to treatment. Some avoid insulin therapy or refuse to start it. Several studies investigating adherence to chronic disease treatment have evidenced that patients often discontinue their medications or even do not take them at all because they consider them ineffective or experience untoward side effects. To assess adherence to insulin self administration and associated factors among adult patients with diabetes mellitus at endocrinology unit of Tikur Anbessa Specialized Hospital Addis Ababa Ethiopia. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted from December to June 2015, on a total of 378 diabetic patients on insulin self administration using convenience sampling method. The data was collected using structured questionnaires after ethical approval and informed signed consent have been taken. The data entry and analysis was conducted using Epi info version 3.5.4 and SPSS version 21. RESULTS: One hundred twenty five (33.1%) of the respondents were found to be non-adherent to insulin self injection. Multivariate analysis identified who stopped taking insulin when they feel better, who have Heart disease and those not taking insulin when they were out of home for long time as independent factors for non adherence of insulin self administration. CONCLUSION: The factors associated with non adherence to insulin self administrations were; forgetting time of injection, deliberately, feeling better and feeling worse.

Prevalence and predictors of sexual violence among commercial sex workers in Northern Ethiopia.

BACKGROUND: Gender-based violence is a natural outgrowth of the stigma and discrimination experienced by commercial sex workers (CSWs) across the globe. In light of this, the current study aimed to describe the prevalence and character of sexual violence, as well as any risk factors for violence, experienced by CSWs in Mekelle City, Northern Ethiopia. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted in Mekelle City in April 2013. 250 CSWs were selected for participation using simple random sampling. Data were collected via a questionnaire instrument. Descriptive statistics and multiple logistic regression analyses were performed using SPSS 20 for Windows. RESULTS: The overall prevalence of sexual violence among CSWs was 75.6 %. Basic literacy [(AOR = 5.3, 95 % of CI (1.15-25.20)], completion of only elementary school [AOR = 6.9, 95 % of CI (1.55-31.25)], completion of only high school [AOR = 7.9, 95 % of CI (1.65-38.16)], being married [(AOR = 3.8, 95 % CI (1.34-11.09)], engaging in sex work for 1-4 years [(AOR = 5.3, 95 % CI(1.7-16.2)] and drug use [AOR = 5.3, 95 % of CI (1.78-16.21)] were all significant risk factors for sexual violence. CSWs with lower monthly income were also more likely to experience sexual violence; monthly income of 51.2-101.9 USD yielded AOR = 2.4 (95 % CI 1.12-5.37) and monthly income of 102.2-153.1 USD yielded AOR = 7.9 (95 % CI 2.46-25.58), compared to CSWs earning 153.2 USD or more. CONCLUSION: The prevalence of sexual violence among CSWs is high. Lower educational attainment, being married, lower monthly income, drug use, and shorter duration of sex work are all risk factors for sexual violence.

Magnitude and Reasons for Harmful Traditional Practices among Children Less Than 5 Years of Age in Axum Town, North Ethiopia, 2013.

Background. In addition to beneficial traditional practices, there are around 140 harmful traditional practices affecting mothers and children in almost all ethnic groups of Ethiopia. Therefore this study might give a clue about their practice and associated factors. The objective of this study was to assess magnitude of harmful traditional practices among children less than 5 years of age in Axum Town, North Ethiopia. Methods. Community based cross-sectional study was conducted on 752 participants who were selected using multistage sampling. Simple random sampling method was used to select ketenas from all kebelles of Axum Town. After proportional allocation of sample size to eachketena, systematic random sampling method was used to get the study participants. Data was collected using interviewer administered questionnaire; it was entered and analyzed using SPSS version 16 and descriptive statistics was calculated. Results. Majority of the respondents (81.2%) were Orthodox, 78.2% of the mothers had no work, and majority of mothers had no formal education. Among the harmful traditional practices performed on children, uvula cutting alone was performed on 72.8% of children followed by milk teeth extraction and uvula cutting with eyebrow incision. Conclusion. The leading harmful traditional practice performed on children in this study was uvula cutting.

A cross sectional study on factors associated with harmful traditional practices among children less than 5 years in Axum town, north Ethiopia, 2013.

BACKGROUND: Every social grouping in the world has its own cultural practices and beliefs which guide its members on how they should live or behave. Harmful traditional practices that affect children are Female genital mutilation, Milk teeth extraction, Food taboo, Uvula cutting, keeping babies out of exposure to sun, and Feeding fresh butter to new born babies. The objective of this study was to assess factors associated with harmful traditional practices among children less than 5 years of age in Axum town, North Ethiopia. METHODS: Community based cross sectional study was conducted in 752 participants who were selected using multi stage sampling; Simple random sampling method was used to select ketenas from all kebelles of Axum town. After proportional allocation of sample size, systematic random sampling method was used to get the study participants. Data was collected using interviewer administered Tigrigna version questionnaire, it was entered and analyzed using SPSS version 16. Descriptive statistics was calculated and logistic regressions were used to analyze the data. RESULTS: Out of the total sample size 50.7% children were females, the mean age of children was 26.28 months and majority of mothers had no formal education. About 87.8% mothers had performed at least one traditional practice to their children; uvula cutting was practiced on 86.9% children followed by milk teeth extraction 12.5% and eye borrows incision 2.4% children. Fear of swelling, pus and rapture of the uvula was the main reason to perform uvula cutting. CONCLUSION: The factors associated with harmful traditional practices were educational status, occupation, religion of mothers and harmful traditional practices performed on the mothers.

A cross sectional study on factors influencing professionalism in nursing among nurses in Mekelle Public Hospitals, North Ethiopia, 2012.

BACKGROUND: Professionalism is defined as the conceptualization of obligations, attributes, interactions, attitudes, and role behaviors required of professionals in relationship to individual clients and to society as a whole. Professionalism attributes include knowledge, spirit of inquiry, accountability, autonomy, advocacy, innovation and visionary, collaboration and collegiality, and ethics. The study assessed level and attributes of professionalism in nursing in Mekelle, Tigray, Ethiopia. METHODS: Institutional based cross sectional study supplemented by qualitative design was employed. Self administered semi structured questionnaire developed from RANO guideline was used. The FGD guideline was developed from different literatures. Data was analyzed using SPSS 16.0. Descriptive statistics and significance was checked at p < 0.05. Professionalism was measured using ANOVA. Qualitative of data were analyzed using coding technique. Written informed consent was obtained from the nurses and confidentiality was assured for all the information provide. RESULTS: The mean scores for the nurses in Mekelle public hospitals on the professionalism were 140.50, knowledge (25.06), followed by ethics (25.00). The attitudes of respondents on professionalism were at high, moderate, low and very low level. Pearson product-moment correlation analysis revealed small yet significant associations among several professionalism attributes and characteristics of nurses in Mekelle Public hospitals. Age of respondents and work experience were significantly correlated with total professionalism. Work setting in Mekelle hospital was significantly associated with professionalism. Depending on FGD, the major factors were workload, had no vision, FMOH did not focused nursing as a profession, Weakness of the Ethiopian Nursing Association, lack of life insurance as well as the Health professionals and society's views of the profession. CONCLUSION: Nurses with longer years of experience and the older respondents had significantly related with professionalism. Nurses who join professional organizations had high score on professionalism; and nurses working in Military Hospital had high score of professionalism.