School-wide publications

Permanent URI for this collectionhttps://dspace.njala.edu.sl/handle/20.500.144402/152

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Now showing 1 - 10 of 37
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    What’s in a name? Why giving monkeypox a new one is a good idea
    (The Conversation Media Group Ltd, 2022-06-20) Bockarie, Moses
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    Saving mothers' lives: things can go wrong.
    (National Institutes of Health, 1998) Konteh, R
    One of the goals of Sierra Leone's primary care programme, established in the 1980s, was to reduce maternal mortality by 30% by the end of the twentieth century, but no significant progress has been made in this direction. The reasons are examined below in the light of a study conducted in one of the country's Chiefdoms.
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    A Global Declaration on Appropriate Use of Antimicrobial Agents across the Surgical Pathway
    (Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., 2017-11-01) Group, Global Alliance for Infections in Surgery Working
    This declaration, signed by an interdisciplinary task force of 234 experts from 83 different countries with different backgrounds, highlights the threat posed by antimicrobial resistance and the need for appropriate use of antibiotic agents and antifungal agents in hospitals worldwide especially focusing on surgical infections. As such, it is our intent to raise awareness among healthcare workers and improve antimicrobial prescribing. To facilitate its dissemination, the declaration was translated in different languages.
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    Oral rehydration therapies in Senegal, Mali, and Sierra Leone: a spatial analysis of changes over time and implications for policy
    (BioMed Central, 2020-12-01) Wiens, Kirsten E
    BACKGROUND: Oral rehydration solution (ORS) is a simple intervention that can prevent childhood deaths from severe diarrhea and dehydration. In a previous study, we mapped the use of ORS treatment subnationally and found that ORS coverage increased over time, while the use of home-made alternatives or recommended home fluids (RHF) decreased, in many countries. These patterns were particularly striking within Senegal, Mali, and Sierra Leone. It was unclear, however, whether ORS replaced RHF in these locations or if children were left untreated, and if these patterns were associated with health policy changes. METHODS: We used a Bayesian geostatistical model and data from household surveys to map the percentage of children with diarrhea that received (1) any ORS, (2) only RHF, or (3) no oral rehydration treatment between 2000 and 2018. This approach allowed examination of whether RHF was replaced with ORS before and after interventions, policies, and external events that may have impacted healthcare access. RESULTS: We found that RHF was replaced with ORS in most Sierra Leone districts, except those most impacted by the Ebola outbreak. In addition, RHF was replaced in northern but not in southern Mali, and RHF was not replaced anywhere in Senegal. In Senegal, there was no statistical evidence that a national policy promoting ORS use was associated with increases in coverage. In Sierra Leone, ORS coverage increased following a national policy change that abolished health costs for children. CONCLUSIONS: Children in parts of Mali and Senegal have been left behind during ORS scale-up. Improved messaging on effective diarrhea treatment and/or increased ORS access such as through reducing treatment costs may be needed to prevent child deaths in these areas.
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    Pupils’ Knowledge Level about the Contraindicationsof Cardiovascular Diseases of the HeartlikeDilated Cardiomyopathy (DCM), Hypertensive Heart Disease (HHD) and Pulmonary Heart Disease (PHD) as Health Education Strategy in Preventive Health
    (2017-07-06) Joseph, Bebeley Samuel
    **Aim:** The objective of this study was to point out pupils' knowledge level about the contraindications of cardiovascular diseases of the heart like Dilated Cardiomyopathy (DCM), Hypertensive Heart Disease (HHD) and Pulmonary Heart Disease (PHD) as health education strategy in preventive health cased at University Secondary School, Njala.Method: The researcher interviewed mainly high school pupils with a sampled number of one hundred and twenty (n=120).46% (n=55) female and 54% (n=65) male; 67% (n=80) Christians; 33% (n=40) Muslims; were selected using the stratified random sampling.Also stratified were58% (n=70) from the option Pure Science-to-General Science;42% (n=50) from the option Social Science-to-Applied Art; 29.2% (n=35) from SSS(One-to-Two); 70.8% (n=85) from SSS(Three-to-Four);62.8% (n=75) within the age circle of (13-to-17);37.5% (n=45) within the age circle of (18-to-25+) in years.Results: The variables of the finding were tested@ level of significance p < 0.05 through a statistical instrument of T-test.Analysis from the study objective, shows negative skewedness in all three variables as placed in tabulated values (t-scores of-0.802,0.529 and 2.129) of 2, 4 and 6 when tested@p < 0.05.Conclusion: In summing up due to the negative skewedness in all of the variables tested, the finding has demonstrated majority view of high school pupils' low level of knowledge about the contraindications of cardiovascular diseases of the heart as health education strategy in preventive health cased at University Secondary School.The researchers recommend that health education as a teaching subject be included in the schools' curriculum to help in the teaching of preventive health to school pupils.
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    Role of parent’s teachers association in enhancing discipline in secondary schools in Makeni City, Northern Sierra Leone
    (2022-09-06) Turay, Edwin Augustine Junior
    Despite the Government effort of ensuring community direct involvement and ownership of development projects in their locality such as education, the extent of parents input in students discipline through the Parent Teachers Association (PTA) remains obscure in many secondary schools. This study was to determine the role of Parents Teachers Association (PTA) in enhancing discipline in Public Secondary Schools in Makeni City, Northern Sierra Leone. The study was guided by four research questions that investigated the following aspects: The activities of PTA in enhancing students‟ discipline, the extent to which PTA role enhances discipline, the challenges facing PTA in students discipline management and suggestions on how the PTA can be more effective in enhancing discipline. The study employed both quantitative and qualitative research methodologies with a cross-sectional survey and phenomenological design. The target population consisted of 4 Government assisted public secondary schools, principals, discipline masters, PTA members, class teachers, and all students of the 4 public secondary schools in Makeni City. The sample size consisted of 4 principals, 4 discipline masters, 36 class teachers, 36 PTA members and 160 students. Data was collected by use of interview guides, questionnaires, and document analysis guide, which were personally administered by the researcher. Quantitative data was analyzed in frequencies and percentages using SPSS version 20, while qualitative data was organized into themes and analyzed descriptively. Conclusions and recommendations were made based on the findings there of.
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    Dog rabies control in West and Central Africa: A review
    (Elsevier BV, 2020-05-11) Mbilo, Céline
    Rabies is a neglected but preventable zoonotic disease that predominantly affects the most vulnerable populations living in remote rural areas of resource-limited countries. To date, every country on the African mainland is considered endemic for dog-mediated rabies with an estimated 21'500 human rabies deaths occurring each year. In 2018, the United Against Rabies collaboration launched the Global Strategic Plan to end human deaths from dog-mediated rabies by 2030. The epidemiology of rabies from most Western and Central African countries remains poorly defined, making it difficult to assess the overall rabies situation and progress towards the 2030 goal. In this review, we attempt to provide an overview of the current rabies situation in 22 West and Central African countries based on published scientific literature and information obtained from rabies focal points. To this end, information was collected on i) established surveillance, ii) diagnostic capacity, iii) post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) availability and coverage, iv) dog population estimates, v) dog vaccination campaigns, vi) animal and human health communication (One Health), vii) molecular studies, viii) Knowledge, Attitude and Practices (KAP), ix) cost estimates and x) national control strategies. Although rabies is a notifiable disease in the majority of the studied countries, national surveillance systems do not adequately capture the disease. A general lack of rabies diagnostic capacity has an additional negative impact on rabies surveillance and attempts to estimate rabies burden. Recurrent shortages of human rabies vaccine are reported by all of the countries, with vaccine availability usually limited to major urban centers but no country has yet adopted the new WHO-recommended 1-week intradermal vaccination regimen. Most countries carry out subsidized mass dog vaccination campaigns on World Rabies Day. Such activities are indispensable to keep rabies in the public consciousness but are not of the scale and intensity that is required to eliminate rabies from the dog population. Countries will need to scale up the intensity of their campaigns, if they are to progress towards the 2030 goal. But more than half of the countries do not yet have reliable figures on their dog populations. Only two countries reached stage 2 on the Stepwise Approach towards Rabies Elimination ladder - indicating that their national governments have truly prioritized rabies elimination and are thus providing the necessary support and political buy-in required to achieve success. In summary, the sub-region of West and Central Africa seems to be divided into countries which have accepted the challenge to eliminate rabies with governments committed to pushing forward rabies elimination, while other countries have achieved some progress, but elimination efforts remain stuck due to lacking government commitment and financial constraints. The possibility to meet the 2030 goal without international solidarity is low, because more than two-thirds of the countries rank in the low human development group (HDI ≤ 152). Leading countries should act as role models, sharing their experiences and capacities so that no country is left behind. Unified and with international support it is possible to reach the common goal of zero human rabies deaths by 2030.
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    Use of the FilmArray System for Detection of Zaire ebolavirus in a Small Hospital in Bo, Sierra Leone
    (American Society for Microbiology, 2015-05-14) Łęski, Tomasz A.
    Laboratories associated with small hospitals often have limited expertise, personnel, and equipment to rapidly identify rare and emerging infectious diseases. We describe the successful use of the FilmArray system for rapid detection of Ebola virus directly from clinical samples in 6 out of 83 tested subjects in a small health care center in Sierra Leone.