Completion of three-dose hepatitis B vaccination cycle and associated factors among health care workers in the Greater Accra Region of Ghana
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ABSTRACT:
SUBMITTER: Senoo-Dogbey V
PROVIDER: S-EPMC11020873 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Jan
REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature
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Project description:IntroductionThe risk of occupational exposure to Hepatitis B Virus (HBV) is high among healthcare workers (HCWs), especially in developing countries like Ghana where the prevalence of HBV is high. Unfortunately, in such regions, HCW protection does not appear to be a priority, and healthcare facilities (HFs) have been reported to have unsatisfactory levels of implementing preventive strategies to protect HCWs from blood-borne infections including HBV.MethodsA cross-sectional and Q audit was performed involving 255 HFs selected by proportional allocation and systematic random sampling. Data was collected using a structured pretested questionnaire with HF managers being the respondents. Data were analysed using IBM ® SPSS® (Statistical Package for the Social Sciences, version 21.0) where univariate, bivariate, and multivariate analysis was done with the level of significance set at <0.05.ResultsOverall adherence to recommended strategies, structures, and programs for HBV prevention among the HFs was generally low, with a mean score of 37.02 (95% CI = 33.98-40.05). There was a statistically significant difference in the level of adherence between the HF categories (F = 9.698; P = <0.001). Being a hospital (OR = 3.9: CI = 1.68-9.29), possessing infection, prevention and control (IPC) guidelines (OR = 6.69: CI = 3.29-13.63) as well as having functional IPC committees in place (OR = 7.9: CI = 3.59-17.34) were associated with good adherence to HF-level HBV preventive strategies.ConclusionOverall adherence to HF-level prevention of HBV is sub-optimal. Higher-level facilities were better resourced with HBV vaccine and Hepatitis B immunoglobulin (HBIG). Adherence to HBV prevention strategies depends on the type of HF and the availability of IPC committees and their respective IPC coordinators.
| S-EPMC10200842 | biostudies-literature
Project description:The study investigated the effect of institutional mechanisms of micropension saving (MPS) schemes in extending coverage to informal economy workers. We used mixed methods as the research approach, and collected both quantitative and qualitative data for analysis. Using principal component analysis, multiple regression analysis and interpretative approaches that yielded themes, we concluded that more access provision, incentives and security result in increased informal economy workers' participation in MPS. However, general form of financial information to informal economy workers was found to demotivate enrolment onto the scheme. Consequently, we recommended that corporate pension trustees should create institutional structures like pension education campaigns on national television and radio to promote the culture of pension saving.
| S-EPMC8461340 | biostudies-literature
Project description:To assess dynamics of SARS-CoV-2 in Greater Accra Region, Ghana, we analyzed SARS-CoV-2 genomic sequences from persons in the community and returning from international travel. The Accra Metropolitan District was a major origin of virus spread to other districts and should be a primary focus for interventions against future infectious disease outbreaks.
| S-EPMC10045712 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Malaria remains a serious public health challenge in Ghana including the Greater Accra Region. This study aimed to quantify the spatial, temporal and spatio-temporal patterns of malaria in the Greater Accra Region to inform targeted allocation of health resources. Malaria cases data from 2015 to 2019 were obtained from the Ghanaian District Health Information and Management System and aggregated at a district and monthly level. Spatial analysis was conducted using the Global Moran's I, Getis-Ord Gi*, and local indicators of spatial autocorrelation. Kulldorff's space-time scan statistics were used to investigate space-time clustering. A negative binomial regression was used to find correlations between climatic factors and sociodemographic characteristics and the incidence of malaria. A total of 1,105,370 malaria cases were reported between 2015 and 2019. Significant seasonal variation was observed, with June and July being the peak months of reported malaria cases. The hotspots districts were Kpone-Katamanso Municipal District, Ashaiman Municipal Districts, Tema Municipal District, and La-Nkwantanang-Madina Municipal District. While La-Nkwantanang-Madina Municipal District was high-high cluster. The Spatio-temporal clusters occurred between February 2015 and July 2017 in the districts of Ningo-Prampram, Shai-Osudoku, Ashaiman Municipal, and Kpone-Katamanso Municipal with a radius of 26.63 km and an relative risk of 4.66 (p < 0.001). Malaria cases were positively associated with monthly rainfall (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] = 1.01; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.005, 1.016) and the previous month's cases (AOR = 1.064; 95% CI 1.062, 1.065) and negatively correlated with minimum temperature (AOR = 0.86, 95% CI = 0.823, 0.899) and population density (AOR = 0.996, 95% CI = 0.994, 0.998). Malaria control and prevention should be strengthened in hotspot districts in the appropriate months to improve program effectiveness.
| S-EPMC9566805 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BackgroundGlobally, close to one-third of all workplace violence (WV) occurs in the health sector. Exposure to WV among healthcare professionals in Ghana has been widely speculated, but there is limited evidence on the problem. This study therefore investigated WV, its risk factors, and the psychological consequences experienced by health workers in Ghana.MethodsAn analytic cross-sectional study was conducted in the Greater Accra region from January 30 to May 31, 2023, involving selected health facilities. The participants for the study were selected using a simple random sampling technique based on probability proportional-to-size. The data analyses were performed using STATA 15 software. Logistic regression analyses were employed to identify the factors associated with WV, considering a significance level of p-value < 0.05.ResultsThe study was conducted among 607 healthcare providers and support personnel across 10 public and private hospitals. The lifetime career, and one-year exposure to any form of WV was 414 (68.2%) [95% CI: (64.3-71.9%)] and 363 (59.8%) [95% CI: (55.8-63.7%)], respectively. Compared to other forms of WV, the majority of healthcare workers, 324 (53.4%) experienced verbal abuse within the past year, and a greater proportion, 85 (26.2%) became 'super alert' or vigilant and watchful following incidents of verbal abuse. Factors significantly linked to experiencing any form of WV in the previous 12 months were identified as follows: older age [AOR = 1.11 (1.06, 1.17)], working experience [AOR = 0.91 (0.86, 0.96)], having on-call responsibilities [AOR = 1.75 (1.17, 2.61)], and feeling adequately secure within health facility [AOR = 0.45 (0.26, 0.76)].ConclusionThere was high occurrence of WV, and verbal abuse was the most experienced form of WV. Age, work experience, on-call duties, and security within workplace were associated with exposure to WV. Facility-based interventions are urgently needed to curb the incidence of WV, especially verbal abuse.
| S-EPMC10882733 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Most existing studies on land consumption have used a reactive approach to assess the phenomenon. However, for evidence-based policies, an initiative-taking forecast has been touted to be more appropriate. This study, therefore, assessed current trends and efficiency of land consumption in the Greater Accra Region from 1987 to 2017, and predicted a 30-year future land consumption in a "business-as-usual" scenario. The study adopted maximum likelihood image classification techniques and "combinatorial or" to model land cover change for Greater Accra from 1987 to 2017 while the UN-Habitat land efficiency index was employed to model efficiency of land consumption. In addition, Leo-Breiman Forest based regression, was used to model a future land cover by using the 30 years land cover change as a dependant variable and a series of natural and anthropogenic factors as independent variables. Results showed that artificial surfaces increased from 4.2% to 33.1%, with an annual growth rate of 22.1% in 30 years. Land consumption was highly inefficient as only 4.2% of the region had a good proportion of population per land area. Factors which influenced artificial surface growth were population, distance from water bodies, poverty index, distance from sacred groves, proportion of agriculture population with a small margin of influence from soil and geology type. Landscape prediction showed that artificial surfaces will increase to 92.6% as more places are coated with concrete. The high rate of land inefficiency provides an opportunity for re-zoning by the Land Use and Spatial Planning Authority of Ghana to accommodate the growing population.
| S-EPMC9173643 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Globally, little evidence exists on transmission patterns of COVID-19. Recommendations to prevent infection include appropriate and frequent handwashing plus physical and social distancing. We conducted an exploratory observational study to assess compliance with these recommendations in selected transportation stations in Ghana. A one-hour audit of 45 public transport stations in the Greater Accra region was carried out between 27th and 29th March 2020. Using an adapted World Health Organization (WHO) hand hygiene assessment scale, the availability and use of handwashing facilities, social distancing, and ongoing public education on COVID-19 prevention measures were assessed, weighted and scored to determine the level of compliance of stations. Compliance with recommendations was categorized as "inadequate" "basic", "intermediate" and "advanced", based on the overall score. Majority (80%) of stations in Accra have at least one Veronica Bucket with flowing water and soap, but the number of washing places at each station is not adequate. Only a small minority (18%) of stations were communicating the need to wash hands frequently and appropriately, and to practice social/physical distancing while at the station. In most stations (95%), hand washing practice was either not observed, or only infrequently. Almost all stations (93%) did not have alcohol-based hand sanitizers available for public use, while social distancing was rarely practiced (only 2%). In over 90% of the stations, face masks were either not worn or only worn by a few passengers. Compliance with COVID-19 prevention measures was inadequate in 13 stations, basic in 16 stations, intermediate in 7 stations, and advanced in 9 stations. Compliance with COVID-19 prevention measures in public transportation stations in the Greater Accra region remains a challenge. Awareness creation should aim to elevate COVID-19 risk perception of transportation operators and clients. Transport operators and stations need support and guidance to enforce hand washing and social distancing.
| S-EPMC7485755 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BackgroundInfluenza-like Illness (ILI) is a medical diagnosis of possible influenza or another respiratory illness with a common set of symptoms. The deaths of four schoolchildren, during a pandemic influenza outbreak in December 2017 in Ghana, raised doubts about the ILI surveillance system's performance. We evaluated the ILI surveillance system in the Greater Accra region, Ghana, to assess the system's attributes and its performance on set objectives.MethodsCDC guidelines were used to evaluate the data of the ILI surveillance system between 2013 and 2017. We interviewed the surveillance personnel on the system's description and operation. Additionally, routinely entered ILI data from the National Influenza Center provided by the six sentinel sites in Accra was extracted. We sampled and reviewed 120 ILI case-investigation forms from these sites. Surveillance activities were examined on system's performance indicators, each being scored on a scale of 1 to 3 (poorest to best performance).ResultsAll population and age groups were under ILI surveillance over the period evaluated. Overall, 2948 suspected case-patients, including 392 (13.3%) children under-five were reported, with 219 being positive for influenza virus (Predictive value positive = 7.4%). The predominant influenza subtype was H3N2, recorded in 90 (41.1%) of positive case-patients. The system only met two out of its four objectives. None of the six sentinel sites consistently met their annual 260 suspected case-detection quota. Samples reached the laboratory on average 48 hours after collection and results were disseminated within 7 days. Of 120 case-investigation forms sampled, 91 (76.3%) were completely filled in.ConclusionsThe ILI surveillance system in the Greater Accra region is only partially meeting its objectives. While it is found to be sensitive, representative and timely, the data quality was sub-optimal. We recommend the determination of thresholds for alert and outbreak detection and ensuring that sentinel sites meet their weekly case-detection targets.
| S-EPMC6417674 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Despite the compelling evidence demonstrating the immediate and long-term health advantages of prompt breastfeeding from birth, not all newborns are breastfed exclusively for a variety of reasons. As a result, the World Health Organization has made new recommendations for the adoption of breastmilk donor banks to make sure that children receive breastmilk when mothers are unable to produce it. In order to better understand how health professionals at the Greater Accra Regional Hospital, who would be leading the charge in putting this policy into practice, perceive and accept the practice of storing breastmilk, this study was conducted. At the Greater Accra Regional Hospital, 18 healthcare professionals were chosen using maximum variation purposive sampling procedures. They were made up of eleven midwives, a medical officer, six nurses, and two nutritionists and all participants were interviewed face to face using a semi structured interview guide. Data was transcribed verbatim and was analyzed using thematic analysis. Participants in the study admitted that they would be open to using or contributing to a bank of breastmilk. Participants also said that if safety precautions are taken, they would urge their customers to give breastmilk and recommend breastmilk from a breastmilk bank to them when the situation calls for it. Health professionals recommended that education be provided prior to the installation of breast milk donor banking to lessen or eliminate any misconceptions people may have about it. The concept of breastmilk donor banking was fairly accepted among health workers. Misconceptions about the safety of breast milk was the main concern. The results emphasize the necessity of greater stakeholder engagement and education prior to the implementation of this policy in order to boost acceptance and uptake.
| S-EPMC10431602 | biostudies-literature
Project description:The Greater Accra Region is the smallest of the 16 administrative regions in Ghana. It is highly populated and characterized by tropical climatic conditions. Although efforts towards malaria control in Ghana have had positive impacts, malaria remains in the top five diseases reported at healthcare facilities within the Greater Accra Region. To further accelerate progress, analysis of regionally generated data is needed to inform control and management measures at this level. This study aimed to examine the climatic drivers of malaria transmission in the Greater Accra Region and identify inter-district variation in malaria burden. Monthly malaria cases for the Greater Accra Region were obtained from the Ghanaian District Health Information and Management System. Malaria cases were decomposed using seasonal-trend decomposition, based on locally weighted regression to analyze seasonality. A negative binomial regression model with a conditional autoregressive prior structure was used to quantify associations between climatic variables and malaria risk and spatial dependence. Posterior parameters were estimated using Bayesian Markov chain Monte Carlo simulation with Gibbs sampling. A total of 1,105,370 malaria cases were recorded in the region from 2015 to 2019. The overall malaria incidence for the region was approximately 47 per 1000 population. Malaria transmission was highly seasonal with an irregular inter-annual pattern. Monthly malaria case incidence was found to decrease by 2.3% (95% credible interval: 0.7-4.2%) for each 1 °C increase in monthly minimum temperature. Only five districts located in the south-central part of the region had a malaria incidence rate lower than the regional average at >95% probability level. The distribution of malaria cases was heterogeneous, seasonal, and significantly associated with climatic variables. Targeted malaria control and prevention in high-risk districts at the appropriate time points could result in a significant reduction in malaria transmission in the Greater Accra Region.
| S-EPMC8200193 | biostudies-literature