ghanaopendata/ghanaian-research-english huggingface dataset:
Patients’ Satisfaction with The Quality of Health Care Services at The Mamprobi Polyclinic

Patients have become aware of the need for quality health care, and as a result, the satisfaction of patient is considered as an outcome of health care services delivered, as well as a measure of its quality. Good health in any society or community depends on the quality of health care services delivered. In addition to this, the socioeconomic status of participants, their life style/culture and their environment, play a role in ensuring good health of participants. Researchers’ observation shows that patients are dissatisfied with care being rendered to them. This study, therefore, aims at exploring patients’ satisfaction with health care services. The SERVQUAL model was used as a framework for the study. The Mamprobi Polyclinic was chosen as the site for the study. Participants for the study were selected through a purposive sampling technique from patients who attended the out -patients department (O.P.D) of the polyclinic and both genders were included. In all twelve participants, based on saturation of the study were used. Data were collected, using a semi-structured interview guide accompanied by probes to aid further exploration. Data analysis was done by thematic content analysis, and this was carried out concurrently with data collection. During the study, ethical issues were addressed by ensuring confidentiality and anonymity of all participants. In all five major the findings emerged. Three of them were related to the construct of the model. Namely; patients’ satisfaction with health care, hospital environment and facilitators/barriers to patients’ satisfaction. The remaining two were from the objectives of the study; these were the effect of patients’ satisfaction with their health seeking behaviours and needs/suggestions of patients to improve service quality. At the end of the study, it was recommended that health care providers should be trained on interpersonal skills. In conclusion, the study stressed the need for improvement in the staff strength and physical environment of the polyclinic to ensure patient satisfaction with health care services.

Source: UG
Patients' tolerance and early complications of transrectal sonographically guided prostate biopsy: Prospective study of 300 patients

Purpose. To determine the degree of pain and discomfort associated with transrectal sonography (TRS)-guided biopsy of the prostate and to analyze the complications associated with this procedure. Methods. Three hundred men referred as part of an investigation to exclude prostate cancer were studied. The reasons for referral were suspected prostate cancer due to increased serum prostate-specific antigen level (>4 ng/ml), the finding of a palpable nodule or greater firmness of one prostatic lobe than the other on digital rectal examination, or the finding of a suspicious area of neoplasm of the prostate on TRS biopsy. All TRS-guided biopsies were performed as outpatient procedures without anesthesia. Ciprofloxacin prophylaxis was used in all patients before biopsy. Tolerance of the procedure was recorded immediately after the examination and graded on a scale of 0-4 as follows: 0, no pain; 1, very mild pain; 2, moderate pain; 3, severe pain; 4, intolerable pain. Complications recorded in the first week after the procedure were analyzed. They included mild pain, self-limiting hematuria, hematospermia, rectal bleeding, severe hematuria, septicemia, severe hemorrhage of the anus, and vasovagal attack. Results. Out of 300 TRS-guided biopsies, 10 early complications were recorded. The most frequent was septicemia, which was seen in 5 cases (1.7%). Hematuria occured in 29 patients, 3 of which were severe. Rectal bleeding and vasovagal attack occurred in 1 patient each. All patients made a full recovery with appropriate conservative management. Ten cases (3.33%) of severe pain (grade 3) and intolerable pain (grade 4) were observed. Three out of these 10 patients completed the procedure. The procedure was terminated in 1 patient, and 6 patients required local anesthetic due to perianal disease. Conclusions. TRS-guided prostate biopsy can be performed without local anesthesia in 90% of patients. Prophylactic antibiotics are mandatory to minimize approximately infectious complications.

Source: UG
Patriarchy and gender-inequitable attitudes as drivers of intimate partner violence against women in the central region of Ghana

Background: In order to reduce women’s exposure to violence and develop culturally appropriate interventions, it is important to gain an understanding of how men who use violence rationalize it. The present study sought to explore the perspectives of men who had used violence on their female partners, specifically their views on intimate partner violence (IPV), gender norms, manhood, their gender attitudes and to understand how these may drive male perpetrated IPV against women in the Central Region of Ghana. Methods: This was a qualitative study involving purposively sampled adult men who had participated in a household-based survey in selected districts in the Central Region of Ghana and who had self-reported perpetration of IPV in the past 12 months. In-depth interviews were conducted with 17 men. Results: Data revealed how a range of social, cultural, and religious factors ̶stemming from patriarchy ̶combined to inform the construction of a traditional masculinity. These factors included the notion that decision-making in the home is a man’s prerogative, there should be rigid and distinct gender roles, men’s perceptions of owning female partners and having the right to have sex with them whenever they desire, and the notion that wife beating is legitimate discipline. Findings suggest that it was through performing, or aspiring to achieve, this form of masculinity that men used varying forms of violence against their female partners. Moreover, data show that the men’s use of violence was a tactic for controlling women and emphasizing their authority and power over them.Conclusions: Developers of interventions to prevent IPV need to recognize that there is a coherent configuration of aspirations, social norms and behaviours that is drawn on by some men to justify their use of IPV. Understanding the perspectives of men who have perpetrated IPV against women and their motivations for perpetration is essential for interventions to prevent IPV. This is discussed as drawing authority from ‘tradition’ and so engaging traditional and religious leaders, as well as men and women throughout the community, in activities to challenge this is likely to be particularly fruitful.

Source: UG
Patriotism in Turbulent and Settled Times

Patriotism fosters national cohesion. In turbulent times, such as during social revolutions, wars of liberations, or national catastrophes, patriotic sentiments are interwoven into narratives of violence and self-sacrifice for a nationalistic cause. In settled times, patriotism is channeled towards the task of state-building and anchored on the moral imperative of preserving a heritage won by sacrifice. Therefore, violent contentions and self-sacrifice are central to narratives of patriotism in both turbulent and settled times. To build my argument, I review theories of society and authority from scholars such as Max Weber, David Apter, Immanuel Wallerstein, and Claude Ake; highlighting aspects of social formations and structures of power which predispose individuals to self-sacrifice for group causes. This argument is illustrated by drawing on theories of state formation in the west and in former colonies. I propose the notion of politically useful deaths to highlight a variety of functions which patriotic sentiments play in settled times. This proposition is explicated by the following claims: Politically useful deaths 1) (re)orient citizens’ imaginations towards the state, acting as a reminder of its existence, 2) serve as a social glue which creates, nurtures, or reinforces the bond among citizens, and 3) provide a vent for politically salient sentiments. Self-sacrifice is a civic aspiration which relevant institutions attempt to inculcate in individuals through political socialisation.

Source: UG
Pattern of Abdominal injuries in Korle Bu Teaching Hospital, Accra

Two Hundred and thirty-four cases of abdominal trauma over the past 6 years were reviewed. There were four times as many male as female patients. The peak age incidence was in the second and third decades. Road traffic accidents were the commonest causes of blunt injures whereas stab wounds predominated penetrating injuries. The spleen and the small bowel were the most common Viscera injured. Although accidental injury ill our environments is a common cause of morbidity fatalities are few in those with abdominal trauma

Source: UG
Pattern of atherosclerosis in a Ghanaian adult population: An autopsy study

A qualitative assessment of the degree of atherosclerotic involvement of six major arteries in 310 autopsies of Ghanaian adults revealed that atherosclerosis is less severe in Ghanaians compared to Caucasians. Atherosclerosis increases with age, more so in hypertensives, but severe lesions are not common in cerebral vessels in spite of the high mortality from haemorrhagic stroke in the adult Ghanaian. Severe atherosclerosis is, therefore, not important in the causation of cerebral haemorrhage. The small number of cerebral infarcts (six) is in keeping with the absence of severe atherosclerotic lesions in both extra cranial and intracranial large arteries. Absence of severe coronary lesions also parallels the low incidence of myocardial infarction and ischaemic heart disease in Ghanaians. Diabetes mellitus in combination with hypertension results in more severe atherosclerosis of the aorta and coronary arteries but the effect of diabetes mellitus alone requires further study.

Source: UG
Pattern of childhood malignancy in Korle Bu Teaching Hospital, Ghana.

Data from the cancer register in the Department of Child Health, Korle Bu Teaching Hospital Accra, Ghana was reviewed in order to document the pattern of malignancies seen in children. Out of a total of 15,200 admissions over a 40 month period there were 254 malignancies diagnosed constituting 1.67% of all admission. Lymphoma was the commonest tumour constituting 67% with Burkitt's Lymphoma being the commonest subtype. This was followed by Retinoblastoma (8.6%), Leukaemia (8.2%) and Wilms tumour (7.8%). This trend is similar to the picture seen in other developing countries in Africa where there is a high incidence of lymphoma and a low incidence of leukaemia, the converse being the case in Europe and North America.

Source: UG
Pattern of diseases or conditions leading to hospitalisation at Korle Bu Teaching Hospital, Ghana in 1996

The Epidemiology Department contributes to the mission of the institute through basic and applied epidemiological research on, but not limited to, malaria and other diseases of public health importance. It is also home to the Social Science Unit of the Institute, including the Health Support Centre for HIV/AIDS and other communicable and noncommunicable health problems.

Source: UG
Pattern of drug utilization for treatment of uncomplicated malaria in urban Ghana following national treatment policy change to artemisinin-combination therapy

Abstract Background Change of first-line treatment of uncomplicated malaria to artemisinin-combination therapy (ACT) is widespread in Africa. To expand knowledge of safety profiles of ACT, pharmacovigilance activities are included in the implementation process of therapy changes. Ghana implemented first-line therapy of artesunate-amodiaquine in 2005. Drug utilization data is an important component of determining drug safety, and this paper describes how anti-malarials were prescribed within a prospective pharmacovigilance study in Ghana following anti-malarial treatment policy change. Methods Patients with diagnosis of uncomplicated malaria were recruited from pharmacies of health facilities throughout Accra in a cohort-event monitoring study. The main drug utilization outcomes were the relation of patient age, gender, type of facility attended, mode of diagnosis and concomitant treatments to the anti-malarial regimen prescribed. Logistic regression was used to predict prescription of nationally recommended first-line therapy and concomitant prescription of antibiotics. Results The cohort comprised 2,831 patients. Curative regimens containing an artemisinin derivative were given to 90.8% (n = 2,574) of patients, although 33% (n = 936) of patients received an artemisinin-based monotherapy. Predictors of first-line therapy were laboratory-confirmed diagnosis, age >5 years, and attending a government facility. Analgesics and antibiotics were the most commonly prescribed concomitant medications, with a median of two co-prescriptions per patient (range 1&#8211;9). Patients above 12 years were significantly less likely to have antibiotics co-prescribed than patients under five years; those prescribed non-artemisinin monotherapies were more likely to receive antibiotics. A dihydroartemisinin-amodiaquine combination was the most used therapy for children under five years of age (29.0%, n = 177). Conclusion This study shows that though first-line therapy recommendations may change, clinical practice may still be affected by factors other than the decision or ability to diagnose malaria. Age, diagnostic confirmation and suspected concurrent conditions lead to benefit:risk assessments for individual patients by clinicians as to which anti-malarial treatment to prescribe. This has implications for adherence to policy changes aiming to implement effective use of ACT. These results should inform education of health professionals and rational drug use policies to reduce poly-pharmacy, and also suggest a potential positive impact of increased access to testing for malaria both within health facilities and in homes.

Source: UG
Pattern of drug utilization for treatment of uncomplicated malaria in urban Ghana following national treatment policy change to artemisinin-combination therapy

Change of first-line treatment of uncomplicated malaria to artemisinin-combination therapy (ACT) is widespread in Africa. To expand knowledge of safety profiles of ACT, pharmacovigilance activities are included in the implementation process of therapy changes. Ghana implemented first-line therapy of artesunate-amodiaquine in 2005. Drug utilization data is an important component of determining drug safety, and this paper describes how anti-malarials were prescribed within a prospective pharmacovigilance study in Ghana following anti-malarial treatment policy change.

Source: UG
Pattern of road traffic injuries in Ghana: Implications for control.

Road traffic injuries and fatalities are increasing in Ghana. Police-collected crash and injury data for the period 1994-1998 were aggregated and analyzed using the MAAP5 accident analysis package developed by the Transport Research Laboratory, U.K. Published results of recent transport-related epidemiological and other surveys provided an additional data source. According to the 1994-1998 police data, road traffic crashes were a leading cause of death and injuries in Ghana. The other leading causes of death and injuries are occupational injuries which involve non-mechanized farming and tribal conflicts. The majority of road traffic fatalities (61.2%) and injuries (52.3%) occurred on roads in rural areas. About 58% more people died on roads in the rural areas than in urban areas, and generally more severe crashes occurred on rural roads compared with urban areas. Pedestrians accounted for 46.2% of all road traffic fatalities. The majority of these (66.8%) occurred in urban areas. The second leading population of road users affected was riders in passenger-ferrying buses, minibuses and trucks. The majority of these (42.8%) were killed on roads that pass through rural areas. Pedestrian casualties were overrepresented (nearly 90%) in five regions located in the southern half of the country. Efforts to tackle pedestrian safety should focus on the five regions of the country where most pedestrian fatalities occur in urban areas. Policies are also needed to protect passengers in commercially operated passenger-ferrying buses, minibuses and trucks because these vehicles carry a higher risk of being involved in fatal crashes.

Source: UG
Patterns and drivers of disturbance in tropical forest reserves of southern Ghana

Ghana has retained a substantial area of tropical forests in an extensive network of protected reserves. These forests are impacted by land uses such as logging, mining, and agriculture as well as wildfires. We studied forest disturbance and recovery from 2013 to 2020 using annual maps of forest cover derived from Landsat imagery. Fire-associated disturbance was distinguished using VIIRS active fire data. We used boosted regression trees to model disturbances in closed and open forests as a function of climate variability, human accessibility, and landscape structure. A total of 3562 km2 of forest reserves were disturbed, of which 17% (615 km2 ) were fire disturbances and 83% (2946 km2 ) were non-fire disturbances. Of the total disturbed area, 68% was degradation (change from closed to open forest), 28% was open forest loss, and only 4% was closed forest loss. Over the same period, 2702 km2 of forest reserves recovered, with 1948 km2 of these recovering to closed-canopy forests. Fire disturbances were strongly associated with precipitation anomalies and occurred mostly in drier years, whereas non-fire disturbances had weaker relationships with precipitation. Disturbances in closed forests occurred in landscapes where closed forest cover was already low. In contrast, disturbances in open forests were most common in locations with intermediate levels of population pressure from nearby cities and proximity to non-forest land cover. The results support the idea that forest disturbance in Ghana is a multi-stage process involving degradation of closed forests followed by loss of the resulting open forests. Although non-fire disturbance rates are consistent from year to year, sharp increases in fire disturbance occur in drought years. Locations with the highest disturbance risk are associated with measurable indicators of climate, human pressure, and fragmentation, which can be used to identify these areas for conservation and forest restoration activities.

Source: UG
Patterns and seasonality of malaria transmission in the forest-savannah transitional zones of Ghana

Abstract Background Knowledge of the local pattern of malaria transmission and the effect of season on transmission is essential for the planning and evaluation of malaria interventions. Therefore, entomological surveys were carried out in the forest-savannah transitional belt of Ghana (Kintampo) from November 2003 to November 2005 in preparation for drug and vaccine trials. Results A total of 23,406 mosquitoes were caught from 919 traps over the two-year period (November 2003 to November 2005): 54.3% were Culicines, 36.2% Anopheles funestus, and 9.4% Anopheles gambiae. Infection rates with Plasmodium falciparum were 4.7% and 1.5% for Anopheles gambiae and Anopheles funestus, respectively. Entomological inoculation rates (EIRs) were 269 infective bites per person per year in the first year (November 2003-October 2004) and 231 the following year (November 2004-November 2005). Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) analysis detected only Anopheles gambiae s.s. Nineteen mosquitoes were tested by PCR in the wet season; 16 were S-molecular form, 2 M-molecular form and 1 hybrid (S/M). In the dry season, sixteen mosquitoes were tested; 11 S-molecular form, 2 M-molecular form and 3 S/M hybrids. The frequency of knock down resistance (kdr) genotypes F(R) was 0.60. Conclusion The dynamics and seasonal abundance of malaria vectors in the Kintampo area was influenced by micro-ecology, rainfall and temperature patterns. Transmission patterns did not differ significantly between the two years (2004 and 2005) and both Anopheles gambiae and Anopheles funestus were identified as effective vectors. EIR estimates in 2004/2005 were between 231 and 269 infective bites per person per year. The information provided by the study will help in planning intensified malaria control activities as well as evaluating the impact of malaria interventions in the middle belt of Ghana.

Source: UG
Patterns and seasonality of malaria transmission in the forest-savannah transitional zones of Ghana

The Department of Parasitology conducts research into parasitic diseases of public health importance with the overall goal of reducing their transmission and the heavy disease burden that they impose on affected populations. The Department maintains focus on parasitic diseases in general. These include major diseases such as malaria, and others listed under the Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTD) control initiative such as, lymphatic filariasis, onchocerciasis, schistosomiasis, soil-transmitted helminthiasis, trypanosomiasis and leishmaniasis.

Source: UG
Patterns And Source Apportionment Of Potentially Toxic Elements Distribution In The Soils Of The Nangodi Area, Northeast Ghana: A Multivariate And Machine Learning Approach.

This study assessed the sources, distribution and pollution status of heavy metals in the Nangodi area of Northwestern Ghana. Cr (120.86 mg/kg) and Co (30.92 mg/kg) had respective average values of 2.4 and 1.2 times higher than their Continental Crustal Averages of 100 mg/kg and 25 mg/kg. The Potential Toxic Elements (PTE) displayed a decreasing trend in the order Ba > Cr > V > Sr > Cu > Zn > Co > Mo. The Metal Index assessment highlighted the significant effect of galamsey on the soil health of the area. The samples were ranked as slightly (26.45 %), moderately (25.18 %), Strongly (21.20 %) and seriously (23.91 %) affected. The positive Matrix Factorization identified three Factors as controlling PTEs in the area. Factor 1/anthropogenic (V = 84 %, Cu = 84 %, Co = 75.5 % and Zn = 58.9 %). Factor 2/geogenic (Ba = 87.5 %, Sr = 83.1 %, Pb = 57.8 %). Factor 3/mixed source (Cr = 91.8 % and Mo = 43.4 %). The Pearson correlation matrix outlined two groups of PTEs; (1) PTEs with moderate to strong correlation (V, Co, Cu and Zn) and (2) PTEs with weak to moderate correlation (Sr, Mo, Ba and Pb). The first group occurs at the southwestern boundary of the study area, reflecting the influence of local geology and mining practices on the levels of potentially toxic elements (PTEs) in the soil. The Self Organising Map (SOM) identified three higher concentration clusters, V, Zn, Cu, and Co, inferred to be the mining activities. Geogenic-sourced Sr and Ba are located centrally. Pb, Mo, and Cr show distinct distributions, suggesting mixed factors affecting their spread. The study identified systematic heavy metal pollution, which could pose a deleterious risk to the environment and inhabitants of the area.

Source: UG