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1 – 10 of over 2000
Article
Publication date: 26 October 2018

Vincent Adocta Awuuh, Collins Afriyie Appiah and Faustina O. Mensah

This study aims to determine the impact of nutrition education intervention on nutritional status of undernourished children aged 6-24 months in the East Mamprusi district of…

Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to determine the impact of nutrition education intervention on nutritional status of undernourished children aged 6-24 months in the East Mamprusi district of Ghana.

Design/methodology/approach

This was a pre-post interventional study. In all, 153 undernourished children of age 6-24 months and their mothers were recruited from five communities. Underweight, stunting, wasting, mid upper arm circumference (MUAC) and haemoglobin (Hb) levels were determined at baseline and after intervention. Nutrition education was given to the mothers for three months based on the nutrition problems identified at baseline assessment.

Findings

There were improvements in underweight, wasting, MUAC and Hb levels among the children after the nutrition education intervention. The level of improvement at post-intervention differed significantly for underweight (−2.4 ± 0.4, −2.2 ± 0.4; p = 0. 001), wasting (−2.2 ± 0.6, −1.9 ± 0.6; p = 0. 001), MUAC (12.3 ± 0.5, 12.9 ± 0.6; p = 0. 001) and Hb level (10.0 ± 1.4, 10.5 ± 1.4; p = 0. 001) of the children compared to pre-intervention (−1.4 ± 1.8, −1.3 ± 1.7; p = 0.314).

Practical implications

There was significant improvement in the nutritional status of the undernourished children after the nutrition education intervention. Community nutritionists and stakeholders involved in nutrition and health issues concerning infants and young children should consider nutrition education, as it could be an inexpensive and effective strategy in combating childhood undernutrition in resource-poor settings.

Originality/value

Findings of this study provide evidence, suggesting nutrition education as a potential strategy to curb the high rates of child undernutrition in resource-poor communities in Ghana. This study provides insight for larger studies on the effectiveness of nutrition education in curbing child malnutrition in deprived communities in Ghana.

Details

Nutrition & Food Science, vol. 49 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0034-6659

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 February 1988

David Schofield

The continuing challenge for health professionals engaged in international health activities is to encourage essential changes in policy and process in order to meet the…

Abstract

The continuing challenge for health professionals engaged in international health activities is to encourage essential changes in policy and process in order to meet the objectives of ‘Health for All by the Year 2000’, by way of the primary health care (PHC) approach, as laid down by the World Health Organization in 1978. Achievement of the long‐term goals will largely depend on the extent of the immediate commitment to those primary health care management considerations which reflect the expressed health needs of the community and which accommodate and support methods by which those needs can be met appropriately.

Details

Journal of Management in Medicine, vol. 3 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0268-9235

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 30 April 2020

Wipada Sangnimitchaikul, Boonjai Srisatidnarakul and Sigrid Ladores

This study explored self-management in the context of asthma experiences of school-age children and the factors that facilitate asthma self-management.

2053

Abstract

Purpose

This study explored self-management in the context of asthma experiences of school-age children and the factors that facilitate asthma self-management.

Design/methodology/approach

This is qualitative research used in-depth interviews. Purposive sampling was employed to select 15 school-age children with asthma attending the outpatient pulmonary department at university hospital in Thailand. Semistructured in-depth individual interviews were conducted. which were audiotaped and transcribed verbatim. Content analysis was used to analyze the data.

Findings

Two major themes emerged from this study: (1) perspectives on managing asthma and (2) facilitators in asthma self-management. Four subthemes emerged from the first major theme related to views on managing asthma: (1) emphasizing use of an inhaler for asthma, (2) self-monitoring for symptom, (3) difficulties with the daily regimens and (4) family support on asthma self-management. Two subthemes emerged from the second major theme related to facilitators in asthma self-management: (1) confidence in performing asthma care behaviors and (2) asthma communication.

Originality/value

This study described strategies that support asthma management of children in Thailand and provided insight into factors that influence asthma self-management. Findings will inform the development of future self-management interventions for school-age children with asthma.

Details

Journal of Health Research, vol. 35 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0857-4421

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 December 2000

Mikhail V. Malko

The paper presents results of a qualitative assessment of the morbidity and mortality in thyroid cancers by the Belarusian population caused by the Chernobyl accident. In the…

Abstract

The paper presents results of a qualitative assessment of the morbidity and mortality in thyroid cancers by the Belarusian population caused by the Chernobyl accident. In the period of 1986‐1998 about 3,851 radiation‐induced thyroid cancers appeared in Belarus: about 615 cancers by children and about 3,236 cancers by adolescents and adults. The number of lethal thyroid cancers in this period of time in Belarus is assessed as about 167 cases. The excessive absolute risk (EAR) of the morbidity in the thyroid cancer assessed for the period of 1986‐1998 on the basis of given data on the morbidity is about 1.7 per 104 PYGy. The excessive absolute risk of mortality is assessed as about 0.075 per 104 PYGy. These values agree quite well with analogous risk coefficients established for other groups of people in other epidemiological studies.

Details

Environmental Management and Health, vol. 11 no. 5
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0956-6163

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 19 June 2020

Collins Afriyie Appiah, Faustina O. Mensah, Frank E. A. Hayford, Vincent A. Awuuh and Daniel Edem Kpewou

The purpose of this study was to identify the predictors of child undernutrition and anemia among children 6–24 months old in the East Mamprusi district, Northern region, Ghana.

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study was to identify the predictors of child undernutrition and anemia among children 6–24 months old in the East Mamprusi district, Northern region, Ghana.

Design/methodology/approach

This cross-sectional study recruited 153 children and their mothers. Weight, height and hemoglobin levels of the children were measured. A structured questionnaire based on the World Health Organization's indicators for assessing infant and young child feeding practices was used to collect data on parents' socioeconomic status, household characteristics, hygiene and sanitation practices, mothers' knowledge on feeding practices such as child's meal frequency and dietary diversity and child morbidity within the past two weeks. Predictors of child nutritional status were determined using multinomial logistic regression analysis.

Findings

Underweight in the children was significantly predicted by maternal knowledge on protein foods (AOR = 0.045, p = 0.008), time of initiation of complementary feeding (AOR = 0.222, p = 0.032) and maternal age (AOR = 9.455, p = 0.017). Feeding child from separate bowls (AOR = 0.239, p = 0.005), minimum meal frequency per child's age (AOR = 0.189, p = 0.007) and time of initiation of complementary feeding (AOR = 0.144, p = 0.009) were significant determinants of stunting among the children. Exclusive breast feeding (AOR = 7.975, p = 0.012) and child's past morbidity (AOR = 0.014, p = 0.001) significantly contributed to anemia among the children.

Research limitations/implications

This is a cross-sectional study and cannot establish causality. The small sample size also limits the generalizability of study findings. However, findings of the study highlight factors which could potentially influence the high rate of child undernutrition in the study setting.

Practical implications

This study identifies determinants of undernutrition in the East Mamprusi district, an underresourced area in Ghana. This information could inform the development/reformulation of locally sensitive key messages and targeted intervention strategies to curb the high levels of child undernutrition in the East Mamprusi district of Ghana.

Originality/value

This study identifies maternal care practices as key potential drivers of undernutrition in a low-resource setting known for high prevalence of child undernutrition. It suggests insight for large-scale studies on the predictors of child undernutrition in Northern Ghana and other resource-poor settings.

Details

Journal of Health Research, vol. 35 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0857-4421

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 20 March 2024

Sanoobia Iqrar and Azra Musavi

This paper aims to understand the maternal health vulnerabilities of migrant women in slums and explore their challenges during and after childbirth.

Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to understand the maternal health vulnerabilities of migrant women in slums and explore their challenges during and after childbirth.

Design/methodology/approach

The study used a qualitative approach, including in-depth interviews through purposive and snowball sampling techniques. Thematic analysis was used for analysing data. The consolidated criteria for reporting qualitative studies (COREQ)-32 items were followed for reporting this study.

Findings

The study found that migrant women were highly susceptible to adverse birthing outcomes due to risks involved in birthing, lack of care and hygiene, lack of skilled care in dealing with complicated pregnancies and exposure to domestic and obstetric violence.

Originality/value

The study intends to highlight the narratives of female migrants’ birthing and maternal health challenges. The entire process of childbirth in slums with consequences can result in maternal and infant morbidities and mortalities.

Details

International Journal of Migration, Health and Social Care, vol. 20 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1747-9894

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 January 1993

Mordechai Shechter, Leon Epstein and Ayala Cohen

Examines three inter‐related facets of environmental pollution: thephysiological facet, namely the effect of exposure on health(specifically, morbidity), which has revealed a…

Abstract

Examines three inter‐related facets of environmental pollution: the physiological facet, namely the effect of exposure on health (specifically, morbidity), which has revealed a significant relationship between qualitatively‐defined ambient pollution levels in either respondent′s place of residence or workplace and self‐reported respiratory symptoms and diseases; a behavioural facet, manifested in seeking health care and in restricting normal activity, which has shown significant relationships between mean sulphur dioxide concentrations during a two‐week period preceding the interview and utilization of medical services or restricted activity days over the same period; and an economic facet, which translated these behavioural responses into economic costs, in terms of the value of lost output and additional health‐care resources, and elicited direct estimates of these economic costs in terms of the willingness to pay of households to avoid the health consequences of exposure to pollution. Findings indicate a high degree of consistency among three alternative methods for eliciting willingness to pay, but a sizeable discrepancy between the two approaches to valuing the economic cost. Explains the discrepancy by the different methodological basis of the two approaches.

Details

Environmental Management and Health, vol. 4 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0956-6163

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 19 August 2022

Paul Soper, Alex G. Stewart, Rajan Nathan, Sharleen Nall-Evans, Rachel Mills, Felix Michelet and Sujeet Jaydeokar

This study aims to evaluate the quality of transition from child and adolescent services to adult intellectual disability services, using the relevant National Institute for…

Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to evaluate the quality of transition from child and adolescent services to adult intellectual disability services, using the relevant National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) standard (QS140). In addition, this study also identifies any differences in transition quality between those young people with intellectual disability with and without autism.

Design/methodology/approach

Using routinely collected clinical data, this study identifies demographic and clinical characteristics of, and contextual complexities experienced by, young people in transition between 2017 and 2020. Compliance with the quality standard was assessed by applying dedicated search terms to the records.

Findings

The study highlighted poor recording of data with only 22% of 306 eligible cases having sufficient data recorded to determine compliance with the NICE quality standard. Available data indicated poor compliance with the standard. Child and adolescent mental health services, generally, did not record mental health co-morbidities. Compliance with three out of the five quality statements was higher for autistic young people, but this only reached statistical significance for one of those statements (i.e. having a named worker, p = 0.02).

Research limitations/implications

Missing data included basic clinical characteristics such as the level of intellectual disability and the presence of autism. This required adult services to duplicate assessment procedures that potentially delayed clinical outcomes. This study highlights that poor compliance may reflect inaccurate recording that needs addressing through training and introduction of shared protocols.

Originality/value

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study to examine the transition process between children’s and adults’ intellectual disability health services using NICE quality standard 140.

Details

Advances in Mental Health and Intellectual Disabilities, vol. 16 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2044-1282

Keywords

Content available
Article
Publication date: 3 April 2007

109

Abstract

Details

Nutrition & Food Science, vol. 37 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0034-6659

Article
Publication date: 21 February 2022

Huda Khan, Richard Lee and Zaheer Khan

Obesity leads to increased mortality and morbidity among children, as well as when they turn adults. Melding marketing theories in social influence and message framing, this study…

Abstract

Purpose

Obesity leads to increased mortality and morbidity among children, as well as when they turn adults. Melding marketing theories in social influence and message framing, this study aims to examine how compliance versus conformance social influence, each framed either prescriptively or proscriptively, may guide children’s choice of healthy versus unhealthy food.

Design/methodology/approach

This study conducted two experiments in a Pakistani junior school. Experiment 1 exposed children to either a prescriptive or a proscriptive compliance influence. Experiment 2 involved a 2 (prescriptive vs proscriptive compliance influence) × 2 (supportive vs conflicting conformance-influence) between-subjects design. Participants in both studies answered an online survey after being exposed to the social-influence messages.

Findings

Experiment 1 showed proscriptive was stronger than prescriptive compliance influence in nudging children to pick fruits (healthy) over candies (unhealthy). However, frequency of fruits dropped as susceptibility to compliance strengthened. Experiment 2 found that a proscriptive compliance influence reinforced by a supportive conformance-influence led to most children picking fruits. However, a conflicting conformance influence was able to sway some children away from fruits to candies. This signalled the importance of harmful peer influence, particularly with children who were more likely to conform.

Research limitations/implications

Childhood is a critical stage for inculcating good eating habits. Besides formal education about food and health, social influence within classrooms can be effective in shaping children’s food choice. While compliance and conformance influence can co-exist, one influence can reinforce or negate the other depending on message framing.

Practical implications

In developing countries like Pakistan, institutional support to tackle childhood obesity may be weak. Teachers can take on official, yet informal, responsibility to encourage healthy eating. Governments can incentivise schools to organise informal activities to develop children’s understanding of healthy consumption. Schools should prevent children from bringing unhealthy food to school, so that harmful peer behaviours are not observable, and even impose high tax on unhealthy products or subsidise healthy products sold in schools.

Originality/value

This study adopts a marketing lens and draws on social influence and message framing theory to shed light on children’s food choice behaviour within a classroom environment. The context was an underexplored developing country, Pakistan, where childhood obesity is a public health concern.

Details

European Journal of Marketing, vol. 56 no. 11
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0309-0566

Keywords

1 – 10 of over 2000