Globally over half million women of reproductive age (15-49 years) die every year as result of pregnancy and childbirth complications, and 300 million women endure from debilitating injuries. The lack of availability and access to basic and obstetric emergency care is a major cause of the high levels of maternal mortality and morbidity in Somalia. Barriers to accessing skilled birth attendant services are many as reflected, in Somalia only one out of 6 women receive the appropriate care. ...
Reproductive health information is critical to adolescents in empowering them make sexual and reproductive health decisions. Studies have shown that adolescents in secondary schools lack adequate, accurate and age appropriate reproductive health information; though faced with unique sexual and reproductive health needs, making them vulnerable to risky sexual activities and behaviours. The study aimed to determine the relationship between access to reproductive health information and risky sex...
Increased huge waste volumes are now a common phenomenon in many major world cities. This has resulted in management crisis due to costs and lack of disposal sites. Most have resulted to recycling which exposes the workers to diverse health risks in the process of manual sorting out, scheming and separation of wastes. Kenya has no policies or guidelines addressing health issues in recycling work yet the national burden of occupational diseases and injuries remain unknown. Cases are not docu...
Menopause is a normal process in women marked by a reduction in estrogen and progesterone levels and eventual cessation of menstruation. Despite many studies on menopause, influence of menopause on work productivity and performance are poorly documented. The main objective of the study was to examine the influence of menopause on work productivity among health workers in public hospitals in Kiambu County. The specific objectives were to (i) To determine menopausal symptoms presented by health...
Malnutrition in children remains as a significant global problem, accounting for up to 56% of the 10.6 million child deaths annually in developing countries. Kenya like many sub-Saharan African countries has had the highest case fatality of malnutrition, AIDS and tuberculosis (TB). Various interventions have been put in place to combat the under-five malnutrition in line with the realization of millennium development goal (MDG) number 4. Nationally, the Kenya‟s Ministry of Health (MoH) in c...
Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) is total or partial removal of external female genitalia for non-medical rationale. The practice is mostly common in sub Saharan Africa. An approximated number of between 100-140 million women have undergone FGM and 3 million girls yearly are perceived to be at risk globally. Somalia has the highest global prevalence (98%) of FGM. A number of studies demonstrate significant association between FGM and various gynecological and pregnancy complications. The mai...
The dietary supplements market is growing at an alarming rate despite dietary source being acknowledged as the primary and priority source of nutrients. Kenya’s dietary supplements market has experienced a steady growth since 2009 owing to increasingly busy lifestyles, growing health consciousness and disposable income among the general population. Little has been documented about use of dietary supplements in Kenya despite their increase in popularity. The purpose of this study was to dete...
Visual impairment is defined as a corrected visual acuity of less than 6/18 to 3/60 in the better eye. Blindness on the other hand is defined as corrected visual acuity in the better eye of less than 3/60 or a constricted visual field of less than 10 degrees from the point of central fixation. Visual loss in childhood has implications in all aspects of the child’s development. It posses educational, occupational and social challenges, with affected children being at risk of behavioral, psyc...
In the Coastal region of Kenya, Mombasa County has the highest HIV prevalence (11.1%) of the estimates based on Kenya AIDS Progress Report of 2014. Limited data exist on effective regimen strategies to manage HIV/AIDS among adults in Kenya. Safe alternative HAART regimens are not currently a viable option for many, especially infected patients in Sub-Saharan Africa. The objective of this study was to compare the effectiveness of Efavirenz and Nevirapine based First-line HIV treatment in patie...
Cervical cancer is a major public health problem among adult women especially in developing countries and its control is of paramount importance. Organized screening programmes have led to a large decline in cervical cancer incidence and mortality in developed countries. In Kenya very few women at risk have regular repeat cervical cancer screening and there exists no effective recall mechanism to enhance scheduled screening. The Short Message Service (SMS) Text may be used as a recall tool to...
Intestinal parasitic infections have been found to form at least a quarter of all human infections globally. School-going children are the worst affected by these infections as it impairs their growth and cognitive development. Following the WHO recommendation, the Government of Kenya rolled out a school deworming programme under the School Health Programme in 2009. The study was embedded in the School Health Programme. The main objective of the study was to investigate the effects of public...
Mutual health schemes are emerging as an important cornerstone in healthcare financing in Kirinyaga County, where they are providing a patchwork of protection to low-income groups faced by low financial access to healthcare. While the schemes continue to gain ground, the extent to which they are improving health care utilization remains unclear because of weak evidence. Only a handful number of inquiries have been conducted, a paucity that underlined the objective of this study. The cross-sec...
Food borne diseases presents a widespread and growing public health problem both in developed and developing countries including Kenya. Diseases spread through food still remain a common and persistent problem resulting in appreciable morbidity and occasional mortality. Food hygiene in hospital poses peculiar problems, particularly given the presence of patients who could be more vulnerable than healthy individuals to microbiological risks. Kitchen environment and food handlers play an import...
Slums play many roles in city life. Slums, poverty and the informal sector are closely related, but are by no means congruent. As the place of residence of low-cost laborers, they keep the wheels of the city working in many different ways. They are adept at producing the services and commercial activities that the formal sector fails to provide through the mobilization of local enterprise and industry. They are the recipients of the city‟s externalities: noxious industry, waste materials,...
In Kenya, the high level of food insecurity is related to poverty and a reduction in agricultural production. HIV/AIDS reduces a household’s ability to produce and purchase food. Adults with HIV/AIDS are less able to work on their land or earn income from other livelihood activities. Increased healthcare costs decrease household food purchasing power and the coping mechanisms reduce household resilience. Kenya National HIV/AIDS Strategic Plan 2005/6- 2009/10 has recommended for impa...