Nurses' Knowledge Towards Severe Acute Malnutrition Management Protocol and Its Associated Factors

For appropriate management of severe acute malnutrition skilled, knowledgeable and concerned health professionals are critical for child survival. Thus assessing the knowledge of nurses towards management protocol of severe acute malnutrition is crucial step for targeted interventions. This study aimed to assess Knowledge towards Severe Acute Malnutrition Management Protocol and its Associated Factors among Nurses working in Hiwot Fana Specialized University Hospital, 2018. Cross-sectional study was conducted among eligible 132 nurses. Data were collected using self-administered questionnaire prepared from the national SAM management guideline of Ethiopia. SPSS version 20.0 software using frequency, tables, graphs, percentages and mean was used. Student t test and analysis of variance with F statistics and P value was computed. Overall, 65 (49.2%) of nurses had poor knowledge on SAM management. More than half, 100 (75.8%) of the nurses had experience in SAM management previously. Males were more likely to be knowledgeable (AOR=1.27) as compared to females. Nurses with the previous experience of managing malnourished child had 1.70) times more likely to be knowledgeable as compared to their counterparts. Having SAM training was associated with having higher knowledge score (AOR=1.56). Having SAM training was found to have significantly higher knowledge score (p=0.034). Knowledge level of nurses towards SAM management is not satisfactory. Those who ever involved in SAM management, having recent malnutrition training and gender were predictors of high knowledge score. There should be regular capacity building schemes for nurses especially for those who are involved in management of SAM at emergency or SAM unit

Determinants of Food Safety Practices Among Food Handlers in Selected Food Establishments

Despite great efforts against foodborne diseases, the occurrence of these problems remains a significant health issue in both developed and developing countries. This study was to assess determinants of food safety practice among food handlers in selected food establishments in Dire Dawa City administration, in 2017. Cross sectional survey was conducted among 356 food handlers from the selected food establishments in different categories. The CODEX food safety questionnaire was used to assess food safety knowledge (23 questions), attitude (six questions) and practice using interview and observation checklists (15 points). Satisfactory practice was defined as those who practice 70% of food safety measures correctly. Frequency, percentage, mean, binary logistic regression with a crude odds ratio and adjusted odds ratio (AOR) at 95% confidence interval were calculated. Out of the total study subjects, 354 food handlers participated in this study with 99.4% response rate. A total of 191 food handlers, 54.0% were female with overall mean age of 29.5 years. About 129 (36.4%), 194 (54.8%) and 106 (29.9%) had adequate knowledge, positive attitude and satisfactory food safety practice. Having food safety training (AOR= 2.0), with adequate knowledge (AOR = 2.83), positive attitude (AOR= 2.09), presence of food safety guideline (AOR = 2.23) and supervision (AOR= 2.07) were significant predictors of satisfactory food safety practices. In general food safety/hygienic practices of food handlers was found to be low. Having adequate knowledge, positive attitude, presence of food safety guideline and formal food safety training were significant predictors of food safety practices among food handlers

Update on COVID-19 Pandemic

Objective: This update is concerned on the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic that is affecting the globe. The aim of this update is to summarize the up-to-date knowledge about the virus, its way of transmission, clinical features, diagnosis, and treatment. Result: The COVID-19 is a public health threat affecting humankind currently after the emergence and spread of the novel coronavirus or the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2. The virus is believed to have originated from bats and transmitted to humans. Around 1.5 million peoples are confirmed to have the COVID-19 and more than 83000 individuals have died of it by April 8, 2020, all over the world. It is transmitted by inhaling or having contact with droplets. The incubation period ranges from 2-14 days. It manifests mainly with fever, non-productive cough, and dyspnea. The polymerase chain reaction from various samples like throat swabs, nasal swabs, bronchoalveolar lavage fluid is used to confirm the diagnosis. High-resolution chest computerized tomography is abnormal in most patients, and typical findings are ground glass patchy opacities on both lungs and sub-segmental consolidation. Treatment is largely supportive. However, trials are ongoing, and chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine have got a lot of attention in the battle against COVID-19

Characterization of the indigenous goat production system in Asossa zone, Benishangul Gumuz region, Ethiopia

Most of the livestock population in Asossa zone is comprised of indigenous goats, which have remarkable socioeconomic relevance to the society. This study aimed to generate information on the production system and production constraints of goats in the study area. The study was conducted based on a household survey in which 192 householdswere purposively sampled. The households were located in Sherkole, Kurmuk and Menge districts that have a high goat population in Asossa zone. Data were recorded inMS Excel data sheet and analyzed using SAS. A chi-square and GLM procedure of SAS was used to test significant differences among categorical and quantitative variables. The primary reason for keeping goats was for cash income with an index value of 0.46, 0.34 and 0.31 for Sherkole Kurmuk and Menge districts, respectively. Milk was the second purpose for rearing goats, with a ranking index value of 0.29, 0.30 and 0.30 for Sherkole, Kurmuk, and Menge districts, respectively. Grazing on natural pasture was the major feed source for goat production in the three districts (with an index of 0.86, 0.91 and 0.0.87 for Sherkole, Kurmuk and Menge districts, respectively). Although the majority of households (59 %, 75% and 62.5% in Sherkole, Kurmuk, and Menge districts, respectively) used yard type of housing, the number of households that used this type of housing was significantly different (p<0.05) among the three districts. Majority of goat owners used an uncontrolled type of mating that accounts 92.2%, 89.1% and 85.9% in Sherkole, Kurmuk, and Menge districts, respectively. Feed shortage (with ranking index value of 0.30, 0.34 and 0.28 in Sherkole Kurmuk and Menge districts, respectively) and water shortage (with ranking index value 0.21, 0.23 and 0.22 in Sherkole Kurmuk and  Menge districts, respectively) were the first and second goat production constraints. Age at sexual maturity was 7.52 months for males and 7.84 months for female goats in this region. Goats play a multi-functional role for the community by adapting to the different constraints that need intervention mechanisms from responsible bodies to boost the productivity of the sector.Key words: constraints, Ethiopia, feed, housing, indigenous goats, reproductive performance, production system, wate

A Low-Cost Digital Torquemeter Coordinated by Arduino Board

Lab based experimental procedure requires standardized instrument for data acquisition and analysis in which is costly. However, self-made and well calibrated instrument is cost effective in contrast to industrial grade scientific instrument. Therefore, a low-cost torquemeter system is developed to investigate the torque generated by wind turbine system. The presented torquemeter system comprises of two subsystems namely photointerrupter (primary) and load cell (secondary). The reliability of the developed system is analyzed by stages in order to verify the effectiveness in acquiring measurement namely RPM, weight (load) and torque. It is found that 5 kg load cell illustrated unsteady noise behavior relative to the defined calibration weight. Meanwhile, the percentage of accuracy (Pa) of final 3th reading is Pa = 94.709 %, 97.32 %, 98.826 % for 10 g, 20 g and 100 g respectively. Measurement acquired from torquemeter system is compared against 2D CFD numerical model under similar flow condition. Results shows that the measurement of torquemeter system is Mt = 0.731842 and as for CFD model is Mt = 0.82553 which results in error (%) of Pe = 11.35 %. However, the CFD numerical model has overpredicted moment value since it has compensated the blockage factor and external environmental factors. It is safe to say, that the presented instrument is applicable and feasible for WT torque acquisition

A Low-Cost Digital Torquemeter Coordinated by Arduino Board

Lab based experimental procedure requires standardized instrument for data acquisition and analysis in which is costly. However, self-made and well calibrated instrument is cost effective in contrast to industrial grade scientific instrument. Therefore, a low-cost torquemeter system is developed to investigate the torque generated by wind turbine system. The presented torquemeter system comprises of two subsystems namely photointerrupter (primary) and load cell (secondary). The reliability of the developed system is analyzed by stages in order to verify the effectiveness in acquiring measurement namely RPM, weight (load) and torque. It is found that 5 kg load cell illustrated unsteady noise behavior relative to the defined calibration weight. Meanwhile, the percentage of accuracy (Pa) of final 3th reading is Pa = 94.709 %, 97.32 %, 98.826 % for 10 g, 20 g and 100 g respectively. Measurement acquired from torquemeter system is compared against 2D CFD numerical model under similar flow condition. Results shows that the measurement of torquemeter system is Mt = 0.731842 and as for CFD model is Mt = 0.82553 which results in error (%) of Pe = 11.35 %. However, the CFD numerical model has overpredicted moment value since it has compensated the blockage factor and external environmental factors. It is safe to say, that the presented instrument is applicable and feasible for WT torque acquisition

Inter simple sequence repeat (ISSR) analysis of Ethiopian white lupine (Lupinus albus L.)

White lupine (Lupinus albus L.) collected from two zones (West Gojjam and Awi) of Amhara region and one zone (Metekel) of Benishangul - Gumuz regional state of Ethiopia were studied using inter simple sequence repeat (ISSR) markers in an attempt to assess the genetic diversity. Four ISSR primers of which three were dinucleotide repeats and one, a penta nucleotide repeat amplified a total of 39 clear and reproducible bands. Both unweighted pair- group method with arithmetic average (UPGMA) phenograms and a neighbor joining (NJ) trees were constructed for the individuals and populations using Jaccard’s similarity coefficient. The dendrogram clearly indicated four distinct groups/populations based on the area of origin. The principal coordinates (PCO) analysis also recovered UPGMA and neighbor joining tree groups, although Amhara region white lupine were intermixed with each other. The genetic diversity among white lupine population considered in the present study indicated that Merawi was the highest (0.223) followed by Addis Kidam, Sekela and Wembera with genetic diversity of 0.198, 0.189 and 0.167, respectively. Generally, Amhara region white lupine (0.203) population shows higher genetic diversity than white lupine population of B-Gumuz region (0.167). Analysis of molecular variance (AMOVA) in both grouping and without grouping revealed larger genetic diversity within the populations (74.6%) than among populations (25.4%). Shannon’s diversity index also confirmed the existence of higher genetic diversity in Amhara region lupine populations than in Benishangul-Gumuz. Furthermore AMOVA demonstrated highly significant (P = 0.00) genetic differences among populations within groups, among groups and within populations. Of the total variation, 64.64% was attributable to within populations, 27.23% to among groups and the least, 8.13% to among populations within groups. Generally, on the basis of samples of 39 bands in the four populations, ISSR was able to reveal moderate to high levels of genetic diversity within and among Ethiopian white lupine population.Keywords: Amhara, Benishangul - Gumuz, Ethiopia, genetic diversity, ISSR, white lupine.Abbreviation: ISSR, Inter simple sequence repeats; UPGMA, unweighted pair- group method with arithmetic average; NJ, neighbor joining; PCO, principal coordinates; AMOVA, analysis of molecular variance; RAPD, random amplified polymorphic DNA; AFLP, amplified fragment length polymorphism

A review on thermo-physical properties of bio, non-bio and hybrid nanofluids

The pressure drop and thermal performance of various nanofluids can be affected by their thermo-physical properties. However, there are many different parameters that need to be considered when determining the thermo-physical properties of nanofluids. This paper highlights a detail reviews on the thermo-physical properties of nanofluids with different material type and effect of some process parameters (such as material type, temperature and concentration) on the thermo-physical properties of nanofluids. Four thermo-physical properties mainly density, viscosity, thermal conductivity and specific heat capacity from different literatures were summarized, discussed and presented. The lowest viscosity value of nanofluids in literature was mango bark water-based nanofluid (0.81cP). On the other hand, the maximum thermal conductivity value of nanofluids in the literature was GNP-Ag water-based nanofluid (0.69W/mK). The density and specific heat capacity are strongly dependent on the material type. Meanwhile, the viscosity and thermal conductivity are greatly affected by temperature and concentration. The most influential parameters on thermo-physical properties of nanofluids are material type followed by temperature. Most of the literatures confirmed bio nanofluids have low viscosity value and hybrid have high thermal conductivity values

Bio-based liquid fuels as a source of renewable energy: A review

Limited availability of fossil fuels and their associated environmental impact during combustion remains the primary basis for exploring alternative energy sources such as bio-based liquid fuels. Several feedstocks have been used to produce biofuels for different applications with their own pros and cons. For instance, production of bio-fuels using human food chain raw materials such as corn, soy, peanut, and sugarcane are receiving increased criticism due to the competing demands of the same sources for human consumption as food. However, the non-food biomass in the form of agricultural wastes, municipal wastes, waste vegetable oil, and microbial sources are abundantly available that can be utilized as feedstock for production of biofuels. Because of this reason, most biofuels have been produced using the feedstocks that do not affect the food chain. Thus, in this work, the feedstocks of different generation biofuels and their potential yield and associated greenhouse gas emissions, production technologies are critically surveyed. Moreover, the application of biofuels for different purposes are analyzed and compared with their corresponding conventional fuels. The survey also points out the recent issues and challenges of biofuels with their resolution. The future research directions are suggested to sustain biofuel production

Numerical Investigation on Serpentine Flow Field and Rhombus Electrolyte Compartment of Vanadium Redox Flow Battery (V-RFB)

Selection of suitable material, fitting for prototype design and pumping rates are three affecting element for cost effectiveness and improve performance of vanadium cell prototype investigation. Therefore, three-dimensional numerical model isothermal computational fluid dynamics (CFD) model of vanadium redox flow battery (V-RFB) is studied. In this work, V-RFB with different electrolyte compartments is proposed and the effect of serpentine flow field is investigated. The performance of two V-RFBs with diamond and square electrolyte compartment is numerically tested. This work has been performed to optimize flow rate, electrolyte compartment design, avoid stagnant fluid and flow field application in VRFB. For the simulation, the flow was assumed to be incompressible, isothermal, steady state flow, laminar and Newtonian flow. Results show that the application of flow field and Rhombus type electrolyte compartment can facilitate the distribution of electrolyte in the unit cell uniformity and avoid stagnant in the tank. Simulation results indicate the diamond shape and serpentine flow field at optimal flow rate show the most suitable for V-RFBs than square shape