Sanitation and its Impact on the Bacteriological Quality of Water: A Study in Three Communities in Ghana

Water constitutes about 70% of the earth’s total mass and all life is dependent on water. Inadequate sanitation is a major cause of disease worldwide and improving sanitation is known to have a significant beneficial impact on health both in households and across communities. Water and sanitation are closely related and cannot be isolated. If uncontaminated water is available, reliable and convenient to collect, more water is consumed, both for hygienic purposes and for drinking which can improve health. In this study, the effect of sanitation on the bacteriological quality of water was evaluated. The study also assessed the sanitation facilities available in the three communities, the water facilities used and the bacterial contamination of household water. A cluster survey system was employed in three communities namely Tetegu, Mayera and Ashongman village in the Greater Accra Region of Ghana. Thirty households were clustered within each community. Within each household in each community, domestic water stored was analyzed for bacterial contamination using UriSelect 4 medium. This was used because it allows the isolation and counting of all organisms using a standard bacteriological loop plating method. Standardized questionnaires were administered in each household to ascertain the type of water and sanitation infrastructure. Seventy-seven percent and 87% of respondents relied on public standpipes in the Ashongman and Tetegu communities, respectively. Eightythree percent of respondents in Mayera relied on the Nsaki river. Eighty percent of respondents used the KVIP at Mayera, 97% of respondents at Tetegu resorted to open defecation, and 57% of respondents also used the pit latrine at Ashongman community. A total of ten bacterial species namely: Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Enterococcus faecalis, Proteus mirabilis, Streptococcus agalactiae. Enterobacter cloacae, Staphylococcus saprophytic, Candida albicans and Staphylococcus aureus were identified in domestic water stored. This study therefore recommends that policy makers must ensure the provision of basic infrastructure such as toilet facilities to reduce the likely contamination of water sources from poor sanitation facilities.Key words: Sanitation, Coliform, Households, Water Qualit

Effectiveness of Health Education in Community-based Malaria Prevention and Control Interventions in sub-Saharan Africa: A Systematic Review

Objective: This review assessed the effectiveness of health education in community-based malaria prevention and control interventions in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Methods: We systematically reviewed published and unpublished literature, searching 7 databases and 3 websites namely Malaria Journal, World Health Organization and Centre for Disease Control and Prevention to find relevant studies. Study designs included were randomized controlled trials, non-randomized trials, quasi experiments, before and after studies, and surveys. A narrative synthesis was performed on the extracted data. Results: Seventeen studies were included in the review. Nine studies covered health education interventions on Insecticide Treated bet Nets (ITNs), three utilised health education to promote Intermittent Presumptive Treatment in pregnancy (IPTp), four reported on the effect of health education in home-based management of malaria whilst one study focused on environmental management in malaria control. Factors found to affect health education in malaria control and prevention interventions included educational level of participants, the nature of health messages and the level of community involvement. Conclusion: The results of the review suggest that health education interventions are effective and remain a valuable tool in community-based malaria prevention and control interventions in SSA. This review found moderate evidence that health education interventions influence the uptake of community-based malaria prevention and control interventions, enhance knowledge about malaria and generally improve malaria prevalence and mortality in children under five and pregnant women.   Key words Malaria, systematic review, health education, sub-Saharan Africa

37P. Knowledge Management Success: Some Lessons Learned

With the developed economies now firmly based on the power of information, the need to effectively harness, manage, and exploit organizational knowledge for competitive advantage has not been greater. Knowledge management initiatives have been undertaken by various organizations, with varying levels of success. The definitions of “knowledge,” “knowledge management,” and “knowledge management systems” are fluid at best, leading to a certain amount of confusion for organizations wishing to exploit their institutional knowledge. Nevertheless, several success stories (and a few failures) have been reported in the literature about organizations that have implemented knowledge management systems. It is the objective of this paper to identify some of the lessons learned from these experiences, with the expectation that some direction and guidance can emerge for organizations contemplating this endeavor. As a research-in-progress, the ultimate objective is to expand on the case studies and, eventually, incorporate the lessons learned into a comprehensive strategic framework for organizational knowledge management

Coping with adversity: Resilience dynamics of livestock farmers in two agroecological zones of Ghana

Despite the increasing occurrence of adverse events including droughts and conflicts, livestock farmers in Ghana continue to raise animals to support their livelihoods and the national economy. We assessed the resilience of cattle farmers (CF) to adverse events they faced using a cross-sectional survey of 287 CF in two agroecological zones in Ghana. Resilience to adversities was assessed using the Resilience Scale (RS-14). Resilience scores and categories were computed and factors that explained variations in resilience categories assessed. The farmers kept, on average, 31 cattle per household, with a majority (91%) also growing crops. Key adverse events confronting them in both districts were animal disease outbreaks, pasture shortages, and theft, with 85% (240/287) losing, on average, seven cattle (15% of the herd size) over a one-year period. The mean resilience score was 71 (SD = 8) out of 98; 52% were highly resilient. Resilience was higher in the southern district (72 versus 70), albeit not statistically significant (p = 0.06). The resilience significantly improved with age, each unit increase in cattle in the herd, and having experience raising livestock (p < 0.001). The CF have relatively high resilience to adverse events affecting their productivity. The findings provide relevant information for implementing mitigation measures to improve production by reducing animal mortalities through high-quality veterinary services

Growth and yield response of soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merrrill] to inoculation and starter N fertilizer applications in the Tolon District of the Northern Region of Ghana

An experiment was conducted at Nyankpala in the 2012 cropping season and repeated in the 2013 cropping season in the Tolon District of the Northern Region of Ghana. This was to ascertain the effect of N fertilizer and inoculant applications on the growth and grain yield of soybean (Glycine max [L.] Merrill). It was a 3 × 5 factorial experiment laid in Randomized Complete Bock Design (RCBD) with four replications. The factors were three soybean varieties (Jenguma, Quarshie and Anidaso) and four levels of N fertilizer (urea), which were 0, 15, 30 and 45 kg N ha-1 and inoculant. The inoculant was applied at the rate of 5 g to 1 kg of soybean seed through the slurry method that was estimated to give 107 of viable rhizobia cells. Planting was done on 14th and 10th July, 2012 and 2013, respectively, by drilling. Thinning was later done to two plants hill-1 at 10 cm within rows and 50 cm between rows with an approximate plant population of 400 000 plants ha-1. The N fertilizer was applied to randomly assigned plots 2 weeks after planting (2 WAP) in drills 5 cm away from the plants and covered. Growth parameters measured were plant height, leaf area, number of primary branches, nodule and shoot dry weights. Grain yield was measured from 2 m × 2 m net plot and extrapolated to kg ha-1. Results showed that all the varieties nodulated following the inoculation. It also showed that there was promiscuous nodulation where inoculants were not applied. The inoculated treatment produced greater plant growth, grain yield and the amount of N fixed than the uninoculated control. Growth and yield were greatest in the 30 and 45 kg N ha-1 treatment compared with the other treatments. The results showed that for profitable soybean production in the study area, inoculation or 30-45 kg N ha-1 fertilizer should be applied

(2,3,7,8,12,13,17,18-Octa­ethyl­por­phin­ato)(trifluoro­methane­sulfonato)iron(III)

The title compound, [Fe(CF3O3S)(C36H44N4)], is an iron(III) porphyrin complex with the trifluoro­methane­sulfonate anion as an axial ligand. The Fe atom is displaced by 0.219 (2) Å toward the trifluoro­methane­sulfonate anion from the 24-atom mean plane of the porphyrin, resulting in a distorted FeN4O square-based pyramidal geometry. One ethyl­ene group is disordered over two orientations in a 0.502 (6):0.498 (6) ratio

[5,10,15,20-Tetra­kis(4-meth­oxy­phen­yl)porphyrinato-κ4 N,N′,N′′,N′′′](trifluoro­methane­sulfonato-κO)­iron(III)

The title compound, [Fe(CF3O3S)(C48H36N4O4)], is a five-coordinate iron(III) porphyrin complex with a trifluoro­methane­sulfonate anion as an axial ligand. The FeIII atom is displaced by 0.40 (1) Å towards the trifluoro­methane­sulfonate anion from the 24-atom mean plane of the porphyrin. The average Fe—Np distance is 2.044 (2) Å and the Fe—O distance is 2.001 (2) Å

Trends in extrapulmonary TB cases at three teaching hospitals in Ghana, 2008-2017

SETTING: Three teaching hospitals in Ghana. OBJECTIVE: To elucidate trends in demographics, clinical characteristics and treatment outcomes in extrapulmonary TB (EPTB) patients. DESIGN: This was a retrospective study involving the review and comparison of EPTB and pulmonary TB (PTB) data from 1 January 2008 to 31 December 2017 in TB registers and treatment cards. RESULTS: Of 15,392 TB cases, 4607 (30%) were EPTB, including 4477/4607 (97%) new cases. There were 2,679/4607 (58%) males and the age range was 0.3 to 96 years. Pleural TB (1021/4607, 22%) was the most common. Treatment success rates for EPTB and PTB were respectively 72% and 84%. HIV positivity was high among patients with disseminated/miliary TB (429/779, 55%) and TB meningitis (242/526, 46%). To note, disseminated/miliary TB (chi(2) = 33.53, P < 0.0001) increased, whereas TB meningitis (chi(2) = 19.43, P < 0.0001) decreased over the 10-year period. Mortality among EPTB patients was associated with increasing age (25 years), disseminated/miliary TB, TB meningitis and HIV positivity. CONCLUSIONS: There is male preponderance for both EPTB and PTB in Ghana. Increasing age, disseminated/ miliary TB, TB meningitis and HIV are risk factors for mortality among EPTB patients. This emphasises the need for public education on the risk factors for EPTB and preventive strategies

Dinitro­sylbis[tris­(4-chloro­phen­yl)phosphane]iron

The title dinitrosyl iron diphosphane complex, [Fe(NO)2(C18H12Cl3P)2] or Fe(NO)2 L 2 [L = P(C6H4-p-Cl)3] belongs to the family of metal dinitrosyl compounds with the general formula Fe(NO)2(L)x, referred to collectively as dinitrosyl iron compounds (DNICs). The iron atom is tetra­hedrally coordinated by two phosphane ligands and two NO groups with Fe—N—O bond angles of 178.76 (15) and 177.67 (14)°

Chloridonitros­yl[meso-5,10,15,20-tetra­kis­(p-tol­yl)porphyrinato-κ4 N,N′,N′′,N′′′]osmium(II) tetra­hydro­furan tetra­solvate

The title compound, [OsCl(NO)(C48H36N4)]·4C4H8O, is a six-coordinate osmium(II) porphyrin complex with nitrosyl (NO) and chloride (Cl) ligands trans to each other in an octa­hedral geometry. The metal complex lies on a fourfold rotation axis that passes through the Os, N, O and Cl atoms. The NO and Cl ligands are disordered in an 0.511 (12):0.486 (12) ratio