Resource value, productivity and ecosystem integrity: an intertemporal water resource management tool in a river basin

River basinsWater allocationWater resource managementModelsFarmersPastoralism

Electrical properties of cadmium telluride and associated devices

Not availabl

Factors associated with late antenatal care attendance in selected rural and urban communities of the copperbelt province of Zambia

Background: Despite antenatal care services being provided free of charge or sometimes at a minimal cost in Zambia, only 19% of women attend antenatal care by their fourth month of pregnancy, as recommended by World Health Organization (WHO). An estimated 21% of pregnant women in urban and 18% in rural districts make their first ANC visit by 4th months of pregnancy. A number of factors have been found to contribute to late initiation of Antenatal care among pregnant women and these may vary between rural and urban areas. Therefore, a study aimed at examining factors associated with late ANC attendance amongst pregnant women in selected communities of the Copperbelt Province was conducted.Methodology: A cross- sectional study using a semistructured questionnaire was conducted in selected health facilities of Mpongwe and Ndola districts. A total number of 613 women attending antenatal clinic, distributed evenly between Mpongwe rural district (51% (307/613) and Ndola urban district (49% (306/613) were included in the study. Data from the completed questionnaires was entered using Epi InfoTM 3.5.1 and finally analyzed with SPSS version 16.0.Results: The prevalence of late ANC attendance was 72.0 % (n=221) and 68.6% (n=210) in rural and urban districts respectively. However, the difference between two districts was not statistically significant [OR 0.851 (95% CI=0.6, 1.2), p=0.363]. In the rural district, nulliporous women were 59% (AOR 0.411, 95% CI 0.238, 0.758) less likely to initiate ANC late compared to multiparous women, while the proportion the urban was 48% (AOR 0.518, 95% CI 0.316, 0.848). Inadequate knowledge about ANC resulted into 2.2 times high odds for late ANC attendance (AOR 2.205, 95% CI 1.021, and 4.759) than women who had adequate knowledge in urban district. Women who fell pregnant unintentionally had a higher odds of starting ANC late in both rural [4.2 times (AOR 4.258, 95% CI 1.631, 11.119)] and urban [3.1 times (AOR 3.103, 95% CI 1.261, 7.641)] respectively. The perception of no benefits derived from commencement of ANC early was associated with 4 times (AOR 3.983, 95% CI 1.365, 11.627) likelihood of late attendance in the urban district. Compared to lack of privacy at health institutions, pregnant women in rural were 3.4 times (AOR 3.377, 95% CI 1.180, and 9.660) more likely to initiate ANC late because of long distance to health facilities. Compared to misconceptions on ANC, pregnant women in rural areas were 2.2 times (AOR 2.211 95% CI 1.049, 4.660) more likely to start ANC late because of community norm(less value attached to ANC); while in urban late ANC attendance was 2.9 times (AOR 2.899, 95% CI 1.372, 6.083) higher due to cultural beliefs than misconceptions.Conclusion: Late antenatal care attendance remains high in both rural and urban districts indicating the need for intensified and more focused utilization of resources aimed at increasing sensitization of the importance of early attendance for high risk groups, such as women with unplanned pregnancies, inadequate knowledge about ANC, cultural beliefs and women who are multiporous

The ecclesiological significance of the ‘African kraal’ metaphor in a context of urban poverty in Zimbabwe

CITATION: Banda, C. & Van der Merwe, I. J. 2017. The ecclesiological significance of the ‘African kraal’ metaphor in a context of urban poverty in Zimbabwe. Stellenbosch Theological Journal, 3(2):243-267, doi:10.17570/stj.2017.v3n2.a11.The original publication is available at https://ojs.reformedjournals.co.za/stjThe essay considers how the communal and empowering nature of the African kraal can be a metaphor of a liberating and empowering church in a context of urban poverty in Zimbabwe. Africans generally experience urban centres as foreign and hostile places where they ideally only live temporarily during seasons of urban employment. In Zimbabwe, poverty alleviation strategies that pay attention to the unique context of urban centres are few. This heightens the African experience of urban centres as foreign places. Urban churches often struggle to respond to urban poverty meaningfully. The African kraal, although a rural oriented metaphor, can direct the church in the city to meaningfully respond to urban poverty.https://ojs.reformedjournals.co.za/stj/article/view/1741Publisher's versio

Use of population pharmacokinetic‐pharmacodynamic modelling to inform antimalarial dose optimization in infants

Infants bear a significant malaria burden but are usually excluded from participating in early dose optimization studies that inform dosing regimens of antimalarial therapy. Unlike older children, infants' exclusion from early‐phase trials has resulted in limited evidence to guide accurate dosing of antimalarial treatment for uncomplicated malaria or malaria‐preventive treatment in this vulnerable population. Subsequently, doses used in infants are often extrapolated from older children or adults, with the potential for under‐ or overdosing. Population pharmacokinetic‐pharmacodynamic (PK‐PD) modelling, a quantitative methodology that applies mathematical and statistical techniques, can aid the design of clinical studies in infants that collect sparse pharmacokinetic data as well as support the analysis of such data to derive optimized antimalarial dosing in this complex and at‐risk yet understudied subpopulation. In this review, we reflect on what PK‐PD modelling can do in programmatic settings of most malaria‐endemic areas and how it can be used to inform antimalarial dose optimization for preventive and curative treatment of uncomplicated malaria in infants. We outline key developmental physiological changes that affect drug exposure in early life, the challenges of conducting dose optimization studies in infants, and examples of how PK‐PD modelling has previously informed antimalarial dose optimization in this subgroup. Additionally, we discuss the limitations and gaps of PK‐PD modelling when used for dose optimization in infants. To utilize modelling well, there is a need to generate useful, sparse, PK and PD data in this subpopulation to inform antimalarial optimal dosing in infancy

Valores medios del coeficiente de atenuación de las ondas Rayleigh para Europa Occidental

En este estudio presentamos los valores medios del coeficiente de atenuación de las ondas Rayleigh para Europa occidental, obtenidos a partir del estudio de tres terremotos situados en las Azores, Sicília y Mar Negro y registrados por estaciones europeas. Los resultados presentan una gran dispersión, mostrando claramente la inhomogeneidad de la zona.Para el terremoto del Atlántico, los resultados son muy coherentes y presentan unos valores del coeficiente de atenuación comparables, aunque ligeramente superiores para periodos cortos, a los haliados para la region estable de la placa Euroasiática

Mechanism of salinity change and hydrogeochemical evolution of groundwater in the Machile-Zambezi Basin, South-western Zambia

Machile-Zambezi Basin, South-Western Zambia hosts high salinity groundwater which threatens water security for rural inhabitants. This study investigates the hydrological mechanism that led to high salinity and the geochemical evolution of the groundwater system. The Machile-Zambezi Basin is part of the wider Kalahari Basin which underwent major palaeo-environmental climatic, tectonic and sedimentology dynamics which must have impacted the groundwater salinity. The study examines the groundwater level, hydrochemistry, environmental isotopes (18O/16O, 2H/1H, 3H/3He, 14C/13C). In addition, the sediment cation exchange capacity (CEC) and pore-water chemistry on intact core material were measured. The groundwater chemistry evolved from fresh Ca(Na)HCO3 to saline Na(Ca, Mg)SO4 due to dissolution of salts and not evaporation as indicated by stable isotopes. The saline groundwater is old with 14C ages estimates of more than 1000 years old and stagnant. Geochemical modelling using PHREEQC suggests that ionic exchange due to release of cations from dissolving salts and sulphate reduction were also important processes in this system. High groundwater salinity is therefore associated with Pre-Holocene environmental changes and is restricted to a stagnant saline zone. It will therefore remain unflushed as long as current climatic conditions remain

Valores medios del coeficiente de atenuación de las ondas Rayleigh para Europa Occidental

En este estudio presentamos los valores medios del coeficiente de atenuación de las ondas Rayleigh para Europa occidental, obtenidos a partir del estudio de tres terremotos situados en las Azores, Sicília y Mar Negro y registrados por estaciones europeas. Los resultados presentan una gran dispersión, mostrando claramente la inhomogeneidad de la zona.Para el terremoto del Atlántico, los resultados son muy coherentes y presentan unos valores del coeficiente de atenuación comparables, aunque ligeramente superiores para periodos cortos, a los haliados para la region estable de la placa Euroasiática