Childhood pedestrian mortality in Johannesburg, South Africa : magnitude, determinants and neighbourhood characteristics

Child pedestrian injury and mortality is an issue of significant public health concern in the city of Johannesburg, Gauteng, in South Africa. Since there is a paucity of studies in the last decade or more on fatal childhood traffic and non-traffic injuries in Johannesburg, this study aspires to address the disproportion in this domain of research, and provide more recent, and comprehensive empirical evidence over a ten-year period. The overarching aim of this study was to describe and examine the magnitude, circumstances, and neighbourhood characteristics of fatal pedestrian injuries among children (0-14 years) in Johannesburg for the period from 2001 to 2010. More specifically, the objectives of the study were: firstly, to provide a comprehensive epidemiological description of the magnitude, trends and occurrence of pedestrian mortality among children; secondly, to describe and examine the epidemiology of child pedestrian mortality in relation to children as motor vehicle passengers; thirdly, to describe and examine child pedestrian mortality in relation to non-traffic injuries, in particular, burns and drowning; and fourthly, to assess the influence of neighbourhood characteristics on child pedestrian mortality. The study conceptualised pedestrian road safety within an ecological systems framework. The study used quantitative descriptive, and multivariate logistic regression methods of analysis to examine child pedestrian mortality data. The study drew on data from the National Injury Mortality Surveillance System (NIMSS) and the Census 2001. The main findings indicated that black, male children aged 5 to 9 years (11.02/100 000) are the most vulnerable, and that mortality occurred predominantly during the afternoons and early evenings (12h00-16h00 and 16h00-21h00), over weekends, during school holidays, and to a lesser extent, during non-holiday months. In addition, neighbourhood characteristics that reflected concentrations of disadvantage, single female-headed households and residentially stable areas were associated with child pedestrian mortality. The study findings highlight the need for critical action in terms of investment in child pedestrian safety research, and appropriate prevention initiatives guided by stringent evidenced-based studies, and the design of safe pedestrian, vehicular and urban environments.PsychologyD.Phil. (Psychology

Fidelity of implementation of the building bridges mentoring intervention to prevent violence among youth in low income settings

Violence among youth is a major health and safety burden globally. There is a dearth in the development and evaluation of targeted interventions that addresses the multi-faceted nature of youth violence to ensure effectiveness and replicability. This study aims to systematically evaluate the fidelity of implementation of the Building Bridges Mentoring intervention that focuses on the prevention of youth violence in two low-income communities in South Africa. This study employed a mixed methods concurrent triangulation design. Qualitative data were analysed using deductive thematic analysis, and quantitative data using descriptive statistics and T-tests. The results indicate that for all the intervention components, implementation fidelity (i.e. adherence, exposure, quality of programme delivery, and participant responsiveness) was generally moderate to high, suggesting a ‘good’ implementation of the programme in the real world. Evaluating the fidelity of implementation is vital to obtain a comprehensive insight into whether an intervention was implemented according to its design, and to verify and validate the findings and outcomes, and accord credibility and integrity of the study.Institute for Social and Health Studies (ISHS

Stimulating and building compassionate and humanising networks for promoting sustainable safer and healthier communities: Researcher reflexivity on the Local Network of Care (LNOC)

There is a current burgeoning interest in networking as an approach to working more effectively in under-resourced communities. This study explores networking as a critical strategy to strengthen relationships among social actors and mobilise assets and resources to address challenges of health, safety, injury, and social justice in disadvantaged communities. The Local Network of Care (LNOC), is used as an illustration, to reflect on the operational processes and values of the network to engender and build just and sustainable safer communities. Primary sources of data include newspaper clippings, LNOC social contract, institutional annual reports, monthly agendas, attendance registers, and reflective notes of members of the LNOC. The findings illustrate that building a humanising, cohesive, supportive and trusting network can contribute to strengthening agency and transforming individuals and organisations. Additionally, it can contribute to sustainability, building safer and just communities, and mobilise assets and resources of the network to help mitigate psychosocial and economic challengesInstitute for Social and Health Studies (ISHS

Community asset mapping as an action research strategy for developing an interpersonal violence prevention programme in South Africa

The aim of this article was to report and critically reflect on community asset mapping processes used to develop a contextually valid interpersonal violence prevention programme in South Africa to promote positive forms of masculinity, safety and peace. This study was informed by a critical public health framework, and was guided by the values and principles of community-based participatory action research. The research and action methods used included community asset mapping and action planning workshops, workshop evaluation questionnaires and reflexive researcher diary notes. Data were analysed using both qualitative and quantitative methods. The results of this study demonstrated that the community asset mapping process provides reflexive and embedded spaces for academic and community participants to interactively engage and critically discuss issues which resonate with community concerns, and collectively find possible solutions to challenges identified. A participatory and asset-based approach holds promise for developing interventions that are appropriate and relevant to local challenges.The author(s) disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: The authors wish to acknowledge and thank the National Research Foundation (NRF) (Community Engagement) and the University of South Africa (Community Engagement) for their financial support.Institute for Social and Health Studies (ISHS