A Phenomenological Study of the HND Commercial Arts Curriculum: Implications for Teaching and Learning Drawing in Higher Education, Ghana

This study examined the content and scope of Drawing in the HND Commercial Arts Curriculum of the School of Applied Arts and its impact on teaching and learning of Drawing in the First Year Foundation class. Data were derived from the activities of interviews with Lecturers/Instructors and classroom observations. Both ethnographic content analysis and descriptive statistics were employed in the data analysis. The study revealed that the content and scope of drawing in the HND Commercial Arts Curriculum is basic and obsolete with regard to the current trend of teaching and learning of drawing which now hinges on the shoulders of technological advancement and discovery of new drawing media, techniques drawing and supports. The impact of the Curriculum in teaching and learning of drawing is awfully hindered by challenges that need administrative attention and review of the Curriculum. The study therefore suggested the need for the National Board for Professional Technician Examination (NABTEX) to periodically liaise with the Po1ytechnic, subject specialists, commerce and industry, for dedicated review of the Curriculum

Onchocerciasis transmission in Ghana: Persistence under different control strategies and the role of the simuliid vectors

Background: The World Health Organization (WHO) aims at eliminating onchocerciasis by 2020 in selected African countries. Current control focuses on community-directed treatment with ivermectin (CDTI). In Ghana, persistent transmission has been reported despite long-term control. We present spatial and temporal patterns of onchocerciasis transmission in relation to ivermectin treatment history. Methodology/Principal Findings: Host-seeking and ovipositing blackflies were collected from seven villages in four regions of Ghana with 3–24 years of CDTI at the time of sampling. A total of 16,443 flies was analysed for infection; 5,812 (35.3%) were dissected for parity (26.9% parous). Heads and thoraces of 12,196 flies were dissected for Onchocerca spp. and DNA from 11,122 abdomens was amplified using Onchocerca primers. A total of 463 larvae (0.03 larvae/fly) from 97 (0.6%) infected and 62 (0.4%) infective flies was recorded; 258 abdomens (2.3%) were positive for Onchocerca DNA. Infections (all were O. volvulus) were more likely to be detected in ovipositing flies. Transmission occurred, mostly in the wet season, at Gyankobaa and Bosomase, with transmission potentials of, respectively, 86 and 422 L3/person/month after 3 and 6 years of CDTI. The numbers of L3/1,000 parous flies at these villages were over 100times the WHO threshold of one L3/1,000 for transmission control. Vector species influenced transmission parameters. At Asubende, the number of L3/1,000 ovipositing flies (1.4, 95% CI = 0–4) also just exceeded the threshold despite extensive vector control and 24 years of ivermectin distribution, but there were no infective larvae in host-seeking flies. Conclusions/Significance: Despite repeated ivermectin treatment, evidence of O. volvulus transmission was documented in all seven villages and above the WHO threshold in two. Vector species influences transmission through biting and parous rates and vector competence, and should be included in transmission models. Oviposition traps could augment vector collector methods for monitoring and surveillance

Review of Printed Fabric Pattern Segmentation Analysis and Application

Image processing of digital images is one of the essential categories of image transformation in the theory and practice of digital pattern analysis and computer vision. Automated pattern recognition systems are much needed in the textile industry more importantly when the quality control of products is a significant problem. The printed fabric pattern segmentation procedure is carried out since human interaction proves to be unsatisfactory and costly. Hence, to reduce the cost and wastage of time, automatic segmentation and pattern recognition are required. Several robust and efficient segmentation algorithms are established for pattern recognition. In this paper, different automated methods are presented to segregate printed patterns from textiles fabric. This has become necessary because quality product devoid of any disturbances is the ultimate aim of the textile printing industry

Self-care behaviors and associated factors among individuals with type 2 diabetes in Ghana: a systematic review

Abstract Background Self-care remains an effective model for diabetes management and care in low-and-middle-income countries due to the limited resources available for the clinical management of the disease and its complications This study examined adherence to self-care behaviors and associated factors among people with type 2 diabetes in Ghana. Methods PubMed, PsycINFO, Scopus, Web of Science, Embase and Google scholar were used to identify quantitative observational studies published between 1990 and September 30, 2023. Studies exclusive to persons with type 2 diabetes ≥ 18 years of age in a Ghanaian setting were included in this review. Findings of primary studies were analyzed using narrative synthesis. Results Twelve studies, presenting data on a total of 2,671 persons with type 2 diabetes, were included. All the studies were published in the last decade (2015–2022) and a majority of them were from the Greater Accra Region. The mean number of days (per week) participants adhered to a self-care behavior were in the ranges of 3.9–4.4 for diet, 4.2–4.8 for physical activity, 0.5–2.2 for self-monitoring of blood glucose (SMBG), and 2.9–5.0 for foot care. Adherence rates for medication were in the range of 33.5–84.5%. Patient-related factors, sociodemographic/economic-related factors, condition-related factors, and healthcare system-related factors were associated with various self-care behaviors. Conclusion Adherence to self-care behaviors among persons with type 2 diabetes in Ghana remains an ongoing challenge with significant variations in adherence among patients with different characteristics