Assessment of Patient Satisfaction with Pharmaceutical Services in Hospital Pharmacies in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

Exit survey was conducted at four hospitals in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, where 401 outpatients (51% males and 49% females) were randomly recruited in the survey. A structured questionnaire was used to obtain the required information from the patients and the data was analyzed using Epi-Info version 6 software. The presence of a polite pharmacist at a particular pharmacy attracted many patients (85.8%). Availability of a reputable medical practitioner at the hospital was another reason for many patients (55.6%) going to the hospital pharmacy. A number of patients (46.3%) went to particular hospital pharmacies to obtain their medicines because of good services in those facilities. Dissatisfied respondents (23.7%) rated the waiting time to obtain the medicines as too long. This was followed by unavailability of prescribed medicines (18.2%) and poor facilities in the waiting room. Quality of services at the hospital pharmacies were rated at 46%. Patients felt that the waiting time and the availability of medicines could be improved.Key words: Pharmaceutical services, patient satisfaction, Dar es Salaa

Multi-temporal assessment of forest cover, stocking parameters and above-ground tree biomass dynamics in Miombo Woodlands of Tanzania

Miombo woodlands form the widespread ecosystem in Tanzania. The ecosystem of these woodlands serves as a carbon sink and source containing majority of the above-ground terrestrial organic carbon. The study assessed forest cover, stocking parameters and above-ground tree biomass dynamics in the Miombo woodlands of Bereku and Duru Haitemba in Tanzania. The data were obtained from conventional forest inventory and remote sensing and GIS techniques. Results show that forest cover has increased for the two consecutive assessment period of 1988 to 2000 and 2000 to 2009, mostly by higher canopy cover of 6.82 and 0.79%, respectively. Stocking parameters: stand density (N) stand volume (V) and stand basal area (G) were found to be 1909.5 ± 9.4 stem/ha, 12.3 ± 0.6 m2ha-1 and 71.0 ± 6.8 m3ha-1, respectively. Vegetation indices (NDVI, ARVI and ND54) were then combined with forest inventory data for computation of average above ground biomass which was found to increase from 64 ± 6.53, 67.8 ± 5.42 to 79.218 ± 2.75 t/ha for 1988, 2000 and 2009, respectively. The results suggest that, the Miombo woodland resources have been consistently improving over the years of  assessment. This could be attributed to reduction in negative anthropogenic factors that are known to be the major cause of resources degradation in Miombo woodlands. However, this improvement may be partial as plot level information revealed higher exploitation of the dbh class of 4 to 5 cm. Increase of management effectiveness through involvement of local people under participatory forest management, strengthened bylaws and provision of other incentives might have contributed greatly to the improvement of the forest resources.Key words: Forest resources management, forest inventory, remote sensing, aboveground biomass stock

Improved microscopy diagnosis of pulmonary teberculosis using sodium hypochlorite concentration technique in Tanga, Tanzania

No Abstract.Tanzania Health Research Bulletin Vol. 9(2) 2007: pp.87-9

Pengaruh Media Pembelajaran Berbasis Android terhadap Hasil Belajar dan Keterampilan Proses Sains Siswa

Abad 21 memiliki banyak perubahan salah satunya dalam bidang Pendidikan dan teknologi, pendidik dituntut untuk menguasai teknologi guna menunjang pembelajaran yakni dalam penggunaan media pembelajaran seperti media pembelajaran berbasis android, penggunaan media pembelajaran tidak lepas dari kaitannya untuk mengembangkan ranah sikap, pengetahuan dan keterampilan siswa. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengetahui pengaruh media pembelajaran berbasis android terhadap hasil belajar dan keterampilan proses sains serta perbedaan pengaruhnya terhadap indikator keterampilan proses sains siswa kelas XI di SMAN 10 Mataram. Jenis penelitian ini adalah quasi experimental dan non-equivalent control group design dengan pendekatan kuantitatif. Populasi pada penelitian ini yaitu kelas XI MIPA di SMAN 10 Mataram dan pengambilan sampel dilakukan dengan menggunakan teknik purposive sampling sehingga terpilih kelas XI MIPA 1 sebagai kelas eksperimen dan XI MIPA 2 sebagai kelas kontrol. pengumpulan data hasil belajar menggunakan soal pilihan ganda dan keterampilan proses sains menggunakan soal essay, kemudian dianalisis dengan analysis of covariance (anacova). Hasil pengujian hipotesis menunjukkan bahwa terdapat pengaruh media pembelajaran berbasis android terhadap hasil belajar dan keterampilan proses sains serta terdapat perbedaan pengaruh media pembelajaran berbasis android pada tiap indikator keterampilan proses sains siswa kelas XI di SMAN 10 Mataram

Community Awareness of Adverse Effects of Nonsteroidal Anti-inflammatory Drugs in Ilala Municipality, Dar es Salaam

A cross sectional descriptive study was conducted within Ilala Municipality in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. A structured questionnaire was used for data collection. A total of 196 community members were recruited into the study. The participants were asked to provide information on what drugs they took when they had pain and if they knew any adverse effects associated with the use of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. They were also asked if they had been given any education by health personnel on the adverse effects of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. Fifty two percent of the participants responded that when they had pain, they bought pain killers from pharmacies while 42% said they would go to hospital for treatment. About 4% drank a lot of water when they had a headache, while 1% performed massage at the site of pain. One percent visited traditional healers to seek treatment for the pain. Only 8% of the study participants knew some adverse effects caused by non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. Hence, there is a need for health personnel to educate patients on the potential adverse effects of the non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs.Key words: Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, adverse drug reactions, community knowledge, Ilala Municipalit

Training and fitness variability in elite youth soccer:perspectives from a difficulty prediction model

Research within sport science disciplines seeks to enhance performance via the combination of factors that influences the team’s periodization. The current study aimed to investigate the variations in training load (TL), and the consequential changes in fitness variables, based on the use of match difficulty prediction model (MDP), level of opposition (LOP), days between matches, and match location during 12 weeks in the competitive period I. Seventeen elite soccer players (age = 17.57 ± 0.49 years; body height 1.79 ± 0.05 m; body weight 72.21 ± 6.96 kg), have completed a Yo-Yo intermittent recovery test, a running-based anaerobic sprint test, a soccer-specific repeated sprint ability, and a vertical jump test to identify changes in players fitness. TL was determined by multiplying the RPE of the session by its duration in minutes (s-RPE). Training monotony, strain, and acute:chronic workload ratio (ACWR) were also assessed. A simple regression model was conducted and the highest variances explained (R2) were used. The LOP score explained most of the variance in ACWR (r= 0.606, R2=0.37). TL declined significantly when compared the match-day by the first three days and the last three days of the week. No significant difference was found in s-RPE between the high and low MDP factor. Strong negative correlations were reported between ACWR and LOP (r=-0.714, p<.01). In addition, we found a significant improvement in repeated sprint ability, aerobic and anaerobic fitness variables between pre- and post-test in fatigue index (d=1.104), best testing time, ideal time, total time and mean-best (d=0.518-0.550), and aerobic and anaerobic fitness variables (p<.05), respectively. The MDP could facilitate the training prescription as well as the distribution of training intensities with high specificity, providing a long-term youth player’s development and allowing teams to maintain optimal fitness leading into more difficult matches

Pelatihan Pengelolaan Sampah Di Lingkungan Kampus Fkip Unram Menggunakan Bioteknologi Em4 (Effective Microorganism 4) Menjadi Pupuk Bokashi

Selama ini pengelolaan sampah di lingkungan belum banyak dilakukan. Sampah yang ada hanya dibuang  ke tempat sampah, Namun jika dikelola dengan baik maka lingkungan akan menjadi sehat dan mendatangkan  keuntungan  karena dapat dijadikan pupuk organik yang  dapat  digunakan untuk menyuburkan lahan pertanian dan mendukung pertanian ramah lingkungan yang diharapkan semua pihak. Di Kampus FKIP Unram belum mengelola sampah dengan mengubah sampah menjadi pupuk. Oleh karena itu perlu upaya untuk  mengelola sampah yang ada menjadi pupuk bokashi dengan bioteknologi EM4. Tujuan dari kegiatan ini ialah mengimplementasikan bioteknologi  EM4  untuk mengelola sampah menjadi pupuk  bokashi. Metode yang digunakan  meliputi  ceramah, pelatihan, diskusi tanya jawab dan pendampingan pengelolaan sampah dengan bioteknologi EM4 di kampus FKIP Universitas Mataram. Hasil pengabdian  sebagai berikut : 1). seluruh peserta antusias mengikuti kegiatan pengabdian pelatihan pengelolaan sampah di lingkungan Kampus FKIP Unram  menggunakan  Bioteknologi EM4 (Effective Microorganism) menjadi  pupuk bokashi. 2). Materi pelatihan 100% peserta  mengikuti dan memahami isi kegiatan pengabdian. 3). Hasil pelatihan dapat diterapkan dengan menghasilkan pupuk bokashi yang siap diaplikasikan untuk tanaman. Kesimpulan kegiatan ini adalah pengelolaan sampah dengan bioteknologi EM4 di Kampus FKIP Unram telah dilakukan dengan menghasilkan produk pupuk bokashi yang baik oleh peserta pengabdian

A Fibreoptic Endoscopic Study of Upper Gastrointestinal Bleeding at Bugando Medical Centre in Northwestern Tanzania: a Retrospective Review of 240 Cases.

Upper gastrointestinal (GI) bleeding is recognized as a common and potentially life-threatening abdominal emergency that needs a prompt assessment and aggressive emergency treatment. A retrospective study was undertaken at Bugando Medical Centre in northwestern Tanzania between March 2010 and September 2011 to describe our own experiences with fibreoptic upper GI endoscopy in the management of patients with upper gastrointestinal bleeding in our setting and compare our results with those from other centers in the world. A total of 240 patients representing 18.7% of all patients (i.e. 1292) who had fibreoptic upper GI endoscopy during the study period were studied. Males outnumbered female by a ratio of 2.1:1. Their median age was 37 years and most of patients (60.0%) were aged 40 years and below. The vast majority of the patients (80.4%) presented with haematemesis alone followed by malaena alone in 9.2% of cases. The use of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, alcohol and smoking prior to the onset of bleeding was recorded in 7.9%, 51.7% and 38.3% of cases respectively. Previous history of peptic ulcer disease was reported in 22(9.2%) patients. Nine (3.8%) patients were HIV positive. The source of bleeding was accurately identified in 97.7% of patients. Diagnostic accuracy was greater within the first 24 h of the bleeding onset, and in the presence of haematemesis. Oesophageal varices were the most frequent cause of upper GI bleeding (51.3%) followed by peptic ulcers in 25.0% of cases. The majority of patients (60.8%) were treated conservatively. Endoscopic and surgical treatments were performed in 30.8% and 5.8% of cases respectively. 140 (58.3%) patients received blood transfusion. The median length of hospitalization was 8 days and it was significantly longer in patients who underwent surgical treatment and those with higher Rockall scores (P < 0.001). Rebleeding was reported in 3.3% of the patients. The overall mortality rate of 11.7% was significantly higher in patients with variceal bleeding, shock, hepatic decompensation, HIV infection, comorbidities, malignancy, age > 60 years and in patients with higher Rockall scores and those who underwent surgery (P < 0.001). Oesophageal varices are the commonest cause of upper gastrointestinal bleeding in our environment and it is associated with high morbidity and mortality. The diagnostic accuracy of fibreoptic endoscopy was related to the time interval between the onset of bleeding and endoscopy. Therefore, it is recommended that early endoscopy should be performed within 24 h of the onset of bleeding

Pelatihan 4P (Pengolahan, Pelabelan, Pengemasan, Pemasaran) Kripik Pisang dan Labu Siam Yang Inovatif Di Desa Timbanuh

Timbanuh merupakan salah satu desa yang berada di Kecamatan Pringgasela, Kabupaten Lombok timur. Masyarakatnya sebagian besar bekerja sebagai pekebun. Salah satu potensi yang dimiliki adalah hasil perkebunan yang melimpah. Namun potensi sumber daya tersebut belum mampu dimaksimalkan oleh masyarakat dikarenakan kurang nya kreativitas. Sehingga hasil kebun seperti pisang, labusiam yang melimpah hanya sebatas diperjualbelikan biasa untuk menjadi sayuran dan memiliki harga jual yang rendah. Oleh karenanya, dengan kondisi tersebut perlunya menciptakan inovasi yang kreatif. Mahasiswa KKN Tematik Kewirausahaan Unram hadir sebagai jembatan bagi masyarakat untuk membantu masyarakat dalam meningkatkan kreativitas dan meningkatkan pendapatan ekonominya. Pengolahan pisang dan labu siam menjadi keripik serta diberikan inovasi varian rasa merupakan program utama yang dikembangkan. Program ini dilaksanakan dalam bentuk pengabdian selama 45 hari dengan jumlah anggota kelompok 11 orang. Adapun metode &nbsp;yang digunakan untuk mendukung program ini adalah survey lokasi, sosialisasi dengan masyarakat, sosialisasi produk dan pelatihan pembuatan produk, produksi, pengemasan, pelabelan, pemasaran, pembuatan surat izin serta monitoring dan evaluasi. Hasil dari program kegiatan ini adalah terciptanya produk keripik pisang dan labusiam dengan menambahkan inovasi untuk menciptakan produk baru baik dalam segi varian rasa maupun segi kemasannya, serta terbentuknya wirausaha-wirausaha bar