Parental Acceptance of Human Papilloma Virus Vaccine for Their Pre-Pubertal and Teenage Daughters

Objective: To determine the factors influencing parental acceptance of the HPV vaccine for their pre-pubertal (age group 9-14 years) daughters.Design: Cross sectional study.Setting: Four primary schools within Langata constituency in Nairobi County in June 2010.Subject: Girls in Standard five to eight were selected for the study. A self explanatory one page questionnaire was given out to take to their mothers/guardian and returned in one week. Fifty mothers were then randomly selected from the returned questionnaires and an in depth telephone interview was conducted. The data entry and coding was done and analysed using SPSS version 15.Results: In this study 68% of parents/guardians accepted that vaccination should be done but only 58% agreed that their daughters should be vaccinated, majority of the respondents were females, (women 82% and men 18 %). This observed difference across the genders was not statistically significant p=0.078. The level of education of the respondent (nil 2.7%, primary 6.6%, college /university 47.7% secondary 45.7%) the observed difference across the educational levels of agreeing to vaccination was not statistically significant p=0.898. The knowledge/awareness on cervical cancer and its relationship to HPV infection correlated with the level of education was found to have been statistically significant. The parents recommended age of vaccination was 11-13 year (58%). Parent/guardians suggested age of vaccination and HPV vaccine acceptance was significant correlated with the vaccination acceptance by the parents p=0.009. This study has shown that the recommended age of vaccination by parents is 11-13years age group which was similar to findings done in many countries.Conclusion: There was poor knowledge on the relationship between HPV infection and cervical cancer. The acceptable age of vaccine administration was 11-13 year

Patient Education and counselling for promoting adherence to treatment for tuberculosis (Review)

Geneeskunde en GesondheidswetenskappeSentrum vir Bewysgebaseerde GesonheidsorgPlease help us populate SUNScholar with the post print version of this article. It can be e-mailed to: [email protected]

Barriers to treatment adherence for individuals with latent tuberculosis infection: a systematic search and narrative synthesis of the literature

We investigated the rates of initiation and completion of treatment for latent TB infection (LTBI), factors explaining nonadherence and interventions to improve treatment adherence in countries with low TB incidence.A systematic search was performed in PubMed and Embase. All included articles were assessed for risk of bias. A narrative synthesis of the results was conducted.There were 54 studies included in this review. The proportion of people initiating treatment varied from 24% to 98% and the proportion of people completing treatment varied from 19% to 90%. The main barriers to adherence included the fear or experience of adverse effects, long duration of treatment, financial barriers, lack of transport to clinics (for patients), and insufficient resources for LTBI control. While interventions like peer counseling, incentives, and culturally specific case management have been used to improve adherence, the proportion of people who initiate and complete LTBI treatment still remains low.To further improve treatment and LTBI control and to fulfill the World Health Organization goal of eliminating TB in low-incidence countries, greater priority should be given to the use of treatment regimens involving shorter durations and fewer adverse effects, like the 3-month regimen of weekly rifapentine plus isoniazid, supported by innovative patient education and incentive strategies

Insights into culturally appropriate latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI) screening in NSW: perspectives of Indian and Pakistani migrants

2020 The Authors Objective: Latent tuberculosis (LTBI) case-finding and treatment are a focus of TB elimination in Australia. We sought the perspectives of migrants from two high-burden countries likely to be targeted by this strategy. Methods: To understand perceptions of migrant groups in Australia on LTBI screening, 28 in-depth interviews were conducted with Indian and Pakistani community members recruited purposively through local organisations in the Illawarra region, New South Wales. Drawing on local TB policy, data collected qualitatively was analysed using framework methodologies. Results: Australia\u27s immigration system prioritises migrants of higher socioeconomic status. Participants supported elimination but perceived TB as a disease of the poor and not relevant to them. Lack of understanding of LTBI and sensitivity to being \u27targeted\u27 are further barriers to screening participation. Conclusion: Information provision and targeting rationale are an essential preamble to LTBI screening. Migration appears to modify cultural attitudes to TB, but not significantly. Despite less stigma surrounding TB in Australian contexts, testing privacy and confidentiality, and limiting public identification of specific groups remain important to program acceptability. Implications for public health: Progress towards TB elimination can be enhanced by consulting with targeted communities, using existing networks for communication and service provision; emphasising prevention benefits

Rehabilitation in lung diseases: 'Education' component of pulmonary rehabilitation.

Pulmonary rehabilitation (PR) is a complex intervention with described core components of individualized exercise training and inter-disciplinary education in international guidelines. Compared to the overwhelming evidence of benefit for exercise training, the education component has received little attention. Educating patients about their symptoms and disease management appears intuitive to improve their health, but how and when is less clear. PR has provided an opportunity for educational activities and traditionally this has been delivered in the form of didactic lectures. The field is evolving and challenges are apparent raising important questions. What is the purpose and outcomes of the education component? Do specific diseases require specific education or PR programmes? How to provide interdisciplinary education? Is the timing optimal within the disease trajectory (most patients are referred to PR with moderate to severe disease)? Can technology help? Our review explores the recent evidence for the 'education' component of PR synthesizing the global guidelines. We discuss the challenges for patients as learners, healthcare professionals as educators and propose future directions for this core component of PR