Evaluating the Effect of a Nurse Navigator in Increasing Colorectal Screening

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of a nurse navigator in increasing colorectal (CRC) screening in primary care setting. METHODS: This was a descriptive retrospective study of the effect of nurse navigators in increasing colorectal screening in primary care settings within Jefferson county and its surrounding counties. The sample consisted of 200 patient chart reviews for the period of September 1st through December 31st, 2017. Rates of colorectal screening were compared in those who received a nurse navigator call and those who did not. RESULTS: Overall screening rates were 44.6%. A distinct increase in screening was identified when patients were contacted by a nurse navigator. CONCLUSION: The study findings support the nurse navigator’s role in colorectal screening. These findings may further help clarify the nurse navigator’s role in cancer screening and treatment plans within communities. Further research is needed using a larger study sample to identify a continuous trend

Dietary intake of HIV-seropositive clients attending Longisa County Hospital Comprehensive Care Clinic, Bomet County, Kenya

Background: Dietary intake of HIV-seropositive persons remains a major concern across various settings around the globe. Inadequate dietary intake, infections and stage of disease progression elicit malnutrition among HIV-seropositive individuals, which hastens progression of HIV to full-blown AIDS. Aim: The study sought to determine the dietary intake of HIV-seropositive clients attending Longisa County Hospital Comprehensive Care Clinic, Bomet County, Kenya. Methods: A cross-sectional analytical study design was administered on a comprehensive sample of 210 patients. A 24-hour dietary recall questionnaire and Food Frequency Questionnaire (FFQ) were used by the researcher to collect data on the dietary intake of the respondents. The 24-hour dietary recall data were analysed using NutriSurvey whereas data obtained from the FFQ were analysed manually. Results: Study respondents comprised more females (61.6%) than males (38.6%). Adequacy in energy intake amongst the respondents was average as males attained 47.4% of recommended energy intake, whereas females attained 50.0%. Intakes for selected nutrients, vitamin A, B1, B2, C, were adequate for males and females. Iron intake was significantly low among female respondents as 89.3% did not meet the RDA. Similarly, zinc intake among male respondents was low as only 28.9% met the RDA. The mean number of meals consumed by the respondents was 3.8 ± 0.1. Consumption frequency of legumes, fruits, other vegetables, meats, eggs and fish was irregular. Conclusion: The dietary intake of the respondents was not satisfactory as evidenced by inadequacies in intake of certain nutrients and low number of meals consumed on a daily basis. Inadequate dietary intake is detrimental to HIV and AIDS management and treatment modalities, hence resulting in poor treatment outcomes. Care and treatment modalities at HIV and AIDS clinics should encompass provision of clear and concise information on the importance of adequate dietary intake as a means of optimising positive treatment outcomes

The 2006-2007 Rift Valley fever outbreak in Kenya: Sources of early warning messages and response measures implemented by the Department of Veterinary Services

The authors characterised sources of early warning messages about occurrences of Rift Valley fever (RVF) and examined the response measures that were used by the Department of Veterinary Services (DVS) to manage the 2006–2007 RVF outbreaks in Kenya. The study was conducted between November 2009 and March 2010 and it included national, provincial and district veterinary officers who were involved in the management of the outbreak. Structured questionnaires were used to collect the data. Although the majority of the respondents reported having limited capacity to implement response measures, they perceived that the measures implemented were effective. Vaccination, movement control and market closures were the main response measures implemented, particularly in districts that had cases in both livestock and humans. Vaccination, however, was implemented too late and the coverage achieved was too low to be effective. The authors suggest ways to improve the capacity of the DVS to respond to similar outbreaks in the future

A combination approach of behavioural and biomedical interventions for prevention of sexually transmitted infections

no abstract availabl

Towards better control and prevention of Rift Valley fever in the Greater Horn of Africa: a decision support tool for veterinary services

An outbreak of the viral zoonotic disease Rift Valley fever in East Africa in 2006/07 left more than 300 people dead and caused economic losses in Kenya alone estimated to exceed USD 30 million. Participatory studies undertaken shortly after the outbreaks abated enabled valuable lessons to be learned; if applied these lessons could significantly reduce the impact of future outbreaks. The lessons included the desirability of complementing and integrating international early warning systems with information from local people on the ground; the need for government-approved contingency plans and emergency funding arrangement to be in place; the need to initiate responses before the first human cases are detected; the difficulties of mounting effective livestock vaccination campaigns; and the need for clear, consistent and authoritative public health messages to be developed and tested well before an outbreak occurs. To address these issues, FAO and ILRI recently led a multi-stakeholder initiative to develop a decision support tool for the prevention and control of RVF in the Greater Horn of Africa. The tool is targeted at directors of veterinary services. The RVF outbreak is divided into a sequence made up of 12 key events: for each event a set of actions are listed that are considered appropriate at that stage. The tool is intended to facilitate timely, evidence-based decision-making that will enable RVF outbreaks to be better prevented or contained, thereby reducing the scale of impacts on lives and livelihoods as well as local, national and regional economies. In September 2008, FAO EMPRES warned that RVF could occur again in East Africa later that year. This early warning and the veterinary department’s reaction in Kenya, highlight two encouraging changes. First, the early warning was issued in September, two months earlier than in 2006. Second, the veterinary department immediately established an interdisciplinary, multistakeholder technical coordinating committee. Actions taken, informed by the new decision support tool for the prevention and control of RVF, included drafting of protocols for vaccination, livestock quarantine and vector control. The veterinary department had a limited stock of vaccine in hand, which it targeted to what it considered the highest risk areas. However, taking into consideration production and shipment delays, should these limited vaccination campaigns have had to be expanded it is unlikely that a sufficient level of population immunity from mass vaccination in high risk areas could have been achieved prior to mid-November, the time when suspected livestock cases were occurring in North Eastern Province in 2006. ILRI and partners are engaging in further research to determine what impacts the RVF Decision Support Tool had on Kenya’s 2008 response

Epidemiological Assessment of the Rift Valley Fever Outbreak in Kenya and Tanzania in 2006 and 2007

To capture lessons from the 2007 Rift Valley fever (RVF) outbreak, epidemiological studies were carried out in Kenya and Tanzania. Somali pastoralists proved to be adept at recognizing symptoms of RVF and risk factors such as heavy rainfall and mosquito swarms. Sandik, which means “bloody nose,” was used by Somalis to denote disease consistent with RVF. Somalis reported that sandik was previously seen in 1997/98, the period of the last RVF epidemic. Pastoralists communicated valuable epidemiological information for surveillance and early warning systems that was observed before international warnings. The results indicate that an all or none approach to decision making contributed to the delay in response. In the future, a phased approach balancing actions against increasing risk of an outbreak would be more effective. Given the time required to mobilize large vaccine stocks, emergency vaccination did not contribute to the mitigation of explosive outbreaks of RVF