The Use of Natural Lighting in Students’ Hostels: A Case Study of Ayeduase, a Suburb of Kumasi, Ghana

The role that natural lighting plays in buildings cannot be underestimated. Natural light is integrated into buildings because of its potential economic benefit and the effect on the occupants’ psychological and physiological well-being. This study concentrates on Ayeduase, a suburb of Kumasi, Ghana, where students live in hostels with poor architectural design. Therefore, the primary aim of this study is to investigate the health and visual comfort of students living in Ayeduase, by creating awareness of the positive effects of natural light on humans. Questionnaires and interviews, as well as empirical measuring of daylight levels in the spaces of selected hostels were used. Analysed data revealed that the level of illuminance in the hostels is considerably poor and this resulted in students using artificial lighting throughout the day. Nevertheless, the negative effect of this situation can be prevented from occurring in further developments in Ayeduase (and Ghana as a whole), by educating designers on the benefits of using natural lighting in buildings and by enforcing laws that will ensure that buildings have maximum openings that allow enough daylight into the interior spaces. These measures will help reduce utility costs, improve the well-being of building occupants and increase the performance of students.Keywords: Natural Lighting, Building Science, Occupants, Perceptio

Estimating An Aggregate Import Demand Function For Ghana

Stable Food Crops Turning Into Commercial Crops: Case studies of Teff, Wheat and Rice in Ethiopia  Imports are very crucial for the survival of a small open economy such as Ghana. In this paper, we estimate an import demand function for Ghana for the period 1970 to 2002, as well as consider the time series properties of the data. The time series behaviour of the data indicates a long term relationship between real exchange rates, GDP, and merchandise import. Our empirical estimates suggest that real income (GDP) is the main factor influencing imports in Ghana. The results also indicate that economic growth (real GDP) and depreciation in the local currency could stimulate increased demand for merchandise imports. Further analysis revealed that shocks to imports, real GDP and real exchange rate are important in explaining various innovations in the error variance of each of these variables at different time horizons and at different magnitudes. Particularly, the evidence shows that at short time periods about 65%, 95% and 80% of shocks to real exchange rates, merchandise imports and GDP respectively, are attributed to own shock

An experimental assessment of the efficiency of glazing types used as cladding materials for multi-storey office buildings in Ghana

Architecture all over the world in recent years has embraced the extensive use of glass as a cladding material for high-rise structures. Multi-storey structures in Ghana have seen it fair share in this growing phenomenon. Experimental results on the effectiveness of the glazing types used for the cladding is presented and discussed in this work. The aim of the study was to establish the effectiveness of the glazing types towards the reduction of thermal discomfort and cooling loads in high rise office buildings in Accra, Ghana. The simulation technique with the use of the Tas simulation tool was used in this study. The methodology used was the case-study, where a multi-storey structure was selected and used in the running of the experiment. The analysis showed that in terms of cooling loads, the single glazing performed poorly. Though the triple glazing was the best, economically, the double glazing could be used instead. In terms of solar gains, the single glazing again was the poorest. It is recommended that the selection of a glazing type for any multi-storey structure should be done after an elaborate simulation. This will help in the determination of the total cooling loads for the building in order to reduce the extensive use of energy which has become one of the scarcest commodities in Ghana at the moment

INCIDENCE OF SYMPTOMATIC AND ASYMPTOMATIC \u3ci\u3ePLASMODIUM FALCIPARUM\u3c/i\u3e INFECTION FOLLOWING CURATIVE THERAPY IN ADULT RESIDENTS OF NORTHERN GHANA

Adult residents of holoendemic malaria regions in Africa have a naturally acquired immunity (NAI) to malaria that renders them more resistant to new infections, limits parasitemia, and reduces the frequency and severity of illness. Given such attributes, it is not clear how one might evaluate drug or vaccine efficacy in adults without serious confounding. To determine symptomatic and asymptomatic malaria attack rates in adults of northern Ghana, 197 men and women underwent curative therapy for any pre-existing malaria infections at the start of the high transmission (wet) season. They were monitored for first parasitemia and first clinical episode of infection by Plasmodium falciparum over a 20-week period (May–October 1996). The cumulative incidence of primary infection by P. falciparum was 0.98 and incidence density of infection was calculated to be 7.0 cases/person-year. Symptoms were reported by 19.5% of the individuals at the time of first recurrent parasitemia. Incidence of infection, parasite density, and the frequency of symptoms were comparable in males and females. The results suggest that NAI did not provide these adults with significant defense against rapid re-infection and suggest that this population-infection design could serve to demonstrate the efficacy of a drug or vaccine in preventing parasitemia

Physicians' knowledge, attitudes, and perceptions concerning antibiotic resistance:a survey in a Ghanaian tertiary care hospital

Abstract Background Understanding the knowledge, attitudes and practices of physicians towards antibiotic resistance is key to developing interventions aimed at behavior change. The survey aimed to investigate physicians’ knowledge and attitudes towards antibiotic resistance in a tertiary-care hospital setting in Ghana. Methods We conducted a cross-sectional respondent-driven survey using a 40-item, anonymous, voluntary, traditional paper-and-pencil self-administered questionnaire among 159 physicians at Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital. Single and multi-factor analysis were conducted to assess the study objectives. Results The survey was completed by 159 of 200 physicians (response rate of 79.5%). Of physicians, 30.1% (47/156) perceived antibiotic resistance as very important global problem, 18.5% (29/157) perceived it as very important national problem and only 8.9% (14/157) thought it as a very important problem in their hospital. Methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus was the most known about antibiotic resistant bacteria of public health importance followed by extended-spectrum beta-lactamase-producing Enterobacteriaceae, carbapenem resistant Enterobacteriaceae (CRE) and vancomycin resistant enterococci (VRE). In multiple logistic regression analysis, senior physicians were nearly 3 times more likely to know about CRE than junior physicians. The odds of knowing about VRE increased over 4.5 times from being a junior to becoming senior physician. Among junior physicians, age had no associated effect on their knowledge of VRE or CRE. Conclusions Physicians in this survey showed variable knowledge and perceptions on antibiotic resistance. Introducing educational programs on antibiotic resistance would be a useful intervention and should focus on junior physicians

No Change in Perceptual or Chronotropic Outcome When Altering Preferred Step Frequency for a Short Duration

IIntroduction: Millions of individuals incorporate jogging into their physical activity routines as a leisurely pursuit and as a way to achieve positive health outcomes. People appear to choose jogging speed and the associated step frequency on pure, natural preference. Understandably, kinesthetics are important, but another important underlying factor is metabolic cost. The purpose of this work was to investigate if preferred step frequency (at a preferred jogging pace) also minimizes perceived effort (Borg Rating of Perceived Exertion, 6-20; RPE) and chronotropic stress (heart rate; HR) during a ten-minute activity bout when compared with step frequencies altered by 5%. Methods: Recreationally-trained male subjects underwent two testing visits. The first visit was used to establish RPE and HR responses during a 10-minute jogging activity at preferred speed and step frequency. On a subsequent visit, between two and four days later, with preferred speed maintained, subjects were guided by metronome to strike at either 95% or 105% of their preferred step frequency. The 10-minute runs were randomized, crossed-over, and separated by 20 minutes. RPE and HR were analyzed by repeated measures ANOVA. Results: Fourteen subjects (age: 21.1 ± 0.95; body mass index: 23.2 ± 2.5) enrolled. Preferred jogging speed (speed. 6.4 ± 1.0 miles per hour; 10.2 ± 1.6 kilometers per hour) and step frequency (steps. 161.2 ± 10.3 steps/minute) were determined at the first visit, along with RPE (11.3 ± 1.7) and HR (166.4 ± 12.7). At the second visit, preferred speed was maintained while the frequency of foot-strike was altered. Neither differences in RPE (p = 0.252; 11.3 ± 1.7, 11.6 ± 1.9, 11.8 ± 1.5) nor HR (p = 0.547; 166.4 ± 12.7, 164.7 ± 14.9, 165.2 ± 15.3) were different when comparing the preferred, 95%, and 105% step frequency trials, respectively. Although anecdotal, some subjects verbalized displeasure with the change in pace and most all appeared to markedly alter the initial foot strike phase of the gait to meet the directed foot strike tempo. Discussion: Our data must be interpreted cautiously. While altering step frequency by 5% for a short duration does not appear to alter an individual’s RPE or HR appreciably, the result during longer duration activity may not be the same. In addition, the implications for biomechanical loading and metabolic cost were not presently investigated