Exploring the enablers of teenage pregnancy in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA): a scoping literature review

Evidence from sub-Saharan Africa indicates that 35 percent of pregnancies among 15-19-year (s)-olds were unplanned, unwanted, or untimed and that the teenagers’ relationships were unstable. Teenage pregnancy is a global problem especially in developing countries. Teenage pregnancy is associated with several social issues: poverty, low education levels, and the lack of awareness about sex and pregnancy prevention. The contributing factors for teenage pregnancy are multiple and complex categorised as socio-demographic, familial, cultural, and reproductive behaviour. Different literature reported that factors associated with teenage pregnancy include living in rural areas, not attending school, early marriage, lack of communication between parents and adolescents about sexual and reproductive health (SRH) issues, educational level of the teenagers and family history of teenage pregnancy. A scoping review was conducted from February 2021 to August 2021 using the following specific subject databases: Google scholar, PubMed, EBSCOhost, and research gate. Special attention was paid to keywords during navigation to ensure consistency of searches in each database. English language, studies conducted in sub-Sahara Africa and articles published in the last 10 years (2011–2021), were the three limiters applied in the four databases. The researchers identified eight themes for inclusion in the findings. The themes fell into three major categories: individual related factors, family related factors and external factors. These themes reflect factors associated with teenage pregnancy. The review revealed that there are several risk factors that lead to teenage pregnancy. Therefore, there is urgency for strategic interventions aimed at improving teenage pregnancy through female education and sexual and reproductive health education must also be introduced or reinforced in schools. Policy makers, community leaders and school curriculum can act towards raising the age for marriage to after 20 years and make the methods of contraception accessible to teenagers. Qualitative techniques like focus group discussions in communities could be helpful in reflecting on the root cause of the problem

Exploring the risk factors of child malnutrition in Sub-Sahara Africa: a scoping review

Background: Malnutrition prevents children from reaching their full physical and mental potential. Health and physical consequences of prolonged states of malnourishment among children are: delay in their physical growth and motor development ; lower intellectual quotient (IQ), greater behavioural problems and deficient social skills; susceptibility to contracting diseases. According to the 2015 Millennium development goal (MDG) report, sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) accounts for one third of all undernourished children globally, highlighting that malnutrition still remains a major health concern for children under 5 years in the sub-region, thus buttressing the need for urgent intervention. Aim: The aim of this study is to explore the risk factors of child malnutrition in sub-Saharan Africa through a scoping review. Methods: The scoping review was conducted using the following specific subject databases: EBSCOhost, google scholar, Pub med, demographic research and research gate. Attention was paid to keywords during navigation to ensure consistency of searches in each database. Two limiters were applied in all five databases. These included the use of the English language and articles published on child malnutrition in sub Saharan Africa. Results: The researchers identified eight themes for inclusion in the findings. The themes fell into four major categories being maternal related, family related, child related as well as context related factors. These themes reflect factors associated with child malnutrition. Conclusion: This scop-ing review revealed that there are quite a number of risk factors that lead to child malnutrition. Therefore, there is an urgency for strategic interventions aimed at improving child nutrition through female education if the 2030 end malnutrition SDG 2.2 are to be achieved

Exploring the challenges of implementing COVID-19 guidelines: experiences of commuters in the Copperbelt Province, Zambia

Background: The first case of COVID-19 in Zambia was confirmed on the 18th of March 2020, to date 320, 412 people have been infected and 3983 Covid related deaths have been reported. In Zambia, public transport is mainly by road, dominated by intra-city minibuses. This mode of transport particularly involve serious human interaction and compliance with Covid -19 preventive measures, especially in urban areas had not been systematically evaluated. Aims: To explore the challenges to compliance in implementing the recommended WHO COVID -19 guidelines in Copperbelt Province, Zambia. Design: An explorative qualitative study.# Methods: Individual semi-structured interviews were conducted from February to April 2022 and, content analysis was used. Results: The following 5 major themes emerged: “perception and experiences about Covid 19; knowledge of prevention guidelines; attitudes towards implementation of the prevention guidelines; accessibility and availability of protective equipment; and, accessibility and availability of transport.” Drivers and conductors experienced tremendous reduction in income due to restricted movements of passengers as well as social distancing which called for a reduction in the number of passengers in a particular bus, cost of face masks and hand sanitizers. This left them with no profit and most of them were retrenched. Passengers reported discomfort caused by the face masks which prevented some of them from breathing properly, while others reported impact on their business and restriction in movements. A section of respondents felt that Covid was a hoax therefore prevention guidelines were an infringement on them. Conclusion: This study highlights the fact that creating an enabling environment for doing business is critical by ensuring Covid -19 prevention materials are subsidized or provided for free. In addition provision of loans to transporters to cushion the challenges are crucial. Furthermore there is need to maximize information dissemination to raise awareness and depoliticize the fight against Covid -19

Exploring barriers to antiretroviral therapy adherence among pregnant women: a scoping literature review

Background: Antiretroviral therapy (ART) is one of the most effective ways of preventing HIV-related maternal mortality. However, the rates of retention in care and long-term adherence remain extremely low. Objective: The aim of this study was to explore barriers to antiretroviral therapy adherence among pregnant women. Search strategy: The search for articles was conducted using EBSCO Host, PubMed, Google scholar, and Cumulative Index of Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL). Selection criteria: The studies included were conducted between 2000 and 2020 and covered barriers to antiretroviral therapy. Data collection and analysis: Data was collected from 8 selected articles and analyzed using Arksey and O’Malley five stages framework. Main results: Barriers to antiretroviral therapy adherence included side effects of the therapy and financial constraints limiting access to food, transport, and medication. Other barriers included cultural and religious factors, lack of spouse support, stigma, and discrimination. Conclusion: There is need to support pregnant women undergoing antiretroviral therapy to mitigate barriers associated with the uptake of the therapy