Assessment of the educational environment of physiotherapy students at the University of Rwanda using the Dundee Ready Educational Environment Measure (DREEM)

Background. Getting students’ feedback regarding their experience of their educational environment (EE) is important. Objectives. To explore how physiotherapy students at the University of Rwanda (UR) feel about their EE. Methods. A descriptive quantitative cross-sectional study design with a census sampling strategy involving all physiotherapy students at UR was used. The Dundee Ready Educational Environment Measure was administered to 77 physiotherapy students in March 2015, to collect data that were analysed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences version 20 (IBM Corp., USA). The frequency distribution, mean, standard deviation and percentages were calculated, and the χ2 test was performed to assess whether responses showed significant variance according to level of study and gender. The level of significance (p-value) was set at 0.05. Results. The overall mean score on the 50 items was 62.20%. Students’ perception of learning scored the highest, with 66.58%, followed by students’ perception of atmosphere with 65.08%, students’ perception of teachers with 61.11% and students’ academic self-perception with 57.78%. The domain of students’ social self-perception scored the least, with 56.50%. All the domains scored positively toward the EE. There was no significant difference between male and female students, or between first-, second-, third- and fourth-year students regarding their perceptions of the EE. Conclusion. The physiotherapy students perceived UR as providing a sound EE. However, the data showed that there is a need for improvement in all five subscales of the learning environment at UR. Similar studies from other academic programmes at UR and other academic institutions in Rwanda are encouraged

Prevalence of low back pain and related factors among nurses at Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Kigali (CHUK)

Objective: Nurses are vulnerable to Low Back Pain (LBP) because they counteract many problems in their workplace that limit them to give up back stressors. The aim of the current study was to identify the prevalence and risk factors of LBP among nurses at CHUK. Methods: A Cross-sectional quantitative study design with a self-administered questionnaire was used. Results: The prevalence of LBP among nurses working at CHUK was 70%. The current study revealed that there is no significant relationship (P > 0.05) between LBP and various individual risk factors including age, gender, BMI, and the seniority of employment. It was found that the department with higher number of nurses who suffered from LBP is Internal Medicine. The professional factors like the department of work, hours spent in sitting and standing, heavy lifting, and extreme bending are all significantly associated with LBP (P < 0.05). Conclusion: There is a high prevalence of LBP among nurses at CHUK, and the contributing factors include heavy lifting, standing for long time, and extreme bending. Local and national strategies towards the reduction and prevention of LBP amongst health workers, especially in the nursing population are suggested

Prevalence of low back pain and related factors among nurses at Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Kigali (CHUK)

Objective: Nurses are vulnerable to Low Back Pain (LBP) because they counteract many problems in their workplace that limit them to give up back stressors. The aim of the current study was to identify the prevalence and risk factors of LBP among nurses at CHUK. Methods: A Cross-sectional quantitative study design with a self-administered questionnaire was used. Results: The prevalence of LBP among nurses working at CHUK was 70%. The current study revealed that there is no significant relationship (P > 0.05) between LBP and various individual risk factors including age, gender, BMI, and the seniority of employment. It was found that the department with higher number of nurses who suffered from LBP is Internal Medicine. The professional factors like the department of work, hours spent in sitting and standing, heavy lifting, and extreme bending are all significantly associated with LBP (P < 0.05). Conclusion: There is a high prevalence of LBP among nurses at CHUK, and the contributing factors include heavy lifting, standing for long time, and extreme bending. Local and national strategies towards the reduction and prevention of LBP amongst health workers, especially in the nursing population are suggested

Environmental barriers experienced by stroke patients in Musanze district in Rwanda: a descriptive qualitative study

Background: Patients with stroke experience a number of environmental barriers, limiting their re-integration. Information regarding the barriers experienced by patients with stroke in a specific setting such as the Musanze district in Rwanda would assist with the development of rehabilitation programmes that would take into consideration the barriers experienced by the clients. Objective: To explore the barriers experienced by patients with stroke residing in Musanze District. Methods: In-depth face-to-face interviews were used to gather the data which were analysed using a thematic approach. Results: Three major themes of the environmental barriers experienced by the study participants that emerged were social, attitudinal and physical barriers. Sub-themes that arose within the social barriers theme included lack of social support and inaccessible physiotherapy services. In terms of attitudinal barriers, the participants reported negative attitudes of others towards them. The sub themes related to physical barriers as described by the participants were inaccessible pathways and toilets. Conclusion: The findings of this study highlight the need for interventions that include awareness and education of communities about disability and advocating for accessible services and physical structures for persons with disabilities

Assessment of the educational environment of physiotherapy students at the University of Rwanda using the Dundee Ready Educational Environment Measure (DREEM)

Background. Getting students’ feedback regarding their experience of their educational environment (EE) is important.Objectives. To explore how physiotherapy students at the University of Rwanda (UR) feel about their EE.Methods. A descriptive quantitative cross-sectional study design with a census sampling strategy involving all physiotherapy students at UR was used. The Dundee Ready Educational Environment Measure was administered to 77 physiotherapy students in March 2015, to collect data that were analysed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences version 20 (IBM Corp., USA). The frequency distribution, mean, standard deviation and percentages were calculated, and the χ2 test was performed to assess whether responses showed significant variance according to level of study and gender. The level of significance (p-value) was set at 0.05.Results. The overall mean score on the 50 items was 62.20%. Students’ perception of learning scored the highest, with 66.58%, followed by students’ perception of atmosphere with 65.08%, students’ perception of teachers with 61.11% and students’ academic self-perception with 57.78%. The domain of students’ social self-perception scored the least, with 56.50%. All the domains scored positively toward the EE. There was no significant difference between male and female students, or between first-, second-, third- and fourth-year students regarding their perceptions of the EE.Conclusion. The physiotherapy students perceived UR as providing a sound EE. However, the data showed that there is a need for improvement in all five subscales of the learning environment at UR. Similar studies from other academic programmes at UR and other academic institutions in Rwanda are encouraged

Promoting Clinical Reasoning using the International Classification of Function, Disability and Health (ICF) Framework for Continuing Education Development in Rwanda

No abstract available

The emerging pattern of disability in Rwanda

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to describe the emerging pattern of disability (activity limitation) in terms of its prevalence, age and gender distribution in Rwanda. Method: A door-to-door survey was conducted in all households in villages from two districts selected through a multi-stage sampling procedure. Identified persons were screened for activity limitations using age-appropriate instruments developed from domains in the ICF. Proportions were computed and disaggregated by age group, gender, district and activity limitation. A multi-disciplinary rehabilitation team including community members participated in the development of instruments, community mobilisation, data collection and collation. Results: Prevalence rates of 8.6% (Bugesera) and 14.7% (Musanze) were obtained. The prevalence of disability was higher in adults than in children in both districts (10.4% versus 6.6% in Bugesera and 19.6% versus 7.7% in Musanze). Visual limitations occurred the most frequently in both adults and children in both districts. Mobility and mental health limitations also notably contributed to the overall disability burden. Conclusion: The prevalence of disability obtained was higher than all previously reported data for Rwanda. Despite the limitations, the findings provide useful information for planning rehabilitation services and to direct future enquiry into the epidemiology of disability in Rwanda. Implications for Rehabilitation It is important to design specific surveys to measure disability using contemporary methods to gauge the situation accurately and qualitatively. Currently, the ICF provides the best framework to describe the epidemiology of disability meaningfully; it enables comparisons within and between countries and regions of the world; and enables the active participation of a wide range of rehabilitation stakeholders including PWDs and lay community members. The vast majority of disabilities in Rwanda are limitations in visual, mobility and mental health functions

Promoting Clinical Reasoning using the International Classification of Function, Disability and Health (ICF) Framework for Continuing Education Development in Rwanda

No abstract available

Association Between Key Performance Indicators and Patient Outcomes in Low and Middle-Income Countries in the INTERSTROKE Study

No abstract available