Prevalence and pattern of psychoactive substance use among government secondary school students in central Nigeria

Introduction: psychoactive substances are chemicals that affect the nervous system and alter the activity in the brain. Such substances include alcohol and other illicit drugs. This research study aimed to determine the prevalence and pattern of psychoactive substance use among students at a government secondary school in Ilorin, Kwara State, Nigeria. Methods: this study adopts a cross-sectional descriptive survey design. A simple random sampling technique was used to select 104 students for an invitation to fill a semi-structured questionnaire after consenting to the informed consent. Correlational analyses were performed between social characteristics and the knowledge of the effects and prevalence of substance use. Results: thirty-three point seven percent (33.7) of students reported to use psychoactive substances, with alcohol and tramadol being the most consumed. Those aged 15-19 years were found to have a higher prevalence of substances use than other ages. There was an important knowledge of the social perspective and health effects of using such substances, but they persisted in their consumption. Age and school level were observed to have a statistically significant correlation with the knowledge of the effects of drug use. Conclusion: our study shows that the prevalence and pattern of psychoactive substance use among the students are high considering their level and age. The majority of the students knew about psychoactive substance use and its social and health effects. We, therefore, recommend a multi-stakeholder effort within the community to curtail drug use among young people

Factors Influencing Immunisation Schedule Adherence and Completion at the Regional Level in the Philippines

The leading causes of infant deaths are largely preventable and there are reasons from both the supply and the demand sides of healthcare why they maybe perpetuating. This study aimed to ascertain factors affecting the preventive healthcare behaviour of immunisation of infants in the Philippines which istimely because completion, or adherence, rate had plateaued in recent decades. The method employed was the creation of statistical models at sub-nationallevel. The sample contained infants born prior to the 2013 Philippines National Demographic and Health Survey to determine proper adherence to the go -vern ment-mandated immunisation schedule. This involved merging the 17 administrative regions of the country to the traditional three sub-national regions.It is observed that the higher maternal education level and improved household socioeconomic status were the most indicative factors of improved adherenceacross all regions. This is also the case to some extent with more advanced maternal ages at giving birth. Autonomy of mothers to visit healthcare facilitiesdepicts conflicting relations for different regions as well as how mothers behave depending on the nature of intention to give birth. These aspects regardingpredictive factors of preventive care have yet to be studied keenly at the regional level in the Philippines.AbstrakPenyebab utama kematian bayi sebagian besar dapat dicegah dan terdapat alasan baik dari sisi suplai maupun permintaan layanan kesehatan hal itu dapatterus berlangsung. Penelitian ini bertujuan memastikan faktor-faktor yang memengaruhi perilaku layanan kesehatan preventif imunisasi bayi di Filipina yangtepat waktu karena tingkat kelengkapan, atau kepatuhan, telah stabil dalam beberapa dekade terakhir. Metode yang digunakan adalah pembuatan modelstatistik di tingkat subnasional. Sampel berisi bayi yang lahir sebelum Survei Demografi dan Kesehatan Nasional Filipina tahun 2013 untuk menentukankepatuhan yang tepat terhadap jadwal imunisasi yang dimandatkan oleh pemerintah. Hal ini melibatkan penggabungan 17 wilayah administratif negara ketiga wilayah subnasional tradisional. Diamati bahwa tingkat pendidikan ibu yang lebih tinggi dan peningkatan status sosial ekonomi rumah tangga merupakanfaktor yang paling menunjukkan peningkatan kepatuhan di semua wilayah. Sampai taraf tertentu juga halnya dengan usia ibu yang lebih tua pada saatmelahirkan. Otonomi ibu untuk mengunjungi fasilitas kesehatan menggambarkan hubungan yang saling bertentangan untuk daerah yang berbeda, sertabagaimana ibu berperilaku tergantung pada niat dasar untuk melahirkan. Aspek-aspek mengenai faktor prediktif layanan preventif ini belum dipelajari secaramendalam pada tingkat regional di Filipina

Optimism bias regarding COVID-19: a cross-sectional study of lower-income older adults in Thailand

AbstractObjective: Understanding the discernment of individuals about their health is crucial during public health situations such as the COVID-19 pandemic. Within this theme of study is how older adults perceive their vulnerabilities because it can relate to subsequent disease preventing behaviour.Materials and methods: The analysis explored optimism bias, or the perception of infection avoidance, regarding COVID-19 among lower-income Thais aged 60 and over. The study utilized an analytic sample of 2,139 individuals from the 2021 Survey on Housing and Support Services for Poor Older Adults. Logit regression model analysis was conducted, using optimistic bias as the outcome variable.Results: Increasing age and residing in urban areas were associated with a higher likelihood of bias. On the other hand, higher educational attainment was found to decrease the association with optimistic bias, indicating higher perception of risks. Adherence of older individuals to the residence-in-place policy might have contributed to perception of lower infection risks. Urban residents had better access to welfare benefits and medical facilities, which led to reduced worry and greater optimistic bias.Conclusion: Greater understanding of the disease and preventive strategies offer insights on how higher education levels lead to perceiving possible risks surrounding COVID-19

Can Thailand achieve COVID‐19 herd immunity?

Abstract The COVID‐19 outbreak has had a great impact on the social, economic, and health systems of Thailand. A variety of measures to curb the spread of the disease were implemented since the beginning of the pandemic, including a strict national lockdown protocol. The Thai government aimed to achieve herd immunity through an efficient vaccination programme. Initially, vaccine supply shortage and a lack of vaccine options plagued the health system, but this has since been improved. Continuous monitoring of the situation through research is being carried out to assess the level of immunity among the population whereby the current general recommendation is presently a fourth booster dose for adults. Hurdles towards achieving herd immunity remain. One such issue is the low level of vaccine literacy among those that are unvaccinated or inadequately vaccinated. Another obstacle is the sizeable rate of hesitancy towards getting booster doses. Achieving herd immunity in the Thai population would require multilateral cooperation, improved health promotion to target population groups, such as older adults, and a developed distribution system for those with limited access, such as those in the rural areas

Knowledge, and practice of women on breast cancer in Herat, Afghanistan: A cross-sectional study

Background: Breast cancer prevalence is observed to be higher in developed economies, but the mortality rates due to the said disease tend to be similar or even higher among lower-income countries. Afghanistan is among these countries where breast cancer mortality has been predominant among the female population. This may be related late diagnosis and the presentation of the cancer at much later stages. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted using a survey questionnaire administered from June 2021 to July 2021 among women living in Herat province of Afghanistan. It evaluated the participants’ knowledge and practice towards breast cancer. A total of 534 women answered the survey. Data was analyzed using IBM SPSS software. Results: Lower level of knowledge about breast cancer and the limitations to the practice of breast self-examination (BSE) were found to be associated with such late detection and treatment. Using data collected in Herat Province of Afghanistan, this study examined the individual level sociodemographic factors related with the level of knowledge about breast cancer and also with the practice of BSE. It was found that 44% of the study sample of 534 women had high knowledge level. There were fewer still who performed BSE at about 12% of the respondents. Further examination showed that lower education attainment, albeit illiteracy, and the employment status were correlated with knowledge and practice surrounding breast cancer. Conclusion: This entails the need to formulate programs targeting the specific needs of women with lower socioeconomic status to build capacity toward their health and wellbeing

The challenges of the low birth rate in China

Abstract Introduction The population growth rate of China has been steadily declining owing to the low birth rate of the country. The Chinese census also indicates that the population is also rapidly ageing because of increasing life expectancy in conjunction with the low birth rate. Method We performed a commentary to point out the challenges of the low birth rate in China. A comprehensive data search was performed in data bases such as Google Scholar and PubMed using predetermined search term. Results The decline in birth rate is due to societal changes including increasing standard of living. Although the Chinese government has recently allowed couples to have up to three children in a major policy shift, many couples remain unwilling to have more than one child due to the high cost. An increasing fraction of Chinese women, particularly among the highly‐educated urban dwellers, no longer regard marriage and parenthood as essential aspects of life. Conclusion If not addressed urgently, the declining young population will impact China's future socio‐economic situation, as there will be a smaller workforce relative to an increasing dependent older population. The repercussions may cascade to other spheres of China's status, including socioeconomic, security and global influence, if not addressed decisively. It is imperative that the country develops policies, strategies, and approaches to tackle this issue, including human capital development and the use of technology and innovations

Prevalence of unmet health care need in older adults in 83 countries: measuring progressing towards universal health coverage in the context of global population ageing

Abstract Current measures for monitoring progress towards universal health coverage (UHC) do not adequately account for populations that do not have the same level of access to quality care services and/or financial protection to cover health expenses for when care is accessed. This gap in accounting for unmet health care needs may contribute to underutilization of needed services or widening inequalities. Asking people whether or not their needs for health care have been met, as part of a household survey, is a pragmatic way of capturing this information. This analysis examined responses to self-reported questions about unmet need asked as part of 17 health, social and economic surveys conducted between 2001 and 2019, representing 83 low-, middle- and high-income countries. Noting the large variation in questions and response categories, the results point to low levels (less than 2%) of unmet need reported in adults aged 60+ years in countries like Andorra, Qatar, Republic of Korea, Slovenia, Thailand and Viet Nam to rates of over 50% in Georgia, Haiti, Morocco, Rwanda, and Zimbabwe. While unique, these estimates are likely underestimates, and do not begin to address issues of poor quality of care as a barrier or contributing to unmet need in those who were able to access care. Monitoring progress towards UHC will need to incorporate estimates of unmet need if we are to reach universality and reduce health inequalities in older populations

Taliban's war on educating girls and women must end now: A call for global actions

No abstract available