Patients' knowledge of health rights and satisfaction with outpatient services at the tertiary hospitals in Enugu State, Nigeria

Background: Patient satisfaction is a key indicator for measuring the success of the health system goals, delivery quality care that is safe, equitable, patient-centered, evidence-based, timely and efficient, through interprofessional collaborative team work. Equally, patient's knowledge of their health rights will enhance better provider-patients relationship, patient satisfaction, and effective care management.Objectives: The aim of this study was to compare patients' knowledge of health rights, satisfaction with the physicians' conducts and outpatient services across three tertiary hospitals in Enugu, Nigeria.Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study of 304 patients selected from the outpatient clinics of the University of Nigeria Teaching hospital (UNTH), National Orthopaedic Hospital (NOHE), and Enugu State University of Science and Technology Teaching Hospital (ESUTH), from October to December, 2015 was conducted. A four point Likert scale, dissatisfied (1), very dissatisfied (2), moderately satisfied (3), and very satisfied (4) was applied. Knowledge of health rights were scored as follows, 0-5 poor knowledge, 6-10 good knowledge, 11 and above very good knowledge. A minimum sample size of 91 patients was calculated for each of the study hospital, but increased to100 each, to enhance precision, reduce error margin, and to contend possible nonresponses and incompleteness. A multi-stage sampling technique was applied. The data were analyzed using SPSS version 16.0.Results: Knowledge of health rights was poor in 5.9%, 20.8%, and 14.9% of patients (X2=9.61, p=0.000), and very good in 70.6%, 46.5% and 59.4% patients (X2=12.14, p=0.000) from UNTH, NOHE, and ESUTH respectively. The mean knowledge scores were 10.50 ±3.240 for UNTH; 8.72±2.953 for NOHE; and 9.93±3.151 for the ESUTH. The overall mean knowledge scores of the patients across the three hospitals was not statistically significant (F=0.000, P =1.000). Patients' overall mean satisfaction with physicians' conduct and services was 3.63±0.525 for UNTH, 3.45±0.741 for NOHE, and 3.47±0.609 for ESUTH, with no statistically significant difference (F=0.000, P =1.000). Overall mean satisfaction scores for the general outpatient services were 3.19±0.728, 3.15±0.713, and 3.00±0.721 for UNTH, NOHE, and ESUT respectively. The observed differences in the overall mean satisfaction for the general services provisions across the hospitals was not statistically significant (F=0.000, P=1.000). Patients' mean knowledge scores were statistically (p=0.000) associated with mean satisfaction with the physicians' conduct and services provision across hospitals.Conclusion: Patients knowledge of health rights and satisfaction with physicians' conducts and outpatient services across the hospitals were generally good and satisfactory, but differed statistically in-between hospitals.Keywords: Health rights, conducts, satisfaction, patients, physician

Newspaper Reportage of Foreign Exchange (Forex) Market in Nigeria

This paper investigates the Newspaper Reportage of Foreign Exchange FOREX Market in Nigeria 2015-2016 Specific objectives of the study are to ascertain the prominence given by newspapers to the Nigerian FOREX market to determine the frequency of coverage to determine the source of stories and most importantly to find out the level of interpretation of foreign exchange stories This was achieved through a review of related literature A content analytical method was adopted for the study Vanguard The Sun and The Nation newspapers were purposively selected and a sample size of 84 editions of the chosen newspapers was analyzed A total of 144 stories issues was derived from the sample size and used to address the research questions Findings revealed that there was low prominence given to stories of foreign exchange this was justified by the frequency 131 91 stories buried inside pages of the selected newspapers the frequency of publication had a considerable coverage of 144 stories the source of stories were mostly from the media which had 87 60 stories most importantly the level of interpretation was very low as 120 83 stories were straight news which is a sketchy report The study recommends that the foreign exchange market should be adequately covered in various columns like editorials features special reports etc for a detailed interpretation of the story to reader

Reform and Quality Education in Nigeria: The Imperatives of Value Reorientation through Character Education

The frustration and disappointment of scholars, political observers and ordinary people on the current problems of development in Nigeria is not news. It is now obvious that the giant of Africa is on the verge of colossal failure demonstrative of acute, chronic and rapid growth in negative developments. Despite her huge natural and human resources and phenomenal development in educational fields, why is development qua development eluding this nation?. The present effort argues that our development as a nation must come about with dismantling the current value system that favours  invidious locust mentality and ensure a conscientious pursuit of serious transformation through character education. The paper also proposes the strategies that could midwife the new Nigeria that would emerge from such advocacy. Keywords: Reform, Quality Education, Value Re-orientation, Character Education

Machine Learning Based Prediction of Urban Flood Susceptibility from Selected Rivers in a Tropical Catchment Area

Unexpected flood due to climate change has caused tremendous damage to both lives and properties, especially in tropical areas. Nigeria Southeastern region has been devastated by flood from extreme weather conditions. Flood mitigation involves accurate forecasting, precise prediction, evaluation, and intervention strategy. This study aims at using machine learning solutions to investigate and predict flood susceptibility from selected rivers in the south-eastern region of Nigeria. The regional hydrogeological data from 1981–2019 was collected and analysed. The remote sensing datasets from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), Modern-Era Retrospective Analysis for Research and Applications (MERRA) version 2 & 3 platforms from five selected rivers were processed. With the data output of the hydrology, streamline flows, and exposed geology, the ARIMA model was built and used to forecast the flood. The result shows that the flooding pattern would increase by 15-150% within 2020-2024. The forecast indicated that within five years, the river discharge for Adada, Ajali, Imo, Ivo, and Otanmiri will increase within ranges 200-702 m3s-1, 16-26 m3s-1, 508-1280 m3s-1, 43-68.5 m3s-1, and 22-35.1 m3s-1 respectively. Climate change has impacted severely on flood in the region. This knowledge will help the regional agencies and authorities in adapting to flood innuendoes and assessment of hydrologic extremes. Doi: 10.28991/CEJ-2022-08-09-08 Full Text: PD

Examining South-East University Students' Optimisation of the Feedback Tool of the Online Newspaper

The process of sending and having reactions to contents of traditional newspapers published used to be tortuous but with the online newspaper readers responses to published contents can almost be instantaneously posted online This current ease has however raised the question as to whether the tool through which users can post reactions online are appreciated and optimised by readers This study therefore looks into this optimisation within the frameworks of the agenda-setting theory and the democratic-participant theory A total of 383 students drawn from the University of Nigeria Nsukka Nnamdi Azikiwe University Awka and the Federal University of Technology Owerri were surveyed At the end findings showed that 76 of users read comments succeeding news stories on online newspapers 55 of online newspapers readers do not utilise the comment box adjourning contents to express their thoughts While 39 of the comments read by online newspaper users relate to the stories they are adjoining 41 of respondents say the comments they post on the message board have a direct bearing on the story in question It was also found that 56 of respondents believe that the process of posting reactions to stories published on web pages is still not eas

The Convergence Of Dirty Money And Private To Private Corruption: Fact Or Fiction? How Efficient Are The Tools To Contain This? A Discourse from Anglo-American and Less Developed Countries’ Perspectives

The advent of globalisation and liberalization have necessitated and escalated a momentum amongst natural and legal persons in the quest to make profits. As a result, there have been activities, characterised by ways in which to evade the orderly manner of commercial interactions, thereby evading the regulatory radars. This has generated an inquest to ascertain the symbiotic nexus between dirty money and private to private corruption. The culprits generated funds via crime in both the private and public sectors and used money laundering to reintroduce the profits into the formal system. It is at this juncture, that the convergence question presents itself. Some mechanisms or tools directed towards curbing the problems are in the form of ‘‘soft laws’’ like the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), the Basel Committee for Banking Supervision (BCBS) and the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC). The implementation is backed by the policy of ‘‘carrot and stick’’ mechanisms subtly introduced by global financial institutions exemplified by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank, exuding anti-money laundering and corruption characteristics. Some major Conventions and statutory mechanisms came in form of the United Nations Convention against Corruption 2003 (UNCAC), the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organised Crime (UNCTOC) 2000, the United Kingdom Bribery Act 2010 and US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act 1977. This has necessitated the examination of the efficiency of the combative mechanisms, as there are evidently differences in the approach to tackling the issues on account of diverse jurisdictional frameworks

Nigerian Hospital-Based Interprofessional Collaborative Patterns and Organizational Implications

Interprofessional collaboration is recognized as the innovative, evidence-based strategy that strengthens health systems and improves performance and health outcomes. While resource-rich countries have benefited much from the implementation of this initiative, literature is scarce regarding sub-Sahara Africa. This quantitative cross-sectional descriptive study described the extent of interprofessional collaborative practice at the tertiary care level in Nigeria and its implications on patient health outcomes, professionals\u27 performance, satisfaction, and healthy practice environment. The relational coordination theory (RCT) provided the conceptual framework for the study. Key research questions were on the association between the extents of interprofessional practice and each of the outcome implications. Data were collected using a questionnaire survey and were analyzed using means, standard deviations, t tests, correlation and regression statistics, and Chi-square tests. Results showed that the health professionals rated the practice of interprofessional collaboration low and perceived that the extents of the practice negatively affected patient\u27s mortality, professionals\u27 work performance, job satisfaction, and the frequency of interprofessional conflicts and strike actions. Recommendations included policy formulation and implementation, commitment and willingness by the health professionals to teamwork and patient-centered care. The implications for positive social change is that these results could be used as a tool to advocate for policy formulation and policy change for effective implementation of interprofessional collaboration; and as a database for future training intervention on collaborative practices among health professionals

Outstanding contribution to african geology a tribute to professor maarten de wit (1947 - 2022)

On the 15th April, 2022 Geology lost one of its finest brains and one of the most amiable geologists to my knowledge, Professor Maarten De Wit of South Africa. I first met amiable Maarten on July 3, 1990 while attending the 23rd Geocongress in Cape Town, South Africa. We became instant friends

Plato’s Socio-Political Philosophy: a Veritable Prescription for Achieving the Seven Point Agenda in Nigeria for National Development

Philosophy, right from its inception in antiquity, has always been a source of ideas, and inspiration for the transformation of society. In attempt to solve societal problems, philosophers ask critical questions and suggest rational answers to them just like some fundamental theories postulated by great thinkers in the past had been usefully applied to solve contemporary problems. The purpose of this exercise is to determine to what extent Plato's socio-political philosophy could serve as a veritable roadmap in resolving Nigeria’s critical challenges. The idea that runs through the work is Plato's idea of Justice which is anchored on the principle of division of labour is shown to point the way to the achievement of the 7-point agenda of the present administration. The paper concludes that governance should be an art predicated on exact knowledge of the good and that society is a mutual satisfaction of needs by individuals whose capacities supplement one another. It therefore recommends among others the need for specialized training for leaders to bring about purposeful and reliable leadership that breeds responsible followership. Keywords: Plato, Socio-Political, 7-Point Agenda, National Development

Survey of early predictive signs of poor mental health and socio-cultural beliefs about mental illness in Enugu state, Nigeria

BACKGROUND: The rising prevalence of mental disorder and the enormous emotional, financial, socio-economic and developmental burden is a source of concern and challenge to the global community. This study assessed the prevalence of major warning signs of poor mental health and socio-cultural beliefs about the mental illness among the urban and rural dwellers in Enugu State, Nigeria.METHODS: This was a descriptive, cross sectional study, using multistage sampling to recruit a total of 724 respondents, 371 from urban and 353 from rural Local Government Areas. A researcher constructed and pre-tested semi-structured questionnaire was the instrument of data collection used. William C. Menninger's questions for assessing warning signs of poor mental health was modified and adapted. Data was analysed using Epi-info version 3.5.3. Chi-square test and Student T-test statistics were used. Level of significant was set at p ≤0.05.RESULTS: Socio-cultural factors mostly believed to cause mental illness were evil spirits (51.8% Urban: 34.28% rural, X2 = 22.51, p= 0.000) and native charm (47.7% urban: 43.1% rural; X2 = 1.58, p = 0.209). Major alternative treatments recommended for the mentally ill were prayer/deliverance (59.8% urban: 54.7% rural, p=0.160) and herbal drugs/ traditional healers (31.0% urban: 35.7% rural, p=0.180). Mean scores of the signs of poor mental health among the urban and rural dwellers were 80.82±41.66 and 119.55±37.06 (t=13.19, p= 0.000); and prevalence of early warning signals of poor mental health were 21.7% for the urban and 33.87% for the rural respondents.CONCLUSION: Traditional beliefs about mental illness are still prevalent in the 21st century Nigeria. The rural dwellers have more warning signs of poor mental health than their urban counterparts. In-depth psychiatric evaluation, mental health education and counselling are advocated.Key Words: beliefs, mental health, mental illness, rural, signs, urba