The role of employers in facilitating smoking cessation among staff: perspective of drivers in a Nigerian university

Background: Several interventions have been instituted to encourage smoking cessation among smokers. Many adults are currently working and spend several hours a day at work. Employers thus have a role to play in encouraging staff who smoke to quit. This study investigated the perception of drivers employed in the University of Ibadan, Nigeria on the role of their employers in facilitating smoking cessation among staff who smoke.Methods: All 176 drivers employed by the University and who were available on the days of the interviews were interviewed. A semi-structured questionnaire was used to obtain information on drivers’ opinion on the role of employers in facilitating smoking cessation among staff.Results: All the drivers were male and had a mean age of 51.2 ± 5.8 years. Five (2.8%) drivers were current smokers. One hundred and thirty-six (77.3%) drivers were of the opinion that their employers had a role to play in encouraging smoking cessation among staff who smoke. They felt this could be done by organizing workshops to sensitize staff on the dangers of smoking 73 (53.7%), educating staff about the health effects of smoking 26 (19.1%) and arresting staff caught smoking during official hours 20 (14.7%).Conclusions: Many of the drivers felt that their employers had a role to play in encouraging smoking cessation among staff. The University authorities should build on this and take specific steps to institute a comprehensive workplace antitobacco policy which includes smoking cessation interventions to assist staff whosmoke to quit.Keywords: Tobacco cessation, Workplace no-smoking policy, Workplace smoking cessation intervention

Knowledge and perception of Prevention of Mother to Child services amongst pregnant women accessing antenatal clinic in a Primary Health Care centre in Nigeria

Background: Few studies have assessed pregnant women’s perceptions regarding prevention of mother to child of HIV and the available services at the primary health care level in Nigeria.Objective: Assessment of knowledge and perception of antenatal clinic (ANC) attendees regarding Prevention of Mother to Child Transmission (PMTCT) of HIV at primary health care facilities in south-west Nigeria.Method: A cross-sectional survey was conducted amongst 400 antenatal attendees in a Primary Health Care centre in Ibadan, Nigeria.Results: Known methods of PMTCT were: use of anti-retroviral treatment (ART) during pregnancy (75.0%), ART at birth (65.8%) and not breastfeeding (61.8%). Previous HIV Counselling and Testing (HCT) was reported by 71%, significantly higher proportions of thosewho were married, in the third trimester of pregnancy or engaged in professional and/or skilled occupations had been tested. Regarding the HCT services provided, 92.2% understood the HIV-related health education provided, 89.7.2% reported that the timing was appropriate, 92.6% assessed the nurses’ approach as acceptable but 34.0% felt the test was forced upon them. Majority (79.6%) were aware of non-breastfeeding options of infant feeding, but only 3.5% were aware of exclusive breastfeeding for a stipulated period as an infant feeding option. Nevertheless, the majority of the women found the non-breast feeding option culturally unacceptable.Conclusion: Women in this survey were knowledgeable about the methods of PMTCT, but had negative perceptions regarding certain aspects of the HCT services and the recommended non-breastfeeding infant feeding option. Health workers should provide client friendly services and infant feeding counselling that is based on current WHO recommendations and culturally acceptable

Quality of Implementation of the School Health Program in Oyo State, South-West Nigeria: A Rural-Urban Comparative Survey

Abstract Background: The implementation of the School Health Program (SHP) is core to the realization of the goal of National Policy on Education. Despite the formulation and adoption of the National School Health Policy (NSHPo) in Nigeria in 2006, no study has been conducted to evaluate the quality of its implementation. This study was carried out to appraise the quality of implementation of the program in public primary schools in rural and urban Local Government Areas (LGAs) of Oyo State, Nigeria. Methodology: The study utilized a comparative crosssectional design. A two-stage sampling technique was used to select 49 public primary schools; 26 rural and 23 urban, from two selected LGAs. Observational checklist (OC) was used to assess the SHP in the selected rural and urban schools from the LGAs. The checklist comprised of 4 sections; the school administrative information and implementation items for each of the three main components of the SHP as listed below i.e. School Health Services (SHS), School Health Education (SHE) and Healthful School Environment (HSE). The overall quality of implementation was measured by assessing the availability, appropriateness and functionality of basic health, sanitation and education facilities on a 79-point scale (SHS-21, SHE-10, HSE-48). Scores of <40%, 40-49% and ≥50% were categorized as poor, fair and good quality of implementation of the SHP respectively. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 22. Results: All the schools in both the urban and rural public primary schools had functional Parent Teacher Association. Neither the rural nor the urban public primary schools had trained first aiders, school health assistants or school health nurses. Even though most (87.8%) of the schools had first aid boxes (rural-100% versus urban-73.9%), 56.5% and 23.1% of the first aid boxes in the urban and rural public schools contained nothing. Only 8.7% of the urban schools had a sick bay. None of the public primary schools in both the rural and urban locations had major communicable health problems, HIV/AIDS education and use and abuse of drugs in their health instruction curriculum. Majority of the schools in the rural locations (88.5%) had sources of water supply compared with 10 (43.5%) of the schools in urban LGAs. Some (38.8%) of the schools had refuse bins located either on the corridors or at the corners of the classrooms. Higher proportions of schools in the urban areas (27.8%) had dustbins compared with (20.7%) of the rural schools. Overall, (59.2%) schools had poor quality of implementation of the SHP (rural-65.4% versus urban-52.2%). Conclusion: The study revealed poor quality of implementation of the school health program in the selected rural and urban public primary schools in Oyo State as various essential equipment/items for effective school service delivery were either inadequate or lacking. There is a need for concerted efforts to improve/upgrade the standard of the program in both rural and urban public primary schools in the State

Experiences of discrimination among youth with HIV/AIDS in Ibadan, Nigeria

Nigerian youth currently bear a disproportionate burden of the HIV epidemic. This paper presents findings on the occurrence of HIVrelated discrimination among youth with HIV accessing care in Ibadan, Nigeria. A cross-sectional study was conducted and information on history of discrimination experienced by 170 youth with HIV was obtained. About 80% of respondents had disclosed their HIV status. The majority had informed their spouses (66.3%), mothers (47.1%), fathers (39.1%) and siblings (37.7%). Sixteen (11.5%) respondents [15 (93.8%) females and one (6.2%) male] had suffered discrimination since disclosure of their status. Of these, 25.0% respondents were sent out of their matrimonial homes by their husbands, 25.0% were abandoned by their spouses and 12.5% indicated their fiancé broke up their relationship. A higher proportion of females (12.9%) than males (4.3%) had suffered discrimination. In addition, a significant proportion of respondents who were separated/divorced (73.3%) had been victims of discrimination compared with those who were widowed (10.5%) or single (5.9%) (P<0.05). The study confirmed that young people living with HIV/AIDS, especially women experience extreme forms of discrimination. More efforts aimed at addressing HIV/AIDS-related discrimination are required especially as it is a known barrier to HIV prevention and treatment efforts

Incidence and pattern of injuries among residents of a rural area in South-Western Nigeria: a community-based study

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Despite the high incidence of infectious diseases in developing countries, injuries still contribute significantly to the health burden. There are few reports of rural, community-based injury surveys in Nigeria. This study describes the incidence and pattern of injuries among the residents of a rural area in South-Western Nigeria.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>It was a community based cross-sectional study. Two of six census areas were randomly selected and all households in the two areas visited. Information on the sociodemographic characteristics, individual injury events and outcomes was obtained with a questionnaire. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 11.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Information was obtained on the 1,766 persons in 395 households. Fifty-nine injuries were recorded by 54 people, giving an injury incidence of 100 per 1,000 per year (95% CI = 91.4–106.9). Injury incidence among <30 years was 81.6 per 1,000 per year (95% CI = 62.3–83.1); and 126 per 1,000 per year (95% CI = 98.2–137.4) for those ≥ 30 years (p = 0.013). Injury incidence for females was 46 per 1,000 per year; and 159 per 1,000 per year (p = 0.000) for males. A significantly higher proportion of males (5%) sustained injury compared to females (2%) (p = 0.043). Falls and traffic injures, 15 (25%) each, were the leading causes of injury; followed by cuts/stabs 12 (21%), and blunt injuries, 9 (15%). Traffic injuries were the leading cause of injuries in all age groups except among the 5–14 years where falls were the leading cause of injury. In thirty-four (58%) of those injuries, treatment was at a hospital/health centre; while in two (3%), treatment was by untrained traditional practitioners. Thirty-nine (66%) of the injuries were fully recovered from, and 19 (32%) resulted in disability. There were 2 fatalities in the 5-year period, one (2%) within the study period.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Injuries were common in Igbo-Ora, though resultant disability and fatality were low. Males and those aged ≥ 30 years had significantly higher proportions of the injured. Falls and traffic injuries were the most commonly reported injuries. Appropriate interventions to reduce the occurrences of injuries should be instituted by the local authorities. There is also need to educate the community members on how to prevent injuries.</p

Tobacco use amongst out of school adolescents in a Local Government Area in Nigeria

Abstract Introduction Out-of-school adolescents are often neglected when planning for tobacco prevention programmes whereas they are more vulnerable. Few studies exist in Nigeria about their pattern of tobacco use to serve as the basis for effective policy formulation. Method A sub sample of 215 out of school adolescents was analyzed from a descriptive cross sectional study on psychoactive substance use amongst youths in two communities in a Local Government Area in Nigeria which used a multi-stage sampling technique. Results Males were 53% and females 47%. Only 20.5% had ever used tobacco while 11.6% were current users. Males accounted for 60% of current users compared to 40% amongst females. Of current users, 84% believed that tobacco is not harmful to health. In addition, the two important sources of introduction to tobacco use were friends 72% and relatives 20%. Use of tobacco amongst significant others were: friends 27%, fathers 8.0%, relatives 4.2% and mothers 0.5%. The most common sources of supply were motor parks 52% and friends 16%. Conclusion The study showed that peer influence is an important source of introduction to tobacco use while selling of tobacco to adolescents in youth aggregation areas is common. We advocate for a theory based approach to designing an appropriate health education intervention targeted at assisting adolescents in appreciating the harmful nature of tobacco use in this locality. A point-of-sale restriction to prevent adolescent access to tobacco in youth aggregation areas within the context of a comprehensive tobacco control policy is also suggested. However, more research would be needed for an in-depth understanding of the tobacco use vulnerability of this group of adolescents.Peer Reviewe

Femmes en danger de violence physique causée par le partenaire intime : analyse transversale d’une communauté à faible revenu au sud ouest du Nigéria

Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) is prevalent in Nigeria but a culture of silence exists, making it difficult to identify women at risk. A descriptive cross-sectional survey was employed to determine the prevalence and predictors of physical IPV in a low income, high density community in south west Nigeria. Among 924 interviews of everpartnered women aged 15-49 years, prevalence of lifetime experience of physical IPV was 28.2%. The significant predictors for physical IPV were previous experience of psychological abuse (adjusted OR: 4.71; 95% CI: 3.236.85); sexual abuse (aOR: 5.18; 3.21-8.36); having attitudes supportive of IPV (aOR: 1.75; 1.2-2.4); partner’s daily alcohol consumption (aOR: 2.85; 1.50-5.41); and previous engagement in a physical fight (aOR: 3.49; 1.87-6.50). Community based IPV prevention programmes targeted at breaking the cycle of abuse, transforming gender norms which support IPV and reducing alcohol consumption should be developed (Afr J Reprod Health 2012; 16[1]:43-53).La violence causée par le partenaire intime (VCPI) est répandue au Nigéria, mais il existe une culture de silence, ce qui le rend difficile à identifier les femmes en danger. A travers une étude descriptive transversale, nous avons déterminé la prévalence et les indices de la VCPI physique au sein d’une communauté à faible revenu ayant une densité bien élevée au sud-ouest du Nigéria. Parmi les 924 interviews recueillies auprès de femmes âgées de 15 à 49 ans qui ont eu des partenaires dans le passé, la prévalence d’une expérience de vie de la VCPI était de 28,2%. Les indices significatifs pour les VCPI étaient l’expérience antérieure de d’un abus psychologique (OR : 5,18) et ayant des attitudes qui soutiennent la VCPI (OR : 1,75), la consommation quotidienne d’alcool par le partenaire (OR : 22,85) et l’engagement dans le passé dans un combat physique. Il faut élaborer des programmes de prévention de la VCPI basées sur la communauté et qui cherchent à rompre le cycle d’abus, à transformer les normes des sexes qui soutiennent la VCPI et à réduire la consommation d’alcool (Afr J Reprod Health 2012; 16[1]:43-53)

Women at Risk of Physical Intimate Partner Violence: A Crosssectional Analysis of a Low-income Community in Southwest Nigeria

Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) is prevalent in Nigeria but a culture of silence exists, making it difficult to identify women at risk. A descriptive cross-sectional survey was employed to determine the prevalence and predictors of physical IPV in a low income, high density community in south west Nigeria. Among 924 interviews of everpartnered women aged 15-49 years, prevalence of lifetime experience of physical IPV was 28.2%. The significant predictors for physical IPV were previous experience of psychological abuse (adjusted OR: 4.71; 95% CI: 3.23-6.85); sexual abuse (aOR: 5.18; 3.21-8.36); having attitudes supportive of IPV (aOR: 1.75; 1.2-2.4); partner&rsquo;s daily alcohol consumption (aOR: 2.85; 1.50-5.41); and previous engagement in a physical fight (aOR: 3.49; 1.87-6.50). Community based IPV prevention programmes targeted at breaking the cycle of abuse, transforming gender norms which support IPV and reducing alcohol consumption should be developed.Keywords: Intimate partner violence, women, predictors of physical violence, urban community, south west Nigeria.Afr J Reprod Health 2012; 16[1]:43-53)