Enhancing health policymakers' information literacy knowledge and skill for policymaking on control of infectious diseases of poverty in Nigeria

Background

In Nigeria, one of the major challenges associated with evidence-to-policy link in the control of infectious diseases of poverty (IDP), is deficient information literacy knowledge and skill among policymakers. There is need for policymakers to acquire the skill to discover relevant information, accurately evaluate retrieved information and to apply it correctly.

Objectives

To use information literacy tool of International Network for Availability of Scientific Publications (INASP) to enhance policymakers'' knowledge and skill for policymaking on control of IDP in Nigeria.

Methods

Modified "before and after" intervention study design was used in which outcomes were measured on target participants both before the intervention is implemented and after. This study was conducted in Ebonyi State, south-eastern Nigeria and participants were career health policy makers. A two-day health-policy information literacy training workshop was organized to enhance participants" information literacy capacity. Topics covered included: introduction to information literacy; defining information problem; searching for information online; evaluating information; science information; knowledge sharing interviews; and training skills.

Results

A total of 52 policymakers attended the workshop. The pre-workshop mean rating (MNR) of knowledge and capacity for information literacy ranged from 2.15-2.97, while the post-workshop MNR ranged from 3.34-3.64 on 4-point scale. The percentage increase in MNR of knowledge and capacity at the end of the workshop ranged from 22.6%-55.3%.

Conclusion

The results of this study suggest that through information literacy training workshop policy makers can acquire the knowledge and skill to identify, capture and share the right kind of information in the right contexts to influence relevant action or a policy decision.     

Elevated 3,4-dihydroxyphenylethyleneglycol (DHPG) excretion in dexamethasone resistant depressed patients

1. Urinary and plasma DHPG and MHPG were estimated in patients with MADD and showing DST non-suppression as compared to those with normal suppression.

2. Day and night 12h urine collections and morning plasma samples were analyzed by GC-MS for total MHPG and DHPG and free MHPG levels.

3. Urinary DHPG excretion was significantly elevated in DST non-suppressors compared to suppressors, but no differences were found in urinary MHPG or plasma glycol levels.

4. Elevated DHPG excretion in DST non-suppressors suggests that increased peripheral sympathetic NE activity occurs in association with dexamethasone resistance in MADD.     

Gender effect on eating habits of Nigerian school children

It is important to investigate children''s eating habits based on different eating behaviors such as satiety responsiveness (SR), slowness in eating (SE), food fussiness (FF), food responsiveness (FR), enjoyment of food (EF), desire to drink (DD), emotional under-eating (EUE), and emotional over-eating (EOE). The main objective of this research was to investigate whether gender affects the eating habits of Nigerian school children.A cross-sectional survey was conducted between March and June 2019. A total of 120 parents of school children participated in the study. The Child Eating Behavior Questionnaire (CEBQ) was used to collect data. The CEBQ is composed of 35 items and eight subscales.Based on the analysis of parents’ reports, DD was higher in boys than girls, t (118) = 7.086, P < .001; EOE was higher in boys than girls, t (118) = 5.184, P < .001; EF was higher in boys than girls, t (118) = 2.183, P < .001; FF was higher in boys than girls, t (118) = 9.441, P < .001; and SR was higher in boys than girls, t (118) = 7.323, P < .001. However, EUE was lower in boys than girls, t (118) = −4.339, P < .001; FR was lower in boys than girls, t(118) = −3.112, P < .001; SE was lower in boys than girls, t(118) = −3.832, P < .001; thus, gender had a significant influence on eating habits of the school children.Gender significantly affects the eating habits of Nigerian school children. Thus, gender is an important factor to be considered when aiming to improve the eating habits of Nigerian school children.