Maximizing the Impact of Voluntary Medical Male Circumcision for HIV Prevention in Zambia by Targeting High-Risk Men: A Pre/Post Program Evaluation

AIDS and Behavior - A well-documented barrier to voluntary medical male circumcision (VMMC) is financial loss due to the missed opportunity to work while undergoing and recovering from VMMC. We...     

Market vegetable hygiene practices and health risk perceptions of vegetable sellers in urban Ghana

The paper examines the hygiene practices and health risk perception of vegetable sellers in urban Ghana. Based on a qualitative in-depth study of vegetable sellers drawn from five purposively sampled markets in Kumasi Metropolis, the study found that the vegetable sellers have generally low risk perception. Consequently, the vegetable handling practices by these market women remain largely unsafe presenting potential health risks to consumers. Regular monitoring by relevant agencies and sustained public education are therefore key for reducing market contamination which is critical for maintaining a healthy population.     

Community Markets for Conservation (COMACO) links biodiversity conservation with sustainable improvements in livelihoods and food production

In the Luangwa Valley, Zambia, persistent poverty and hunger present linked challenges to rural development and biodiversity conservation. Both household coping strategies and larger-scale economic development efforts have caused severe natural resource degradation that limits future economic opportunities and endangers ecosystem services. A model based on a business infrastructure has been developed to promote and maintain sustainable agricultural and natural resource management practices, leading to direct and indirect conservation outcomes. The Community Markets for Conservation (COMACO) model operates primarily with communities surrounding national parks, strengthening conservation benefits produced by these protected areas. COMACO first identifies the least food-secure households and trains them in sustainable agricultural practices that minimize threats to natural resources while meeting household needs. In addition, COMACO identifies people responsible for severe natural resource depletion and trains them to generate alternative income sources. In an effort to maintain compliance with these practices, COMACO provides extension support and access to high-value markets that would otherwise be inaccessible to participants. Because the model is continually evolving via adaptive management, success or failure of the model as a whole is difficult to quantify at this early stage. We therefore test specific hypotheses and present data documenting the stabilization of previously declining wildlife populations; the meeting of thresholds of productivity that give COMACO access to stable, high-value markets and progress toward economic self-sufficiency; and the adoption of sustainable agricultural practices by participants and other community members. Together, these findings describe a unique, business-oriented model for poverty alleviation, food production, and biodiversity conservation.     

In-school adolescents’ knowledge,access to and use of sexual and reproductive health services in Metropolitan Kumasi,Ghana

Objective

Problematic access to and use of sexual and reproductive health (SRH) services potentially endanger the well-being of adolescents and retards progress towards attainment of United Nations health-related Sustainable Development Goals. Drawing on a qualitative research approach, this paper examines the level of SRH-related knowledge, service access and use among school-going adolescents in Kumasi Metropolis, Ghana.

Methods

We conducted 12 focus group discussions and 18 in-depth interviews with 132 in-school adolescents and six healthcare providers in the metropolis. A thematic analytical framework was used to analyse the data.

Results

Findings suggest that the majority of adolescents had good knowledge about the available SRH services, with an emphasis on the different forms of contraceptives. However, the use of the various SRH services was challenging and reduced to counselling services. Adolescents were faced with various difficulties in their bid to access SRH services, including social stigma, attitude of service providers, fear of teachers and the anticipated negative response of parents due to the complex socio-cultural structure of Ghanaian society. Discussion with elders about SRH issues was considered a taboo.

Conclusion

Whilst social negotiation with parents, teachers and SRH service providers as well as school curricula alignment could arrest the barriers to adolescents’ access to SRH services, eHealth services such as the ‘Bisa’ Health App could potentially provide easy and cost-effective access to SRH information among in-school adolescents.

     

Sexual risk behavior and uptake of HIV counseling and testing among youth in Metropolitan Kumasi,Ghana

Research on HIV counselling and testing (HCT) has proliferated in Ghana but limited evidence exists about the uptake of HCT among a large population that has been shown to engage in HIV risk-related behavior in Metropolitan Kumasi. With retrospective cross-sectional data from a representative sample of sexually active young people, multivariate logistic regression models examine the variables associated with HCT uptake in Kumasi. Among 906 participants (male 51% and female 49%, with a mean age ±SD, 25?±?6), 22% had utilized HCT in the last six months despite the higher knowledge of HCT (84%) mainly through mass media (65%) and health providers (27%). Besides, less than 20% of the sample intended to undergo HCT services. Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that female gender (adjusted odds ratio [aOR]?=?1.830; 95% CI: 1.280–47.831; p?p?=?0.040), having sexual intercourse with irregular partner (aOR?=?5.597; 95% CI: 1.776–17.638; p?=?0.018), practiced unprotected sex (aOR?=?2.614; 95% CI: 1.821–6.472; p?=?0.002), having multiple sex partners (aOR?=?2.902; 95% CI: 1.405–7.226; p?p?相似文献