scholarly journals Community Needs Assessment of Ten Rural Villages in Karnataka and Tamil Nadu, India 

Author(s):  
Tanzim Bhuiya ◽  
Krima Thakker ◽  
Julia Hyacinthe ◽  
Eric Cioe-Pena

Abstract Background: India’s health disparities are clearly visible in the southern state of Karnataka. A community needs assessment, one of the first done in this area in over a decade, was conducted to identify unsatisfied needs. The Northwell Center for Global Health worked alongside a local boarding school, Shanti Bhavan, to conduct a needs assessment using the Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s Community Assessment for Public Health Emergency Response tool. Methods: A community based cross-sectional survey design was implemented in ten rural villages in Karnataka throughout February 2019. The target population for this study included people that earned less than US$2 / day. The survey instrument consisted of a questionnaire and tracking form. Results: 197 of 359 households participated in the survey which encompassed a total of 1023 individuals. Proper housing structure was the most common need (27.7 %) followed by access to transportation (16.1 %) and access to healthcare (15.2 %). Agitated behavior, sad mood, and frequent worries were the most experienced behavioral health concerns with 47.7%, 41.6% and 41.1 % prevalence respectively. Chronic diseases (i.e. high blood pressure, diabetes, asthma) were prevalent in 35 of the households (9.7%). The major disease concern in relation to mosquito borne illness was Dengue (36.0 %). Access to healthcare was an issue in 44 of the 197 households (22.3%) with financial reasons being the most common barrier. Conclusions: Notably, there were no expressed needs for basic necessities such as food, water and medication. This may be due to the help of state programs or a limitation of the survey format. Respondents were most concerned with Dengue but are also at risk for other vector diseases such as Malaria and Chikungunya, highlighting the need to increase awareness and safety measures. Additionally, mental health problems represented a significant burden of disease.

Author(s):  
D. Alagu Niranjan ◽  
Dipak Kumar Bose

Aims: To study the adoption of climate resilient practices by the farmers in the dryland region. Study Design: Cross-sectional survey design was used for the present descriptive study. Place and Duration of Study: The study was conducted in Sam Higginbottom University of Agriculture, Technology and Sciences, Allahabad (Prayagraj) during the year of 2018 and for the period of 6 months. Methodology: The study used direct interview method with the subjects using a structured and pre-tested interview schedule for primary data collection in the sampled area which is an industrialized taluk of Tamil Nadu. The selection of area was purposeful, whereas, selection of villages was random and 15 respondents form each village was convenient. The collected data was tabulated and interpreted using descriptive statistics and correlation analysis. Results: The results of the study suggest that there is a poor adoption level of climate resilient practices existing among the dryland farmers. While, some of the practices like incorporation of residues in to soil instead of burning, brown and green manuring, conservation tillage, temperature tolerant varieties, farm machinery custom hiring centre, location specific intercropping systems, crop rotation, usage of better planting materials, prophylaxis, custom hiring centre and weather based insurance were adopted to some extent. Though there was no specific intervention to sensitize on these practices, adoption of above mentioned practices were found which could be due to the passive adaptation by the farmers of the locality over years. And the results of correlation analysis revealed that there is a significant relationship between adoption of climate resilient practices and variables like the respondents’ education, exposure to mass media exposure, contacts with extension agents, innovativeness level, risk orientation and scientific orientation at 0.01% level of significance. Conclusion: The results of the study will definitely help in evaluating government projects (as baseline) like National Initiative on Climate Resilient Agriculture, and strengthening programme planning and implementation in climate change.


Author(s):  
D. Alagu Niranjan ◽  
Dipak Kumar Bose

Aims: To understand the dryland famer’s knowledge towards climate change, its causes and its impacts. And to find the constraints associate in adoption of climate resilient practices in the region. Study Design: For the present descriptive study, cross-sectional survey design was used. Place and Duration of Study: The study was conducted in Sam Higginbottom University of Agriculture, Technology and Sciences, Allahabad during the year 2018. Methodology: Climate change study in dryland region is very relevant; so a study was conducted at Sivakasi (a highly industrialized taluk) of Tamil Nadu which falls under dryland region. The data collection was done using structured interview schedule with 120 farmers. Method of data collection is face to face interview. Results: The study revealed that the level of knowledge towards climate change is medium and it is influenced by various factors like education, mass media exposure, extension contacts, innovativeness, risk orientation, scientific orientation and social participation positively. The major constraints in the adoption of climate resilient practices are high cost, lack of awareness and lack of adequate infrastructure. Some of the suggestions expressed by the farmers to improve adoption for the open ended questions are categorized as, improving advisory, strengthening infrastructure and extending policy support. Conclusion: The results of the research would help the extension workers to understand dryland farmer’s needs for effective programme implementation.


2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 01-07
Author(s):  
Alfred Eboh

Background: The hawking of wares by children has been a serious issue confronting the Nigerian society. Children hawk in some of the most horrible conditions conceivable, where they face a serious risk of injury, chronic illness, kidnapping, rape or death. Objective: The focus of this study was to assess the perceived effects of street hawking on the well-being of children in Anyigba, Dekina Local Government Area of Kogi State. Methods: The population of this study consists of parents of the street hawkers in Anyigba while cross-sectional survey design was used through the purposive sampling technique to choose the sample size of one hundred and sixty-two (162) respondents. The validated structured questionnaire and In-Depth Interviews (IDIs) served as the instruments for the data collection respectively. The hypotheses were tested using Chi-Square at a predetermined 0.05 level of significance. The quantitative data were analysed with the aid of the SPSS (version 20). Results: The results indicated among others that street hawking had significant social implications and physical consequences on children's moral behaviour as well as health status in the study area. Conclusion: The study, therefore, concluded that the government of Kogi State should carry out an enlightenment campaign through the media and religious institutions on the negative consequences of street hawking are recommended as panacea. Also, the child right act instrument and its implementation should be strengthened in order to curb street hawking in the study area.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dalowar Hossan

The purpose of this article is to examine the influence of corporate social responsibility practices of Dutch-Bangla Bank Limited (DBBL), Bangladesh and to know the client’s knowledge, feedback, awareness and eagerness towards the CSR activities while choosing a bank. This study also investigates the level of present and expected CSR contribution of this bank. A cross- sectional survey design was used for the study featuring a self administered questionnaire and data were collected from 100 clients at South Surma branch. Data were analyzed using SPSS and the findings revealed that CSR activities played an important role for clients to choose a bank. Most of the clients were aware of CSR program and they had positive reaction to CSR practices of DBBL. Clients also suggested to expand CSR practices and they were willing to contribute for social activities financially. The results show the policy implications for business community, citizen, customers, investors, managers and other stakeholders.


2020 ◽  
pp. 1-10
Author(s):  
Colin J. McMahon ◽  
Justin T. Tretter ◽  
Theresa Faulkner ◽  
R. Krishna Kumar ◽  
Andrew N. Redington ◽  
...  

Abstract Objective: This study investigated the impact of the Webinar on deep human learning of CHD. Materials and methods: This cross-sectional survey design study used an open and closed-ended questionnaire to assess the impact of the Webinar on deep learning of topical areas within the management of the post-operative tetralogy of Fallot patients. This was a quantitative research methodology using descriptive statistical analyses with a sequential explanatory design. Results: One thousand-three-hundred and seventy-four participants from 100 countries on 6 continents joined the Webinar, 557 (40%) of whom completed the questionnaire. Over 70% of participants reported that they “agreed” or “strongly agreed” that the Webinar format promoted deep learning for each of the topics compared to other standard learning methods (textbook and journal learning). Two-thirds expressed a preference for attending a Webinar rather than an international conference. Over 80% of participants highlighted significant barriers to attending conferences including cost (79%), distance to travel (49%), time commitment (51%), and family commitments (35%). Strengths of the Webinar included expertise, concise high-quality presentations often discussing contentious issues, and the platform quality. The main weakness was a limited time for questions. Just over 53% expressed a concern for the carbon footprint involved in attending conferences and preferred to attend a Webinar. Conclusion: E-learning Webinars represent a disruptive innovation, which promotes deep learning, greater multidisciplinary participation, and greater attendee satisfaction with fewer barriers to participation. Although Webinars will never fully replace conferences, a hybrid approach may reduce the need for conferencing, reduce carbon footprint. and promote a “sustainable academia”.


2021 ◽  
pp. 089719002110007
Author(s):  
Caitlin K. Cameron ◽  
Ahmad A. Alamer ◽  
Eliane Fossati ◽  
Gamal Raslan ◽  
Tiffany Nguyen ◽  
...  

Background: The pharmacy profession has experienced dramatic shifts in scopes of practice, services offered, and employment opportunities over the last couple decades. At the same time, the number of students graduating from pharmacy school each year has steadily increased. The combined effect of these factors is a tightening labor market. Identification of potential knowledge and skill deficits in the applicant pool will create opportunity for pharmacists to tailor their personal development and educators to design content to address contemporary needs. Objective: To determine if the current pharmacist pool meets employment needs in Arizona with respect to specific skills and knowledge. Methods: In a cross-sectional survey design, Arizona licensed pharmacists were asked to provide their perspective of the knowledge and skills of candidates for pharmacist positions within 8 skill & knowledge domains. Descriptive statistics were used for respondents’ characteristics. A multivariate logistic regression was used for association between respondent characteristics and responses. Free responses were assessed using a qualitative thematic analysis. Results: Among 685 respondents, 88% were employed, 48% had precepting experience, and 44% were involved with hiring. The majority were from chain community pharmacies (33%) and inpatient settings (22%). Management and conflict resolution skills were reported as lacking by 35% and 28% of respondents respectively; 24% reported insufficient compounding knowledge. Conclusion: Our findings suggest knowledge deficits in management, conflict resolution, and compounding. This information can be used for career planning and for educational program development or curricular enhancements. Similar studies in other regions will provide data on national needs.


2020 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 37-44
Author(s):  
Koawo Edjah ◽  
Francis Ankomah ◽  
Ebenezer Domey ◽  
John Ekow Laryea

AbstractStress is concomitant with students’ life and can have a significant impact on their lives, and even how they go about their academic work. Globally, in every five visits by patients to the doctor, three are stress-related problems. This study examined stress and its impact on the academic and social life among students of a university in Ghana. The descriptive cross-sectional survey design was employed. Using the stratified and simple random (random numbers) sampling methods, 500 regular undergraduate students were engaged in the study. A questionnaire made up of Perceived Stress Scale and Students’ Life Satisfaction Scale was used to gather data for the study. Frequencies, percentages, means and standard deviation, and Structural Equation Modeling (SEM), with AMOS were used for the analyses. It was found that majority of the students were moderately stressed. Paramount among the stressors were academic stressors, followed by institutional stressors, and external stressors. Stress had a significant positive impact on the academic and social life of students. It was concluded that undergraduate students, in one way or the other, go through some kind of stress during the course of their study. It was recommended that the university, through its Students’ Affairs, and Counselling Sections, continue to empower students on how to manage and deal with stress in order to enhance their academic life.


SAGE Open ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 215824401881104
Author(s):  
Kamaruddin Arshad ◽  
Qi Ying Lean ◽  
Long Chiau Ming ◽  
Sundara Rajan Mahalingam ◽  
Chua Say Tiong ◽  
...  

Environmental health (EH) is the study of environment and environmental factors affecting the health of human. Identifying the most relevant and up-to-date and updated teaching topics of EH programs is vital to ensure competent practitioners are nurtured. Thus, this study aimed to attain the view of current content of EH programs for EH professionals and intended to recommend topics necessary for education and practice. The level of importance of current and newly proposed topics for EH courses at diploma and bachelor’s level was assessed using a cross-sectional survey design. Practicing EH programs graduates were invited via social media and e-mails to participate in the survey. The respondents were asked to rank the importance of different EH topics based on 5-point Likert-type scale. Descriptive statistics were employed to report the importance of EH curricula at Malaysian tertiary institutions. It was found that between diploma’s and bachelor’s level, the bachelor’s graduates were expected to have high exposure in existing topics such as vector control management, legislation for EH and safety, health and safety risk assessment, as well as newly proposed topics including critical literature evaluation and innovation in creating awareness activities. The findings from this survey could serve as a guide to improvise EH curricula to ensure the EH programs continue to produce students with the necessary skills, knowledge, and competencies.


2021 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna O’Sullivan ◽  
Anette Alvariza ◽  
Joakim Öhlén ◽  
Cecilia Larsdotter

Abstract Background It is widely recognised, that family members are central to care of people with advanced illness, and that support should be provided to all family members in need thereof. The aim of this study was to investigate family members’ experiences of support received during the last three months of life, at the time of death and after the death of a person with advanced illness. Methods A retrospective cross-sectional survey design was employed, using the VOICES(SF) questionnaire and multiple methods for data analyses. The sample consisted of 485 bereaved family members (aged: 20–90 years old, 70% women) of people who died in hospital between August 2016-April 2017. Results Of the family members, 58,8% reported they had received enough help and support during the illness, whereas 30,2% had not. Family members’ comments about support during the illness were mainly related to care the ill person had or had not received, rather than about support they themselves received. Of all family members, 52,8% reported having had enough support at the time of the ill person’s death. Related to support at death, 14,6% reported that the imminence of death was not clear, which was described as having affected their opportunity to be with the dying person at the time of death. Of all, 25,2% had a follow-up conversation after the death, 48% did not and did not want to, and 21% had no follow-up conversation, but would have liked one. A follow-up conversation was described as helpful for the bereavement process, and disappointment was expressed when not receiving support after the death. Conclusions Family members’ experiences of support were partly related to whether the ill person’s care needs were fulfilled. Healthcare staff expressing empathy and respect in the care of dying people and their family members were important for family members’ experiences of support. Family members’ difficulty recognising that death was imminent and the importance of healthcare staff providing them with clear information were expressed in connection with support at death. Follow-up conversations were valued by family members, especially if with a healthcare professional who was present at the time of death.


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