Browsing by Author "Akech, Stella Immaculate"

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    Bacteriological Quality of Drinking Water and Associated Factors at Community Point Sources, in Arua District, Uganda.
    (Lira University, 2022) Asiku, Norman; Akech, Stella Immaculate; Opio, Bosco
    Introduction: This section summarizes the objectives, methodology, results and conclusions of the study. Background: Sufficient quantity and good quality of water is paramount for life. However, majority of the world’s population lack access to adequate and safe water. Every year, more than 3.4 million people die as a result of water-related diseases, and in Uganda, it is estimated that about 89,000 cases and 3,000 deaths occur annually due to cholera. Broad objective: To assess the bacteriological quality of drinking water and associated factors at community water source points in Arua District. Method: A cross-sectional study design was used, with Laboratory based experiment. Sample size of 140 was used. Dependent variable was the presence of the count of coliform forming units of bacteria on the filter membrane meanwhile independent variables were the hazard, pathway and indirect factors obtained through the sanitary inspection checklist. Data was entered into Excel spread sheet and imported for analysis to Stata/SE 15.0. Result: Majority (70.71%) of the water sources had bacteria, the predominant isolated indicator organism was total coliform. The following risk factors showed statistical association with bacteria presence in drinking water source; drainage for wastewater being defective with aOR of 19.7[5.34 72.72], parts of appliances being loose aOR of 10.7[2.52 45.92] and defective/lack of fence aOR of 9.2[2.43 34.96] all with P-value <0.001. Conclusion: Treatment of drinking water sources, regular water quality surveillance, cleaning, repairing spoiled appliance parts, fencing and repairing of spoiled fences among others to mitigate bacteriological contamination of water sources are required.
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    Knowledge, Attitude and Practices on Water, Sanitation and Hygiene among the Community in Lira District
    (Lira University, 2022) Akullu, Milly Grace; Akech, Stella Immaculate; Kigongo, Eustes
    Background: In Uganda, more than half of the households use unimproved sanitation facilities, with only 19% of the households owning improved facilities, leading to the prevalence of sanitation-related diseases among the general population. The Government of Uganda has implemented community-led total sanitation by engaging the community in sustaining their own sanitation. The study assessed the knowledge, attitudes and practices among the community regarding WASH following the implementation of the CLTS program in Lira District. Methods: The study employed a cross-sectional design. Data was collected from 528 respondents using a close-ended questionnaires and analyzed using STATA version 17 at univariate, bivariate, and multivariate levels. Results: According to the study, the majority of the respondents (181;35.6%) were between the ages of 18 and 30, male (305;57.9%), and had a primary education (371;70.1%). The study also found out that earning between 50,000 and 100,000 Ugandan shillings (AOR=0.39, CI: 0.19-0.83), not knowing ways of preventing water borne diseases (AOR=0.29, CI: 0.14-0.61), not feeling the importance of having hand washing facilities (AOR=0.14, CI: 0.06-0.36) and not having a tippy tap (AOR=0.33, CI: 0.17-0.66) were associated with poor wash practices. Conclusion: Therefore, the researcher concluded that the WASH practices of community members were suboptimal and below the MOH target of the appropriate hygiene practice of WASH. Recommendations: Through this finding, better interventions and policies to reduce the burden of WASH related diseases be intensified, and also there is a need to intensify sensitization on water-related diseases and prevention, as well as enforce the installation, use and sustainability of hand washing facilities among the community in Lira District. Key words: Knowledge, Attitude, Practices on Water, Sanitation and Hygiene
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    Medical Waste Management Practices and Associated Factors Among Health Workers in Public Health Facilities Within Lira City, Northern Uganda
    (Lira University, 2023) Okii, Richard; Akech, Stella Immaculate; Musinguzi, Marvin
    Background: According to research done at Lira Regional Referral Hospital (LRRH), only 56 percent of medical professionals appropriately manage medical waste. If not appropriately disposed of, these wastes can cause major health risks to health workers and communities, including injuries, infections, trauma, wounds, and environmental contamination. The objective was: To examine the medical waste management practices and associated factors among health workers in public health facilities in Lira City, Northern Uganda. Methods: This was a cross-sectional study conducted in public health facilities in Lira City in July, 2023. The study population was health workers and the sample size of 200 was determined using the Yamane formula (1967). Simple random sampling and a structured questionnaire were used to collect the data. Data were entered in SPSS version 23 and further analyzed in STATA version 15 at three levels including univariate (descriptive statistics), bivariate (cross tabulations X2), and multivariate level (multivariate logistic regression). Ethical approval was obtained from Lira University Research and Ethics Committee (LUREC) and the ethical considerations were observed during data collection. Results: Just over one-quarter (28.5%) of the health workers in public health facilities had good practices towards medical waste management. The predictors of good medical waste management practices included having knowledge about medical waste disposal (AOR=1.53, p=0.021, 95% CI 0.44-5.4), and occupation (AOR=2.757, p=0.04, CI 0.94-4.12) Conclusion: There are poor medical waste management practices in facilities in Lira City. We recommend that the government of Uganda should provide enough supplies to the facilities, City Health Authorities should conduct continuous medical education for the workers, and there should be supervision of health workers to ensure proper management of medical waste. Keywords: Medical Waste, Health Workers, Public Health Facilities
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    Parents’ Readiness to Vaccinate Their Children Aged 5 to 17 Years Against Covid-19 and Its Associated Factors in Lira District, Uganda
    (Pediatric Health, Medicine and Therapeutics, 2023) Puleh, Sean Steven; Kigongo, Eustes; Opio, Innocent Ojok; Akech, Stella Immaculate; Opollo, Marc Sam; Achan, Everlyne; Acen, Joy; Anyolitho, Maxson Kenneth; Acup, Walter; Amir, Kabunga
    Background: Data on parents’ readiness to vaccinate their children aged 5 to 17 years against COVID-19 is still scarce. This study assessed parents’ readiness to vaccinate their children aged 5 to 17 years against COVID-19 and factors associated in Lira district, Uganda. Methods and Materials: A cross-sectional survey employing quantitative methods was conducted between October and November 2022 among 578 parents of children aged 5–17 years in 3 sub-counties in Lira district. An interviewer-administered questionnaire was used to collect data. Data was analyzed using descriptive statistics including means, percentages, frequencies, and odds ratios. Logistic regression was used to determine associations between the factors and the readiness of parents at a 95% level of significance. Results: Out of 634 participants, 578 responded to the questionnaire, giving a response rate of 91.2%. The majority of the parents (327, 56.8%) were female, had children aged between 12 and 15 years (266, 46.4%), and had completed primary education (351, 60.9%). Most of the parents were Christian (565, 98.4%), married (499, 86.6%), and had been vaccinated against COVID-19 (535, 92.6%). Results also indicated that 75.6% (ranging from 71.9% to 78.9%) of the parents were unwilling to vaccinate their children for the COVID-19 virus. The predictors of readiness were the age of the child (AOR: 2.02; 95% CI: 0.97–4.20; p=0.05) and lack of trust in the vaccine (AOR: 3.33; 95% CI: 1.95–5.71; p0.001). Conclusion: Our study shows that parents’ readiness to vaccinate their children aged 5 to 17 years was only 24.6%, which is suboptimal. The predictors of hesitancy were the age of the child and a lack of trust in the vaccine. Based on our results, the Ugandan authorities should provide health education interventions targeting parents to combat mistrust with respect to COVID-19 and the COVID-19 vaccine and highlight the benefits of the vaccines. Keywords: children, minors, hesitancy, readiness, vaccination
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    Parents’ Readiness to Vaccinate Their Children Aged 5 to 17 Years Against Covid-19 and Its Associated Factors in Lira District, Uganda
    (Pediatric Health, Medicine and Therapeutics Dovepress, 2023) Puleh, Sean Steven; Kigongo, Eustes; Opio, Innocent Ojok; Akech, Stella Immaculate; Opollo, Marc Sam; Achan, Everlyne; Acen, Joy; Anyolitho, Maxson Kenneth; Acup, Walter; Kabunga, Amir
    Background: Data on parents’ readiness to vaccinate their children aged 5 to 17 years against COVID-19 is still scarce. This study assessed parents’ readiness to vaccinate their children aged 5 to 17 years against COVID-19 and factors associated in Lira district, Uganda. Methods and Materials: A cross-sectional survey employing quantitative methods was conducted between October and November 2022 among 578 parents of children aged 5–17 years in 3 sub-counties in Lira district. An interviewer-administered questionnaire was used to collect data. Data was analyzed using descriptive statistics including means, percentages, frequencies, and odds ratios. Logistic regression was used to determine associations between the factors and the readiness of parents at a 95% level of significance. Results: Out of 634 participants, 578 responded to the questionnaire, giving a response rate of 91.2%. The majority of the parents (327, 56.8%) were female, had children aged between 12 and 15 years (266, 46.4%), and had completed primary education (351, 60.9%). Most of the parents were Christian (565, 98.4%), married (499, 86.6%), and had been vaccinated against COVID-19 (535, 92.6%). Results also indicated that 75.6% (ranging from 71.9% to 78.9%) of the parents were unwilling to vaccinate their children for the COVID-19 virus. The predictors of readiness were the age of the child (AOR: 2.02; 95% CI: 0.97–4.20; p=0.05) and lack of trust in the vaccine (AOR: 3.33; 95% CI: 1.95–5.71; p0.001). Conclusion: Our study shows that parents’ readiness to vaccinate their children aged 5 to 17 years was only 24.6%, which is suboptimal. The predictors of hesitancy were the age of the child and a lack of trust in the vaccine. Based on our results, the Ugandan authorities should provide health education interventions targeting parents to combat mistrust with respect to COVID-19 and the COVID-19 vaccine and highlight the benefits of the vaccines.