Health risk assessment of indoor air quality, sociodemographic and kitchen characteristics on respiratory health among women responsible for cooking in urban settings of Oromia region, Ethiopia: a community-based cross-sectional study.

OBJECTIVES: In Ethiopia, where biomass fuel is used by the majority of the population, women who are primarily responsible for cooking are at a higher risk of having respiratory symptoms. However, there is limited information on the respiratory symptoms of exposed women. This study assessed the magnitude of respiratory disease symptoms and associated factors among women responsible for cooking in Mattu and Bedele towns, south-west Ethiopia. METHODS: A community-based cross-sectional study was conducted among 420 randomly selected women in urban settings in south-west Ethiopia. Data were collected through face-to-face interviews using a modified version of the American Thoracic Society Respiratory Questionnaire. The data were cleaned, coded and entered into EpiData V.3.1 and exported into SPSS V.22 for analysis. Bivariable and multivariable logistic regression analyses were used to identify factors associated with respiratory symptoms at a value of p<0.05. RESULTS: It is found that 34.9% of the study participants have respiratory symptoms (95% CI 30.6% to 39.4%). Unimproved floor (adjusted OR (AOR)=2.4 at 95% CI 1.42 to 4.15), presence of thick black soot in the ceiling (AOR=2.1 at 95% CI 1.2 to 3.6), using fuel wood (AOR=2.3 at 95% CI 1.1 to 4.7), using a traditional stove (AOR=3.37 at 95% CI 1.85 to 6.16), long duration of cooking (AOR=2.52 at 95% CI 1.4 to 4.5) and cooking room without a window (AOR=2.4 at 95% CI 1.5 to 3.9) were significantly associated with women's respiratory symptoms. CONCLUSION: More than two in six women who cook had respiratory symptoms. Floor, fuel and stove type, soot deposits in the ceiling, duration of cooking and cooking in a room without a window were the identified factors. Appropriate ventilation, improved floor and stove design and the switch to high-efficiency, low-emission fuels could help to lessen the effects of wood smoke on women's respiratory health.

Health information use and associated factors among healthcare professionals in Ilu Aba Bor zone, Oromia region, Ethiopia: an institution-based cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: Health information systems are essential for collecting data for planning, monitoring and evaluating health services. Using reliable information over time is an important aid in improving health outcomes, tackling disparities, enhancing efficiency and encouraging innovation. Studies on the level of health information use among health workers at the health facility level in Ethiopia are limited. OBJECTIVES: This study was designed to assess the level of health information use and associated factors among healthcare professionals. METHODS: An institution-based cross-sectional study was conducted among 397 health workers in health centres in the Iluababor zone of Oromia region in southwest Ethiopia, who were chosen using a simple random sampling technique. Data were collected using a pretested, self-administered questionnaire and an observation checklist. The Strengthening the Reporting of Observational Studies in Epidemiology reporting checklist was used to report the summary of the manuscript. Bivariable and multivariable binary logistic regression analysis was used to identify the determinant factors. Variables with a p value <0.05 at 95% CIs were declared significant. RESULTS: It was found that 65.8% of the healthcare professionals had good health information usage. Use of Health Management Information System (HMIS) standard materials (adjusted OR (AOR)=8.10; 95% CI 3.51 to 16.58), training on health information (AOR=8.31; 95% CI 4.34 to 14.90), completeness of report formats (AOR=10.24; 95% CI 5.0 to 15.14) and age (AOR=0.4; 95% CI 0.2 to 0.77) were found to be significantly associated with health information use. CONCLUSION: More than three-fifths of healthcare professionals had good health information usage. Completeness of report format, training, use of standard HMIS materials and age were significantly associated with health information usage. Ensuring the availability of standard HMIS materials and report completeness and providing training, particularly for newly recruited health workers are highly recommended to enhance health information usage.