Social and behavior change communication competency among front-line healthcare system actors in Ethiopia: a cross-sectional study.

INTRODUCTION: Social and Behavior Change Communication (SBCC) plays a critical role in improving behavior and health outcomes across the continuum of healthcare. Failing to implement tailored SBCC strategies continues to pose a risk of ill health, increase disease burden, and impact the quality life of people. In Ethiopia, front-line healthcare system actors' knowledge and skills about SBCC have not been rigorously assessed. Thus, the current study aimed to assess healthcare system actors' competencies in designing, implementing, monitoring, and evaluating SBCC interventions in Ethiopia. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted between 01 August and 31 October, 2020. Five hundred twenty-eight frontline healthcare system actors in SBCC in Ethiopia were included using simple random sampling technique. Data was collected using a self-administered structured questionnaire adopted from Communication for Change; SBCC capacity assessment tool. Descriptive analysis frequencies, percentages, mean, median, standard deviation (SD), interquartile range (IQR) were employed. Besides correlations and linear regression with robust standard errors were carried out. A 95% confidence interval and a p-value of less than 0.05 were used to declare significant statistical association. RESULTS: A total of 488 frontline workers participated in the study, with a response rate of 92.4%. The mean SBCC knowledge score was 13.2 ± standard deviation (SD) 3.99 and 59.2% scored below 60% of the expected maximum score. The standard mean score of overall skill in SBCC intervention was 2.36 (SD ± 0.98) and 52.6% of them scored below mean score. The SBCC knowledge was significantly predicted by the service year and the regional variation. On the other hand, SBCC skills was significantly predicted by sex, service year, profession, regional variation, and SBCC knowledge. The regional variation was the main predictor of both knowledge and skill on SBCC. The regression models explained 23.1% and 50.2% of the variance in knowledge and skill of SBCC, respectively. CONCLUSION: Front-line healthcare system actors in Ethiopia has low knowledge and skills in SBCC. Variations in SBCC knowledge and skill were observed based on demographic and professionals experience related characteristics. Hence, continuous capacity building activities need to be given to frontline healthcare system actors to enhance their knowledge and skill on SBCC program and achieve the intended health results.

Visual Inspection with Acetic Acid Positivity in Screening and Early Detection of Cervical Dysplasia in Africa, 2023: A Meta-Analysis.

Background: Visual Inspection with Acetic acid (VIA) is the best feasible method of screening and early detecting for cervical dysplasia for resource limited settings like Africa. There is no study that can represent Africa on VIA positivity. Therefore, this metaanalysis was planned to verify the best available articles to pool the visual inspection with acetic acid positivity in screening and early detection of cervical dysplasia in Africa. Methods: The Cochrane Library, Web of Science, PubMed, Scopus, free Google database search engines, Google Scholar, and Science Direct databases were used to conduct a true search of this research article. STATA version 14.0 was used to do the metaanalysis. This meta-analysis was registered in PROSPERO database under the identity pf CRD42023392197. Result: This meta-analysis analyzed data from 21,066 women who had VIA examination to estimate the pooled VIA positivity in Africa. The overall pooled effect estimate of VIA positivity in Africa was 11.93 (95%CI: 11.48-12.37). Age <16 year during first intercourse 2.58(95%CI: 1.53-3.62), lifetime sexual partner ≥2 3.92(95%CI: 2.05-5.78) and HIV positivity 2.92(95%CI: 1.72-4.12) were the significant variables which influence VIA positivity. Conclusion: Overall pooled effect estimate of VIA positivity in Africa was high compared to other continents. The main factors that affect VIA positivity are age at first sexual contact being under 16 years old, the number of lifetime sexual partners being at least two, and HIV positivity. Therefore, the WHO's goal of creating Africa free of cervical cancer is still one that requires significant effort.

Prevalence of insomnia and associated factors among postpartum mothers in Southern Ethiopia, a community-based cross-sectional study.

Insomnia has become a global public health concern, particularly among postpartum women. Minimal sleep interruption related to newborn care is normally expected, insomnia, however has negative impact during the postpartum period. Although its causes and contributing factors are poorly understood, it has a wide-ranging impact on the mother and her infant. So far, studies in Ethiopia have focused on the general community, neglecting mothers in the postpartum period. Thus, this study aimed to assess the prevalence of insomnia and the factors associated with it. A community-based cross-sectional study included 451 study participants who were chosen using a simple random sampling technique. A structured, pretested, and interviewer-administered questionnaire was used to collect data. After entering the data into EpiData version 3.1, it was exported to the Statistical Package for Social Sciences version 26 for analysis. Bivariable and multivariable binary logistic regression analyses were carried out. Variables with a P-value of 0.2 in the bivariable analysis were included in the multivariable analyses. Those with a P-value of 0.05 were declared statistically significant in the final model. The current study included 444 mothers in total. Insomnia was prevalent among 23.2% (95% CI: 19.3%, 27.4%) of mothers who had given birth within the previous 12 months. Insomnia was associated with unplanned index pregnancy [AOR = 4.4, 95% CI (2.2, 8.7)], alcohol consumption [AOR = 3.0, 95% CI (1.4, 6.5), low social support [AOR = 9.7, 95% CI (4.4, 21.1)], medium social support [AOR = 2.2, 95% CI (1.1, 4.3)] and depression [AOR = 10.7, 95% CI (5.7, 20.0). A planned index pregnancy, abstaining from alcohol, and recognizing and treating postpartum depression were all advised.