Theses

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A long essay or dissertation or thesis involving personal research, written by postgraduates of University of Ghana for a university degree.

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    Types and prevalence of adverse events among obstetric clients hospitalized in a secondary healthcare facility in Ghana
    (Journal of Patient Safety and Risk Management, 2019-12) Otchi, E.H.; Esena, R.K.; Beyuo, T.; et.al
    Objective: The main objective of this study was to determine the types and prevalence of adverse events among obstetric clients hospitalized in a secondary health facility in Ghana. Design: A retrospective study that reviewed medical records of obstetric clients on admission at the Obstetrics Unit of a secondary healthcare facility in Ghana. Setting: Clinical environment. The study site is the third largest health facility in Ghana that provides maternity services and serves as the major referral facility for the Greater Accra Region, the capital of Ghana. About 41% (4676) of its total antenatal cases (11,406) in 2015 were referrals from other facilities in Ghana. The medical records were reviewed retrospectively from 1 January to 31 December 2015. A four-stage review process was used: the first and second stages (by nurse/midwife reviewers) involved the identification and exclusion of records that had a length of stay of less than 24 hours and inadequate documentation; and were unlikely to include an adverse event. The third stage by obstetrician-gynecologist reviewers included a full review of all the positive trigger folders to determine the types, causes, and degree of preventability of the adverse events. The fourth stage involved an independent obstetrician-gynecologist review of all records that had discrepancies. Details of the review process are presented in the figure. Participants: Obstetric clients (i.e. pregnant women at any stage of gestation or less than 5 days after delivery who were attended to at the hospital). About a third (1402, 49.3%) met the inclusion criteria and were reviewed. Main outcome measures: The main outcome measure for this study was the prevalence of adverse events among hospitalized obstetric clients. Results: The prevalence of adverse events was 12% (168) out of 1402 records reviewed. The mean maternal age of the clients was 30.0 5.8 years. Among these, the greatest proportion of adverse events was related to surgical interventions (66.3%), and the smallest were related to patient care (0.7%). Conclusions: This study has provided the first documented prevalence (12.0%) and types of adverse events among hospitalized obstetric clients in a secondary health facility in Ghana. It provides a preliminary baseline for the burden of adverse events among the obstetric population in Ghana.
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    Incidence of Self-esteem among Children Exposed to Sexual Abuse in Kenya
    (Global Social Welfare, 2018) Mutavi, T.; Dako-Gyeke, M.; Obondo, A.; et.al
    It has been established that sexual abuse against children is a widespread global problem (Stoltenborgh et al. 2011). Some scholars have reported that child abuse, including sexual abuse among children, is high in Africa, as well as other continents (Filkelhor et al. 2013; Hillis et al. 2016). Sexual abuse against children is a public health concern because its outcomes are detrimental to the health of children, families, and society (Madu et al. 2010). Often, mental health problems among children are detected late, and identification rates by health professionals are quite low (Grant & Brito, 2010; Ndetei et al. 2009).
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    Emotion Norms, Display Rules, and Regulation in the Akan Society of Ghana: An Exploration Using Proverbs
    (Frontiers in Psychology, 2018) Dzokoto, V.A.; Osei-Tutu, A.; Kyei, J.J.; et.al
    Proverbs are widely used by the Akan of West Africa. The current study thematically analyzed an Akan proverb compendium for proverbs containing emotional references. Of the identified proverbs, a focus on negative emotions was most typical. Emotion-focused proverbs highlighted four emotion regulation strategies: change in cognition, response modulation, situation modification, and situation selection. A subset of proverbs addressed emotion display rules restricting the expression of emotions such as pride, and emotional contagion associated with emotions such as shame. Additional themes including: social context influences on the expression and experience of emotion; expectations of emotion limits; as well as the nature of emotions were present in the proverb collection. In general, Akan emotion-related proverbs stress individual-level responsibility for affect regulation in interpersonal interactions and societal contexts.
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    Antiretroviral therapy maintenance among HIV-positive women in Ghana: the influence of poverty
    (AIDS Care, 2019) Poku, R.A.; Owusu, A.Y.; Mullen, P.D.; et.al
    This study examines the role of poverty in the acquisition of and adherence to antiretroviral therapy (ART) and prescribed clinical follow-up regimens among HIV-positive women. We conducted in-depth interviews with 40 women living with HIV (WLHIV) in Ghana and 15 stakeholders with a history of work in HIV-focused programs. Our findings indicate that financial difficulty contributed to limited ability to maintain treatment, the recommended nutrient-rich diet, and clinical follow-up schedules. However, enacted stigma and concurrent illness of family members also influenced the ability of the WLHIV to generate income; therefore, HIV infection itself contributed to poverty. To further examine the relationship between finances, ART adherence, and the maintenance of recommended clinical follow-up, we present the perspectives of several HIV-positive peer counselor volunteers in Ghana’s Models of Hope program. We recommend that programs to combat stigma continue to be implemented, as decreased stigma may reduce the financial difficulties of HIV-positive individuals. We also recommend enhancing current support programs to better assist peer counselor volunteers, as their role directly supports Ghana’s national strategic HIV/AIDS plan. Finally, additional investment in poverty-reduction across Ghana, such as broadening meal assistance beyond the currently limited food programs, would lighten the load of those struggling to combat HIV and meet basic needs.