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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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Item Type of Household Fuel Used For Cooking and Acute Respiratory Infection among Children Under Five Years in Ghana(University Of Ghana, 2017-07) Yeboah, I.K.Acute respiratory infection (ARI) is a major public health problem globally that require greater efforts for prevention through research and policy-making. It is reported that ARI is a leading cause of death, morbidity, and disability among children under- five years in many developing countries. Several studies have tried to link the association between biomass fuel use and respiratory infection, morbidity and mortality, yet the association of type of cooking fuels and incidence of ARI in Ghana is largely unknown. This study, therefore, seeks to assess the association between the type of cooking fuels used by households and ARI among children under-five in urban and rural areas of Ghana. Data from the 2014 Ghana Demographic and Health Survey (GDHS) was analyzed using SPSS IBM version 20 software. Pearson Chi-square analysis was used to test for the association between ARI and type of cooking fuels and other independent variables. Binary logistic regression was used to test for the influence of type of cooking fuel on ARI. The study population involved 5,491 children under- five years. Findings of the present study show that 6.4% children under five had symptoms of ARI during the last two weeks preceding the survey. The univariate analysis showed that a little more than half (52.4%) were males, about 1 in 5 (20.9%) children were below age one, and more than half (56.9%) of the children had completed the recommended doses of childhood vaccination. Also majority (79.9%) of the households use different types of biomass fuels as their main source of cooking fuel compared to 20.1% of households who use different types of non-biomass fuel. Biomass fuel was not statistically associated with incidence of ARI at p=0.05 level. However, the present study revealed that type of place of residence was significant in predicting incidence of ARI among children under-five in Ghana. Children from urban areas were less likely to experience the symptoms of ARI as compared to children from rural areas. Further studies, however, are needed for concrete policy recommendations.Item An Analysis of Children’s Concerns in Migration Legal Instruments in Ghana(University of Ghana, 2012-07) Agoe, P.A.Migration has become a phenomenon that affects the lives of many people today. Children are affected as well in diverse ways by migration. Most countries lack comprehensive policies on migration which can harness its gains for mutual benefits and reduce its negative impacts. Meanwhile, migration has become a major process in many populations, including Ghana’s. Children have also been participating in migration in various ways; as independent migrants, as moving along with migrating parents or other adults and as left behind by their migrant parents. It is against the background that migration laws and other instruments do not often have perspectives of children considered that the present study examined how existing laws in Ghana related to migration have concerns, if any of children. Ghana was the first country to have ratified the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), yet there are serious situations that threaten their rights and wellbeing such as the negative effects of migration that are probably not addressed with policies or legal instruments. Other situations of migration also make them vulnerable to separation from families, exploitation and abuse. Meanwhile, the Millennium Summit of the UN held in 2000 adopted eight goals popularly known as the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs); and most target children. The present study examined the following laws (legal instruments), The Immigration Act, 2000 (Act 573), The Citizenship Act, 2000 (Act 591), The Refugee Law, 1992 (PNDCL 305D) and The Human Trafficking Act, 2005 (Act 694), and the finding show that it is The Human Trafficking Act, 2005 that explicitly mentions children and their concerns. The study argues that it is important that migration laws and policies have concerns of children considered. Children should be specifically mentioned in them and their needs adequately provided.Item Factors Associated With Home Visit on Malaria Prevalence in Children under Age Five in Kibi in the East Akim Municipality of Ghana(University of Ghana, 2017-07) Abilena, M.M.Background: Home visit is a strategy used to reach out to members of a household for discussion and provision of health services by Community Health Officers. This approach is mostly used in deprived communities to provide health services at the doorstep of community members. Not much is known about this strategy in the public health sector. From the review of literature, malaria forms a significant proportion of diseases in most of the Out-Patient Departments. There are also a significant proportions of interventions which are ongoing to curb this trend in Kibi, therefore studying one of the components of the intervention is of much importance in advocating for the usefulness of home visit in a bid to prevent malaria in children under five years. Methodology: A cross sectional study design was used for the research. A stratified random sampling was also used in the selection of homes for the interview. The population of interest were children under five years. Total sample size of 300 was used for the study and a structured questionnaire was used to collect data from caregivers. Homes which were selected and not visited by Community Health Officers were selected for the study. Results: Absence of malaria as reported by caregivers for children under five was 50.7%. Proportion of homes visited by Community Health Officers was 35.8%. For homes that were visited 57 (19.0%) were visited once in a month while 82(27.3%) lasted for more than 30 minutes. Homes visited was significant in reporting absence of malaria in children under five. Fever was identified as the cardinal sign of malaria for most caregivers 195(65.0%) while bites of an infective female anopheles mosquito was identified by a majority (74.6%) of caregivers as the mode of malaria transmission. Most (60.3) children slept under an LLIN the previous night and this was significant in reporting absence of malaria in children. Majority of caregivers with malaria visited the hospital (77.1%) and 14.9% provided home based therapy for management of malaria. Conclusion: The research findings showed that homes visited by Community Health Officers had a significant association with reported absence of malaria. Therefore, for effective prevention of malaria, home visit should be encouraged while focusing on LLIN use for children under five years.