Globally, health care-associated infections had become serious public health importance. Compliance with standard safety precaution is effective and inexpensive measure to improve quality of healthcare in reducing occurrence of healthcare associated infections. In developing countries, like Ethiopia adherence to recommended standard safety precaution is scanty. To assess level of compliance with standard safety precaution and associated factors among healthcare workers in Hawassa comprehensive specialized hospital Southern Ethiopia. An institutional based cross-sectional study was conducted at Hawassa comprehensive specialized hospital. Data were collected by using self-administered questionnaire. Study participants were allocated proportionally based on their profession by using stratified random sampling method. Data were entered and analyzed by using SPSS version 20.0. Bi-variable analysis and multi variable logistic regression model were used to check which variables were associated with dependent variable. P-values ≤ 0.05 were considered statistically significant. In this study the overall compliance with standard safety precaution among healthcare workers were only 56.5%. Being female healthcare worker AOR: 2.76(1.34, 5.54), married healthcare workers AOR: 4.2(2, 9.03), accessibility of safety box AOR: 3.4(1.6, 7.17), HCWs had perceived IP training AOR: 3.99(1.46, 10.9), availability of tape water AOR: 2.68(1.15, 6.2) and healthcare workers had internal infection prevention and control supportive supervision AOR: 5.8(2.54, 13.48) associated with compliance with standard safety precaution. According to findings of the current study, overall level of compliance with standard SP among HCWs considered to be very low. Factors such as healthcare workers being female, accessibility of safety box, availability of running tape water, training and supportive supervision were independent predictors of compliance with standard safety precaution. Thus ensuring availability and accessibility of safety precaution materials and regular observing and supervising healthcare workers’ practices are highly recommended.

Introduction: High mortality rates for pregnant women and their new-borns are one of Africa’s most intractable public health issues today, and Ethiopia is one of the countries most afflicted. Behavioral interventions are needed to increase maternal health service utilizations to improve outcomes. Hence, this trial aimed to evaluate effectiveness of trained religious leaders’ engagement in maternal health education on maternal health service utilization.Methods: The study employed a cluster-randomized controlled community trial that included baseline and end-line measurements. Data on end points were gathered from 593 pregnant mothers, comprising 292 and 301 individuals in the intervention and control groups, respectively. In the intervention group, the trained religious leaders delivered the behavioral change education on maternal health based on intervention protocol. Unlike the other group, the control group only received regular maternal health information and no additional training from religious leaders. Binary generalized estimating equation regression analysis adjusted for baseline factors were used to test effects of the intervention on maternal health service utilization.Results: Following the trial’s implementation, the proportion of optimal antenatal care in the intervention arm increased by 21.4% from the baseline (50.90 vs. 72.3, p ≤ 0.001) and the proportion of institutional delivery in the intervention group increased by 20% from the baseline (46.1% vs. 66.1%, p ≤ 0.001). Pregnant mothers in the intervention group significantly showed an increase of proportion of PNC by 22.3% from baseline (26% vs. 48.3%, p ≤ 0.001). A statistically significant difference was observed between in ANC4 (AOR = 2.09, 95% CI: 1.69, 2.57), institutional delivery (AOR = 2.36, 95% CI: 1.94, 2.87) and postnatal care service utilization (AOR = 2.26, 95% CI: 1.79, 2.85) between the intervention and control groups.Conclusion: This research indicated that involving religious leaders who have received training in maternal health education led to positive outcomes in enhancing the utilization of maternal health services. Leveraging the influential position of these religious leaders could be an effective strategy for improving maternal health service utilization. Consequently, promoting maternal health education through religious leaders is advisable to enhance maternal health service utilization.Clinical trial registration: [https://clinicaltrials.gov/], identifier [NCT05716178].

Background: Severe pneumonia is still the greatest infectious cause of morbidity and mortality in children under the age of five around the world. Each night spent in the hospital raises the chance of bad drug responses, infections, and ulcers by 0.5%, 1.6%, and 0.5%, respectively. In Southern Ethiopia, as well as the research area, little is known regarding death and recovery time from severe pneumonia and their determinants. Objective: To determine time to recovery from severe pneumonia and its predictors among children 2– 59 months of age admitted to pediatric ward of Nigist Eleni Mohammed Memorial Comprehensive Specialized Hospital. Methods: A facility-based retrospective cohort study was conducted among children 2– 59 months of age. Three years’ medical records, from January 2017 to December 2020, were reviewed. A total of 280 children with severe pneumonia were included. In the case of survival time, median was calculated. Kaplan Meier survival curve was used to estimate recovery time from severe pneumonia, and the independent effects of covariates on recovery time were analyzed using multivariable Cox-proportional hazard model. Results: The median time to recovery was 4 days (interquartile range = 3, 5). The incidence rate of recovery was 24.16 per 100 person-days. Underweight (adjusted hazard ratio = 0.56, 95% CI = 0.38– 0.80), age group 12– 35 months (adjusted hazard ratio= 2.0, 95% CI=1.30– 3.30), treatment with ampicillin and gentamicin (adjusted hazard ratio= 0.35, 95% CI: 0.13– 0.80), and antibiotic change (adjusted hazard ratio= 0.34, 95% CI = 0.21– 0.53) were statistically significant predictors of time to recovery from severe pneumonia. Conclusion: The median length of stay in the hospital was short (4 days [interquartile range =3, 5]). Time to recover from severe pneumonia was significantly influenced by being underweight, age, antibiotics administered first, and antibiotic change. Measures such as providing nutritious meals to children and ensuring that underweight children are properly managed should be bolstered.

Background. Undernutrition and tuberculosis are the major concerns of underdeveloped regions of the world. Tuberculosis makes undernutrition worse and undernutrition weakens immunity, thereby increasing the likelihood that latent tuberculosis will develop into active disease. Nevertheless, little has been understood about undernutrition among patients with infectious disease like tuberculosis in Ethiopia. This study was conducted to determine the magnitude of undernutrition and its determinants among tuberculosis patients in Shashemane public health institutions, Southern Ethiopia. Methods. An institution-based cross-sectional study was conducted in two public hospitals and ten health centers of Shashemane Town from March 12, to April 12, 2017, among 368 adult tuberculosis patients on treatment follow-up. Sociodemographic and socioeconomic characteristics and anthropometric data were collected. Data were entered into EpiData version 3.3 computer software and analyzed using SPSS version 20. Bivariable logistic regression analyses were done to assess the association between outcome variable at bivariate analysis, and multivariable logistic regression model was used to assess factors that were independently associated with undernutrition. Odds ratios along with 95% confidence interval (CI) were estimated to measure the strength of the association, and level of statistical significance was declared at value ≤0.05. Result. The overall magnitude of undernutrition among adult tuberculosis patients in this study was 28.8% (95% CI = 0.25–0.34). Patients in the age group of forty-five and above ((AOR = 3.39, 95% CI = (1.6–7.18)), residents in rural area ((AOR = 1.95, 95% CI = (1.07–3.54)), those with problem with eating ((AOR = 2.361, 95% CI = (1.332–4.185)), and those who are not on food supplementation ((AOR = 2.21, 95% CI = (1.06–4.58)) were significantly at higher risk of undernutrition. Conclusion. The magnitude of undernutrition in the study setting was found to be significantly higher. Age greater than forty-five, living in rural area, and lack of nutritional care and support were identified as the factors associated with undernutrition. Thus, relevant actors should give attention to fast nutritional intervention together with standard therapeutic regimen in the management of pulmonary tuberculosis patients to curb their nutritional derangement.

Background: Poor pregnancy risk perception, ignorance of obstetric risk symptoms, and attitudes toward institutional delivery services are factors that prevent pregnant women from choosing to receive emergency obstetric treatment. Objective: To assess pregnancy risk perception, attitude towards skilled delivery service, and knowledge of obstetric danger signs and associated factors among pregnant mothers. Methods: A cross-sectional community-based study design was used. The 668 pregnant women who participated in this study were chosen using a multi-stage sampling methodology. Data were gathered using a pretested questionnaire that was presented by an interviewer. To find independent factors, logistic regression analysis was used. With a p-value of less than 0.05, which denotes statistical significance, a corresponding 95% confidence interval (CI) was calculated. Results: Pregnancy risk perception was shown to have a lower mean score (23) overall. Only 40.9% of the study participants had high pregnancy risk perception. Over 50% (337) of respondents had a positive attitude towards skilled delivery service utilization. In all categories of obstetric danger signs, only 153 respondents (or 22.9%) knew what the obstetric danger signs were. Maternal age (AOR = 1.966, CI: 1.185– 3.261), maternal education (AOR = 1.965, 1.002– 3.854), and parity (AOR = 0.534, CI: 0.305– 0.933) were factors affecting knowledge of obstetric danger signs. Pregnancy risk Perception (AOR = 14.7, CI: 9.849– 22.235) and parity (AOR = 2.27, CI: 1.381– 3.733) were significantly associated with attitudes on the use of skilled delivery services. Conclusion: This study found that pregnant women in rural locations had poor levels of knowledge of obstetric danger sign, attitude toward using skilled delivery services, and perception of pregnancy risk. The knowledge of obstetric danger indicators among pregnant women was considerably affected by the mother’s age, education, and parity. The perception of pregnancy risk and parity were found to be substantially associated with attitudes towards skilled delivery services.

Background: Infection with coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has become a severe public health issue worldwide. A broad amount of information related to the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic was disseminated by social media in Ethiopia. To date, there is limited evidence on the influence of social media use for covid-19 related information on covid-19 preventive practice. Therefore, this study aimed to assess the influence of social media use on the practice of COVID-19 preventive measures in Ethiopia. Methods: This study employed an anonymous internet-based online cross-sectional survey using Google forms to collects the data from the respondents from 15 May to 17 June 2020 in Ethiopia. Multivariable logistic regression was used to assess the relationship between social media usage as a predictor and COVID-19 preventive practice, after adjusting for socio-demographic and risk perception of COVID-19 variables. The data were analysed using SPSS version 21. Results: A total of 372 respondents have participated in the study. From 372, 208(55.9%) respondents in this study were male. Study participants who had good utilization of social media to get COVID-19 related information were 9.5 times engaged in COVID-19 preventive practices compared to study participants who had poor utilization of social media to get covid-19 related information (AOR= 9.59, 95% CI = 5.70 - 16.13). Also, study participants who had a high-risk perception of COVID-19 were 2.6 times engaged in COVID-19 practices compared to study participants who had a low-risk perception of covid-19 (AOR = 2.63, 95% CI = 1.58 - 4.38). Study participants who were students at the time of this study were four times more likely to show adequate COVID-19 preventive practice score compared to those who had another occupational status (AOR= 4.07, 95% CI= 1.66 - 9.98) Conclusions: Our results show that the usage of social media networks can have a positive effect on the practice of preventive measures and public safety against COVID-19; high-risk perception contributed to preventive activities against COVID-19. Social networking platforms can be used by public health agencies as an important method to raise public health understanding by disseminating concise messages to targeted audiences.