Patient safety culture is an important aspect for quality healthcare delivery and is an issue of high concern globally. In Ethiopia health system little is known and information is limited in scope about patient safety culture. Therefore, the aim of this study was to assess the level of patient safety culture and associated factors in Jimma zone Hospitals, southwest Ethiopia. Facility based cross sectional quantitative study triangulated with qualitative approaches was employed from March to April 30/2015. Stratified sampling technique was used to select 637 study participants among 4 hospitals. The standardized tool which measures 12 patient safety culture composites was used for data collection. Bivariate and multivariate linear regression analyses were performed using SPSS version 20. Significance level was obtained at 95 % CI and p-value < 0.05. Semi structured guide in depth interview was used to collect the qualitative data. Content analysis of the interview was performed. The overall level of patient safety culture was 46.7 % (95 % CI: 43.0, 51.2). Hours worked per week (β =−0.06, 95 % CI:−0.12,−0.001), reporting adverse event (β = 3.34, 95 % CI: 2.12, 4.57), good communication (β = 2.78, 95 % CI: 2.29, 3.28), teamwork within hospital (β = 1.91, 95 % CI: 1.37, 2.46), level of staffing (β = 1.32, 95 % CI: 0.89, 1.75), exchange of feedback about error (β = 1.37, 95 % CI: 0.91, 1.83) and participation in patient safety program (β = 1.3, 95 % CI: 0.57, 2.03) were factors significantly associated with the patient safety culture. The in depth interview indicated incident reporting, resources, healthcare worker attitude and patient involvement as important factors that influence patient safety culture. The overall level of patient safety culture was low. Working hours, level of staffing, teamwork, communications openness, reporting an event and exchange of feedback about error were associated with patient safety culture. Therefore, interventions of systemic approach through facilitating opportunities for communication openness, cooperation and exchange of ideas between healthcare workers are needed to improve the level of patient safety culture.

Low back pain, the most commonly reported musculoskeletal problem, is a major burden on individuals, health systems and social care systems with the indirect cost being predominant. It results in disability, poor service, low quality of life and sickness absences in working places. The problem of low back pain and its risk factors among hotel housekeepers are not well known in Ethiopia. Therefore, this study was aimed to investigate the prevalence and identify determinants of low back pain among hotel industries’ housekeepers in Gondar town, Ethiopia. Institutional based cross-sectional study was conducted from March to May 2017. A systematic random sampling technique was applied to select 422 study participants, and the data was collected by a standardized Nordic questionnaire for the analysis of musculoskeletal symptoms. Bivariate and multivariable binary logistic regression analyses were performed using SPSS version 20. The significance level was obtained at 95% CI and p-value ≤ 0.05. The prevalence of low back pain among hotel housekeepers in Gondar town was 58.1% (95% CI: 53.6, 62.8%). Being temporary employee (AOR: 3.22), type of job which requires reaching/overstretching (AOR: 2.93), engaging in a job that requires repetitive bending (AOR: 1.97), making > 30 beds per day (AOR: 3.19) signified the significant risk factors for low back pain. However, hotel housekeepers who were satisfied in their current job were less impacted by low back pain (AOR: 0.49). A high proportion of hotel housekeepers in this study reported they had low back pain. Employment pattern, rest break taken, reaching/overstretching, repetitive bending, job satisfaction, training related to health and safety and numbers of beds making were among the factors associated with low back pain. Hence, ergonomic measures focusing on correcting the arrangement of work station, rest breaks and changing some equipment are potentially important targets to reduce the problem.

Anemia is a global public health problem affecting both developing and developed countries. In Ethiopia, Adolescent girls are more vulnerable to anemia because of gender norms can leave girls disproportionately impacted by food insecurity, increased iron requirements related to their rapid growth, and menstrual loss. However, evidence on the problem is scarce because it has not been given due attention in Ethiopia. Therefore, this study assessed the prevalence and associated factors of anemia among late adolescent girls attending high schools in Dembia District, northwest Ethiopia. A school based cross-sectional study was conducted in Dembia District from March 1 to April 30/ 2017. Out of the randomly selected three high schools, 462 adolescents were included using the simple random sampling technique. A Standardized structured questionnaire was used to collect data. Capillary blood samples were drawn from adolescents using a portable Hb201+ instrument to measure hemoglobin. A bivariate and multivariable binary logistic regression analyses were employed to identify factors associated with anemia. Adjusted Odds Ratio (AOR) with a corresponding 95% Confidence Interval (CI) was computed to show the strength of associations. The overall prevalence of anaemia among adolescent girls was 25.5%, (95%CI, 21.4, and 29.2). Of the total anemic adolescents, 109(92.4%) had mild anaemia, while 7(5.9%) and 2(1.7%) were found with moderate and severe anaemia, respectively. Dietary diversity score ((AOR =4.2(95% CI;1.7, 10.5)), household food security status ((AOR = 4.1(95% CI; 1.3, 13.2)), living status of adolescents with either of the two parents((AOR = 2;(95%CI;1.14,3.6)) and guardians ((AOR = 2.4;(95% CI;1.02,5.6)) showed statistically significant association with anemia. Anemia is a moderate public health problem in Dembia District. Dietary diversity score, household food security status, and living status of adolescents were the key determinants of anemia. Therefore, the government should focus on preventing food insecurity with increasing productivity to improve dietary diversification of the adolescent girls. Retrospectively registered.

Objective: We conducted a cross-sectional study to assess perceived work-related stress and associated factors among public secondary school teachers in Gondar city, northwest Ethiopia. A self-completed questionnaire was used for data collection. Data was entered into Epi-info version 7.1 and analyzed by SPSS version 20 software. The associations between dependent and independent variables were assessed using a multivariate binary logistic regression analysis based on the adjusted odds ratio (AOR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI) and p values < 0.05. Results: The response rate was 96.4%. The overall prevalence of perceived work-related stress was 58.2%. Teaching experience < 5 years (AOR 2.03, 95% CI (1.10, 3.73), education level BSC/BED (AOR 1.66, 95% CI (1.07, 3.17), high job demand (AOR 1.61, 95% CI (1.29, 3.74), and poor relationships (AOR 1.88, 95% CI (1.07, 3.31) were significantly associated with work-related stress. In conclusion, the findings showed a high proportion of stress among participants. Therefore, we suggested a need to take action to balance job demand and teaching experience, offering the opportunity to upgrade their educational level and establish good relationships to ease the burden of stress factors related to work.

Musculoskeletal disorders are a major source of disability accounting for considerable economic loss globally. Studies showed that housekeepers suffer from exposure to many high-risk factors for neck and upper limb musculoskeletal disorders. In Ethiopia, little is known and the information is limited in scope about the magnitude of the problem among hotel housekeepers. Therefore, this study aimed to determine the magnitude of the neck and upper limb musculoskeletal disorders and identify the associated risk factors among hotel housekeepers. Institution-based cross-sectional study design was employed from March 1 to May 20, 2017. Systematic random sampling was used to select 422 study participants among the Gondar town hotels, Ethiopia. The standardized Nordic questionnaire for the analysis of musculoskeletal symptoms was used to measure the neck and upper limb musculoskeletal disorders. Bivariate and multivariable binary logistic regression analyses were performed using SPSS version 20. The significance level was obtained at 95% CI and p value ≤ 0.05. The overall magnitude of a self-reported neck and upper limb musculoskeletal disorders among hotel housekeepers in the last 12 months was 62.8% (95% CI 58.3, 67.8). The main body areas of concern were neck pain (50.7%), shoulder pain (54%), elbow/forearm (47.2%), and hand/wrist (45.5%). Age, rest break taken, repetitive movement, reaching/overstretching, organization concern for health and safety, and job satisfaction were the risk factors significantly associated with neck and upper limb musculoskeletal disorders. A higher proportion of hotel housekeepers were found to be affected by neck and upper limb musculoskeletal disorders in Gondar town. Repetitive movement and reaching/overstretching were strongly associated risk factors with neck and upper limb musculoskeletal disorders. Therefore, ergonomic, organizational and personal measures, which focus on minimizing repetitive movement and awkward working position and facilitating rest break with exercise, are important to tackle neck and upper limb musculoskeletal disorders among hotel housekeepers.

Cotton dust induced respiratory disorders are dramatically increased over the globe, especially the problem is serious in developing countries. Respiratory symptoms, such as cough, phlegm, wheezing, shortness of breath, chest tightness, chronic bronchitis, and byssinosis are common among workers exposed to cotton dust. However, in Ethiopia, the magnitude of the problem is not well known and information is limited about the risk factors. Therefore, this study was aimed to assess the prevalence of respiratory symptoms and associated factors. A Comparative cross-sectional study design was employed. A total of 413 (276 exposed and 137 unexposed) participants were included in the study. Stratified and simple random sampling techniques were used to select exposed and unexposed groups to cotton dust respectively. Multivariable binary logistic regression analyses was performed to identify variables associated with respiratory symptoms and adjusted odds ratio (AOR) was used to determine the strength of associations. Significance level was obtained at 95% confidence interval (CI) and p-value ≤0.05. The prevalence of self-reported respiratory symptoms was 47.8% (95% CI: 41.3, 53.7%) and 15.3% (95% CI: 9.6, 22.3%) among exposed and control groups respectively. Sex (AOR = 2.1, 95% CI: 1.29, 3.45), service year (AOR = 2.38, 95% CI: 1.19, 4.71) and ventilation (AOR = 2.4, 95% CI: 1.17, 4.91) were factors significantly associated with respiratory symptoms. Furthermore, working department such as; ginning (AOR = 5.1, 95% CI: 2.13, 12.16), spinning (AOR = 4.96, 95% CI: 2.18, 11.29), weaving (AOR = 5.9, 95% CI: 2.46, 14.27) and blowing working departments (AOR = 5.14, 95% CI: 1.4, 18.94) were significantly associated with respiratory disorders. The prevalence of self-reported respiratory symptoms was higher among workers exposed to cotton dust than unexposed workers. Sex, service year, working department and work unit ventilation were predictor variables for respiratory symptoms. Thus, reducing exposure to dust, adequate ventilation and improving the hygiene of working departments are needed to reduce respiratory symptoms.