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BackgroundMethodResultsConclusionDiabetes mellitus (DM) has reached epidemic proportions in South Africa. Targets for adequate glycaemic control are rarely being met. DM self-management is a cornerstone of effective DM care and people with DM should be adherent to various self-care behaviours. This study aims to describe the behavioural factors contributing to DM management control and how they relate to glycaemic control.A cross-sectional survey used the Diabetes Self-Management Questionnaire (DSMQ) to assess knowledge and self-management behaviours of physical activity, glucose management, dietary control, and health care use amongst patients attending a diabetic clinic at a tertiary hospital in Johannesburg. Regression analysis models were used to determine the relationship between the independent variables of DM knowledge and self-care behaviours and the outcome variable glycaemic control.A total of 214 participants were enrolled; the majority were African (55.6%) and Coloured (30.4%). Only 14% of patients achieved a target HbA1c of less than 7%. Participants scored the highest average scores on the DSMQ for the healthcare use subscale, followed by glucose management, then physical activity. The lowest mean score was noted for the dietary subscale. The dietary control subscale of the DSMQ was most significantly associated with HbA1c (OR 0.79 [CI 0.64–0.96], p-value 0.020). Overall compliance with diabetes self-management behaviours is associated with improved glycaemic control, whereby patients who scored higher on the DSMQ were less likely to have poor glycaemic control (OR: 0.51 [CI 0.28–0.94], p-value 0.030).The barriers to effective DM control are vast and complex. This study shows that effective self-management overall is associated with better glycaemic control. Dietary control is most significantly associated with HbA1c. Most people living with DM find it challenging to adhere to a nutritious and diverse DM diet. There is room for further research and intervention regarding medical nutrition therapy that will be culturally and financially appropriate for the South African population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study examined the extent, demographics and risks for child pedestrian, burns and drowning mortality in Johannesburg. Information on the demographics, scene and temporal circumstances for childhood injury deaths from 2000 to 2010 was gleaned from the National Injury Mortality Surveillance System. Descriptive statistical methods were used. The study recorded 756 pedestrian (8.7/100,000), 439 drowning (5.1/100,000), and 399 burn injury deaths (4.6/100,000) among children aged 0-14 years. Male children were the main victims, with male-to-female ratios of 2.3 for drowning, 1.7 for pedestrian and 1.2 for burn mortality. The pattern of child mortality differed across age groups with older children recording higher rates for pedestrian deaths and younger children higher rates for the non-traffic deaths. Pedestrian and burn mortality especially affected black children, while drowning affected both black and white children. The time, day and month of greatest injury mortality varied by injury cause, with e.g. pedestrian mortality common in afternoons and evenings, weekends, and dispersed across the year although increasing towards year end. The study highlighted the salience of differentiating risks for childhood injuries by discrete external cause for purposes of informing prevention responses.

Violence among youth is a major health and safety burden globally. There is a dearth in the development and evaluation of targeted interventions that addresses the multi-faceted nature of youth violence to ensure effectiveness and replicability. This study aims to systematically evaluate the fidelity of implementation of the Building Bridges Mentoring intervention that focuses on the prevention of youth violence in two low-income communities in South Africa. This study employed a mixed methods concurrent triangulation design. Qualitative data were analysed using deductive thematic analysis, and quantitative data using descriptive statistics and T -tests. The results indicate that for all the intervention components, implementation fidelity (i.e. adherence, exposure, quality of programme delivery, and participant responsiveness) was generally moderate to high, suggesting a 'good' implementation of the programme in the real world. Evaluating the fidelity of implementation is vital to obtain a comprehensive insight into whether an intervention was implemented according to its design, and to verify and validate the findings and outcomes, and accord credibility and integrity of the study.