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BackgroundIncorporation of information communication technology in health care has gained wide acceptance in the last two decades. Developing countries are also incorporating information communication technology into the health system including the implementation of electronic medical records in major hospitals and the use of mobile health in rural community-based health interventions. However, the literature on the level of knowledge and utilization of information communication technology by health professionals in those settings is scarce for proper implementation planning. ObjectiveThe objective of this study is to assess knowledge, computer utilization, and associated factors among health professionals in hospitals and health institutions in Ethiopia. MethodsA quantitative cross-sectional study was conducted on 554 health professionals working in 7 hospitals, 19 primary health centers, and 10 private clinics in the Harari region of Ethiopia. Data were collected using a semi-structured, self-administered, and pre-tested questionnaire. Descriptive and logistic regression techniques using SPSS version 16.0 (IBM Corporation) were applied to determine the level of knowledge and identify determinants of utilization of information communication technology. ResultsOut of 554 participants, 482 (87.0%) of them responded to the questionnaire. Among them, 90 (18.7%) demonstrated good knowledge of computers while 142 (29.5%) demonstrated good utilization habits. Health professionals who work in the primary health centers were found to have lower knowledge (3.4%) and utilization (18.4%). Age (adjusted odds ratio [AOR]=3.06, 95% CI 0.57-5.37), field of study (AOR=3.08, 95% CI 1.65-5.73), level of education (AOR=2.78, 95% CI 1.43-5.40), and previous computer training participation (AOR=3.65, 95% CI 1.62-8.21) were found to be significantly associated with computer utilization habits of health professionals. ConclusionsComputer knowledge and utilization habits of health professionals, especially those who work in primary health centers, were found to be low. Providing trainings and continuous follow-up are necessary measures to increase the likelihood of the success of implemented eHealth systems in those settings.

Rice crop is essential in a country. Still, the production and productivity are low due to uncovering a suitable area for rice production and the shortage of improved and unedited well-adapted variety. To solve this problem, the study was conducted in Dasenech district during (2020/21 and 2021/22) cropping seasons to select well-adapted varieties. The study contains 6 varieties (Gode, Shebele, Chewaqa, Kallafo, Nerica-15, and Pawe-2). For this study used a randomized complete block design with three replications. Yield and other trait data were collected and subjected to analysis of variance. The result of the analysis of variance showed that all parameters were significantly affected among tested rice varieties. The Pawe-2 variety gave the highest grain production (6284.7 kg ha-1) among the tested varieties. Based on the study result, it can be suggested that variety Pawe-2 perform well and is suitable for agro-pastoral in the Dasenech area under irrigation condition and its similar agro-ecology.

Introduction: Many family members and the expectant mother view pregnancy as a time of joyful anticipation. However, it can also bring about a range of issues that may pose serious and potentially life-threatening risks for both the mother and the unborn child. Adverse pregnancy outcomes are an alarming public issue in different parts of the world and have a seriously harmful influence on both their health and well-being. Nevertheless, less is known about trends and determinates of adverse pregnancy outcomes in the Arba Minch zuria and Gacho Baba districts in southern Ethiopia. Therefore, this study aimed to fill these gaps in the study setting. Methods: An open, dynamic cohort study design was employed among 8885 pregnancies from 2018 to 2022, health and demographic surveillance data were involved. Data to be collected at Arba Minch Health and Demographic Surveillance Site (HDSS) using a structured questionnaire. A log-binomial regression model was used to identify determinates. A P-value of less than 0.05 was considered to declare a statistically significant association. Results: In this study, the overall adverse pregnancy outcomes were 8.89 per 1000 live births [95%CI: 6.93, 10.84]. The stillbirth and abortion rates were 5.74 per 1000 live births (95%CI: 4.36, 7.54) and 3.15 per 1000 live births [95%CI: 1.97, 4.02], respectively. The trends of adverse pregnancy outcomes showed 11.1/1000 in 2018 and 14.1/1000 in 2022. Age > 34 years old (aPPR = 2.93, 95%CI: 1.67, 5.17), antenatal care (aPPR = 0.52, 95%CI: 0.33, 0.83), and history of pregnancy loss (aPPR = 2.68, 95%CI: 1.36, 5.29) were identified as determinates for adverse pregnancy outcomes. Conclusion: The prevalence of adverse pregnancy outcomes is still high, and trends vary from time to time. As such, attention is needed for the women who had a previous history of pregnancy loss, and addressing those determinants could potentially reduce the rates of stillbirths and abortions, ultimately promoting healthier pregnancies and better pregnancy outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A field experiment was carried out during the 2017-18 cropping season at Jinka Agricultural Research Center on station, South Omo zone, Southern Ethiopia, to determine suitable legumes in cassava legume intercropping on yield and land use efficiency of both crops. The experiment consisted of 7 treatments (cassava with haricot bean, cowpea, and pigeon pea as intercrop compared with cassava, haricot bean, cowpea and pigeon pea as sole) laid in RCBD in three replications. Statistical analysis showed that, intercropping cassava with haricot bean, cowpea and pigeon pea resulted in 54, 56 and 21% greater land use efficiency than for either crop grown alone. The highest MAI was obtained by growing cassava with haricot bean (18310.8) followed by cassava with cowpea (14524.4) whereas relatively the lowest was cassava with pigeon pea (6005.6). Based on the present finding, intercropping of cassava with haricot bean had more economic advantage (52219.8 Ebirr) than the other crop combination or grown alone. Therefore, intercropping cassava with grain legumes such as haricot bean and cowpea is important to cassava farmers since it would provide additional crop yield during the early cassava growth stage with the same piece of land and more profitable related to cost benefit. Therefore, use of cassava intercropping with haricot bean can be recommended for cassava producing farmers at Jinka and its vicinity.

Finger millet is staple food crop in drought-prone areas of the world and often considered as a component of food security strategies in Ethiopia. However, its yield is low in South Omo zone due to different production problems such as lack of improved varieties, lodging, and moisture stress in dry areas. A participatory finger millet variety selection was conducted at Kaysa, Baytesimal and Alga kebeles of Debube Ari District, South Omo Zone during the 2019-cropping season to identify high yielding finger millet variety/varieties .The field experiments was laid out in a randomized complete block design with three replications. The combined analysis’s of variance results revealed that there were significant (p

A field experiment was carried out for two successive cropping seasons in 2017 and 2018 at Shama Bulket, Semen Ari Woreda, South Omo Zone, Southern Ethiopia, to determine optimum seed rate and inter-row spacing for food barley production. The experiment involved a factorial combination of three seed rates (80, 100 and 120 kg ha-1) and three inter-row spacing (20, 30 and 40 cm). The experiment was conducted using a randomized complete block design with three replications. The results indicated the treatments had significant effect in all parameters except plant height and spike length. Based on the result of this study, use of 30 cm inter-row spacing and 120 kg ha-1 seed rate is superior in grain yield (4481 kg ha-1) and total biomass (14.6 t ha-1). Therefore, use of 30 cm inter row spacing with seeding rate of 120 kg ha-1 can be recommended for food barley production at Shama Bulket kebele and its vicinity.

Background and Aims: Although the evidence is uncertain, existing estimates for hepatitis C virus (HCV) in sub‐Saharan Africa (SSA) indicate a high burden. We estimated HCV seroprevalence and viraemic prevalence among the general population in SSA. Methods: We searched Medline, Embase, Web of Science, APA PsycINFO, and World Health Organization Africa Index Medicus for community‐based studies. Study quality was assessed using the Joanna Briggs Institute critical appraisal tool, and heterogeneity using the index of heterogeneity (I2). Two approaches were deployed. First, we used random‐effects meta‐analysis to pool prevalence. Second, to derive representative estimates, we weighted each country's HCV seroprevalence using 2021 United Nations country population sizes. Results: We synthesized 130 studies. Overall, SSA HCV seroprevalence from the random‐effects model was 4.17% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 3.71–4.66, I2 = 99.30%). There were no differences between males (4.31%) and females (4.03%). Seroprevalence was 2.25%, 3.31%, and 16.23% for ages ≤20, 21–64, and ≥65 years, respectively, and was higher in rural (6.63%) versus urban (2.93%). There was indication of decrement overtime from 5.74% to 4.35% to 3.03% in the years 1984–2000, 2001–2014, and 2015–2023, respectively. The weighted overall SSA HCV seroprevalence was estimated to be 2.30% (95% CI: 1.59–3.00) with regional variation: Africa‐Southern (.79%), Africa‐Central (1.47%), Africa‐Eastern (2.71%), and Africa‐Western (2.88%). HCV viremia among HCV seropositives was 54.77% (95% CI: 47.80–61.66). Conclusions: HCV seroprevalence in SSA remains high. Populations aged ≥65 years, rural communities, Africa‐Western, and some countries in Africa‐Central and Africa‐Eastern appear disproportionately affected. These results underline the need for governmental commitment to achieve the 2030 global HCV elimination targets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Arsenic, a widely recognized and highly toxic carcinogen, is regarded as one of the most hazardous metalloids globally. However, the precise assessment of acute and chronic human exposure to arsenic and its contributing factors remains unclear in Ethiopia. Objective: The primary goal of this study was to assess the levels of acute and chronic arsenic exposure, as well as the contributing factors, using urine and nail biomarkers. Methods: A community-based analytical cross-sectional study design was employed for this study. Agilent 7900 series inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry was used to measure the concentrations of arsenic in urine and nail samples. We performed a multiple linear regression analysis to assess the relationships between multiple predictors and outcome variables. Results: The concentration of arsenic in the urine samples ranged from undetectable (<0.01) to 126.13, with a mean and median concentration of 16.02 and 13.5 μg/L, respectively. However, the mean and median concentration of arsenic in the nails was 1.01, ranging from undetectable (<0.01 μg/g) to 2.54 μg/g. Furthermore, Pearson's correlation coefficient analysis showed a significant positive correlation between arsenic concentrations in urine and nail samples (r = 0.432, P <.001). Also, a positive correlation was observed between urinary (r = 0.21, P =.007) and nail (r = 0.14, P =.044) arsenic concentrations and the arsenic concentration in groundwater. Groundwater sources and smoking cigarettes were significantly associated with acute arsenic exposure. In contrast, groundwater sources, cigarette smoking, and the frequency of showers were significantly associated with chronic arsenic exposure. Conclusions: The study's findings unveiled the widespread occurrence of both acute and chronic arsenic exposure in the study area. Consequently, it is crucial to prioritize the residents in the study area and take further measures to prevent both acute and chronic arsenic exposure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The under-five mortality rate is a reliable indicator of a country's general level of development and the wellbeing of its children. Life expectancy is a good indicator of a population's standard of living. Objectives: To identify Socio-demographic and Environmental determinants of under-five child mortality in Ethiopia. Methods: A national representative cross sectional study and a quantitative study were conducted among 5753 households selected based on 2019 Mini-Ethiopian Demographic and Health Survey (EDHS-2019) data. The analysis was done using STATA version 14 statistical software. Bivariate and multivariate analyses were used. To assess the determinants of under-five child mortality in multivariate analysis, p values less than 0.05 were considered statistically significant, and odds ratios with 95% CI (confidence interval) were used. Results: A total of 5,753 children were included in the study. Sex of the head of the household being female (AOR = 2:350, 95% CI: 1.310, 4.215), the U5CM for being their mother were currently married (AOR = 2:094, 95% CI: 1.076, 4.072), The odds of U5CM was less by 80% (AOR = 1.797, 95% CI: 1.159–2.782) with the number of under-five children at the household born 2-4th order as compared to those children born on the first order. For the mothers visit anti natal care four and above visit (AOR = 1:803, 95% CI: 1.032, 3.149), for the way of delivery (AOR = 0:478, 95% CI: 0.233, 0.982). Conclusion: Multivariate logistic analysis reflected that way of delivery, mothers had being currently marred, sex of the head of the household and number of antenatal care visit were found to be significant predictors of under-five child mortality. So, government policy, nongovernmental organizations, and all concerned bodies should be focused on the major determinants of under-five child mortality and put in a lot more effort to reduce under-five child mortality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Common bean is an important pulse crop in Ethiopia. However, its yield is limited mainly due to lack of appropriate plant density for common bean varieties. Therefore, this experiment was conducted to assess the effect of plant density on growth, yield and yield components of common bean varieties during 2018 the main cropping season at Jinka, South Omo Zone, Ethiopia. The experiment consisted of six common bean varieties (Hawassa Dume, DAB-277, SER-125, SCR-26, Wajo and Remeda) and three plant density levels: 333,333; 250,000 and 200,000 plants ha-1 with inter-row spacing (cm2) of 30 x 10; 50 x 10; and 40 x 10, respectively. The experiment was organized using a factorial arrangement in randomized complete block design with three replications. Growth parameters, yield and yield components data were collected and analyzed using SAS software program. The result revealed that, the highest leaf area, number of primary branches, pods and seeds plant-1 were obtained from variety SCR-26 at the lowest plant density of 200,000 plant ha-1 and the highest plant height was recorded for the Wajo variety at the highest plant density of 333,333 plant ha-1. The highest above-ground biomass corresponded to SCR-26 variety at plant density of 250,000 plants ha-1. The highest grain yield (3.51 t ha-1) was recorded for SCR-26 variety at the lowest plant density, followed by SER-125 (3.33 t ha-1) at the plant density of 250,000 plants ha-1. The optimum plant density for SCR-26, Wajo and Remeda were 200,000 plants ha-1 while for SER-125, DAB-277 and Hawassa Dume were 250,000 plants ha-1. In conclusion, sowing variety SCR-26 at 200,000 plant density ha-1 and variety SER-125 at 250,000 plant density are agronomically optimal for the study area. However, this tentative generalization based one season at one location requires further studies over years and locations to give a valid recommendation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]