Search results

The purpose of this paper is to assess policy and management of hypertension and diabetes in Ghana.

The authors conducted 26 key informant interviews with policy makers, payers, providers and participants from advocacy groups associated with the management of hypertension and diabetes both at national and district levels in Ghana; conducted focus group discussions with a total of 18 hypertensive and diabetic patients; and analyzed documentation detailing activities that have been undertaken in response to the management of hypertension and diabetes in Ghana. The authors then conducted a content analysis after combining the three sources of information.

Using a stepwise policy process, the Ghanaian health sector has developed overarching policies and strategies on management of diabetes, hypertension, other non-communicable diseases, tobacco, alcohol and nutrition-related issues. Availability of funds and over-concentration on communicable diseases are the main barriers to the implementation of policies. Besides, response of the health sector to address the problems of hypertension and diabetes is focused more on clinical management than prevention; while the structures and processes to manage diabetes and hypertension is available at all levels of service delivery, more needs to be done on preventive aspects.

This is the first study in Ghana to combine individual interviews, focus groups and document analysis to review policy development, implementation and response activities on the management of hypertension and diabetes. The authors believe that the evidence from this research will inform future policy initiatives on hypertension and diabetes management in Ghana.

This chapter explores policy matters that have arisen as a result of the impact of COVID-19 on the education sector, with a specific focus on tertiary education in one African country, namely Botswana. The terms tertiary education and higher education are used interchangeably to describe post-secondary level education. Information was sourced from the existing literature as well as tracking media reports on COVID-19 matters. COVID-19 has ushered in the new normal which has disrupted existing policies, practices and business models in the tertiary education sector. It has also given unprecedented momentum to the move towards online learning. It is argued in this chapter that these developments have led to the emergence of blended learning as the most suitable way of delivering tertiary education. The chapter highlights the need for a review of policies and strategies at both the national and institutional levels in order to respond appropriately to the challenges brought about by COVID-19 and build a foundation for a sustainable tertiary education system.

Amid the worldwide lockdown and emergency transition to online classes caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, this paper aims to examine high school students’ satisfaction in this unique learning environment.

An exploratory factor analysis (EFA) was first used to extract a set of important factors from a number of variables. A logistic regression was subsequently used to access student satisfaction levels during the COVID-19 lockdown. In addition, a small qualitative study was conducted to gain additional insight into student satisfaction ratings.

A study sample of 486 usable responses revealed that students were most satisfied with the responsiveness of teaching staff, which included the provision of assignments and feedback on performance. The study also revealed that students experienced a range of emotions; those who experienced positive emotions (joy, pride, hope) were more satisfied than those who experienced negative emotions (frustration, anxiety, boredom).

Policymakers and educators in high schools could benefit from these findings when formulating policy recommendations to support the manning of operations during crisis situations and justify the introduction of future offerings of blended or online courses.

The study was conducted in a real and unprecedented crisis which created a unique environment to examine factors influencing Jamaican high school students’ satisfaction levels during the lockdown.

Work-related low back disorders (LBDs) are prevalent among rebar workers although their causes remain uncertain. The purpose of this study is to examine the self-reported discomfort and spinal biomechanics (muscle activity and spinal kinematics) experienced by rebar workers.

In all, 20 healthy male participants performed simulated repetitive rebar lifting tasks with three different lifting weights, using either a stoop (n = 10) or a squat (n = 10) lifting posture, until subjective fatigue was reached. During these tasks, trunk muscle activity and spinal kinematics were recorded using surface electromyography and motion sensors, respectively.

A mixed-model, repeated measures analysis of variance revealed that an increase in lifting weight significantly increased lower back muscle activity at L3 level but decreased fatigue and time to fatigue (endurance time) (p < 0.05). Lifting postures had no significant effect on spinal biomechanics (p < 0.05). Test results revealed that lifting different weights causes disproportional loading upon muscles, which shortens the time to reach working endurance and increases the risk of developing LBDs among rebar workers.

Future research is required to: broaden the research scope to include other trades; investigate the effects of using assistive lifting devices to reduce manual handling risks posed; and develop automated human condition-based solutions to monitor trunk muscle activity and spinal kinematics.

This study fulfils an identified need to study laboratory-based simulated task conducted to investigate the risk of developing LBDs among rebar workers primarily caused by repetitive rebar lifting.

The COVID-19 pandemic has propelled higher education institutions (HEIs) to rethink, redesign, and respond in real time. The dramatic closure of education institutions in South Africa, and in other countries worldwide, raised several questions in terms of the adaptability and readiness of the HEI sector to adapt and respond to the changes. The changes called into question issues such as in-person teaching and learning practices, digital resources, academic staff and student readiness for learning in digital environments, and connectivity and access to internet services and facilities. As a consequence of the COVID-19 crisis, the roles of academics and students have changed drastically. This has prompted worldwide scrutiny of teaching and learning in a way never experienced. The implementation of sustainable pedagogical approaches requires broad consultation particularly with key stakeholders such as academics and students. Lack of academic and student engagement can gravely affect the sustainability of any new pedagogical models that are rolled out. The aim of this chapter is to appraise the voices of students and academics working in teacher education during the rapid, unplanned, move to digital teaching and learning. Using an interpretative paradigm and case study design that involved online class observations and personal interviews with professors, lecturers and students, the chapter reports on the distress, discomfort, and frustration that students and staff in emergency remote teaching and learning suffered. The experience resulted from, inter alia, uneven access to digital literacy, mental health support, power generation supply, and digital learning and information communication technologies. Framed within notions of humanising pedagogy, the chapter provides critical reflections on lessons learnt from these voices.

This exploratory study aims to discover the different forms of challenges encountered by school stakeholders, including students, teachers, parents and management due to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.

Qualitative methodology was deployed for the study. A purposive sampling technique was used to select the respondents for a semi-structured interview. Data were examined using interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA).

It was found that each stakeholder faced four different challenges: mental distress, physical immobility, financial crunches and technological concerns. Findings suggest that teachers are experiencing higher financial, technological and physical challenges as compared to other stakeholders followed by parents.

This paper discusses the major challenges faced by each stakeholder along with the opportunities. These findings will be useful for educationists, regulatory authorities, policymakers and management of educational institutions in developing countries to revisit their policy frameworks to develop new strategies and processes for the smooth implementation of remote learning during a period of uncertainty.

Construction workers are frequently exposed to safety hazards on sites. Wearable sensing systems (e.g. wearable inertial measurement units (WIMUs), wearable insole pressure system (WIPS)) have been used to collect workers' gait patterns for distinguishing safety hazards. However, the performance of measuring WIPS-based gait parameters for identifying safety hazards as compared to a reference system (i.e. WIMUs) has not been studied. Therefore, this study examined the validity and reliability of measuring WIPS-based gait parameters as compared to WIMU-based gait parameters for distinguishing safety hazards in construction.

Five fall-risk events were conducted in a laboratory setting, and the performance of the proposed approach was assessed by calculating the mean difference (MD), mean absolute error (MAE), mean absolute percentage error (MAPE), root mean square error (RMSE) and intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) of five gait parameters.

Comparable results of MD, MAE, MAPE and RMSE were found between WIPS-based gait parameters and the reference system. Furthermore, all measured gait parameters had validity (ICC = 0.751) and test-retest reliability (ICC = 0.910) closer to 1, indicating a good performance of measuring WIPS-based gait parameters for distinguishing safety hazards.

Overall, this study supports the relevance of developing a WIPS as a noninvasive wearable sensing system for identifying safety hazards on construction sites, thus highlighting the usefulness of its applications for construction safety research.

This is the first study to examine the performance of a wearable insole pressure system for identifying safety hazards in construction.

Mental ill health is prevalent among construction workers due to high job demands and unsafe working conditions. Psychological safety climate (PSC) has emerged as a potential solution for improving workplace mental health. However, there is still limited understanding of how different dimensions of PSC influence mental ill health. Thus, this study aims to explore the impact of PSC on the mental ill health of construction employees in the Vietnamese context.

Data were collected from 238 construction professionals using a non-probability sampling method. Partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) was employed to analyze the relationships between various PSC dimensions and mental ill health.

The findings revealed that management commitment and management priority have the most significant influence on reducing mental ill health in the Vietnamese construction sector. While organizational communication and participation contribute, their impact is less pronounced but crucial in promoting employee well-being.

Firms should actively promote mental well-being by visibly prioritizing psychological health alongside productivity and providing resources for stress prevention. For policymakers, these findings suggest the need for regulations that encourage or mandate mental health programs. Additionally, the study highlights the need for employees to engage with mental health initiatives to reduce the stigma surrounding mental health discussions in the workplace.

This study explored the themes and sentiments of online learners regarding the use of Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) or “generative AI” technology in higher education.

English-language tweets were subjected to topic modelling and sentiment analysis. Three prevalent themes were identified and discussed: curriculum development opportunities, lifelong learning prospects and challenges associated with generative AI use.

The results also indicated a range of topics and emotions towards generative AI in education, which were predominantly positive but also varied across male and female users.

The findings provide insights for educators, policymakers and researchers on the opportunities and challenges associated with the integration of generative AI in educational settings. This includes the importance of identifying AI-supported learning and teaching practices that align with gender-specific preferences to offer a more inclusive and tailored approach to learning.