Busisiwe P Ncama

• Head of Faculty at University of KwaZulu-Natal

We investigated the trajectory of depressive symptoms (“depression”) from the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in South Africa (March 2020) until 2021, between individuals with and without pre-pandemic depression, specifically regarding the role of food security. Our investigation used publicly available panel data (N = 6,930) from the South African...

Introduction: Cancer is gradually becoming a chronic disease, which brings important needs and difficulties to both patients and caregivers. Objective: The study examines factors militating against family caregivers on cancer patients health in selected teaching hospitals in Ogbomoso area, Oyo State, Nigeria. Materials and Methods: Both questionnai...

Background Breast cancer is steadily increasing in Ghana, with the majority of Ghanaians only seeking care in the advanced stage of the disease. Furthermore, structured breast cancer control strategies are mostly non-existent. This study aimed to examine breast cancer and breast screening pathways in a tertiary healthcare facility within the Kumasi...

Background Gender-Based (GB) intimate partner violence is a social and public health issue globally. Several risks of violence related to male sexual partners’ perpetration of intimate partner violence (IPV) following the disclosure of their female intimate partners’ HIV + status have been reported. No research has been conducted on male sexual par...

Sub-Saharan Africa faces unprecedented disasters, with climate change expected to exacerbate the frequency and severity of unpredictable and stressful catastrophic events. Unlike developed nations, reconstruction in developing nations is hindered by resource constraints, with certain communities potentially experiencing multiple and enduring effect...

Background: Despite the long-term consequences of malnutrition in hospitalised patients, nutritional practice guidelines for adults, particularly in the recovery phase are rarely implemented in community based primary health care settings. Aim: This study aimed at assessing the current practice to establish preparedness for effective implementatio...

Background: Despite the long-term consequences of malnutrition in hospitalised patients, nutritional practice guidelines for adults, particularly in the recovery phase are rarely implemented in community based primary health care settings. Aim: This study aimed at assessing the current practice to establish preparedness for effective implementation...

Objective The WHO has declared food safety as a public health concern. Transport hubs such as taxi ranks, bus stations and other transport exchange sites are major food trading/purchasing sites, particularly in Africa. Research evidence is needed to improve food safety policies and ensure consumption of safe food, owing to the increasing burden of...

Mapping evidence of interventions and strategies to bridge the gap in the implementation of the prevention of mother-to-child transmission of HIV programme policy in sub-Saharan countries: A scoping review

Aim The aim of the study was to identify barriers and benefits in establishing a model for integration of palliative care of cancer patients in daily clinical practice in tertiary health institutions. Methods This was a qualitative design study using in‐depth interviews with four stakeholders and focus group discussions with 19 nurse managers usin...

While food insecurity is a persistent public health challenge, its long-term association with depression at a national level is unknown. We investigated the spatial heterogeneity of food insecurity and its association with depression in South Africa (SA), using nationally-representative panel data from the South African National Income Dynamics Stu...

Introduction In Africa, travels, urbanisation and changing consumer habits are increasing the number of people buying and eating food prepared/sold at public spaces including transport stations, particularly in the urban and periurban areas. Although food trading in such public spaces serves as a source of livelihood for many people, unsafe food ca...

In most middle and low economic nations, problem in the active management of health complaints is patients defaulting on follow-up appointments, attributable to financial constraints and cost of health services due to economic recession. This increases the danger of aggravation and deterioration of the condition and leads to re-hospitalization. Mos...

Birth asphyxia is a global health burden, and effective neonatal resuscitation could reduce the burden of deaths. Providing a suitable newborn resuscitation care will depend on the availability of an effective skilled health worker, who is competent in neonatal resuscitation. The study explores and assesses the effect of neonatal resuscitation trai...

Background: Despite significant gains in the HIV epidemic in South Africa, with reduction in mortality and elimination of vertical transmission, national HIV prevalence remains high, with women rather than men continuing to bear higher burden of the disease. Population subgroups, through ignorance, disbelief or recklessness, continue to engage in...

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a key public health and social concern among couples in countries globally. A systematic review was conducted to find out information concerning literature on the perpetration of IPV among couples infected with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). The main objective of this study was to search for evidence of IPV a...

Background: Men’s experiences of perpetration of intimate partner violence against their female heterosexual partners following disclosure of their HIV positive status is a global health problem. The forms of IPV and factors associated with IPV following the disclosure are under-researched. In this article, we aim to explore and describe the forms...

Background Substantial prevalence of malnutrition that occurs in 15-60% of adults in both primary health care and acute care settings has increased the use of enteral nutritional therapy and the development of related guidelines. However, related knowledge remains inadequate and a negative attitude among health care professionals is revealed, parti...

Background Competence in neonatal resuscitation of the newborn is very critical to ensure the safety and well-being of newborn infants. The acquisition of neonatal resuscitation skills by birth attendants improves self-efficacy, thereby reducing neonatal mortality as a result of asphyxia. Approximately one-quarter of all neonatal deaths globally ar...

Introduction The need for specialized care, particularly enteral nutritional therapy in community settings is now increasing with implications for both patients and primary care providers. More research is needed to identify the needs of patients and primary caregivers. The study aimed to explore the perceived support needs regarding the provision...

Background Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a key public health and social concern among couples in countries globally. A systematic review was conducted to find out information that is found in relation to literature on perpetration of IPV among couples infected with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV).Objective The main objective of this study w...

Background: The rapid increase in disease-related malnutrition makes it almost impossible for healthcare practitioners and policymakers to keep up with its negative consequences. Consequently, healthcare organisations and decision-makers have called for accelerated and double-duty actions to manage the double burden of malnutrition. Guidelines sta...

Introduction: The role of health promoting-lifestyle in the prevention of noncommunicable diseases that is global epidemics cannot be emphasis. This study examined resources available in a university that enhance and maintain health-promoting lifestyle behaviour of staff and explore factors influencing health-promoting lifestyle behaviour of staff....

Background: Nutritional therapy practice guidelines are designed to improve nutritional practices and thus the delivery of nutritional therapy in critically ill patients. However, they are not implemented despite the strong recommendation of nutritional therapy in the management of critical illness. The aim of this study is to map evidence on nutr...

Each year, approximately 10 million babies do not breathe immediately at birth, of which about 6 million require basic neonatal resuscitation. The mainproblem is in low-resource settings, where the health system capacity to provide neonatal resuscitation is inadequate. Neonatal mortality is a worldwide problem and is identified as a priority focus...

Background: Helping Babies Breathe (HBB) is a stimulated-based educational model developed to training birth attendants in low-income counties in basic neonatal stabilization. The scientific basis of HBB stemmed from neonatal evidence evaluation. Evaluation of this model gives an exhaustive understanding of the effectiveness of the training process...

Introduction Health-promoting lifestyle behaviours are part of the activities of daily living that influence individual happiness, values and well-being. They play a crucial role in prevention and control of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) among all age groups. Current statistics on mortality, disability and morbidity associated with NCDs are alar...

INTRODUCTION: Overweight, hyperglycaemia and hypertension are risk factors for development of cardiovascular diseases that have the highest mortality and morbidity rates among noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) globally. The aim of this study was to examine the health-promoting lifestyle behaviour that determine risk factors for Noncommunicable diseas...

BACKGROUND: Transitional challenges in the disease profile and healthcare systems have revealed the need for the development of guidelines to assist healthcare practitioners in decision making regarding patient care. Implementing strong evidence‐based guideline recommendations into clinical practice is associated with improved clinical outcomes for...

Deficient resuscitation influences significantly neonatal mortality globally. Effective neonatal resuscitation has a potential to prevent perinatal mortalities related to birth asphyxia. This study aimed at assessing knowledge and skills after implementing a simple Helping Babies Breathe training of neonatal resuscitation to improve practice of sem...

The study aimed to develop and pilot test an Integrated Technology-Moderated Institutional Health Promotion Model for university staff in Nigeria. An operational research approach using mixed concurrent design was adopted to develop the model, and pretest-posttest method was used to evaluate the utilization and effectiveness of the developed model....

Nigeria's newborn mortality is among the highest in the world. It was estimated that 10% of all newborn deaths in the world happened in Nigeria 1. The country was ranked 11 th highest on newborn deaths in the world 2. Therefore, knowledge of causes of death among newborns is significant to strategically plan an interventional programmes that will e...

Background: The transgender population has unique health risks, including increased risk of mental illness, substance abuse, suicide and a high prevalence of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). Worldwide studies indicate that this population is marginalised and faces barriers in accessing health care. In South Africa, there is limited information a...

Background: Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection and intimate partner violence (IPV) remain highly sensitive areas that have issues to do with stigmatization in many African countries. Despite the fact that there are several studies on the prevention of HIV, the prevalence of HIV in many African countries is still high. Literature shows th...

Background: Late presentation of breast cancer (BC) is a public health concern due to its impact on survival and mortality, especially, in low-resourced countries. Prevention and early detection of breast cancer are required to improve breast cancer outcomes in developing countries. Objective: This study explores clinicians’ experiences and perspec...

Background: The lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) populations have unique health risks including an increased risk of mental health problems, high usage of recreational drugs and alcohol, and high rates of infection with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). Healthcare workers’ heteronormative attitudes compromise the quality of care to t...

The burden of breast cancer is greater in Ghana because most women present with advanced disease with poor prognostic outcomes. A person’s health beliefs, experiences, exposures, and disease representation have been noted to influence his/her health behavior. We examined whether knowing someone who has an advanced breast cancer would influence know...

Background/Objectives Health Promotion interventions in the work place contribute to total wellbeing of workers, productivity and organizational achievement of goals. The University as a development change organization is recognized as a site for advancing health promotion hence the ideal of health promoting universities. University management howe...

Background Breast cancer is common among Ghanaian women. Late stage presentation has been credited to knowledge deficit and lack of breast cancer prevention and early detection services for women. Objective This study aimed to develop a model to facilitate the integration of breast cancer prevention and early detection into cancer palliative care...

This is the S1 Table Participants profile (First-degree relatives). (DOCX)

This is the S2 Table Participants profile (Micro-communities). (DOCX)

This is the S4 Table Concepts identification and classification process. (DOCX)

This is the S3 Table Participants profile (Clinicians). (DOCX)

Background The burden of late presentation is well established in women presenting with advanced breast cancer in Africa. This paper aims to explore the reasons for delayed presentation in Ghanaian women with breast cancer. Method Eleven (11) women diagnosed with advanced breast cancer were purposively sampled within three years of diagnosis at th...

Participants profile. (DOCX)

Interview guide English version. (DOCX)

Interview guide in original language. (DOCX)

Background Given the increasing burden of breast cancer in the low- and middle-income countries, cost-effective approaches are needed to improve the early detection of breast cancer in these continents. Global policies and guidelines are now placing much emphasis on promoting early detection of breast cancer through integrated education and screeni...

BACKGROUND: South Africa's prevention of mother-to-child transmission (PMTCT) of the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) programme has undergone rapid changes in the last two decades. Initially, the provision of single antiretroviral therapy was based on eligibility criteria in the year 2001, which later changed to combination therapy. This was aime...

Background Population estimates underpin demographic and epidemiological research and are used to track progress on numerous international indicators of health and development. To date, internationally available estimates of population and fertility, although useful, have not been produced with transparent and replicable methods and do not use stan...

Background Population estimates underpin demographic and epidemiological research and are used to track progress on numerous international indicators of health and development. To date, internationally available estimates of population and fertility, although useful, have not been produced with transparent and replicable methods and do not use stan...

Background: Assessments of age-specific mortality and life expectancy have been done by the UN Population Division, Department of Economics and Social Affairs (UNPOP), the United States Census Bureau, WHO, and as part of previous iterations of the Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study (GBD). Previous iterations of the GBD used...

Background Assessments of age-specific mortality and life expectancy have been done by the UN Population Division, Department of Economics and Social Affairs (UNPOP), the United States Census Bureau, WHO, and as part of previous iterations of the Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study (GBD). Previous iterations of the GBD used...

BACKGROUND: Assessments of age-specific mortality and life expectancy have been done by the UN Population Division, Department of Economics and Social Affairs (UNPOP), the United States Census Bureau, WHO, and as part of previous iterations of the Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study (GBD). Previous iterations of the GBD used...

Introduction: There is evidence of the inability of older people in Nigeria, Ghana and other developing countries to sustain themselves through savings, assets or pensions. This situation highlights the minimal benefit of pensions, savings or assets as income sources for older people; old age very often brings poverty and disability. Methodology: A...

Aims The aims are to examine the effect of home visiting and resources for instituting the programme as a follow‐up strategy in integration of palliative care in daily clinical practice by nurses caring for cancer patients in Nigeria, and on how it can be used to improve care for cancer patients. Background Home visiting by nurses has been used as...

Background: Hypertension, diabetes mellitus and obesity share some characteristics in relation to diagnosis, management, and prevention. Overweight, obesity and waist-hip ratio (WHR) are associated with increased risk for development of diabetes and hypertension. Surveillance and regular screening exercises are essential in control and prevention...

Background: A global debate surrounding health care delivery at the lowest level of the community has aroused interest among researchers. In settings where skilled health workforce is scarce, the community relies on volunteers to provide care. Aim: To explore the role of community-based volunteers (CBVs) and their perspectives on human immunodefic...

Purpose The study seeks to assess the care needs of oncology in‐patients and clinic attendees or families in two tertiary health institutions. Methods This was a descriptive study which utilised a quantitative survey questionnaire of all cancer patients diagnosed between January 2014 and September 2016 (n = 547) with the return rate (n = 455) repr...

Nurses remain a crucial part in the management and care of HIV, especially in resource constrained settings where they fulfil a variety of roles and functions. Competent HIV healthcare providers, especially nurses who provide and support the first line of healthcare in South Africa, are needed to achieve optimal clinical outcomes for all people liv...

Background. Currently, there is a need in South Africa to implement strategies to upskill nurses in the clinical management of HIV and AIDS, for effective and efficient management of people living with HIV. One such strategy is the nurse-initiated management of antiretroviral therapy (NIMART) course. Objectives. To evaluate the effectiveness of the...

Background: Prevention of mother-to-child transmission (PMTCT) of HIV is a life-saving public health intervention. Sub-Saharan African (SSA) countries have made significant progress in the programme, but little is known about the strategies used by them to eliminate mother-to-child transmission of HIV. Aim: To map evidence of strategies and interve...

Abstract Background Health system responsiveness measures (HSR) the non-health aspect of care relating to the environment and the way healthcare is provided to clients. The study measured the HSR performance and correlates of HIV/AIDS treatment and care services in the Wolaita Zone of Ethiopia. Methods A cross-sectional survey across seven responsi...

Introduction Information and communication technologies (ICTs) play a key role in improving health and maintaining health promoting behaviours. ICTs are therefore one potential solution for promoting healthy lifestyles. In addition, they can assist in the reduction and control of the menace of both communicable and non-communicable diseases. This s...

Background: Exclusive breastfeeding in the first 6 months offers protection from postnatal HIV infection but remains low in resource-poor settings. Documentation of experiences with exclusive breastfeeding is needed to strengthen infant feeding counselling by health care workers. Objective: To explore HIV-positive mothers’ experiences with exclusiv...

Access to healthcare is an important public health concept and has been traditionally measured by using population level parameters, such as availability, distribution and proximity of the health facilities in relation to the population. However, client based factors such as their expectations, experiences and perceptions which impact their evaluat...

Questionnaire. (DOCX)

Clinic Data Abstraction Form. (DOCX)

Abstract:Globally the concept of health is gradually shifting to focus on maintaining, improving and protecting the health of an individual, family and community, based on what an individual known about his or her health. The acquisition of this knowledge will enable him/her to make an informed decision about his/her health. The aim of this review...

Vulnerable children living with HIV are often faced with challenges that require supportive care. Our study explored an analysis of empathic-supportive care given to such children. A qualitative research method was adopted with focus group discussions and individual interviews with children, caregivers, nurses, and stakeholders. The findings highli...

Background Exclusive breastfeeding has the potential to reduce infant and under-five mortality, but research shows the practice is not widespread in resource-poor settings of sub-Saharan Africa. We explored factors influencing the decision to exclusively breastfeed among HIV-positive mothers accessing interventions for prevention of mother-to-child...

Introduction: Satisfaction with services is a qualitative but important measure of the fit between clients and care providers and is also a measure of the outcome of treatment. This study investigated the level and correlates of client satisfaction with HIV care. Methods: A cross-sectional questionnaire-based study was conducted on 485 people us...

Background: Access to healthcare is an essential element of health development and a fundamental human right. While access to and acceptability of healthcare are complex concepts that interact with different socio-ecological factors (individual, community, institutional and policy), it is not known how these factors affect HIV care. This study inv...

Aim: To explored the role of family-centered care in supporting children living with HIV and AIDS in Nigeria. Methods: A qualitative research design was adopted for this study with a grounded theory approach. Children aged between 11 and 14 years living with HIV and AIDS, their caregivers, and nurse practitioners working in the HIV clinic were e...

Research encourages evidence-based guidelines for practice. This paper describes the guidelines for HIV/AIDS stigma reduction in the community. These guidelines were developed by the authors based on findings of the study which was conducted to develop and evaluate HIV/AIDS stigma reduction intervention in a rural Namibian community. The developed...

Objective To investigate the levels and factors affecting the perceived quality of HIV/AIDS treatment and care services. Design A cross-sectional study. Setting The study was conducted in Wolaita Zone of southern Ethiopia in one hospital and five health centres providing antiretroviral therapy (ART) and pre-ART. Participants 481 persons infected wi...

The Ubuntu spirit of the African people can greatly impact on the care of children living with HIV and AIDS within the society as the network of relationships within the environment provides a therapeutic milieu for the sick and impoverished. The study aimed at ascertaining the guiding philosophy of care for children with HIV and AIDS with a view t...

The legal requirements for informed consent and confidentiality of patient information are clearly specified in chapter two of the National Health Act (NHA). Along with informed consent, the right to privacy is enshrined not only in the Constitution but also obligations to recognize this right are set out in the NHA. The study aims to survey the ha...

This paper reports on the impact of an intervention to encourage self-management of treatment upon CD4 ratios and health status of HIV/AIDS patients: a quasi experimental study in a semi-rural area in KwaZulu-Natal province in South Africa. Participants were a purposive sample of 88 HIV/AIDS patients. Participant's CD4 cell count results were retri...

Introduction Hypertension is a global health challenge and its prevalence is increasing rapidly amongst adults in many African countries. Some studies on the prevalence and risk factors of hypertension have been conducted in Nigeria, but none within Delta State. We assessed the prevalence of hypertension and associated risk factors amongst adults i...