Search results for: early breastfeeding initiation

Authors: Hanan Mohamed Abd Elmoneim, Rawan Saleh AlJawi, Razan Saleh AlJawi, Aseel Abdullah AlMasoudi , Zyad Adnan Turkistani, Anas Abdulkarim Alkhoutani , Ohood Musaed AlJuhani , Hanan Attiyah AlZahrani

Abstract:

Background Esophageal cancer is the eighth most common cancer worldwide. More than 90% of esophageal cancers are either squamous cell carcinoma or adenocarcinoma. Squamous dysplasia is a precancerous lesion for squamous cell carcinoma and Barrett's esophagus is the precancerous lesion for adenocarcinoma. Gastro-esophageal reflux disease (GERD) is the initiation factor for Barrett's esophagus. Cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) is a key enzyme in arachidonic metabolism. It appears to play an important role in gastrointestinal carcinogenesis. COX-2 activity may be a potential target for the prevention of cancer progression by selective COX-2 inhibitors, which decrease proliferation and increase apoptosis. Objectives To assess COX-2 expression in premalignant and malignant esophageal epitheliums changes and detect its roles in progression of these lesions. Materials and Methods We analyzed the expression of COX-2 immunohistochemically in 40 esophageal biopsies utilizing the streptavidin-biotin-peroxidase complex method on archival formalin fixed-paraffin embedded blocks. Histopathologically, 17 (42.5%) of cases were non-malignant cases which included GERD, Barrett's esophagus and squamous dysplasia. The malignant cases were 23 (57.5%) squamous cell carcinoma, adenocarcinoma and undifferentiated carcinoma. Results In non-malignant cases 7 (41.2%) out of 17 cases had high COX-2 expression. In squamous cell carcinoma 10 (83.3%) out of 12 cases had high COX-2 expression. The expression of COX-2 was high in all 9 (100%) cases of adenocarcinoma. COX-2 expression is significantly increased (P=0.005 and P=0.0001) in squamous cell carcinoma and adenocarcinoma respectively. There was a significant difference in COX-2 immunoreactivity between malignant and non-malignant lesions (P=0.0003). Conclusion COX-2 is responsible for the progression of esophageal diseases from benign to malignant. We recommend that COX-2 immunohistochemistry should be done routinely for premalignant and malignant esophageal lesions as selective COX-2 inhibitors will be helpful in the treatment. Further studies on molecular and genetic basis of COX-2 expression are needed to unmask its role and relation to progression of esophageal lesions.

Keywords: Cox-2, Esophageal adinocarcinoma, Esophageal squamous cell carcinoma, Immunohistochemistry.

Procedia PDF Downloads 331

Authors: Alexslis N. Maindze

Abstract:

Knowledge management (KM) has become an imperative to modern business growth, competitive edge, and sustainability. Though there has been extensive research in the field, this literature overview showcases massive gaps that exist on the coverage of the field’s rich and fascinating history. Particularly, accounts of the history of KM are inconsistent and fragmentary in breadth and depth. This paper presents new insights into the history of KM from the early 70s when the actual coinage ‘knowledge management’ entered the literature. It reveals how knowledge over the years was shrouded in secrecy and subsumed by technology. It makes a clear distinction between the histories of the debate around knowledge and that of KM. The paper also finds a history of KM filled with skepticisms and engulfed by an ‘intellectual paradox’.

Keywords: knowledge management history, secrecy, skepticism, intellectual paradox

Procedia PDF Downloads 204

Authors: Katherine Karayianis

Abstract:

Children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) have trouble learning in traditional classrooms. These children miss out on important developmental opportunities in school, which leads to challenges starting in early childhood, and these problems persist throughout their adult lives. Despite receiving supplemental support in school, children with ADHD still perform below their non-ADHD peers. Thus, there is a great need to find better ways of facilitating learning in children with ADHD. Evidence has shown that children with ADHD learn best through interactive engagement, but this is not always possible in schools, given classroom restraints and the large student-to-teacher ratio. Redesigning classrooms may not be feasible, so informal learning opportunities provide a possible alternative. One popular informal learning opportunity is educational TV shows like Sesame Street. These types of educational shows can teach children foundational skills taught in pre-K and early elementary school. One downside to these shows is the lack of interactive dialogue between the TV characters and the child viewers. Pseudo-interaction is often deployed, but the benefits are limited if the characters can neither understand nor contingently respond to the child. AI technology has become extremely advanced and is now popular in many electronic devices that both children and adults have access to. AI has been successfully used to create interactive dialogue in children’s educational TV shows, and results show that this enhances children’s learning and engagement, especially when children perceive the character as a reliable teacher. It is likely that children with ADHD, whose minds may otherwise wander, may especially benefit from this type of interactive technology, possibly to a greater extent depending on their perception of the animated dialogic agent. To investigate this issue, I have begun examining the moderating role of inattention among children’s learning from an educational TV show with different types of dialogic interactions. Preliminary results have shown that when character interactions are neither immediate nor accurate, children who are more easily distracted will have greater difficulty learning from the show, but contingent interactions with a TV character seem to buffer these negative effects of distractibility by keeping the child engaged. To extend this line of work, the moderating role of the child’s perception of the dialogic agent as a reliable teacher will be examined in the association between children’s attention and the type of dialogic interaction in the TV show. As such, the current study will investigate this moderated moderation.

Keywords: attention, dialogic TV, informal learning, educational TV, perception of teacher

Procedia PDF Downloads 59

Authors: Sukumar Namineni, Tracy O'Connor, Ulrich Kalinke, Percy Knolle, Mathias Heikenwaelder

Abstract:

The liver is one of the pivotal organs in vertebrate animals, serving a multitude of functions such as metabolism, detoxification and protein synthesis and including a predominant role in innate immunity. The innate immune mechanisms pertaining to liver in controlling viral infections have largely been attributed to the Kupffer cells, the locally resident macrophages. However, all the cells of liver are equipped with innate immune functions including, in particular, the hepatocytes. Hence, our aim in this study was to elucidate the innate immune contribution of hepatocytes in viral clearance using mice lacking Ikkβ specifically in the hepatocytes, termed IkkβΔᴴᵉᵖ mice. Blockade of Ikkβ activation in IkkβΔᴴᵉᵖ mice affects the downstream signaling of canonical NF-κB signaling by preventing the nuclear translocation of NF-κB, an important step required for the initiation of innate immune responses. Interestingly, infection of IkkβΔᴴᵉᵖ mice with lymphocytic choriomeningitis virus (LCMV) led to strongly increased hepatic viral titers – mainly confined in clusters of infected hepatocytes. This was due to reduced interferon stimulated gene (ISG) expression during the onset of infection and a reduced CD8+ T-cell-mediated response. Decreased ISG production correlated with increased liver LCMV protein and LCMV in isolated hepatocytes from IkkβΔᴴᵉᵖ mice. A similar phenotype was found in LCMV-infected mice lacking interferon signaling in hepatocytes (IFNARΔᴴᵉᵖ) suggesting a link between NFkB and interferon signaling in hepatocytes. We also observed a failure of interferon-mediated inhibition of HBV replication in HepaRG cells treated with NF-kB inhibitors corroborating our initial findings with LCMV infections. Collectively, these results clearly highlight a previously unknown and influential role of hepatocytes in the induction of innate immune responses leading to viral clearance during a systemic viral infection with LCMV-WE.

Keywords: CD8+ T cell responses, innate immune mechanisms in the liver, interferon signaling, interferon stimulated genes, NF-kB signaling, viral clearance

Procedia PDF Downloads 176

Authors: Ayanori Sugiyama, Takahisa Hanei, Yasuhide Higo

Abstract:

Domestic demand for the construction of tunnels has been increasing in recent years in Japan. To meet this demand, various construction materials and construction methods have been developed to attain higher strength, reduction of negative impact on the environment and improvement for working conditions. In this report, we would like to introduce the newly developed shotcrete with superior hardening properties which were tested through the actual machine scale and its workability and strength development were evaluated. As a result, this new tunnel construction method was found to achieve higher workability and quicker strength development in only a couple of minutes.

Keywords: accelerator, shotcrete, tunnel, high-strength

Procedia PDF Downloads 298

Authors: M. Mirza Y. Harahap

Abstract:

This paper explores the interiority of children’s territorialisation in domestic space context by looking at their affective relations with their surroundings. Examining its spatiality, the research focuses on the interactions that developed between the children and the things which exist in their house, specifically those which left traces, indicating the very arena of their territory. As early learners, the children whose mind and body are still in the development stage are hypothetically distinct in the way they territorialise the space. Rule, common sense and other form of common acceptances among the adults might not be relevant with their way on territorialising the space. Unpredictability-ness, inappropriateness, and unimaginableness hypothetically characterise their unique endeavour when territorialising the space. The purpose might even be insignificant, expressing their very development which unrestricted. This indicates how the interiority of children’s territorialisation in a domestic space context actually is. It would also implicate on a new way of seeing territory since territorialisation act has natural purpose: to aim the space and regard them as his/her own. Aiming to disclose the above territorialisation characteristics, this paper addresses a qualitative study which covers a comprehensive analysis as follow: 1) Collecting various territorial traces left from the children activities within their respective houses. Further within this stage, the data is categorised based on the territorial strategy and tactic. This stage would particularly result in the overall map of the children’s territorial interiority which expresses its focuses, range and ways; 2) Examining the interactions occurred between the children and the spatial elements within the house. Stressing on the affective relations, this stage revealed the immaterial aspect of the children’s territorialisation, thus disclosed the unseen spatial aspect of territorialisation; and 3) Synthesising the previous two stages. Correlating the results from the two stages would then help us to understand the children’s unpredictable, inappropriate and unimaginable territorial interiority. This would also help us to justify how the children learn the space through territorialisation act, its importance and its position in interiority conception. The discussed relation between the children and the houses that cover both its physical and imaginary entity as part of their overall dwelling space would also help us to have a better understanding towards specific spatial elements which are significant and undeniably important for children’s spatial learning process. Particularly for this last finding, it would also help us to determine what kind of spatial elements which are necessary to be existed in a house, thus help for design development purpose. Overall, the study in this paper would help us to broaden our mindset regarding the territory, dwelling, interiority and the overall interior architecture conception, promising a chance for further research within interior architecture field.

Keywords: children, interiority, relation, territory

Procedia PDF Downloads 126

Authors: Ibragim Issabekov, Byron Crape, Lyazzat Toleubekova

Abstract:

Background: Palliative care substantially improves the quality of life of terminally-ill patients. Symptom control is one of the keystones in the management of patients in palliative care settings, lowering distress as well as improving the quality of life of patients with end-stage diseases. The most common symptoms causing significant distress for patients are pain, nausea and vomiting, increased respiratory secretions and mental health issues like depression. Aims are: 1. to identify best practices in symptom management in palliative patients in accordance with internationally approved guidelines and compare aforementioned with actual practices in Kazakhstan; to evaluate the criteria for assessing symptoms in terminally-ill patients, 2. to review the availability and utilization of pharmaceutical agents for pain control, management of excessive respiratory secretions, nausea, and vomiting, and delirium and 3. to develop recommendations for the systematic approach to end-of-life symptom management in Kazakhstan. Methods: The use of qualitative research methods together with systematic literature review have been employed to provide a rigorous research process to evaluate current approaches for symptom management of palliative patients in Kazakhstan. Qualitative methods include in-depth semi-structured interviews of the healthcare professionals involved in palliative care provision. Results: Obstacles were found in appropriate provision of palliative care. Inadequate education and training to manage severe symptoms, poorly defined laws and regulations for palliative care provision, and a lack of algorithms and guidelines for care were major barriers in the effective provision of palliative care. Conclusion: Assessment of palliative care in this medium-income transitional-economy country is one of the first steps in the initiation of integration of palliative care into the existing health system. Achieving this requires identifying obstacles and resolving these issues.

Keywords: end-of-life care, middle income country, palliative care, symptom control

Procedia PDF Downloads 189

Authors: Zhen Cao, Yu Zhu, Junxue Fu

Abstract:

Immunoassay, i.e., antigen-antibody reaction, is crucial for disease diagnostics. To achieve the adequate signal of the antigen protein detection, a large amount of sample and long incubation time is needed. However, the amount of protein is usually small at the early stage, which makes it difficult to detect. Unlike cells and DNAs, no valid chemical method exists for protein amplification. Thus, an alternative way to improve the signal is through particle manipulation techniques to concentrate proteins, among which dielectrophoresis (DEP) is an effective one. DEP is a technique that concentrates particles to the designated region through a force created by the gradient in a non-uniform electric field. Since DEP force is proportional to the cube of particle size and square of electric field gradient, it is relatively easy to capture larger particles such as cells. For smaller ones like proteins, a super high gradient is then required. In this work, three-dimensional Ag/SiO2 nanorods arrays, fabricated by an easy physical vapor deposition technique called as oblique angle deposition, have been integrated with a DEP device and created the field gradient as high as of 2.6×10²⁴ V²/m³. The nanorods based DEP device is able to enrich bovine serum albumin (BSA) protein by 1800-fold and the rate has reached 180-fold/s when only applying 5 V electric potential. Based on the above nanorods integrated DEP platform, an immunoassay of mouse immunoglobulin G (IgG) proteins has been performed. Briefly, specific antibodies are immobilized onto nanorods, then IgG proteins are concentrated and captured, and finally, the signal from fluorescence-labelled antibodies are detected. The limit of detection (LoD) is measured as 275.3 fg/mL (~1.8 fM), which is a 20,000-fold enhancement compared with identical assays performed on blank glass plates. Further, prostate-specific antigen (PSA), which is a cancer biomarker for diagnosis of prostate cancer after radical prostatectomy, is also quantified with a LoD as low as 2.6 pg/mL. The time to signal saturation has been significantly reduced to one minute. In summary, together with an easy nanorod fabrication and integration method, this nanorods based DEP platform has demonstrated highly sensitive immunoassay performance and thus poses great potentials in applications for early point-of-care diagnostics.

Keywords: dielectrophoresis, immunoassay, oblique angle deposition, protein concentration

Procedia PDF Downloads 90

Authors: Dedjo Yao Simon, Takahiro Saito, Norikazu Inuzuka, Ikuo Sugiyama

Abstract:

Abidjan city (Republic of Ivory Coast) is an emerging megacity and an urban coastal area where the number of floods reported is on a rapid increase due to climate change and unplanned urbanization. However, comprehensive disaster mitigation plans, policies, and financial resources are still lacking as the population ignores the extent and location of the flood zones; making them unprepared to mitigate the damages. Considering the existing condition, this paper aims to discuss an approach for flood risk reduction in Cocody Commune through value capture strategy and flood risk communication. Using geospatial techniques and hydrological simulation, we start our study by delineating flood zones and depths under several return periods in the study area. Then, through a questionnaire a field survey is conducted in order to validate the flood maps, to estimate the flood risk and to collect some sample of the opinion of residents on how the flood risk information disclosure could affect the values of property located inside and outside the flood zones. The results indicate that the study area is highly vulnerable to 5-year floods and more, which can cause serious harm to human lives and to properties as demonstrated by the extent of the 5-year flood of 2014. Also, it is revealed there is a high probability that the values of property located within flood zones could decline, and the values of surrounding property in the safe area could increase when risk information disclosure commences. However in order to raise public awareness of flood disaster and to prevent future housing promotion in high-risk prospective areas, flood risk information should be disseminated through the establishment of an early warning system. In order to reduce the effect of risk information disclosure and to protect the values of property within the high-risk zone, we propose that property tax increments in flood free zones should be captured and be utilized for infrastructure development and to maintain the early warning system that will benefit people living in flood prone areas. Through this case study, it is shown that combination of value capture strategy and risk communication could be an effective tool to educate citizen and to invest in flood risk reduction in emerging countries.

Keywords: Cocody-Abidjan, flood, geospatial techniques, risk communication, value capture

Procedia PDF Downloads 250

Authors: Clara Luwe, Oliver Harness, Helena Meally, Kim Martin, Alexandra Harrington

Abstract:

Background: The role of ‘Renal Specialist Podiatrist’ originated in 2022 due to prevailing evidence of patients with diabetes and end-stage renal disease (ESRD) on haemodialysis (HD) and active ulcerations that were at higher risk of rapid deterioration, foot-related hospital admissions, and lower limb amputations. This role started in April 2022 with the aim of screening all patients on haemodialysis and instigating preventative measures to reduce serious foot related complications. Methods: A comprehensive neurovascular foot assessment was completed to establish baseline vascular status and identify those with peripheral arterial disease (PAD) for all patients on HD. Individual’s foot risk was stratified, advice and education tailored and issued. Identifying all diabetes patients on HD as high-risk for diabetic foot complications. Major Findings: All patients screened revealed over half of the caseload had diabetes, and more than half had a clinical presentation of PAD. All those presenting with ulcerations had a diagnosis of diabetes. Of the presenting ulcerations, the majority of these ulcers predated the renal specialist post and were classified as severe >3 SINBAD Score. Since April’22, complications have been identified quicker, reducing the severity (SINBAD<3 or below), and have improved healing times, in line with the national average. During the eight months of the role being in place, we have seen a reduction in minor amputations and no major amputations. Conclusion: By screening all patients on haemodialysis and focusing on education, early recognition of complications, appropriate treatment, and timely onward referral, we can reduce the risk of foot Diabetic foot ulcerations and lower limb amputations. Having regular podiatry input to stratify and facilitate high-risk, active wound patients across different services has helped to keep these patients stable, prevent amputations, and reduce foot-related hospital admissions and mortality from foot-related disease. By improving the accessibility to a specialist podiatrist, patients felt able to raise concerns sooner. This has helped to implement treatment at the earliest possible opportunity, enabling the identification and healing of ulcers at an earlier and less complex stage (SINBAD <3), thus, preventing potential limb-threatening complications.

Keywords: renal, podiatry, haemodialysis, prevention, early detection

Procedia PDF Downloads 67

Authors: Percy Galvez, Anatoly Petukhin, Paul Somerville, Ken Miyakoshi, Kojiro Irikura, Daniel Peter

Abstract:

Physics-based dynamic rupture modelling is necessary for estimating parameters such as rupture velocity and slip rate function that are important for ground motion simulation, but poorly resolved by observations, e.g. by seismic source inversion. In order to generate a large number of physically self-consistent rupture models, whose rupture process is consistent with the spatio-temporal heterogeneity of past earthquakes, we use multicycle simulations under the heterogeneous rate-and-state (RS) friction law for a 45deg dip-slip fault. We performed a parametrization study by fully dynamic rupture modeling, and then, a set of spontaneous source models was generated in a large magnitude range (Mw > 7.0). In order to validate rupture models, we compare the source scaling relations vs. seismic moment Mo for the modeled rupture area S, as well as average slip Dave and the slip asperity area Sa, with similar scaling relations from the source inversions. Ground motions were also computed from our models. Their peak ground velocities (PGV) agree well with the GMPE values. We obtained good agreement of the permanent surface offset values with empirical relations. From the heterogeneous rupture models, we analyzed parameters, which are critical for ground motion simulations, i.e. distributions of slip, slip rate, rupture initiation points, rupture velocities, and source time functions. We studied cross-correlations between them and with the friction weakening distance Dc value, the only initial heterogeneity parameter in our modeling. The main findings are: (1) high slip-rate areas coincide with or are located on an outer edge of the large slip areas, (2) ruptures have a tendency to initiate in small Dc areas, and (3) high slip-rate areas correlate with areas of small Dc, large rupture velocity and short rise-time.

Keywords: earthquake dynamics, strong ground motion prediction, seismic engineering, source characterization

Procedia PDF Downloads 133

Authors: Diwei Lin, Amanda Jia Hui Tan

Abstract:

In 2012, testicular cancer was estimated to account for 940 disability adjusted life years in Australia; of these, 450 were years lost due to premature death and 500 were years of healthy life lost due to disease, disability or injury. Testicular choriocarcinoma is one of the rarest variants of testicular germ cell tumours, accounting for less than 1% of testicular germ cell tumours and only about 0.19% of all testicular tumours. Management involves radical orchiectomy followed by chemotherapy. Even then, the prognosis is extremely poor. This case report describes a 20-year-old male with pure testicular choriocarcinoma with pulmonary metastases.

Keywords: testicular cancer, choriocarcinoma, cryptorchidism, chemotherapy, metastatic testicular cancer

Procedia PDF Downloads 346

Authors: Morgan Cheng, Wilson Ho, Max Yiu, Dragon Tsui, Wylog Wong, Richard Kwan, K. C. Lam, Hannah Lo, C. L. Wong

Abstract:

Hong Kong has been known worldwide for its ability to thrive under trying circumstances. The 7.5 million residents of this mature and busy metropolis are living in a primarily high-rise city whereby development and renewal of the cityscape are taking place unceasingly. Hong Kong residents are therefore affected by the virtually continuous and numerous construction activities. In 2020, the Hong Kong environmental protection department (EPD) completed a feasibility study on managing construction noise, including those associated with the renovation of domestic premises. Part of the study was the review of management and control of construction noise in other metropolitan cities globally. As far as the authors are aware of, such worldwide and extensive review of best practices on construction noise control has not been conducted for over 20 years. In order to benefit from international best practices, the extensive review is to identify possible areas for improvement in Hong Kong. The consultant of the study first referred to the United Nations Report ‘The World’s Cities in 2016’ and examined the top 100 cities therein. The 20 most suitable cities were then chosen for further review. Upon screening of each of these 20 cities, 12 cities with the more relevant management practices were selected for further scrutiny. These 12 cities were: Asia – Tokyo, Seoul, Taipei, Guangzhou, Singapore; Europe – City of Westminster (London), Berlin; North America – Toronto, New York City, San Francisco; Oceania – Sydney, Melbourne. Afterwards, three cities, namely Sydney, City of Westminster, and New York City, were selected for in-depth review. These cities were chosen primarily because of the maturity, success, and effectiveness of their construction noise management and control measures, as well as their similarity to Hong Kong in key and selected aspects. One of the more important findings of the review is the usefulness of early focus, with the aim of designing the noise issues away wherever practicable. The consultant examined the similar yet different construction noise early focus mechanisms of the three cities. This paper describes this landmark worldwide and extensive review of international best practices on construction noise management and control. The methodology, approach, and key findings are presented to give readers a succinct yet comprehensive view. The authors shared the findings with the acoustics professionals worldwide with the hope of global advancement of more mature construction noise management while welcoming sustainable development and construction.

Keywords: construction noise, international best practices, noise control, noise management

Procedia PDF Downloads 127

Authors: Katharina Buttenberg

Abstract:

Customer and brand-oriented capabilities have been identified as key influencing capabilities for business performance. Especially in the early years of the firm, it is crucial to develop and consciously manage these capabilities. In this paper, the results of a quantitative analysis, investigating the causal relationship between customer- and brand-oriented (marketing) capabilities and business performance will be presented. The research displays the dependencies between the constructs and will provide practical implications for young firms in the acquisition and management of these capabilities.

Keywords: brand-oriented capabilities, customer-oriented capabilities, entrepreneurship, resource-based theory, young firms

Procedia PDF Downloads 331

Authors: J. K. Alhassan, C. S. Actsu

Abstract:

This study is on the prediction of feature performance of undergraduate students with Artificial Neural Networks (ANN). With the growing decline in the quality academic performance of undergraduate students, it has become essential to predict the students’ feature academic performance early in their courses of first and second years and to take the necessary precautions using such prediction-based information. The feed forward multilayer neural network model was used to train and develop a network and the test carried out with some of the input variables. A result of 80% accuracy was obtained from the test which was carried out, with an average error of 0.009781.

Keywords: academic performance, artificial neural network, prediction, students

Procedia PDF Downloads 442

Authors: Jameson Mirimu, Edward Mawejje, Ibra Twinomujuni

Abstract:

Introduction: Adolescent girls and young women (AGYW) are a vulnerable category whose risk of acquiring HIV is 20 times compared to the general population accounting for 25% of the new infections. Despite proven scientific evidence of preventing HIV acquisition, Oral Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PreP) is less used as one of the biomedical interventions among the AGYW. By 2020, only 31000-32000 of the targeted 90,000 persons in Uganda enrolled on Oral PreP LPHS-EC project employed a combination of Expanded Peer Outreach Approach (EPOA) and Effective client follow-up to increase PreP initiation (PrEP_NEW) and continuation for more than three months (PrEP_CT). Method: Quantitatively, data from National Key population Combination tracker retrospectively analyzed by M&E, focused group discussion with AGYWs and Health care workers to identify barriers. Barriers found; hesitancy of AGYW, misconceptions about Oral PrEP, inadequate knowledge and skills in handling adolescent and Data quality issues. To address the mentioned barriers, youth friendly corners initiated in study sites, identified PrEP Champions among the AGYW, oral PrEP dialogues, group Antenatal counselling, CQI Projects initiated, weekly perfomance meetings to track performance. Results: Routine program data review PrEP_NEW and PrEP_CT increased from 5% (4/80) and 4% (2/54), respectively, in July 2022 to 90% (72/80) and 79% (43/54) respectively for PrEP_NEW and PrEP_CT at the end of March 2023. Lessons Learnt: Demystifying misconception about oral Prep through provision of adequate information by involving health care workers through skills enhancement, CQI projects are critical intervention. Conclusion: With improved safe spaces, skills enhancement of health workers, stakeholders’ engagement through Oral Prep dialogues is critical in improving PreP uptake and continuity among the AGYWS.

Keywords: prep, uptake, continuation, AGYW

Procedia PDF Downloads 58

Authors: Mariana Stuparu-Cretu, Doina-Carina Voinescu, Rodica-Mihaela Dinica, Daniela Borda, Camelia Vizireanu, Gabriela Iordachescu, Camelia Busila

Abstract:

Obesity is involved in the etiology or acceleration of progression of important non-communicable diseases, such as: metabolic, cardiovascular, rheumatological, oncological and depression. It is a need to prevent the obesity occurrence, like a key link in disease management. From this point of view, the best approach is to early educate youngsters upon the need for a healthy nutrition lifestyle associated with constant physical activities. The objective of the study was to assess correlations between weight condition, physical activities and food preferences of students from South East Romania. Questionnaires were applied on high school students in Galati: 1006 girls and 880 boys, aged between 14 and 19 years (being approved by Local School Inspectorate and the Ethics Committee of the 'Dunarea de Jos' University of Galati). The collected answers have been statistically processed by using the multivariate regression method (PLS2) by Unscramble X program (Camo, Norway). Multiple variables such as age group, body mass index, nutritional habits and physical activities were separately analysed, depending on gender and general mathematical models were proposed to explain the obesity trend at an early age. The study results show that overweight and obesity are present in less than a fifth of the adolescents who were surveyed. With a very small variation and a strong correlation of over 86% for 99% of the cases, a general preference for sweet foods, nocturnal eating associated with computer work and a reduced period of physical activity is noticed for girls. In addition, the overweight girls consume sweet juices and alcohol, although a percentage of them also practice the gym. There is also a percentage of the normoponderal girls that consume high caloric foods which predispose this group to turn into overweight cases in time. Within the studied group, statistics for the boys show a positive correlation of almost 87% for over 96% of cases. They prefer high calories foods, fast food, and sweet juices, and perform medium physical activities. Both overweight and underweight boys are more sedentary. Over 15% of girls and over a quarter of boys consume alcohol. All these bad eating habits seem to increase with age, for both sexes. To conclude, obesity and overweight assessed in adolescents in S-E Romania reveal nonsignificant percentage differences between boys and girls. However, young people in this area of the country are sedentary in general; a significant percentage prefers sweets / sweet juices / fast-food and practice computer nourishing. The authors consider that at this age, it is very useful to adapt nutritional education by new methods of food processing and market supply. This would require an early understanding of the difference among foods and nutrients and the benefits of physical activities integrated into the healthy current lifestyle, as a measure for preventing and managing non-communicable chronic diseases related to nutritional errors and sedentarism. Acknowledgment— This study has been partial founded by the Francophone University Agency, Project Réseau régional dans le domaine de la santé, la nutrition et la sécurité alimentaire (SaIN), no.21899/ 06.09.2017.

Keywords: adolescents, body mass index, nutritional habits, obesity, physical activity

Procedia PDF Downloads 246

Authors: Recep Gundogan, Turgay Dindaroglu, Hikmet Gunal, Mustafa Ulukavak, Ron Bingner

Abstract:

A majority of total soil losses in agricultural areas could be attributed to ephemeral gullies caused by heavy rains in conventionally tilled fields; however, ephemeral gully erosion is often ignored in conventional soil erosion assessments. Ephemeral gullies are often easily filled from normal soil tillage operations, which makes capturing the existing ephemeral gullies in croplands difficult. This study was carried out to determine topographic features, including slope and aspect composite topographic index (CTI) and initiation points of gully channels, using images obtained from unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) images. The study area was located in Topcu stream watershed in the eastern Mediterranean Region, where intense rainfall events occur over very short time periods. The slope varied between 0.7 and 99.5%, and the average slope was 24.7%. The UAV (multi-propeller hexacopter) was used as the carrier platform, and images were obtained with the RGB camera mounted on the UAV. The digital terrain models (DTM) of Topçu stream micro catchment produced using UAV images and manual field Global Positioning System (GPS) measurements were compared to assess the accuracy of UAV based measurements. Eighty-one gully channels were detected in the study area. The mean slope and CTI values in the micro-catchment obtained from DTMs generated using UAV images were 19.2% and 3.64, respectively, and both slope and CTI values were lower than those obtained using GPS measurements. The total length and volume of the gully channels were 868.2 m and 5.52 m³, respectively. Topographic characteristics and information on ephemeral gully channels (location of initial point, volume, and length) were estimated with high accuracy using the UAV images. The results reveal that UAV-based measuring techniques can be used in lieu of existing GPS and total station techniques by using images obtained with high-resolution UAVs.

Keywords: aspect, compound topographic index, digital terrain model, initial gully point, slope, unmanned aerial vehicle

Procedia PDF Downloads 97

Authors: Nadwah Onwi, Puspa Maniam, Azmawanie A. Aziz, Fairus Mukhtar, Nor Azrita Mohamed Zin, Nurul Haslina Mohd Zin, Nurul Fatehah Ismail, Mohamad Safwan Yusoff, Susilidianamanalu Abd Rahman, Siti Munirah Harris, Maryam Aizuddin

Abstract:

Objective: Malaysia has a growing number of individuals with complex communication needs (CCN). The initiation of augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) intervention may facilitate individuals with CCN to understand and express themselves optimally and actively participate in activities in their daily life. AAC is defined as multimodal use of communication ability to allow individuals to use every mode possible to communicate with others using a set of symbols or systems that may include the symbols, aids, techniques, and strategies. It is consequently critical to evaluate the deficits to inform treatment for AAC intervention. However, no known measurement tools are available to evaluate the user with CCN available locally. Design: A systematic review (SR) is designed to analyze the psychometric properties of AAC assessment for adolescents with CCN published in peer-reviewed journals. Tools are rated by the methodological quality of studies and the psychometric measurement qualities of each tool. Method: A literature search identifying AAC assessment tools with psychometrically robust properties and conceptual framework was considered. Two independent reviewers screened the abstracts and full-text articles and review bibliographies for further references. Data were extracted using standardized forms and study risk of bias was assessed. Result: The review highlights the psychometric properties of AAC assessment tools that can be used by speech-language therapists applicable to be used in the Malaysian context. The work outlines how systematic review methods may be applied to the consideration of published material that provides valuable data to initiate the development of Malay Language AAC assessment tools. Conclusion: The synthesis of evidence has provided a framework for Malaysia Speech-Language therapists in making an informed decision for AAC intervention in our standard operating procedure in the Ministry of Health, Malaysia.

Keywords: augmentative and alternative communication, assessment, adolescents, complex communication needs

Procedia PDF Downloads 136

Authors: Shau-Ping Shiu, Shu-Ling Lin

Abstract:

Pregnancy lead a process of changing in the endocrine system. Either pregnancy itself or the surrounding affect such as the attitude of family to the pregnant lady can bring lots of stress. Sever stress may lead pregnant women display serious mental problem such as mood swings, impulsivity, and abnormal behavior. A method of self management of stress(SMS) has been proved that help patient of cancer in release their stress. This study were going to use SMS to help pregnant women. Methods: In this study, 42 ladies in the first to third months of pregnancy process applied to join SMS of program have divided into 21 participants in both control and experimental group by draw. 24 sessions of Yoga program were conducted once a week for 6 months for experimental group. Verbatim used to gather more feedbacks from the interview followed by each Yoga sessions. Brief symptom Rating scale also conducted pre and post experiment for 42 participations. Results: Overall score of Brief Symptom Rating Scale reduced 17.82 points and suicide drop 9 points in experimental group, compared to the control group increasing 10.24 point of overall score and suicide add 7 points. Feedback from interviews showed participations improved in emotion, physical health and stress management. They indicated having more positive emotion daily, having better gastrointestinal peristalsis movement, releasing back tention, well weight control, reducing stress and changing the quality of interpersonal relationships. Conclusion: SMS of Yoga program in this study included four key training directions which were stimulation, relaxation, awareness and pranayama lead a great improvment of stress management for pregnant lady. Throughout this Yoga program, women learned to ignite eustress, remove distress, create calmness and breath slows down. As the result, Yoga program has helped women in experiment group lower their tension, and bring the extra benifits in emotion and relationships. It support women to overcome their pregnancy. Suggestion: An unexpected result of this study showed all participants had no morning sickness since they engaged in SMS program, and no one absent from course due to the benefits of it. We strongly suggest that SMS of Yoga program can be a add of medication for women in pregnancy, however, the position of Forward in the SMS sequence has been point out pressing participant’s stomach, which can be replace to Bridge position to comfort participants.

Keywords: self-management of stress(SMS), yoga program, pregnant women, early pregnancy

Procedia PDF Downloads 318

Authors: Merve Denizci Nazligul

Abstract:

Dancers seem to have much higher risk levels for the development of eating disorders, compared to non-dancing counterparts. In a remarkably competitive nature of dance environment, perfectionism and emotion regulation difficulties become inevitable risk factors. Moreover, early maladaptive schemas are associated with various eating disorders. In the current study, it was aimed to investigate the mediating role of difficulties with emotion regulation on the relationship between perfectionism and disordered eating behaviors, as well as on the relationship between early maladaptive schemas and disordered eating behaviors. A total of 70 volunteer dancers (n = 47 women, n = 23 men) were recruited in the study (M age = 25.91, SD = 8.9, range 19–63) from the university teams or private clubs in Turkey. The sample included various types of dancers (n = 26 ballets or ballerinas, n =32 Latin, n = 10 tango, n = 2 hiphop). The mean dancing hour per week was 11.09 (SD = 7.09) within a range of 1-30 hours. The participants filled a questionnaire set including demographic information form, Dutch Eating Behavior Questionnaire, Multidimensional Perfectionism Scale, three subscales (Emotional Inhibition, Unrelenting Standards-Hypercriticalness, Approval Seeking-Recognition Seeking) from Young Schema Questionnaire-Short Form-3 and Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale. The mediation hypotheses were tested using the PROCESS macro in SPSS. The findings revealed that emotion regulation difficulties significantly mediated the relationship between three distinct subtypes of perfectionism and emotional eating. The results of the Sobel test suggested that there were significant indirect effects of self-oriented perfectionism (b = .06, 95% CI = .0084, .1739), other-oriented perfectionism (b = .15, 95% CI = .0136, .4185), and socially prescribed perfectionism (b = .09, 95% CI = .0104, .2344) on emotional eating through difficulties with emotion regulation. Moreover, emotion regulation difficulties significantly mediated the relationship between emotional inhibition and emotional eating (F(1,68) = 4.67, R2 = .06, p < .05). These results seem to provide some evidence that perfectionism might become a risk factor for disordered eating behaviors when dancers are not able to regulate their emotions. Further, gaining an understanding of how inhibition of emotions leads to inverse effects on eating behavior may be important to develop intervention strategies to manage their disordered eating patterns in risk groups. The present study may also support the importance of using unified protocols for transdiagnostic approaches which focus on identifying, accepting, prompting to express maladaptive emotions and appraisals.

Keywords: dancers, disordered eating, emotion regulation difficulties, perfectionism

Procedia PDF Downloads 132

Authors: Laxman Budhathoki, Lal Bahadur Shrestha, K. C. Laxman

Abstract:

Hundreds of people are being lost their life by flood disaster in Nepal every year. Community-based disaster management committee has formed to formulate the disaster management plan including the component of EWS like EWS tower, rain gauge station, flood gauge station, culverts, boats, ropes, life jackets, a communication mechanism, emergency shelter, Spur, dykes, dam, evacuation route, emergency dry food management etc. Now EWS become a successful tool to decrease the human casualty from 13 to 0 every year in Rapti River of Chitwan District.

Keywords: disaster risk reduction, early warning system, flood, participatory approach

Procedia PDF Downloads 336

Authors: Abbas R. Ali, Diana A. Bayiz

Abstract:

14 mudstone samples were collected within the sedimentary succession of Mukdadiya Formation (Late Miocene – Early Pliocene) from Shewasoor area at Northeastern Iraq. The samples were subjected to laboratory studies including mineralogical analysis (using X-ray Diffraction technique) in order to identify the clay mineralogy of Mukdadiya Formation of both clay and non-clay minerals. The results of non-clay minerals are: quartz, feldspar and carbonate (calcite and dolomite) minerals. The clay minerals are: montmorillonite, kaolinite, palygorskite, chlorite, and illite by the major basal reflections of each mineral. The origins of these minerals are deduced also.

Keywords: Mukdadiya Formation, mudstone, clay minerals, XRD, Shewasoor

Procedia PDF Downloads 333

Authors: Ahmed Saeed Mohamed, Sadok Sassi, Mohammad Roshun Paurobally

Abstract:

Gears are important machine components that are widely used to transmit power and change speed in many rotating machines. Any breakdown of these vital components may cause severe disturbance to production and incur heavy financial losses. One of the most common causes of gear failure is the tooth fatigue crack. Early detection of teeth cracks is still a challenging task for engineers and maintenance personnel. So far, to analyze the vibration behavior of gears, different approaches have been tried based on theoretical developments, numerical simulations, or experimental investigations. The objective of this study was to develop a numerical model that could be used to simulate the effect of teeth cracks on the resulting vibrations and hence to permit early fault detection for gear transmission systems. Unlike the majority of published papers, where only one single crack has been considered, this work is more realistic, since it incorporates the possibility of multiple simultaneous cracks with different lengths. As cracks significantly alter the gear mesh stiffness, we performed a finite element analysis using SolidWorks software to determine the stiffness variation with respect to the angular position for different combinations of crack lengths. A simplified six degrees of freedom non-linear lumped parameter model of a one-stage gear system is proposed to study the vibration of a pair of spur gears, with and without tooth cracks. The model takes several physical properties into account, including variable gear mesh stiffness and the effect of friction, but ignores the lubrication effect. The vibration simulation results of the gearbox were obtained via Matlab and Simulink. The results were found to be consistent with the results from previously published works. The effect of one crack with different levels was studied and very similar changes in the total mesh stiffness and the vibration response, both were observed and compared to what has been found in previous studies. The effect of the crack length on various statistical time domain parameters was considered and the results show that these parameters were not equally sensitive to the crack percentage. Multiple cracks are introduced at different locations and the vibration response and the statistical parameters were obtained.

Keywords: dynamic simulation, gear mesh stiffness, simultaneous tooth cracks, spur gear, vibration-based fault detection

Procedia PDF Downloads 195

Authors: Xiao-Hua Zhu, Xin Yuan, Yi-Ran Zhao

Abstract:

High-cadmium pollution in rice is a serious problem in many parts of China. Many kinds of remediation technologies have been tested and applied in many farmlands. Because of the productive function of the farmland, most technologies are inappropriate due to their destruction to the tillage soil layer. And the large labours and expensive fees of many technologies are also the restrictive factors for their applications. The conception of 'Root Micro-Geochemical Barrier' was proposed to reduce cadmium (Cd) bioavailability and the concentration of the cadmium in rice. Remediation and mitigation techniques were demonstrated on contaminated farmland in the downstream of some mine. According to the rule of rice growth, Cd would be absorbed by the crops in every growth stage, and the plant-absorb efficiency in the first stage of the tillering stage is almost the highest. We should create a method to protect the crops from heavy metal pollution, which could begin to work from the early growth stage. Many materials with repair property get our attention. The materials will create a barrier preventing Cd from being absorbed by the crops during all the growing process because the material has the ability to adsorb soil-Cd and making it losing its migration activity. And we should choose a good chance to put the materials into the crop-growing system cheaply as soon as early. Per plant, rice has a little root system scope, which makes the roots reach about 15cm deep and 15cm wide. So small root radiation area makes it possible for all the Cd approaching the roots to be adsorbed with a small amount of adsorbent. Mixing the remediation materials with the seed-raising soli and adding them to the tillage soil in the process of transplanting seedlings, we can control the soil-Cd activity in the range of roots to reduce the Cd-amount absorbed by the crops. Of course, the mineral materials must have enough adsorptive capacity and no additional pollution. More than 3000 square meters farmlands have been remediated. And on the application of root micro-geochemical barrier, the Cd-concentration in rice and the remediation-cost have been decreased by 90% and 80%, respectively, with little extra labour brought to the farmers. The Cd-concentrations in rice from remediated farmland have been controlled below 0.1 ppm. The remediation of one acre of contaminated cropland costs less than $100. The concept has its advantage in the remediation of paddy field contaminated by Cd, especially for the field with outside pollution sources.

Keywords: cadmium pollution, growth stage, cost, root micro-geochemistry barrier

Procedia PDF Downloads 69

Authors: Alfalah Tasneem, Abdallah Bataineh, Falah Jannat, Alfalah Salsabeel

Abstract:

The term emotional intelligence has been unnoticed by a number of scholars in the early 1990s, which was then a major factor that many business managers became interested in understanding its meaning, functions and how it could be integrated in their business life, emotional intelligence is very important for the top managers, to operate in emotionally intelligence way to meet the needs of their employees. Speaking of emotional intelligence success is influenced by personal qualities such as self-awareness, motivation, empathy and relationship skills. The aim of this research is to critically evaluate the potential contribution of emotional intelligence for the Jordanian universities on the level of job satisfaction and the performance of faculty as well as its positive impact on the educational standards.

Keywords: emotional intelligence, higher education, job performance, job satisfaction

Procedia PDF Downloads 333

Authors: L. R. Ferreira, R. Biscaro, C. C. Danziger, C. M. Galhardi, L. C. Biscaro, R. C. Biscaro, I. S. Vasconcelos, L. C. R. Ferreira, R. Reis, L. H. Oliveira

Abstract:

Introduction: There is a worldwide trend for the employer to be aware of investing in health promotion that goes beyond occupational hygiene approaches with the implementation of a comprehensive program with integration between occupational health and safety, and social/psychosocial responsibility in the workplace. Work accommodation is a necessity in most companies as it allows the worker to return to its function respecting its physical limitations. This study had the objective to verify if the integration of health and safety in the companies, with the inclusion of the concept of TWH promoted by an occupational health service has impacted in the management of absenteeism of workers in work accommodation. Method: A retrospective and paired cohort study was used, in which the impact of the implementation of the Program for the Health/Safety Integration and Total Worker Health Concept (PHSITWHC) was evaluated using the indices of absenteeism, health attestations, days and hours of sick leave of workers that underwent job accommodation/rehabilitation. This was a cohort study and the data were collected from January to September of 2017, prior to the initiation of the integration program, and compared with the data obtained from January to September of 2018, after the implementation of the program. For the statistical analysis, the student's t-test was used, with statistically significant differences being made at p < 0.05. Results: The results showed a 35% reduction in the number of absenteeism rate in 2018 compared to the same period in 2017. There was also a significant reduction in the total numbers of days of attestations/absences (mean of 2,8) as well as days of attestations, absence and sick leaves (mean of 5,2) in 2018 data after the implementation of PHSITWHC compared to 2017 data, means of 4,3 and 25,1, respectively, prior to the program. Conclusion: It can be concluded that the inclusion of the PHSITWHC was associated with a reduction in the rate of absenteeism of workers that underwent job accommodation. It was observed that, once health and safety were approached and integrated with the inclusion of the TWH concept, it was possible to reduce absenteeism, and improve worker’s quality of life and wellness, and work accommodation management.

Keywords: absenteeism, health/safety integration, work accommodation management, total worker health

Procedia PDF Downloads 145

Authors: Erick C. Valverde, Wansu Lim

Abstract:

Facial emotion recognition (FER) system has been recently developed for more advanced computer vision applications. The ability to identify human emotions would enable smart healthcare facility to diagnose mental health illnesses (e.g., depression and stress) as well as better human social interactions with smart technologies. The FER system involves two steps: 1) face detection task and 2) facial emotion recognition task. It classifies the human expression in various categories such as angry, disgust, fear, happy, sad, surprise, and neutral. This system requires intensive research to address issues with human diversity, various unique human expressions, and variety of human facial features due to age differences. These issues generally affect the ability of the FER system to detect human emotions with high accuracy. Early stage of FER systems used simple supervised classification task algorithms like K-nearest neighbors (KNN) and artificial neural networks (ANN). These conventional FER systems have issues with low accuracy due to its inefficiency to extract significant features of several human emotions. To increase the accuracy of FER systems, deep learning (DL)-based methods, like convolutional neural networks (CNN), are proposed. These methods can find more complex features in the human face by means of the deeper connections within its architectures. However, the inference speed and computational costs of a DL-based FER system is often disregarded in exchange for higher accuracy results. To cope with this drawback, an optimized DL-based FER system is proposed in this study.An extreme version of Inception V3, known as Xception model, is leveraged by applying different network optimization methods. Specifically, network pruning and quantization are used to enable lower computational costs and reduce memory usage, respectively. To support low resource requirements, a 68-landmark face detector from Dlib is used in the early step of the FER system.Furthermore, a DL compiler is utilized to incorporate advanced optimization techniques to the Xception model to improve the inference speed of the FER system. In comparison to VGG-Net and ResNet50, the proposed optimized DL-based FER system experimentally demonstrates the objectives of the network optimization methods used. As a result, the proposed approach can be used to create an efficient and real-time FER system.

Keywords: deep learning, face detection, facial emotion recognition, network optimization methods

Procedia PDF Downloads 103

Authors: Md Mizanur Rahman, Lotanna Micah Nneji, Adeola C. Adeniyi, Edem Archibong Eniang, Abiodun B. Onadeko, Felista Kasyoka Kilunda, Babatunde E. Adedeji, Ifeanyi C. Nneji, Adiaha A. A. Ugwumba, Jie-Qiong Jin, Min-Sheng Peng, Caroline Olory, Nsikan Eninekit, Jing Che

Abstract:

Nigeria contains a number of forest habitats that believed to host highly rich amphibian diversity. However, a dearth of herpetological studies has restricted information on the amphibian diversity in Nigeria. To cover the gap of knowledge, this study focused field surveys on relatively less studied forests–Afi Forest Reserve and Ikpan forest ecosystem. The goal of this study is to make a checklist and to investigate the habitat preferences of amphibians in these two forests. The study areas were surveyed between August 2018 and July 2019 following visual and acoustic methods. Individuals were identified using the morphological and molecular (16S ribosomal RNA) approach. Literature searches were conducted to document additional species that were not encountered during the current field surveys. Using the observational records and arrays of diversity indices, the patterns of species richness and abundance across habitat types were evaluated. Voucher specimens and tissue samples were deposited in the museums of the Department of Zoology, University of Ibadan Nigeria, and the remainder at the Kunming Institute of Zoology (KIZ), Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming, China. The result of this study revealed the presence of 30 and 31 amphibian species from the Afi Forest Reserve and the Ikpan Forest Ecosystem, respectively. There were two unidentified species from AFR and one from IFE. In total, 324 individuals of amphibian species were observed from the two study areas. Forest and swamps showed high species diversity and richness than the agricultural field and savannah. Savannah and agricultural fields had the highest similarity in the species composition. Given the increased human disturbances and consequent threats to these forests, this study offers recommendations for the initiation of conservation plans immediately.

Keywords: biodiversity, conservation, cryptic species, ecology, integrated taxonomy, species inventory

Procedia PDF Downloads 147

Authors: Edward A. Osifodunrin, Jose Manuel Dias Lopes

Abstract:

In Nigeria, enormous efforts/resources had, over the years, been expended on promoting financial inclusion (FI); however, it is seemingly discouraging that many of its self-declared targets on FI remained unachieved, especially amongst the Rural Dwellers and Actors in the Informal Sectors (RDAIS). Expectedly, many reasons had been earmarked for these failures: low literacy level, huge informal/rural sectors, etc. This study posits that in spite of these truly-debilitating factors, these FI policy failures could have been avoided or mitigated if the principles of active and better-managed citizens’ participation had been strictly followed in the (re)design/implementation of its FI policies. In other words, in a bid to mitigate the prevalent FE in Nigeria, this study hypothesizes the positive impact of increased/active citizens’ participation on FI outcome(s), backed by a preliminary empirical validation. Also, the study introduces the RDAIS-focused participatory financial inclusion policy (PFIP) as a major FI policy regeneration/improvement tool. The three categories of respondents that served as research subjects are FI experts in Nigeria (n = 72), RDAIS from the very rural/remote village of Unguwar Dogo in Northern Nigeria (n = 43), and RDAIS from another rural village of Sekere (n = 56) in the Southern region of Nigeria. Using survey design (5-point Likert scale questionnaires), random/stratified sampling, and descriptive/inferential statistics, the study often recorded independent consensus (amongst these three categories of respondents) that RDAIS’s active participation in iterative FI policy initiation, (re)design, implementation, (re)evaluation could indeed give improved FI outcomes. However, some questionnaire items also recorded divergent opinions and various statistically significant differences in the mean scores of these three categories. The PFIP (or any customized version of it) should then be carefully integrated into the NFIS of Nigeria (and possibly in the NFIS of other developing countries) to truly/fully provide FI policy integration for these excluded RDAIS and arrest the prevalence of FE.

Keywords: citizens’ participation, development, financial inclusion, formal financial services, national financial inclusion strategy, participatory financial inclusion policy, rural dwellers and actors in the informal sectors

Procedia PDF Downloads 91