Background: The coronavirus disease of 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic shocked the world, overwhelming the health systems of even high-income countries. Predictably, the situation has elicited social and medical responses from the public and governments, respectively. Nigeria recorded an imported case from Italy on February 27, 2020. Hence, this paper assesses the early socio-medical response to COVID-19 in Nigeria in the first 100 days after the index case. The paper employs analytical methods and collates data from various media reports and official sources. Findings: The incidence of COVID-19 grew steadily in Nigeria, moving from an imported case and elitist pattern to community transmission. The case fatality stood at 2.8%. The country recorded an upsurge (52% of total cases) in the transmission of COVID-19 during the short period the lockdown was relaxed. This paper presents a concise response framework to highlight some specific multisectoral responses to the pandemic. A combination of social and medical responses to a large extent helped Nigeria curtail the spread of the virus. Conclusion:The potential of overwhelming COVID-19 is still imminent in Nigeria as the country is attempting to hurriedly open the economy, which could sacrifice public health gains for temporary economic gains.

Background: Human papillomavirus (HPV) research scholarship evaluation is pivotal to the strategic planning, implementation and sustainability of HPV prevention and control programmes in Africa. Hence, this study evaluated HPV research scholarship in Africa. Methods: This review-a bibliometric analysis-investigated the trends, patterns, dynamics and funding of HPV-related literature production in Africa with a focus on the inequalities existing across thematic and subject areas, researchers, institutions and countries/territories/dependencies. The study data were obtained from SCOPUS database and analysed using the Microsoft Excel 2021 software. Result: From 1974 (inception year) till 16 July 2022, a total of 2587 SCOPUSindexed literature on HPV were produced by African authors, with an average production rate of 50.5 publications per year . A few publications (1.2%) were in the Social Sciences. Most (95.1%) publications were in English, only a few (3.9%) were in French, whereas none was in Arabic, Portuguese, Spanish, Swahili or any other official language of the African Union. South Africa, Nigeria and Egypt were the three most prolific African countries. The 10 most prolific researchers were affiliated to public institutions in South Africa, Tanzania and Botswana. The top 10 funding sponsors were public institutions in the United States, the United Kingdom, Belgium and South Africa. Moreover, researchers and institutions affiliated to South Africa, Nigeria, Kenya and Uganda were the predominant beneficiaries. Only two indigenous journals made the list of top 10 journals publishing HPV research outputs from Africa. Conclusion: Scholarly HPV research productivity in Africa is very low and worsened by multiple inequality gaps. There is an urgent need for equitably strengthening HPV research capacity in Africa.

School-age youth constitute a neglected but highly vulnerable group concerning sexual health risks in low-resource countries. Robust evidence concerning the research landscape of school-based interventions on human papillomavirus in Africa is currently lacking. Therefore, this systematic scoping review (SSR) aims to map evidence about school-based HPV interventions and identify emerging themes, gaps and lessons learned in Africa. This review was guided by Joanna Brigg’s Institute’s guidelines for SSRs and reported based on the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Metanalysis for Scoping Reviews. Five databases—PubMed, CINAHL, PsycINFO, SCOPUS, and Allied and Complementary Medicine—were searched for relevant literature using appropriate search terms and Boolean operators. The retrieved literature was extracted, deduplicated and screened using the Rayyan software. Only those articles which met the eligibility criteria were included for data charting, collation, and summarization. Ten articles were included in this review. The articles demonstrate that a life-course approach is significant in health intervention. School-based health interventions help reach adolescents in a dynamic life stage, affecting their vulnerability to sexual health risks. The school-based interventions serve as an ideal platform to offer HPV peer education, improving their HPV knowledge and subsequent testing services and enhancing their acceptability for screening and vaccination. Cervical cancer education and screening can be effectively combined in HPV health services for women. While the studies are geographically diverse, such effective interventions, which help reduce bottlenecks in accessing HPV screening and vaccination, are very few in Africa. In conclusion, school-based intervention is a viable strategy that can be adopted for adolescent protection from HPV-induced diseases. However, the current evidence on the impact of these interventions, particularly HPV vaccination, is inadequate.

Background and Aims In Africa, natal and neonatal teeth is a culture‐bound phenomenon which is associated with several sociocultural connotations which might affect child survival. Different empirical studies have been conducted in Africa on natal and neonatal teeth; however, no known scoping review has been conducted to map the empirical evidence. This systematic scoping review (SSR) aims to document the available empirical evidence, research gaps, and hotspots on neonatal and natal teeth in Africa. Methods The methodology of this SSR was informed by the Joanna Brigg's Institute guidelines for SSRs, and it was reported in accordance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta‐Analyses extension for Scoping Reviews. Eleven research databases were systematically searched to scooped out all literatures relevant to the scoping review question, after which they were screened for eligibility based on the review's selection criteria. Only the eligible literatures were included in the review. Data were extracted from the included literatures, after which the extracted data were collated, summarized, and presented as results. Results This review included only three journal articles. All the reviewed articles revealed knowledge gaps about natal/neonatal teeth. These articles also found misconceptions around natal/neonatal teeth; for example, nurses' and traditional birth attendants' beliefs about these teeth are contrary to scientifically known facts. Multiple myths associated with natal/neonatal teeth, as indicated in the reviewed studies, point to a poor understanding of the condition. Conclusion Neonates and infants are highly vulnerable persons; they require care and safeguarding from dental myths that could threaten their survival. Educative information concerning natal/neonatal teeth should be included in public health education programs to address the observed knowledge gaps among African populations and correct wrong beliefs on neonatal and natal teeth.

Background During outbreaks, uncertainties experienced by affected communities can influence their compliance to government guidance on public health. Communicators and authorities are, hence, encouraged to acknowledge and address such uncertainties. However, in the midst of public health crises, it can become difficult to define and identify uncertainties that are most relevant to address. We analyzed data on COVID-19-related uncertainties from four socio-economic contexts to explore how uncertainties can influence people’s perception of, and response to Risk Communication and Community Engagement (RCCE) strategies. Results This qualitative study, which adopts an interpretative approach, is based on data from a documentary review, key informant interviews (KII), and focus group discussions (FGD) with members of the general public and people with barriers to information from Germany, Guinea, Nigeria, and Singapore. Transcripts from the KII and FGD were coded and analyzed thematically. We interviewed a total of 155 KIs and conducted 73 FGD. Our analysis uncovered a divergence between uncertainties deemed relevant by stakeholders involved in policy making and uncertainties that people reportedly had to navigate in their everyday lives and which they considered relevant during the pandemic. We identified four types of uncertainties that seemed to have influenced people’s assessment of the disease risk and their trust in the pandemic control strategies including RCCE efforts: epidemiological uncertainties (related to the nature and severity of the virus), information uncertainties (related to access to reliable information), social uncertainties (related to social behavior in times of heightened risk), and economic uncertainties (related to financial insecurities). Conclusion We suggest that in future outbreaks, communicators and policy makers could improve the way in which affected communities assess their risk, and increase the trust of these communities in response efforts by addressing non-epidemiological uncertainties in RCCE strategies.

Catheter-associated urinary tract infection (CAUTI) is among the most common nosocomial infections especially in acute care settings. Its economic and unanticipated health implications make it burdensome for the healthcare providers and patients. The paper examined the perceived causes and mode of preventing urinary tract infections in patients with spinal cord injury. Qualitative research approach was utilized; the study site was a Tertiary Hospital in Nigeria. Eight (8) in-depth interviews (IDI) were conducted with healthcare providers managing patients with spinal cord injured in the hospital. The major risk factors causing urinary tract infection identifi ed include fi nancial problems, organization of care, human error, hospital environment and patientrelated factors. To prevent urinary tract infections among patients in the hospital, a number of suggestions were made by the participants such as training of caregivers and educating patients and relations. The authors concluded that the incidence of CAUTI could be reduced in the hospital if the opinions of stakeholders are fairly considered.

This chapter examines the social determinants of health (SDH) in Africa. It highlights some theoretical perspectives relevant to understanding the SDH, including the production of health and structural and system approaches. The chapter argues that the high prevalence of both communicable and noncommunicable diseases in Africa is a consequence of adverse social forces that predispose people to various diseases. Africans live in challenging social situations and have a comparatively high disease burden. Most are disadvantaged because the resources required for healthcare are insufficient. The high prevalence of poverty on the continent is significantly associated with poor population health caused by impoverished living and working conditions that negatively impact nutritional status, access to clean water, hygiene, healthcare services, and health status. In Africa, unequal healthcare access and outcomes among social groups are common, and vulnerable populations disproportionately bear the brunt of the disease burden.

Background and Aims The 2022 multicountry mpox outbreak necessitated the declaration of mpox as a public health emergency. This is the first time a wide mpox spread and human‐to‐human transmission are recorded in several countries outside West and Central Africa. The outbreak reveals a strong need for wider intervention to increase awareness and control measures on mpox, especially in schools. This scoping review aims to summarize the existing evidence concerning school‐based interventions on mpox globally. Methods The review methodology was based on the Arksey and O'Malley guidelines and it was reported in strict adherence with the PRISMA‐ScR checklist. Ten databases were searched to retrieve literature relevant to the review topic. Thereafter, the retrieved literature were deduplicated and screened for inclusion into the review based on a set of eligibility criteria. Only one journal paper, a short communication on the national monkeypox outbreak in England, satisfied the selection criteria and was included in the review. Data extracted from the included paper were collated, summarized, and presented. Results The paper described how suspected cases of mpox infection were managed in some school settings through vaccination and self‐isolation approaches and revealed a low (11%) mpox vaccination uptake rate in school‐setting. The preventive methods adopted, such as the exclusion of exposed persons from school (in three school settings) and separation of those exposed those who were not in contact with the affected persons (one school setting), played a major role in the low transmission rate reported. This review also found a huge dearth of literature on school‐based interventions on mpox despite its global spread. Conclusion With the call for a multisectoral approach in the fight against mpox, it pays to leverage on the potential of school settings in public health actions against mpox.