Background: Coronaviruses are a large family of viruses that cause a wide range of illness from the common cold to more severe diseases. The COVID-19 pandemic is a public emergency of international concern that affects several nations. The widespread outbreak of COVID-19 virus has brought not only the risk of death but also major psychological pressure. However, the psychological impact on university students has not been studied in Ethiopia. Objective: To assess the psychological impacts of COVID-19 pandemic among university students in Bench-Sheko Zone, Southwest , Ethiopia, 2020. Methods: A community-based cross-sectional study was conducted from May 15 to June 15/2020. A systematic sampling technique was employed to select the study participants. The data were entered into EpiData 3.1 and exported to SPSS version 24 for analysis. Bivariate and multivariable logistic regression were used to identify candidates and independent factors respectively. Independent factors of depression, anxiety, and stress were assessed using AORs with 95% confidence level at P-value <0.05 cut point. Results: Three hundred and twenty-two university students were included with a 97.5% response rate. The prevalence of depression, anxiety, and stress was 21.2%, 27.7%, and 32.5%, respectively. Being female, staying at home, history of medical illness, and poor and moderate social support increased the risk of depression. Not living with their parents, relatives got coronavirus and low family income were risk factors for anxiety. Moreover, substance use, depression, anxiety, and poor social support were increasing the risk of stress among university students. Conclusions and Recommendations: This study revealed a higher prevalence of depression, anxiety, and stress among university students. Thus, governments and policy makers should develop health system strategies to provide crisis-oriented psychological services for university students to minimize the mental health impact of the outbreak.

Background: Episiotomy is a surgical incision of the perineum during delivery to enlarge the vaginal orifice. It is one of the most commonly performed obstetric intervention world widely. The magnitude of episiotomy varies from population to population. Limited information exists related to the practice of episiotomy in Ethiopia. This study aimed to assess the prevalence of episiotomy and its associated factors in University of Gondar Comprehensive Specialized Referral Hospital, Ethiopia. Methods: Institution based retrospective cross-sectional study was undertaken from March to June 2014 on 306 mothers who had a vaginal delivery in the Hospital. Systematic random sampling technique was employed to select study units. The data were collected using pretested cheek list. Proportion of patients who had episiotomy was calculated and the association between dependent and independent variables was checked using both binary and multiple logistic regression and Chi-square. Results: Prevalence of episiotomy in University of Gondar Comprehensive specialized Referral Hospital was 47.7% (n = 146). Majority (89.5%) of the delivery was spontaneous vaginal delivery while vacuum, forceps and destructive delivery were 4.6%, 4.6%, and 1.3% respectively. During pregnancy and delivery, 84% of mothers had no associated diseases while 8% had hypertensive disorder, 5% diabetes mellitus and 3% of them has other diseases. After multivariate analysis episiotomy was significantly associated with maternal age (15-24 years) (p = 0.041, AOR (CI 95%) 1.65 (1.02-2.66)), primiparity (p =0.010, AOR (CI 95%) 2.61 (1.54-4.44)), prolonged labor (p = 0.001, COR (CI 95%) 6.45 (2.89-14.38)), and weight of newborn (p = 0.044, COR (CI 95%) 2.48 (1.16, 5.31)). Conclusion: Prevalence of episiotomies in the institution was 47.7% and variables that remained associated significantly with episiotomy were maternal age, primiparity, prolonged labor, and newborn weight.

Background: Street children constitute a marginalized population in most urban centers of the world. According to UN sources, there are up to 150 million street children in the world today. The estimated number of children who live on the streets in Ethiopia was 150,000, of which about 60,000 of them in Addis Ababa. However, aid agencies estimate that the problem may be far more serious, with nearly 600,000 street children country-wide and over 100,000 in Addis Ababa. World Health Organization estimates that globally, 25-90% of street children indulge in substance use. Even if substance use has become a common problem in Ethiopia, most of the studies done mainly focused among schools, college and university students. Research on street children and their substance use habits in Ethiopia was limited and specifically non in Jimma town. Objectives: To assess the prevalence and factors associated with substance use among street children in Jimma town of Ethiopia in 2019. Methods: Cross sectional study was undertaken from March 1-31, 2019. Complete enumeration of study subjects was done and all 312 children of the streets were included. Interviewer administered structured questionnaires was used to collect the data. Bivariable logistic regression was carried out to select candidate for multiple logistic regression analysis with p-value < 0.25 at 95% confidence. Multiple logistic regression was carried out with those candidate variables using backward method and the associations predictors to the response variable was declared with p value of < 0.05 at 95% confidence level.

BackgroundIn many low- and middle-income countries (LMIC), men are the key decision-makers and chief providers, often determining women's access to economic resources and maternal health services. Despite the important role of men in maternal healthcare, the involvement of male partners in maternal and child health in LMIC, including Ethiopia, is low.ObjectivesThis study aims to assess the extent of male involvement and associated factors in antenatal care (ANC) service utilization in the Bench Sheko zone, Southwest, Ethiopia.MethodsA community-based, cross-sectional study was conducted in the Bench Sheko zone from February to May 2021. A multistage sampling technique was employed to select study participants. Variables with p-values &lt;0.25 in binary logistic regression were selected as candidates for multiple logistic regression to determine independent factors associated with male involvement adjusting for sociodemographic, health service, personal, environmental, and knowledge-related factors.ResultsA total of 816 men took part in the study, with a 98.2% response rate. The prevalence of male involvement in ANC utilization was 38.2%. In multivariate analyses, residence (urban), age (25–34), education (diploma and above), income (≥2,500 Ethiopian Birr, ETB), and high knowledge of the advantages of ANC were shown to be positively associated with male involvement in ANC utilization.ConclusionMale involvement in ANC utilization was low. Considering the importance of male involvement in maternal healthcare, we advocate for policies and strategies that can improve knowledge of the advantages of ANC among men and can enhance their engagement in maternal care. Special attention should be given to younger partners and those partners who live in rural areas.

Background The cases of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and related deaths are increasing exponentially in Ethiopia. Prevention is currently available effective management, and its implementation has not been assessed adequately. This study aimed to identify the factors associated with COVID-19 prevention practices in three zones of southwest Ethiopia. Methods A community-based cross-sectional study was conducted in the Bench Sheko, Kafa, and West Omo zones. A multistage sampling technique was employed to select 845 study participants. The data collection tool was adapted from the WHO resources and related literature. Independent factors were identified using binary logistic regression and a p-value less than 0.05 was used to declare the level of statistical significance. Results In this study, 803 participants participated. About two-thirds (64.7%) of the respondents had a history of going to crowded places, while only 30.3% of the participants had a history of wearing a mask when leaving home. Two-thirds of the respondents had a history of maintaining their distance at 2 meters (64.4%) and washing their hands with soap and water or using alcohol-based hand sanitizers (64.8%). Generally, less than two-thirds (59.4%) of study participants had a good prevention practices of COVID-19. Urban residence (AOR [adjusted odds ratio] =2.34; 95% CI=1.39, 3.94), highest family size (AOR=2.95; 95% CI=1.56, 5.57), good knowledge (AOR=1.74; 95% CI=1.10, 2.77), positive attitude (AOR=1.86; 95% CI=1.27, 2.73), intention to seek care (AOR=1.73; 95% CI=1.13, 2.63), and perceived mortality (AOR=2.20; 95% CI=1.50, 3.08) were positively associated with good prevention practices. Conclusion The proportion of individuals who had good COVID-19 prevention practices was inadequate. For such highly infectious diseases, prevention should be the priority intervention, and improving its implementation needs further effort. Community-based interventions such as risk communication and mass education should center on scaling up community knowledge and practice by prioritizing vulnerable groups such as rural residents.