Background: Index testing is a voluntary process whereby HIV seropositive clients are counselled and, after obtaining consent, their sexual and needle sharing partners are offered HIV testing services. Index testing has been associated with high HIV positivity yield. The aim of this study is to determine the positivity yield and identify factors influencing the yield from index testing strategy in selected healthcare facilities in Ondo State, southwest Nigeria. Methodology: Six public hospitals in Ondo State with the highest HIV clients currently on treatment were selected. Records of all clients newly diagnosed to be HIV positive at the selected facilities from June 2018 to September 2019, and who had an outcome for index testing services were reviewed. Data were collected using a chart abstraction template from the index testing registers. Information collected included age and gender of the index clients and their partners, method of referral and notification of partners, HIV test results of partners and linkage status of new HIVpositive partners. Data analyses were done using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) software version 24.0. Chi-square was used to test association between variables at a significance level of p<0.01. Results: The records of a total of 904 index clients and their partners were reviewed with partner elicitation ratio of 1:1. The mean ages of index clients and their partners were 38.52±10.96 and 38.98±10.79 years respectively, and majority of the index clients (34.6%) and partners (35.5%) were in the 35-44 years age group. A total of 548 index clients were females (60.6%) while 528 of their partners were males (58.4%), indicating  predominantly heterosexual (96.4%) and few homosexual (lesbian) relationships (3.6%). One-fifth (20%) of partners tested positive for HIV andwere all (100%) linked to antiretroviral therapy (ART). The HIV positivity rate in partners of male index clients (26.9%) was significantly higher than in partners of female index clients (15.5%) (p<0.01). Partner referral method was mostly through assisted referral (56%) and most (82%) were contacted by the index clients through phone. Conclusion: Due to its high positivity yield, index testing is a veritable strategy to increase HIV case detection and linkage to ART. Hence, proper deployment of index testing will be critical to improving ART coverage and achieving epidemiological control. Keywords: HIV, client; partner; index testing; ART; southwest Nigeria

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Background: Breast cancer is the most common invasive cancer affecting women worldwide. It comprises 22.9% of invasive cancers in women and 16% of all female cancers.   It affects about 12% of the women population worldwide. In Nigeria, about one breast cancer death is reported in every 25 cases identified and the practice of breast self-examination has been reported to range from 19% to 43.2%. This cross sectional study assessed the knowledge, attitude and practice of breast self-examination (BSE) among female secondary school students in Osogbo Metropolis. Methods: A total of 400 respondents were selected using multistage sampling technique. Data were collected using pre-tested self-administered semi structured questionnaire, analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences and presented using appropriate tables and charts. Level of significance set at < 0.05. Results: The mean age ± SD is 14.77 ± 1.46 years.  390 (97.5%) respondents reported that they have heard of breast cancer while 235 (58.8%) respondents stated that they have heard of breast self-examination (BSE). 15 (3.8%) respondents said the procedures is time wasting while 82 (20.5%) respondents said the procedures were strenuous. 199 (49.8%)  strongly disagree that performing breast self-examination may expose them to breast cancer. Individuals with poor knowledge are one time less likely to do breast self-examination (OR = 1.245, CI = 0.647 - 2.394) while in terms of attitude, those with unfavorable attitude are one time less likely to do breast self-examination (OR = 1.025 CI = 0.949 -1.107). Conclusion: This study revealed a larger proportion of respondents have heard about breast cancer and breast self-examination but with inadequate knowledge of the correct procedures of breast self-examination (BSE) thereby resulting into poor attitude & practice of breast self-examination (BSE). This challenge therefore indicates an urgent need for continuous awareness and sensitization programs in the communities.

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Background: Patient waiting time has been recognized as an important indicator for determining the quality of healthcare services offered by health facilities. Waiting time is strongly related to patients’ satisfaction with the care received at the hospital in general. Methods: This is a descriptive cross-sectional study carried out in February 2018 among new patients attending general out-patient department (GOPD) of randomly selected hospitals in South-Western Nigeria. A structured pre-tested questionnaire was used to elicit information from 223 patients who were recruited into the study using a convenience sampling method. Results: The average total clinic waiting time (TCWT) from entry to seeing a medical doctor was 137.02 ± 53.64 minutes. Only 6 (2.7%) met the Institute of Medicine (IOM) recommendation of having at least 90% of patients seen within 30 minutes of their scheduled appointment in contrast to 193 (86.5%) of respondents desiring to wait not more than 30 minutes for whatever reason before been attended to by the doctor. Although, the level of satisfaction was high (81.2%) in this study, patients who waited longer (>180 min) are more likely to be dissatisfied with services rendered in the OPDs (χ² = 20.104, df = 1, P = 0.001). Factors such as few health personnel (81/120) and having an insurance cover contributed significantly to the waiting time (χ² = 19.54, df = 1, P = 0.001). Conclusion: In a competitively managed health care environment, patient waiting time play an increasingly important role in a clinic’s ability to attract new business. Efforts therefore, should be made not only to reduce the patient waiting time, but health managers should invest in resources and activities that ensure a productive use of the time patients spend in the process of seeking healthcare services.

Background: Malaria is a vector-borne infectious disease caused by eukaryotic protist of genus Plasmodium and transmitted by female Anopheles mosquitoes. Those living mainly in the world's poorest countries are at risk of malaria as it is more endemic in the tropical and sub-tropical regions. Malaria spread has been linked to environmental changes, malaria vector dynamics, host immune status and individual or community factors such as the socio-economic status, knowledge of malaria and the protective behaviour. The objective is to assess knowledge, perceptions and practice of malaria management among non-medical students of higher institutions in Oyo State, Nigeria.Methods: An open-ended structured questionnaire was administered consecutively to 1198 consenting non-medical students by interviewer at various higher institutions. The crosssectional survey questionnaire comprised sections on socio-demographic data, knowledge about causes of malaria and knowledge about malaria management and practice. Results: The mean age (SD) was 21.7 (5.9) years. Five hundred and thirty respondents (44.2%) are male while 668 respondents (55.8%) are female. One thousand and seventy-seven students (89.9%) reported that malaria can be cured. Seventy-four students (6.2%) understand malaria prophylaxis to be a preventive treatment for malaria and 211 students (17.6%) said Artemisinin-based Combination Therapies (ACTs) are the most effective among the drugs they have used to treat malaria. Conclusion: Non-medical students have relatively reasonable knowledge about malaria management and practices, although, certain aspects are still not well understood, probably due to the scope of their educational curricula. Hence, there is need to intensify malaria public enlightenment programs and promote affordable treatment. Keywords: Malaria, student, mosquito, management. Oyo Eyaleti Öğrencileri ve Sıtma YönetimiGenel Bilgiler: Sıtma; ökaryotik tek hüçreli plazmidyum cinsinin sebep olduğu, vektör kaynaklı bulaşıcı bir hastalık ve dişi anopheles türü sivrisineklerle geçiş gösterir. Tropikal ve subtropikal bölgelerde daha yaygın olduğu için dünyanın en yoksul ülkelerinde yaşayanlar sıtma riski altındadır. Sıtma hastalığının yayılması, çevresel değişiklikler, sıtma vektörü dinamikleri, konakçının bağışıklık durumu ve sosyo-ekonomik durum, sıtmaya ilişkin bilgi ve korunma davranışı gibi bireysel ve toplumsal etmenlere bağlıdır. Amaç: Nijerya, Oyo Eyaleti'nde tıp dışındaki yüksek öğrenim öğrencilerinin sıtma hastalığı yönetimine ilişkin bilgi, algı ve uygulamalarının değerlendirilmesidir. Yöntem: Açık uçlu yapılandırılmış anket çeşitli yüksek öğrenim kurumlarında, tıp öğrenimi dışındaki öğrencilerden anketin uygulanmasını kabul eden 1198 kişiye görüşmeci tarafından uygulanmıştır. Kesitsel anket çalışmasındaki bölümler; sosyo-demografik veri, sıtma nedenlerine ilişkin bilgi ve sıtma hastalığı ve uygulmalarına ilişkin bilgiyi kapsamaktadır. Bulgular: Katılımcıların ortalama yaşı 21.7 ± 5.9 yıl idi. Altıyüz altmışsekiz katılımcı (% 55.8) kadın ...

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General medical examination is a common form of preventive medicine. Periodic medical check-up generally involves thorough history, physical examination and screening of asymptomatic persons by physicians on a regular basis as part of a routine health care process. Periodic medical check-up is considered effective in preventing illness and promoting health and reducing morbidity and mortality. This study is therefore designed to determine the knowledge, attitude and practice of periodic medical check-up among residents of Osun, Ondo & Ekiti States of Nigeria. It is also to determine the influence of educational status on its practice and compare the outcomes in the three states. Materials & Methods: The cross-sectional survey study utilizing both qualitative and quantitative method of data collection was conducted at various locations across the three states. The locations included those of public servants, private sector workers, artisans, traders, business men/women, farmers, among others. Results: 1200 consenting residents participated in the study in each of the three states. 518 (43.2%) of the respondents in Ondo State are males while 682 (57.8%) are females. 465 (38.8%) of the respondents in Ekiti State are males while 735 (61.2%) are females. 494 (41.2%) of the respondents in Osun State are males while 706 (59.8%) are females. The mean age in Ondo, Ekiti & Osun were 43.8 ± 10.7 years, 44.6 ± 11.5 years and 41.7 ± 10.1 years respectively. 89.2%, 88.3% and 87.4% of the respondents are aware of periodic medical check-up in Ondo, Ekiti and Osun states respectively. Conclusion: There is high level of awareness of periodic medical checkup in all three states but the level of practice of routine medical checkup is low. The majority of the respondents probably don't practice it because their health insurance plan does not cover the medical checkup or due to individual/organizational financial constraints.