Environmental Health sciences

ABSTRACT
Background
Hand washing is the process of decontaminating the hands, a cheap and effective method of limiting the spread of nosocomial infections. Good hand hygiene involves cleansing hands in between patients or between examining an infected site and a clean body site on the same patient. Proper hand washing practice involves following the WHO accepted guidelines for hand washing. Hand washing is an effective and inexpensive way to prevent diarrhea and acute respiratory infections. This study aimed to assess the compliance of health care workers in public and private hospital in F.C.T Abuja.
Methodology
The study was carried out amongst health workers in public and private hospitals in Kubwa district of Bwari area council, F.C.T Abuja. Kubwa General Hospital and Daughters of Charity Health Care Services were eligible for the study both. Stratified random sampling technique was used to select 224 respondents. Self- administered questionnaires, as well as an observational check list were used to assess the knowledge, attitude and practice of hand washing. A scoring system was devised to grade the questionnaires (KAP score). Further analysis was done using Microsoft Excel.
Results
Majority of the respondents (140, which is 68.30%) had good knowledge of hand washing using KAP scoring. 44 (21.5%) respondents had very good knowledge of nosocomial infections. Thirty-two of these respondents with very good knowledge were Doctors. About half of the respondents interviewed had excellent hand washing practice, while 76 (37.07%) had good practice. For the limiting factors to hand washing, lack of material (soap, water, towels) was the most frequently indicated.
Conclusion
There was good awareness of hand washing principles, nosocomial infections and good attitude towards hand washing. However, this did not correlate well with practice which was below average.
Keywords: Hand washing; Nosocomial infections; Health workers; Health Care Facilities; Kubwa District, Bwari Area Council; Abuja; Nigeria;

Psychotropic effects of substance abuse on academic attainments was studied from a cross sectional descriptive survey from January to June, 2010 in Bosomtwi and Atwima Kwanwoma Districts. Entirely thirteen beneficiaries of School Health Education Programmes (SHEP) interventions between 5 to 10 years intervals, subdivided into ten Junior High (JHS), and three public Senior High (SHS) were randomly selected based on learners' gender ratios using questionnaire and instructional guidelines approved by the school authorities for interview of 600 (258 females and 342 males) respondents. Majority (42 to 94%) were victims of coffee and alcohol abuse while 31% were implicated for marijuana, amphetamine, cocaine and heroin. About 56% resorted to drugs hoping to improve their academic performances with 11% consequently developing truant behaviors and abysmal achievements. Family members and friends often lured/provided money for 61% of learner's drug purchase while 96% were addicted averagely at 11.5 years old. Proportionately, 51% males were abusing drugs against 45% females. Likelihood ratio of abuse amongst genders cohorts were both asymptotically (P<0.07) and linearly (P<0.4) not significantly different. Substance abuse problems worsened in divorced marriages and single parent families where financial constraints and inadequate care compel learners to depend on drugs as probable solution to their depression and stress. The overall analysis revealed little improvement on learners' academic performances with increased drug use. Parent Teacher Associations need to strengthen the implementation of child care monitoring interventions in homes and schools to curtail rampant drug abuse problems through pilot School Health Education Programmes (SHEP).

Background
Hand washing is the process of decontaminating the hands, a cheap and effective method of limiting the spread of nosocomial infections. Good hand hygiene involves cleansing hands in between patients or between examining an infected site and a clean body site on the same patient. Proper hand washing practice involves following the WHO accepted guidelines for hand washing. Hand washing is an effective and inexpensive way to prevent diarrhea and acute respiratory infections. This study aimed to assess the compliance of health care workers in public and private hospital in F.C.T Abuja.
Methodology
The study was carried out amongst health workers in public and private hospitals in Kubwa district of Bwari area council, F.C.T Abuja. Kubwa General Hospital and Daughters of Charity Health Care Services were eligible for the study both. Stratified random sampling technique was used to select 224 respondents. Self- administered questionnaires, as well as an observational check list were used to assess the knowledge, attitude and practice of hand washing. A scoring system was devised to grade the questionnaires (KAP score). Further analysis was done using Microsoft Excel.
Results
Majority of the respondents (140, which is 68.30%) had good knowledge of hand washing using KAP scoring. 44 (21.5%) respondents had very good knowledge of nosocomial infections. Thirty-two of these respondents with very good knowledge were Doctors. About half of the respondents interviewed had excellent hand washing practice, while 76 (37.07%) had good practice. For the limiting factors to hand washing, lack of material (soap, water, towels) was the most frequently indicated.
Conclusion
There was good awareness of hand washing principles, nosocomial infections and good attitude towards hand washing. However, this did not correlate well with practice which was below average.
Keywords: Hand washing; Nosocomial infections; Health workers; Health Care Facilities; Kubwa District, Bwari Area Council; Abuja; Nigeria;

With the close of 2020 unprecedented year, a year like no other, Nigerians is still reeling from the impacts of an emerging, rapidly and evolving COVID-19 pandemic, while the spring continue to unfolded. COVID-19 was considered a "deaths of despair" with an opioid crisis and realizing that humanity is in for a long haul with COVID-19, itself may be a game changer. If we expected COVID-19 to be short lived, we have been remarkably, if not catastrophically, disappointed. As many people were www.scholink.org/ojs/index.php/csm Communication, Society and Media Vol. 4, No. 2, 2021 2 Published by SCHOLINK INC. already feeling significantly stressed, and where depression was increasing risks of overdoses and suicide. From time immemorial, humankind have suffered the psychological effects of various catastrophes, such as wars, floods, famines, wildfires, earthquakes, windstorms and last but certainly not least, the possibility of outbreaks of potentially deadly infectious diseases. Hence, these zoonosis diseases, result from pathogens being transmitted from animals to humans. To protect ourselves from zoonoses, there is need for new measures and precautions, for instance ending and preventing deforestation as well as protecting conservation areas and endangered species against such danger. Of course, we are certainly no exception today as people try to figure out how to cope and help others cope with the grief, stress, and anxiety caused by the greatest health challenge of our time: the coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. With more than 1,129 Nigerian having lost their lives as of October 24, 2020 and more than 61,882 thousand infected since COVID-19 first gripped our nation, although reports suggest that the incidence of COVID-19 has begun to drop, the pandemic has taken a profound psychological and emotional toll on us all. However, social and behavioral scientists have identified some strategies to help us face our fears, as well as even rise to the challenge of supporting others during this fraught time. While awaiting the unprecedented investment in the development of the SARS-CoV-2 vaccine and the simultaneous scale up of vaccine manufacturing which has been taking place, including unprecedented collaboration and resources to develop safe and effective vaccines for COVID-19 that can be manufactured and delivered in the scale of billions of doses to people around the globe. Continuing in this unprecedented commitment towards collaboration as well as transparency is essential towards ensuring that effective and reliable access to information will continue to inform policy decisions at all levels to support the development of national roadmaps to accelerate as well as sustain progress towards public health interventions and building trust in communities that will benefit from a safe and effective vaccine as well as making sure we get it to them as quick as possible.

Background
Hand washing is the process of decontaminating the hands, a cheap and effective method of limiting the spread of nosocomial infections. Good hand hygiene involves cleansing hands in between patients or between examining an infected site and a clean body site on the same patient. Proper hand washing practice involves following the WHO accepted guidelines for hand washing. Hand washing is an effective and inexpensive way to prevent diarrhea and acute respiratory infections. This study aimed to assess the compliance of health care workers in public and private hospital in F.C.T Abuja.
Methodology
The study was carried out amongst health workers in public and private hospitals in Kubwa district of Bwari area council, F.C.T Abuja. Kubwa General Hospital and Daughters of Charity Health Care Services were eligible for the study both. Stratified random sampling technique was used to select 224 respondents. Self- administered questionnaires, as well as an observational check list were used to assess the knowledge, attitude and practice of hand washing. A scoring system was devised to grade the questionnaires (KAP score). Further analysis was done using Microsoft Excel.
Results
Majority of the respondents (140, which is 68.30%) had good knowledge of hand washing using KAP scoring. 44 (21.5%) respondents had very good knowledge of nosocomial infections. Thirty-two of these respondents with very good knowledge were Doctors. About half of the respondents interviewed had excellent hand washing practice, while 76 (37.07%) had good practice. For the limiting factors to hand washing, lack of material (soap, water, towels) was the most frequently indicated.
Conclusion
There was good awareness of hand washing principles, nosocomial infections and good attitude towards hand washing. However, this did not correlate well with practice which was below average.
Keywords: Hand washing; Nosocomial infections; Health workers; Health Care Facilities; Kubwa District, Bwari Area Council; Abuja; Nigeria;

Background: The polarization of the Nigerian society with a population of about 198 million people, growing at the rate of 3.2% per annum, into a large rural sector and a small urban component provides a basis for the inadequate provision of health infrastructure in the rural areas. For instance, over 65% of Nigerian population who live in the rural areas are most neglected and deprived of basic services as well as other modern infrastructural necessities that are essential to the maintenance and promotion of good health. Hence its supply is a major factor for consideration in the health of any community. This study aimed to assess the sources of water supply, sanitation facilities and hygiene practices in an island community of Amassoma, Bayelsa State.
Materials and Method: A cross sectional descriptive study design was used, the 357-sample size for housing units was determined using the appropriate statistical formula and systematic sampling method was used with a sampling interval of two. A 30-item administered closed-ended structured questionnaire was used. Data was collected from 198 households and analysed using descriptive statistics with frequency counts and simple percentages using computer aided statistical analysis by Microsoft Excel.
Results: The result identified multiple sources of water supply which includes rain, river/stream, pipe borne, borehole, sachet water and table water with borehole and sachet water being the major source. The sanitary condition of the water source shows that 28.8% dirty, 5.6% fairly clean, 68.7% admitted to not treating their water at home, while 15.2% just store at home, 10.1% use water guard and 6.0% practice boiling. For the toilet facilities, 40.9% use septic tank, 33.8% do open defecation, 15.7% use the river, 13.1% use traditional pit latrines, while 9.0% use ventilated improved toilet pit latrine. 5.6% were fairly clean, 28.8% dirty while 39.4% use the river for bathing purposes, 14.1% have open bathrooms while 1.6% have other forms of bathroom facilities. 63.6% dump their refuses at open dump sites while 10.6% burn theirs. 9.9% dump refuses in the river while 22.2% practice other forms of refuse disposal. Hand washing, an important hygiene practice with 95.9% practicing hand washing after visiting the toilet, 76.8% before cooking, 72.7% after cooking while 85.9% before eating. Common health problems show, 25.3% of the respondents had malaria, 20.7% diarrhoea, 9.1% skin rash, while 2.0% had cough. About 31.8% of them attributed poor sanitation as a causal factor, 23.2% of the respondents associated water as a possible causal factor, while 44.9% did not attribute their health challenges to any causal factor. 52.0% purchase drugs from patent drug stores for treatment, 36.9% visit hospitals, while 11.1% patronize traditional doctors.
Conclusion: Sanitation facilities and safe water supply are insufficient in Amassoma community. This along with hygienic practices led to the prevalence of common illnesses in the community. Poor sanitation and unhygienic practices are still widely practiced. The State and Local Government should provide adequate portable water and sanitation facilities in public places with emphasis on citizen advocacy in the area of health education campaign.
KEYWORDS: Community Stakeholders, Partnerships, Sustainable Development, Coordinated Engagement, Environmental Management, WASH Policy

In the 1990s Peru experienced the first cholera epidemic after almost a century. The source of emergence was initially attributed to a cargo ship, but later there was evidence of an El Niño association. It was hypothesized that marine ecosystem changes associated with El Niño led to the propagation of V. cholerae along the coast of Peru, which in turn initiated the onset of the epidemic in 1991. Earlier studies supported this explanation by demonstrating a relationship between elevated temperatures and increased cholera incidence in Peru; however, other aspects of El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and their potential impacts on cholera were not investigated. Therefore, this study examines the relationship between El Niño and cholera in Peru from a holistic view of the ENSO cycle. A “climate affairs” approach is employed as a conceptual framework to incorporate ENSO’s multidimensional nature and to generate new hypotheses about the ENSO and cholera association in Peru. The findings reveal that ENSO may have been linked to the cholera epidemic through multiple pathways, including rainfall extremes, La Niña, and social vulnerability, with impacts depending on the geography of teleconnections within Peru. When the definition of an ENSO event is examined, cholera appears to have emerged either during ENSO neutral or La Niña conditions. Furthermore, the analysis herein suggests that the impact of El Niño arrived much later, possibly resulting in heightened transmission in the austral summer of 1992. In conclusion, a modified hypothesis with these new insights on cholera emergence and transmission in Peru is presented.

Background: In the Study, A Study of the Context of Adolescent Substance Use and Patterns of Use in Yenagoa Local Government, Bayelsa State, Nigeria. The most commonly use substance among adolescents in Yenagoa Local Government was examined, the extent to which these substances are used by adolescents in Yenagoa Local Government was determine and make the necessary recommendations from the findings to Bayelsa state government on how preventive measures can be introduced.
Materials and method: Purposive sampling technique was applied in selecting the rural community each from the Yenagoa Local Government Areas respectively. Simple random sampling techniques were used in selecting the respondents. Respondents were randomly selected based on personal interview method with the aid of drafted questionnaires. Twenty-five (25) communities were visited in Yenagoa Local Government of Bayelsa State
Results: Results of the study indicated that the prevalence level of cocaine (13.8%) among the respondents was low but need to be given proper attention, with male 251(65.2%) respondents indulging in the habit more than the females 134(34.8%). It further showed that majority of the respondents, were between age group 18-20 years (37.7%) and majority of the respondents had secondary education (42.1%). Also, larger percentage of the respondents were single (90.1%) as at the time of the study and 83.1% of the respondents were Christians, 13.8% were Islam while 3.1% practiced other religious. Finally, the result showed that alcoholic beverages (33.2%) followed by cigarettes (26.8%) were the most commonly used substance among adolescence in Yenagoa Local Government Area. Further interview revealed that cigarettes, marijuana and alcoholic beverages were taken regularly while cocaine was taken occasionally.
Conclusion: The study concludes that the all stakeholders should step-up mass education and information sharing on the dangers inherent in substance abuse. Also, citizen advocacy should be intensified and encouraged on the health impact of substance use.

This paper argues that the practical reach and ethical impact of the One Health paradigm is conditional on satisfactorily distinguishing between interconnected and interdependent factors among human, non-human, and environmental health. Interconnection does not entail interdependence. Offering examples of interconnections and interdependence in the context of existing One Health literature, we demonstrate that the conversations about One Health do not yet sufficiently differentiate between those concepts. They tend to either ignore such distinctions or embrace bioethically untenable positions. We conclude that careful conceptual differentiation can prevent One Health stakeholders either from overreaching or under-reaching the practical and ethical boundaries of this developing paradigm.

A multistate Escherichia coli O157:H7 outbreak in August and September 2006 was found to be associated with consumption of fresh bagged spinach traced to California. The California Food Emergency Response Team (CALFERT), consisting of personnel from the California Department of Public Health Food and Drug Branch (FDB) and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) undertook an environmental investigation to determine how and why the spinach became contaminated. At the invitation of FDA and FDB, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) also participated in the environmental investigation. This paper presents findings from the portion of the environmental investigation focusing on environmental factors related to irrigation water that may have contributed to contamination of the spinach and hence to the outbreak. Analysis of the available data suggests that depths to groundwater and groundwater–surface water interactions may pose risks to ready-to-eat crops. These risks should be further evaluated and quantified to understand and identify the factors that contributed to this and similar outbreaks.

One implication of this analysis is the need to continue to conceptually broaden the scope of produce-related outbreak investigations. Where feasible, investigation strategies should integrate possible contamination sources beyond those actually found on the farms that are identified as sources of produce involved in outbreaks.

Air pollution monitoring is particularly at low level in Africa. The study assessed the ambient air quality (VOC, H 2 S, CO, PM 2.5 , PM 10 , O 2, LEL, and HCHO) at five major motor parks in Ilorin Metropolis, Kwara State, Nigeria. Samples were taken from three points in each motor parks in the morning, afternoon and evening between 6.00am and 6.00pm for a period of four weeks. The coordinates of sampling points were taken with a Garmin Dakota 20 device. Hand held mobile multi-gas monitor with model AS8900 was used to assess the concentrations of Hydrogen Sulphide (H 2 S,), Carbon Monoxide (CO), Oxygen (O2), Combustible (LEL) while BLATN with model BR-Smart Series air quality monitor was used to assess the concentration of Particulate Matter (PM) PM 2.5 and PM 10 , Formaldehyde (HCHO) and Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC).Wind speed, Temperature and Relative Humidity were assessed using a handheld digital anemometer TL-300. Data were analysed using tables, maps, correlation matrix and Analysis of variance (ANOVA). The Result revealed exceedance of Combustible LEL levels across the motor parks to permissible limits of Federal Ministry of Environment (FMEV) but lower than WHO limit. The VOC concentration in New-Shao garage exceeded the recommended limit for both FMEV and WHO, the concentrations of other parameters across the motor parks were lower and within the set limits of FMEV and WHO. In terms of Air Quality Index (AQI) rating, the air quality for CO across the motor parks was good and safe. The AQI for PM 2.5 across the motor parks were unhealthy for sensitive groups while PM 2.5 at Sawmill garage Motor Park most likely to have unhealthy health effects. The AQI for PM 10 is good for Offa garage Motor Park while it was moderate for the remaining motor parks. The air quality of the study area is polluted due to particulate pollution. The quality of air around the motor parks needs to be regularly monitored to ensure compliance to recommended regulations.

Consumption of electric cigarettes (e-cigar) in various countries continues to increase every year. The results of research on the impact of exposure to e-cigar smoke produce varied information. The prevalence and severity of Pneumonia and Tuberculosis are influenced by smoking of tobacco cigarettes (t-cigar). This study aims to test the effect of e-cigar and t-cigar smoke exposure on the growth of S. pneumoniae, K. pneumoniae and M. tuberculosis in vitro. A descriptive experiment was conducted using three different types of bacteria. The treatment was exposure of e-cigar and t-cigar smoke, as well as no exposure of the both smoke as a control. Power of inhibition e-cigar and t-cigar were calculated using Poisoned food method. The growth of S. pneumoniae is more responsive to exposure to cigarette smoke (e-cigar and t-cigar). In the control group, S. pnemoniae colonies were smaller than K. pnemoniae. E-cigar and t-cigar smoke inhibit the growth of S. pneumoniae and K. pneumoniae, but e-cigar smoke showed more significant inhibition than t-cigar smoke. Further in vivo research is still needed to analyse the impact of e-cigar smoke exposure on human health.