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Low hand-hygiene compliance (HHC) in low-income countries due to deficient hand hygiene resources may increase nasal carriage of S. aureus, a causative agent of health care-associated infections. The study aimed to assess the effect of using locally available portable alcohol-based handrub (ABHR) regarding nurses' HHC and nasal carriage of S. aureus.Nonrandomized interventional design. Seventy-two (72) of 86 nurses were provided with portable ABHR to use during patient care (intervention group). The remaining 14 nurses constituted the control group. Evaluation was done via HHC observation per WHO 5-moments of HH, determining S. aureus nasal carriage prevalence and HH guideline knowledge assessment via a self-response questionnaire.In the intervention group, HHC improved from 48.9% to 67.7% (P.001) especially for hand-hygiene before and after patient contact. Hand-hygiene by handrubbing improved from 16 to 105 moments. There was positive feedback to portable ABHR use from nurses. S. aureus nasal carriage significantly decreased from 30.6% to 21% (P.031). Negative carriage of S. aureus was significantly associated with increase in HHC (P.001). Despite the low preintervention HHC, nurses showed considerably high levels of knowledge on relevance of hand hygiene.Portable ABHR use was associated with improved HHC and reduced S. aureus nasal carriage prevalence. As nurses' knowledge of HH guidelines was high, provision of portable ABHR compensated for deficient facility HH resources resulting in improved HHC, which effected reduction in nasal carriage of S. aureus among nurses.

Background: Since the roll-out of antiretroviral therapy (ART) in sub-Saharan Africa (sSA) in the early 2000s, the life expectancy of people infected with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) has increased. However, the gains made in reducing mortality from HIV-related complications have been mitigated by the emergence of age-related chronic non-communicable diseases (NCDs), such as hypertension. Protease inhibitors (PIs), and prolonged exposure to highly active ART (HAART) have been implicated in the development of hypertension in HIV-positive people. Aim: To investigate the prevalence of hypertension and its associated risk factors among HIV-positive patients receiving ART. Setting: The study was carried out at an urban-based clinic that provides HAART and primary care to HIV-positive people in Harare, Zimbabwe. Methods: A descriptive, cross-sectional study was conducted among non-pregnant adults on HAART attending the clinic between July and August 2018. Results: We studied 600 HIV-positive adult patients, of which 56% were women. The prevalence rate of hypertension was 29.9%. Of the participants in the hypertensive group, 11.2% were not previously diagnosed or on treatment. Factors associated with hypertension were advanced age, use of HAART for longer than 10 years, being overweight, a family history of hypertension and smoking. There was a 68.8% prevalence of body mass index greater than 25 kg/m 2 among all participants. Conclusion: High hypertension prevalence was recorded. Hypertension was not associated with gender or use of PI regimens but being overweight was highly prevalent. Greater vigilance and integration of resources is required in the overall treatment and monitoring of HIV-positive patients for co-morbidities.

Poor adherence to haemodialysis among End Stage Renal Disease (ESRD) patients has been a major problem globally. Perceived physical health appears to be the major contributing factor to poor adherence to haemodialysis. Improving the adherence to haemodialysis among ESRD patients improves their quality of life. A descriptive correlational study was conducted to examine the relationship between perceived physical health and level of adherence to haemodialysis among ESRD patients. The study was conducted at a central hospital in Harare, Zimbabwe. A total of 85 ESRD patients who met the inclusion criteria were selected using simple random sampling. Data was collected using an interview schedule with three sections namely: the demographic data, adherence to haemodialysis and perceived physical health. Descriptive statistics, Pearson's correlation coefficient and linear regression were used to analyse the data. Eighty - three (97.6%) demonstrated low adherence to haemodialysis. Eighty - two (96.5%) perceived their physical health to be average. The Pearson correlation coefficient (r=-.44 p

Aim To assess factors influencing infant-feeding methods selected by HIV-infected mothers. Methods A descriptive quantitative study was conducted among 80 mothers with babies aged 0–6 months who were randomly selected and interviewed. Descriptive statistics were used to summarize the findings. Results Factors considered by women in choosing the infant-feeding methods included sociocultural acceptability (58.8%), feasibility and support from significant others (35%), knowledge of the selected method (55%), affordability (61.2%), implementation of the infant-feeding method without interference (62.5%), and safety (47.5%). Exclusive breast-feeding was the most preferred method of infant feeding. Disclosure of HIV status by a woman to her partner is a major condition for successful replacement feeding method, especially within the African cultural context. However, disclosure of HIV status to the partner was feared by most women as only 16.2% of the women disclosed their HIV status to partners. Conclusion The factors considered by women in choosing the infant-feeding option were ability to implement the options without interference from significant others, affordability, and sociocultural acceptability. Knowledge of the selected option, its advantages and disadvantages, safety, and feasibility were also important factors. Nurses and midwives have to educate clients and support them in their choice of infant-feeding methods.