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Stroke is the leading cause of neurological hospital admissions in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) and the second leading cause of death globally. The Stroke Investigative Research and Education Network [SIREN] seeks to comprehensively characterize the genomic, sociocultural, economic, and behavioral risk factors for stroke and to build effective teams for research to address and decrease the burden of stroke and other noncommunicable diseases in SSA. One of the first steps to address this goal is to effectively engage the communities that suffer the high burden of disease. The purpose of this article is to describe plans to elucidate information about knowledge, attitudes, beliefs, and practices about stroke and genomics from patients, caregivers, and local leaders, to recruit participation in research activities and dissemination of ongoing results, as well as to facilitate research uptake and impact within the broader communities of scientists, health professionals, policy makers, and others. We describe the (a) study sites and their communities; (b) plans for community advisory boards, focus groups, and surveys; (c) methods for data management in REDCap database; (d) analyses of qualitative data; (e) evaluation of community and public engagement across multiple sites and research teams in SSA and the United States; (f) use of RE-AIM for presentation of evaluation data; and (g) community indicators of success. This is the first of its kind public outreach engagement initiative to evaluate stroke and genomics in SSA, and has implications as a model for assessment in other high-stroke risk populations. [This article was also written by the SIREN Team.]

Introduction: disparity between the demand for and the supply of organs for transplantation remains a major public health issue of global concern. This study evaluated the knowledge and determinants of willingness to donate organs among outpatient clinic attendees in a Nigerian teaching hospital., Methods: a 43-item semi-structured interviewer-administered questionnaire was designed to assess awareness and willingness of individuals attending Neurology, Psychiatry and Geriatrics Outpatient clinics to donate bodily organs for transplantation. Association between participants' characteristics and willingness towards organ donation was investigated using logistic regression models., Results: a total of 412 participants were interviewed and mean age was 46.3 (16.1) years. There were 229 (55.6%) females and 92.5% had at least 6 years of formal education. Overall, 330 (80.1%) were aware of donation of at least one organ for transplantation purposes but only 139 (33.7%) were willing to donate organ. In analyses, adjusting for sex, marital status, family setting and educational status, male gender AOR [2.066(1.331-3.2016)] secondary education [AOR 5.57 (1.205-25.729) p= 0.028] and post-secondary education [AOR-6.98 (1.537-31.702) p= 0.012 were independently associated with willingness towards organ donation., Conclusion: the survey revealed high level of awareness but poor willingness towards organ donation among older Nigerians attending outpatient clinics of a premier tertiary hospital. Male gender and educational attainment were significantly associated with willingness to donate. Educational programs that particularly target women and less educated older Nigerians are needed to promote organ donation in Nigeria., Competing Interests: The authors declare no competing interests., (Copyright: Rufus Olusola Akinyemi et al.)

Background: Cervical Cancer (CC) is the second most common cancer among women with early detection and prompt treatment as best management options. Female nurses have crucial roles to play in promoting the utilization of Cervical Cancer Screening Services (CCSS), yet little information exist regarding their perception and utilization of these services. The CCSS related knowledge, perception and utilization among female nurses at the University College Hospital, (UCH) Ibadan, Nigeria were therefore determined., Methods: A survey of 503 consenting nurses was done using a pretested self-administered questionnaire which included a 40-point knowledge scale and questions on perception of CC. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, Chi-square test, ANOVA and logistic regression., Results: Respondents' mean age was 38.0 ± 8.6 years, mean year of experience was 12.5 ± 8.9 years and overall mean knowledge score was 22.8±4.1. Mean knowledge scores by cadre were Assistant Directors (26.7 ± 1.5), Chief Nursing Officers (23.4 ± 2.3) and Staff Nurses (21.7 ± 5.3) (p<0.05). Eighty-eight percent correctly perceived CC to be preventable and 82.0% believed that screening should be carried out as soon as sexual intercourse starts irrespective of age. Only 32.6% had ever used CCSS facility and main reasons for non-use included lack of time (50.8%), fear of result (13.9%) and not being sexually active (6.3%). Staff Nurses were four times less likely to utilize cervical screening services than the Assistant Directors of Nursing (OR 0.23, CI 0.117-0.442)., Conclusion: Utilization of cervical cancer screening services among the female nurses was poor. Strategies that encourage utilization are hereby advocated.