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Background: Prescribers must possess extensive knowledge and maintain a positive attitude towards the rational use of medicines to achieve desirable treatment outcomes and effectively prevent treatment failures, increased costs, drug toxicities, and interactions. The objective of this study was to evaluate prescribers' understanding and perception concerning the rational use of medicines in public hospitals. Additionally, the study aimed to identify the factors that influence rational prescribing practices. Methods: A structured data instrument was developed to collect demographic data and evaluate participants' knowledge and perception of rational medicine use, in line with the study objectives. Chi-squared statistics and Fisher's exact test were utilized to identify factors associated with good knowledge and perception among participants. Logistic regression was then employed to assess the strength of the associations, with odd ratios reported at a significant level of 0.05. Results: Out of 192 participants, 85.4% held a positive view of rational medicine use, stressing patient safety and recognizing risks like antimicrobial resistance and polypharmacy. Perception was influenced by factors such as prescriber profession, access to references, and drug bulletin updates. Additionally, 65.6% demonstrated good knowledge of rational medicine use, which was notably influenced by factors like using standard prescribing guidelines, having a functional Drug and Therapeutics Committee, prescriber profession, and the frequency of drug bulletin updates. Conclusion: The study emphasizes the critical need to address knowledge gaps among healthcare professionals, especially nurses and other prescribers, to ensure the safe and effective use of medications. It highlights the positive influence of utilizing preferred prescribing references and the existence of functional Drug and Therapeutics Committees in hospitals on knowledge levels. However, the unexpected findings regarding the limited impact of frequent updates of drug bulletins require further investigation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background The COVID-19 pandemic created stressors to daily living, leading to increased mental health problems. It is important to assess the influence of COVID-19 pandemic on mental health, specifically anxiety. Objectives The goal was to determine the prevalence and sociodemographic, clinical, and other correlates of likely Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) among study subjects in Ghana. Design This study employed a cross-sectional approach, using an online survey administered primarily through social media platforms. The survey questions included the GAD-7 scale, which was used to assess likely GAD in respondents. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, chi-square tests, and logistic regression analysis. Participants Overall, 756 respondents completed the survey, mainly from Ashanti and Greater Accra, which were the hardest hit by COVID-19. Results The prevalence of likely GAD in our sample was 7.6%. Gender, loss of job due to COVID-19, and seeking mental health counseling were independently associated with increased likelihood of GAD. Conclusions The findings suggest that women, those who lost their jobs due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and those who sought mental health counseling were more likely to experience moderate to high anxiety symptoms as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Priority must be attached to psychological support measures for members of these groups. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Footprints recovered from crime scenes can assist in establishing the identity (stature, body weight, and sex) of a person. Due to variations (genetic and environmental factors) in the morphology of the foot, several authors have derived populationspecific regression equations for stature and weight estimations. Aims and Objectives: Tribal differences in the footprint dimensions of Ghanaians have not been established. Hence, this study was done to determine if they were tribal differences in footprint dimensions. Materials and Methods: The footprints of Ghanaian females, aged 19-35 years, and belonging to two tribal groups (72 Asante and 73 Fante) were recovered using an ink pad method. Height, body weight, and footprint measurements were obtained following standard procedures. Results: Although Fante females had longer foot lengths and shorter foot breadths than Asante females, the difference was significant (P < 0.001) only in the left big toe-pad length (eta squared = 0.496). Height correlated better with footprint dimensions of Fante (r = 0.246 - 0.809) than Asante (r = 0.214 - 0.660) females. Body weight correlated weakly with footprint dimensions. Unlike in Asante females, foot length measurements did not correlate significantly with body weight among Fante females. Conclusion: The use of mixed population in deriving stature, weight and sex equations is cautioned especially when there is increased genetic diversity. The findings of this study have important applications in forensic anthropometric investigations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]