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Background: Laboratory practices offer students the opportunity to develop manipulative skills, experimental experience and the capability to plan trials and interpret experimental data. Instead of conventional teaching methods, laboratory experience better for the development of conceptual understanding of sciences. Thus, the absence of safety in the laboratory room can affect the health of students, staff and the environment. Objectives: The aim of this study is to improve safety practices in teaching laboratory rooms of Bule Hora University, Institute of Health, 2021. Methodology: A descriptive survey study was used from November 15 to 20, 2020, among staff at the Bule Hora University Health Institute. From two purposively selected departments, 17 academic staff and lab assistants were enrolled in the study. Data were collected through a self-administered questionnaire and observations. Finally, the data were coded and entered into SPSS version 20 for analysis. Based on the findings of the assessment, action was planned and implemented, and then the improvement was evaluated at the end. Results: Of the respondents, 58.8% did not regularly inspect the safety of laboratory rooms, while 77% did not ever receive training on laboratory safety. The observation revealed that lack of labeling and proper storage of regents, lack cleanliness of work, absence of covering laboratory equipment and lack of waste drainage, good ventilation and water flow were major factors affecting laboratory safety. Conclusion: Implementation during applied research improved laboratory safety, but we conclude that continuous safety management from everyone is needed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The newborn period is the most vulnerable phase for a child's survival, with around half of all under-five deaths worldwide occurring during this time. Despite existing policies and measures, Ethiopia ranks among the top 10 African countries in terms of newborn mortality. In spite of many studies being carried out in the country, the incidence and predictors of neonatal mortality in the Pastoralist and agro-pastoralist parts of the country's southern still remain unidentified. Therefore, this study aimed to identify the predictors of neonatal mortality in selected public Hospitals in southern Ethiopia., Materials and Methods: An institution-based retrospective cohort study was conducted among 568 neonates admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit at Bule Hora University teaching Hospital and Yabelo General Hospital, Southern Ethiopia from 1 January 2020-31 December 2021. A simple random sampling technique was used to select records of neonates. Data entry was performed using Epidata version 3.1 and the analysis was performed using STATA version 14.1 Kaplan Meir curve and Log-rank test were used to estimate the survival time and compare survival curves between variables. Hazard Ratios with 95% CI were computed and all the predictors associated with the outcome variable at p-value 0.05 in the multivariable cox proportional hazards analysis were declared as a significant predictor of neonatal death., Results: Out of 565 neonates enrolled, 54(9.56%) neonates died at the end of the follow-up period. The overall incidence rate of death was 17.29 (95% CI: 13.24, 22.57) per 1000 neonatal days with a restricted mean follow-up period of 20 days. Of all deaths, 64.15% of neonates died within the first week of life. In the multivariable cox-proportional hazard model, neonatal age < 7 days (AHR: 9.17, 95% CI: (4.17, 20.13), place of delivery (AHR: 2.48, 95% CI: (1.38, 4.47), Initiation of breastfeeding after 1 h of birth (AHR: 6.46, 95% CI: (2.24, 18.59), neonates' body temperature <36.5 °C (AHR: 2.14, 95% CI: (1.19, 3.83), and resuscitated neonates (AHR: 2.15, 95% CI: (1.20, 3.82) were independent predictors of neonatal death., Conclusion: In the research setting, the incidence of neonatal death was high, especially during the first week of life. The study found that neonatal age < 7 days, place of delivery, Initiation of breastfeeding after 1 h of birth, neonates' body temperature <36.5 °C, and resuscitated neonates were predictors of neonatal death. To improve newborn survival, significant neonatal problems, improved resuscitation, and other relevant factors should be addressed.