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Background: Overweight/ obesity among under-five children is an emerging public health issue of the twenty-first century. Due to the quick nutritional and epidemiological change, non-communicable diseases, premature death, disability, and reproductive disorders have grown in low-income countries. Besides, little attention has been given. Therefore, we aimed to explore spatial variations and predictors of overweight/obesity among under-five children in Ethiopia using a geospatial technique., Methods: A total weighted sample of 3,609 under-five children was included in the study. A cross-sectional study was conducted using a nationally representative sample of the 2019 Ethiopia Mini Demographic and Health Survey data set. ArcGIS version 10.8 was used to explore the spatial variation of obesity. SaTScan version 9.6 software was used to analyze the spatial cluster detection of overweight/obesity. Ordinary least square and geographically weighted regression analysis were employed to assess the association between an outcome variable and explanatory variables. A p-value of less than 0.05 was used to declare it statistically significant., Results: The spatial distribution of overweight/obesity among under-five children in Ethiopia was clustered (Global Moran's I = 0.27, p-value<0.001). The significant hot spot areas or higher rates of childhood obesity, were found in Southern Amhara, Northwest Somalia, Border of Harari, central Addis Ababa, Eastern SNNPR, and Northwestern Oromia region. In spatial SaT Scan analysis, 79 significant clusters of overweight/obesity were detected. The primary clusters were located in SNNPR, Oromia, and Addis Ababa (RR = 1.48, LLR = 31.40, P-value < 0.001). In the geographically weighted regression analysis, urban residence, cesarean section, rich households, and female children were statistically significant predictors., Conclusions: Overweight or obesity among under-five children show spatial variations across Ethiopian regions. GWR analysis identifies cesarean section, wealth index, urban residence, and child sex as significant predictors. The Ministry of Health and Ethiopian Public Health Institute should target regions with these contributing predictors, promoting localized physical education, health education campaigns, and ongoing community monitoring to encourage active lifestyles and reduce sedentary behaviors among children., Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist., (Copyright: © 2024 Walle et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.)

Background: Delayed breastfeeding initiation is a significant public health concern, and reducing the proportion of delayed breastfeeding initiation in East Africa is a key strategy for lowering the Child Mortality rate. However, there is limited evidence on this public health issue assessed using advanced models. Therefore, this study aimed to assess prediction of delayed initiation of breastfeeding initiation and associated factors among women with less than 2 months of a child in East Africa using the machine learning approach., Methods: A community-based, cross-sectional study was conducted using the most recent Demographic and Health Survey (DHS) dataset covering the years 2011 to 2021. Using statistical software (Python version 3.11), nine supervised machine learning algorithms were applied to a weighted sample of 31,640 women and assessed using performance measures. To pinpoint significant factors and predict delayed breastfeeding initiation in East Africa, this study also employed the most widely used outlines of Yufeng Guo's steps of supervised machine learning., Results: The pooled prevalence of delayed breastfeeding initiation in East Africa was 31.33% with 95% CI (24.16-38.49). Delayed breastfeeding initiation was highest in Comoros and low in Burundi. Among the nine machine learning algorithms, the random forest model was fitted for this study. The association rule mining result revealed that home delivery, delivered by cesarean section, poor wealth status, poor access to media outlets, women aged between 35 and 49 years, and women who had distance problems accessing health facilities were associated with delayed breastfeeding initiation in East Africa., Conclusion: The prevalence of delayed breastfeeding initiation was high. The findings highlight the multifaceted nature of breastfeeding practices and the need to consider socioeconomic, healthcare, and demographic variables when addressing breastfeeding initiation timelines in the region. Policymakers and stakeholders pay attention to the significant factors and we recommend targeted interventions to improve healthcare accessibility, enhance media outreach, and support women of lower socioeconomic status. These measures can encourage timely breastfeeding initiation and address the identified factors contributing to delays across the region., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Walle, Abebe Gebreegziabher, Ngusie, Kassie, Lambebo, Zekarias, Dejene and Kebede.)

Background: The implementation of Electronic Health Record (EHR) systems is a critical challenge, particularly in low-income countries, where behavioral intention plays a crucial role. To address this issue, we conducted a study to extend and apply the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology 3 (UTAUT3) model in predicting health professionals' behavioral intention to use EHR systems., Methods: A quantitative research approach was employed among 423 health professionals in Southwest Ethiopia. We assessed the validity of the proposed model through measurement and structural model statistics. Analysis was done using SPSS AMOS version 23. Hypotheses were tested using structural equation modeling (SEM) analysis, and mediation and moderation effects were evaluated. The associations between exogenous and endogenous variables were examined using standardized regression coefficients (β), 95% confidence intervals, and p-values, with a significance level of p-value < 0.05., Results: The proposed model outperformed previous UTAUT models, explaining 84.5% (squared multiple correlations (R 2 ) = 0.845) of the variance in behavioral intention to use EHR systems. Personal innovativeness (β = 0.215, p-value < 0.018), performance expectancy (β = 0.245, p-value < 0.001), and attitude (β = 0.611, p-value < 0.001) showed significant associations to use EHR systems. Mediation analysis revealed that performance expectancy, hedonic motivation, and technology anxiety had significant indirect effects on behavioral intention. Furthermore, moderation analysis indicated that gender moderated the association between social influence, personal innovativeness, and behavioral intention., Conclusion: The extended UTAUT3 model accurately predicts health professionals' intention to use EHR systems and provides a valuable framework for understanding technology acceptance in healthcare. We recommend that digital health implementers and concerned bodies consider the comprehensive range of direct, indirect, and moderating effects. By addressing personal innovativeness, performance expectancy, attitude, hedonic motivation, technology anxiety, and the gender-specific impact of social influence, interventions can effectively enhance behavioral intention toward EHR systems. It is crucial to design gender-specific interventions that address the differences in social influence and personal innovativeness between males and females., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Background: Mobile health has become widely used within the healthcare system, and there is an increasing worldwide trend toward employing this innovation for behavior management, disease monitoring, the control and prevention of various health issues, and rising enrollment in healthcare services. Although mHealth is becoming more widely available, there is no evidence about the attitude of healthcare professionals toward mHealth in southwest Ethiopia. Therefore, this study is aimed at assessing the attitude of healthcare professionals to using mHealth technology and associated factors in Ethiopia. Methods: An institutional cross-sectional study was conducted among 422 healthcare professionals. Data were collected using a pretested interviewer-administered questionnaire, and the study was conducted from January 08 to February 10, 2023. EpiData Version 4.6 for entering the data and STATA Version 14 for analyzing the data were used. A multivariable logistic regression analysis was carried out to identify factors associated with healthcare professionals' attitudes to using mobile health technology. Results: A total of 415 study participants were included in the study. About 180 (43.4%) respondents had a favorable attitude toward mHealth technology in southwest public hospitals. Master's degree and above (adjusted odds ratio [AOR]: 3.67; 95% CI: 1.22, 4.10), good knowledge of mobile health technology (AOR: 4.08; 95% CI: 1.35, 5.31), more than 5 years of work experience (AOR: 3.09; 95% CI: 1.76, 5.60), had ICT infrastructure (AOR: 2.70; 95% CI: 1.38, 5.31), had own smart mobile (AOR: 3.67; 95% CI: 3.20, 4.31), and had taken computer-related training (AOR: 1.96; 95% CI: 1.03, 3.73) were positively associated with healthcare professionals' attitude to using mobile health technologies in southwest Ethiopia. Conclusions: Overall, healthcare professionals' attitude to using mobile health technologies in southwest Ethiopia was relatively low. Education level, good knowledge, years of work experience, ICT infrastructure, having a smart mobile, and having taken computer-related training were significant factors of attitude to using mobile health technologies. Considering these factors could provide insight into developing and adopting mobile health technologies in Ethiopia., Competing Interests: The authors declare no conflicts of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Agmasie Damtew Walle et al.)

Background: Adverse drug reactions (ADRs) are a significant public health concern, particularly in limited resource settings where underreporting is prevalent due to various challenges. Mobile health applications (mHealth apps) offer a promising solution to enhance pharmacovigilance by facilitating easier and more efficient ADR reporting. However, despite the increasing availability and use of mHealth apps, there is a lack of evidence on healthcare professionals' willingness to adopt them for ADR reporting in resource-constrained environments. Therefore, this study aimed to assess the willingness of healthcare professionals in Ethiopia to utilize mobile health applications for adverse drug reaction reporting and identify associated factors., Methods: We carried out a cross-sectional study involving 422 healthcare professionals working in institutional settings. We gathered data through a pretested questionnaire that participants completed themselves. We inputted the data using Epi Data V.4.6 and analyzed it using SPSS V.26. Our analysis involved conducting multivariable logistic regression to identify the factors influencing the likelihood of healthcare professionals using mobile applications to report adverse drug reactions., Results: The study involved 389 healthcare professionals. Approximately 301 (77.4 %) of them expressed willingness to utilize mobile applications for reporting adverse drug reactions. The willingness to utilize mobile applications was significantly associated with the type of mobile phone (smart: AOR 3.56; 95 % CI 2.15-5.67), basic computer training (AOR 4.43; 95 % CI 2.27-8.64), mobile health-related training (AOR 1.96; 95 % CI 1.01-3.79), attitude (AOR 4.01; 95 % CI 2.19-7.35), perceived ease of use (AOR 2.91; 95 % CI 1.59-5.23), and perceived usefulness (AOR 2.10; 95 % CI 1.15-3.85)., Conclusions: Overall, there was a high proportion of healthcare professionals willing to use mobile devices for reporting drug adverse reactions. Their willingness correlated with factors such as the type of mobile phone, perceived ease of use, attitude, training, and perceived usefulness of mobile applications. With the increasing use of smartphones, motivation among healthcare professionals is rising. Basic computer and mHealth-related training are crucial for enhancing the acceptability of such applications and should be incorporated into future implementations. Taking these factors into account could offer insights into the design and implementation of mobile applications for adverse drug reactions in Ethiopia., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no competing monetary interests or personal relationships that could have influenced the work reported in this paper., (© 2024 The Authors.)

Background: Digital literacy refers to the capacity to critically assess digital content, use digital tools in professional settings, and operate digital devices with proficiency. The healthcare sector has rapidly digitized in the last few decades. This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to assess the digital literacy level of health professionals in the Ethiopian health sector and identify associated factors. The study reviewed relevant literature and analyzed the data to provide a comprehensive understanding of the current state of digital literacy among health professionals in Ethiopia., Methods: The study was examined by using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) criteria. Evidence was gathered from the databases of Google Scholar, Pub Med, Cochrane Library, Hinari, CINAHL, and Global Health. Consequently, five articles met the eligible criteria for inclusion. The analysis was carried out using STATA version 11. The heterogeneity was evaluated using the I2 test, while the funnel plot and Egger's regression test statistic were used to examine for potential publication bias. The pooled effect size of each trial is evaluated using a random effect model meta-analysis, which provides a 95% confidence interval., Result: A total of five articles were included in this meta-analysis and the overall pooled prevalence of this study was 49.85% (95% CI: 37.22-62.47). six variables, Monthly incomes AOR = 3.89 (95% CI: 1.03-14.66), computer literacy 2.93 (95% CI: 1.27-6.74), perceived usefulness 1.68 (95% CI: 1.59-4.52), educational status 2.56 (95% CI: 1.59-4.13), attitude 2.23 (95% CI: 1.49-3.35), perceived ease of use 2.22 (95% CI: 1.52-3.23) were significantly associated with the outcome variable., Conclusion: The findings of the study revealed that the overall digital literacy level among health professionals in Ethiopia was relatively low. The study highlights the importance of addressing the digital literacy gap among health professionals in Ethiopia. It suggests the need for targeted interventions, such as increasing monthly incomes, giving computer training, creating a positive attitude, and educational initiatives, to enhance digital literacy skills among health professionals. By improving digital literacy, health professionals can effectively utilize digital technologies and contribute to the advancement of healthcare services in Ethiopia., Competing Interests: There are no known competing financial interests or personal ties among the authors that could have influenced the work presented in this study., (Copyright: © 2024 Chereka et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.)

Maternal and child deaths occur during pregnancy and delivery. Timely information on signs of pregnancy complications and ways to plan for normal birth is a strategy to reduce maternal and child deaths. The purpose of this study was to assess birth preparedness, and pregnancy complications readiness and identify associated factors in Ethiopia. A cross-sectional study design was used. A total of 1635 weighted samples of pregnant women were included for analysis from the 2016 Ethiopian demographic and health survey data set. Multilevel mixed-effect logistic regression was used to estimate the effects of potential variables on birth preparedness and complication readiness. STATA version 15 software was used for data processing and analysis. A variable with a p-value < 0.05 with a 95% confidence interval was considered a significant factor. Pregnant women were informed about convulsions (8.02%), fever (35.95%), abdominal pain (28.92%), leaking fluid from the vagina (28.21%), and blurred vision (17.98%). Pregnant women prepared for supplies needed for birth (38.70%), transportation (20.04%), money (18.97%), people's support for birth (5.03%), and blood donors (3.11%). Only 56% and 44.91% of pregnant women had good birth preparedness and were informed about pregnancy complications respectively. Educational status, antenatal care visits, and region were significant factors associated with birth preparedness and complication readiness. Distance to health facility and residency were significantly associated with birth and complication readiness, respectively. Birth preparedness and complication readiness among pregnant women were low in Ethiopia. Empowering women with education, installing safe roads, building accessible health facilities, and emphasizing pregnancy complications and birth preparedness plans during antenatal care visits are important interventions to enhance birth preparedness and pregnancy complication readiness., Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist., (Copyright: © 2024 Demsash et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.)

Introduction: Telemedicine is a useful tool for decreasing hospital stress, patient suffering, ambulance needs, hospital anxiety, and costs while improving the standard of care. Nonetheless, the lack of awareness regarding telemedicine poses a barrier to its application, presenting several difficulties in underdeveloped nations like Ethiopia. This review evaluates Ethiopian-specific telemedicine knowledge and associated factors., Methods: This systematic review was conducted using a search of several online databases in addition to the main databases, like Medline, PubMed, Scopus, and Science Direct. The writers have looked for, reviewed, and summarized information about telemedicine knowledge in the healthcare system. This study contained seven studies that examined telemedicine knowledge in the Ethiopian healthcare sector. Studies that followed the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis Protocols (PRISMA) were found using search engines. The investigation was carried out using STATA version 11. The indicator of heterogeneity (I2) was used to assess the level of heterogeneity among the included studies. The funnel plot was visually inspected, and Egger's regression test was run to check for publication bias. The pooled effect size of every study is estimated using a random-effect model meta-analysis., Results: Examination of 2160 studies, seven studies involving 2775 health professionals, and seven out of the 2160 publications assessed satisfied the inclusion criteria and were added to the systematic review and meta-analysis. The pooled prevalence of Telemedicine knowledge was 45.20 (95% CI: 34.87-55.53). Whereas the pooled factor was computer training was 2.24 times (AOR = 2.24 (95%; CI: 1.64-3.08)), computer access was 2.07 times (AOR = 2.07 (95% CI: 1.50-2.87)), internet access was 3.09 times (AOR = 3.09 (95% CI: 1.34-7.13)), social media access were 3.09 times (AOR = 3.09(95%; CI: 1.34-7.13)), educational status degree and above were 2.73 times (AOR = 2.73; 95% CI: 0.85-8.82), Awareness were 3.18 times (AOR = 3.18 (95%; CI: 1.02-9.91)), Management support was 1.85 (AOR = 1.85 (95% CI: 01.25-2.75)), computer literacy were 2.90 times (AOR = 2.90 (95% CI: 1.81-4.64)), computer owner were 1.70 times (AOR = 1.70 (95% CI: 1.05-2.76)), male gender were 1.95 times (AOR = 1.95 (95% CI: 1.32-2.87))., Conclusion: The overall pooled prevalence of telemedicine knowledge was low. Gender, education, management support, computer access, social media access, internet access, telemedicine awareness, and telemedicine training associated with telemedicine knowledge., Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist., (Copyright: © 2024 Shibabaw et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.)

Introduction: "Evidence-based practice" (EBP) is the process of incorporating clinical expertise and taking patient values and preferences into consideration when making clinical decisions. It is used to describe the provision of high-quality patient care., Objective: This study is aimed at assessing evidence-based practice and associated factors among health professionals working at public hospitals in Illu Aba Bora and Buno Bedele Zones, Oromia Region, Southwest Ethiopia, in 2022., Methods: An institution-based cross-sectional study design was conducted from May 8 to June 20 at public hospitals in Illu Aba Bora and Buno Bedele Zones, Oromia Region, Southwest Ethiopia. A total of 423 health professionals were included, using proportional allocation and simple random sampling. The data were collected using a self-administered questionnaire. Data was entered using EpiData version 4.6, and the collected data was cleared, arranged, coded, and then analyzed using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences version 26. Descriptive statistics and bivariable and multivariable analyses of logistic regression with AOR (95% CI) were performed at p < 0.05., Result: The study revealed that 36.2% of health professionals had good evidence-based practice. The factors found to be significantly associated with good EBP include having training in EBP (AOR = 5.43; 95% CI: 4.323, 9.532), good knowledge (AOR = 1.91; 95% CI: 1.065, 3.541), a favorable attitude (AOR = 1.91; 95% CI: 1.884, 2.342), and work experience greater than 5 years (AOR = 1.58; 95% CI: 1.482, 2.437)., Conclusion: The evidence-based practice of health professionals was poor. Evidence-based practice should included in the curriculum, and also planned trainings need to be delivered to all health professionals, inorder to enhancing their knowledge as well as their attitudes by motivating them to increase evidence-based practice., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no competing interests., (Copyright © 2023 Adamu Ambachew Shibabaw et al.)

Introduction: Childhood vaccination is a cost-effective public health intervention to reduce child mortality and morbidity. But, vaccination coverage remains low, and previous similar studies have not focused on machine learning algorithms to predict childhood vaccination. Therefore, knowledge extraction, association rule formulation, and discovering insights from hidden patterns in vaccination data are limited. Therefore, this study aimed to predict childhood vaccination among children aged 12-23 months using the best machine learning algorithm., Methods: A cross-sectional study design with a two-stage sampling technique was used. A total of 1617 samples of living children aged 12-23 months were used from the 2016 Ethiopian Demographic and Health Survey dataset. The data was pre-processed, and 70% and 30% of the observations were used for training, and evaluating the model, respectively. Eight machine learning algorithms were included for consideration of model building and comparison. All the included algorithms were evaluated using confusion matrix elements. The synthetic minority oversampling technique was used for imbalanced data management. Informational gain value was used to select important attributes to predict childhood vaccination. The If/ then logical association was used to generate rules based on relationships among attributes, and Weka version 3.8.6 software was used to perform all the prediction analyses., Results: PART was the first best machine learning algorithm to predict childhood vaccination with 95.53% accuracy. J48, multilayer perceptron, and random forest models were the consecutively best machine learning algorithms to predict childhood vaccination with 89.24%, 87.20%, and 82.37% accuracy, respectively. ANC visits, institutional delivery, health facility visits, higher education, and being rich were the top five attributes to predict childhood vaccination. A total of seven rules were generated that could jointly determine the magnitude of childhood vaccination. Of these, if wealth status = 3 (Rich), adequate ANC visits = 1 (yes), and residency = 2 (Urban), then the probability of childhood vaccination would be 86.73%., Conclusions: The PART, J48, multilayer perceptron, and random forest algorithms were important algorithms for predicting childhood vaccination. The findings would provide insight into childhood vaccination and serve as a framework for further studies. Strengthening mothers' ANC visits, institutional delivery, improving maternal education, and creating income opportunities for mothers could be important interventions to enhance childhood vaccination., Competing Interests: The author declared that there are no competing interests in this work., (Copyright: © 2023 Demsash et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.)

Background: Evidence-based medicine (EBM) bridges research and clinical practice to enhance medical knowledge and improve patient care. However, clinical decisions in many African countries don't base on the best available scientific evidence. Hence, this study aimed to determine the effect of training interventions on background knowledge and awareness of EBM sources, attitude, competence, and practice of EBM among healthcare professionals., Method: We designed a controlled group quasi-experimental pre-post test study to evaluate the effect of capacity-building EBM training. A total of 192 healthcare professionals were recruited in the study (96 from the intervention and 96 from the control group). We used a difference-in-differences (DID) analysis to determine the effect of the training. Along the way, we used a fixed effect panel-data regression model to assess variables that could affect healthcare professionals' practice of EBM. The cut point to determine the significant effect of EBM training on healthcare professionals' background knowledge and awareness of EBM sources, attitude, and competence was at a P-value < 0.05., Result: The DID estimator showed a significant net change of 8.0%, 17.1%, and 11.4% at P < 0.01 on attitude, competence, and practice of EBM, respectively, whereas no significant increment in the background knowledge and awareness of EBM sources. The fixed effect regression model showed that the attitude [OR = 2.288, 95% CI: (1.049, 4.989)], competence [OR = 4.174, 95% CI: 1.984, 8.780)], technical support [OR = 2.222, 95% CI: (1.043, 3.401)], and internet access [OR = 1.984, 95% CI: (1.073, 4.048)] were significantly affected EBM practice., Conclusion: The capacity-building training improved attitude, competence, and EBM practice. Policymakers, government, and other concerned bodies recommended focusing on a well-designed training strategy to enhance the attitude, competence, and practice towards EBM among healthcare professionals. It was also recommended to enhance internet access and set mechanisms to provide technical support at health facilities., (© 2023. BioMed Central Ltd., part of Springer Nature.)

Background: eHealth is the use of information and communications technologies in support of health and health-related fields, including healthcare services, health surveillance, health literature, and health education knowledge and research, has the potential to improve the delivery and support of healthcare services by promoting information sharing and evidence-based health practice. Acceptance of e-health in Ethiopia using systematic review is uncertain. As a result, this study aimed to assess barriers and facilitators of the sustainable acceptance of e-health system adoption in Ethiopia through a systematic review of the literature., Methods: The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA) checklist was used to conduct this study. Relevant articles have been searched in Google Scholar, Medline, PubMed, Embrace, Web of Science, Scopus, Cochrane Library, and empirical research done in Ethiopia is the main emphasis of the search strategy. The total number of studies that satisfied the criteria for inclusion was ten. In this research, empirical data related to e-health acceptance factors were retrieved, examined, and summarized by the authors., Results: This systematic review identified a total of 25 predictors that have been found in the ten studies. The identified facilitators were effort expectancy, performance expectancy, facilitating conditions, social influences, attitude, computer literacy, participant age, perceived enjoyment, and educational status, duration of mobile device use, organizational culture, and habit. Moreover, technology anxiety was the most barrier to sustainable acceptance of e-health systems in Ethiopia., Conclusions: The most common facilitator identified from the predictors was effort expectancy, which played a major role in the adoption of the e-health system in Ethiopia. Therefore, eHealth implementers and managers in those settings should give users of the system priority in improving the technical infrastructure by regularly providing them with basic facilitating conditions. They should also pay attention to the system they want to implement because doing so will improve the users' perception of the system's value and attitude., Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist., (Copyright: © 2023 Walle et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.)

Background: Despite increased interventions implemented for the prevention of mother-to-child transmission of HIV, There is still a vertical transmission. Hence, this study tried to assess the pooled prevalence of knowledge on PMTCT and factors associated with residence, ANC follow-up, and knowledge about HIV/AIDS among reproductive age women in Ethiopia., Methods: The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guideline was followed to review either published or unpublished studies in Ethiopia regarding knowledge on PMTCT. A comprehensive search of international databases, including Google Scholar, Cochrane Library, PubMed, HINARI, Embrace, Web of Science, Scopus, ProQuest, CINAHL, and Global Health, were searched. The data were analyzed using STATA/SE version 14. The random-effect model was used to estimate the effect size, and I-squared statistics and Egger's test were used to assess the heterogeneity and publication bias, respectively., Results: 14 out of 14,091 assessed articles met inclusion criteria and were included in the analysis. The estimated pooled level of knowledge on PMTCT among reproductive-age groups was 62.15% [(95% CI: 43.63-80.66)]. Residence [(OR = 4.8, 95%CI: 2.99, 7.85)], ANC follow-up [(OR = 4.2, 95%CI: 2.21, 7.98)], and having sufficient knowledge about the diseases [(OR = 4.9, 95% CI: 3.6, 6.66)] were found to be significant predictors of knowledge on PMTCT among reproductive-age groups., Conclusion: Strategies to improve the knowledge of PMTCT in Ethiopia should focus on rural women, improving knowledge about HIV/AIDS, and ANC follow-up. Efforts are also needed to involve husbands and related organization in the prevention of mother to child transmission of HIV., (© 2023. The Author(s).)

Background: Short Birth Interval negatively affects the health of both mothers and children in developing countries. Studies conducted in Ethiopia on the spatial variation and determinants of individual and community-level factors about short birth intervals were limited. Thus, this study was intended to assess the spatial variation of the short birth interval and its determinants in Ethiopia., Methods: This study is a secondary analysis of the Ethiopian Demographic and Health Survey (mini EDHS 2019). A total of 1784 reproductive-age women were included in the analysis. The global spatial autocorrelation (Global Moran's I) and the Getis-Ord statistics tool were used to detect the presence of clustering and the high/low hotspot areas of SBI respectively. Ordinary kriging was used to interpolate short birth intervals, and spatial scan statistics were employed to identify spatial clusters with high and low SBI. A multilevel multivariable model was used to identify predictors of a short birth interval., Results: The prevalence of SBI was 62.89% (95%CI: 59.3, 69.7) in Ethiopia. High clustering of SBI was observed in all parts of Somali, in Afar (zones 1, 3, 4, &5), Oromia (Guje, Bale, & West Harerge), and northern Tigray. The most likely significant primary cluster was observed in the Somali region. Women who lived in the primary cluster were 24% more likely to have a short birth interval than those who lived outside the window. In the multilevel mixed-effect analysis age 25-34 [(AOR = 0.40, 95% CI: 0.35, 0.45)], 35-49 [(AOR = 0.44, 95% CI: 0.38, 0.51)], Muslim religion follower [(AOR = 3.5, 95% CI: 2.7, 4.69)], no formal education [(AOR = 0.5, 95% CI: 0.37, 0.70)], primary education[(AOR = 0.4, 95%CI: 0.28, 0.53)], and secondary education [(AOR = 0.3, 95% CI: 0.24, 0.48)], middle [(AOR: 1.3, 95% CI: 1.2, 1.52)], rich wealth status [(AOR: 1.4, 95% CI: 1.3, 1.68)], female sex children [(AOR: 1.2, 95% CI: 1.09, 1.42)], and two or fewer ideal number of children [(AOR = 0.2, 95% CI: 0.25, 0.32)] were found to be significant predictors of SBI., Conclusion: Overall, SBI was high and significantly clustered across the region of Ethiopia. Age, religion, education, wealth status, the sex of the indexed child, and the ideal number of children were found to be significantly associated with short birth intervals. Hence, the government should design a health promotion strategy and public health awareness in the identified hotspot areas of SBI and should scale up family planning and the wealth status of reproductive-age women., (© 2023. The Author(s).)

Objectives: Documenting routine practice is significant for better diagnosis, treatment, continuity of care and medicolegal issues. However, health professionals' routine practice documentation is poorly practised. Therefore, this study aimed to assess health professionals' routine practice documentation and associated factors in a resource-limited setting., Methods: An institution-based cross-sectional study design was used from 24 March up to 19 April 2022. Stratified random sampling and a pretested self-administered questionnaire were used among 423 samples. Epi Info V.7.1 and STATA V.15 software were used for data entry and analysis, respectively. Descriptive statistics and a logistic regression model were employed to describe the study subjects and to measure the strength of association between dependent and independent variables, respectively. A variable with a p value of <0.2 in bivariate logistic regression was considered for multivariable logistic regression. In multivariable logistic regression, ORs with 95% CIs and a p value of <0.05 were considered to determine the strength of association between dependent and independent variables., Results: Health professionals' documentation practice was 51.1% (95% CI: 48.64 to 53.1). Lack of motivation (adjusted OR (AOR): 0.41, 95% CI: 0.22 to 0.76), good knowledge (AOR: 1.35, 95% CI: 0.72 to 2.97), taking training (AOR: 4.18, 95% CI: 2.99 to 8.28), using electronic systems (AOR: 2.19, 95% CI: 1.36 to 3.28), availability of standard documentation tools (AOR: 2.45, 95% CI: 1.35 to 4.43) were statistically associated factors., Conclusions: Health professionals' documentation practice is good. Lack of motivation, good knowledge, taking training, using electronic systems and the availability of documentation tools were significant factors. Stakeholders should provide additional training, and encourage professionals to use an electronic system for documentation practices., Competing Interests: Competing interests: None declared., (© Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2023. Re-use permitted under CC BY-NC. No commercial re-use. See rights and permissions. Published by BMJ.)

Background: Inadequate micronutrients in the diet and vitamin A deficiency are worldwide public health problems. In developing regions, many preschool children are undernourished, become blind every year and died before the age of 23 months. This study was aimed to explore the spatial distribution of vitamin A rich foods intake among children aged 6-23 months and identify associated factors in Ethiopia., Methods: Ethiopian Mini Demographic and Health Survey 2019 dataset with a total 1407 children aged 6-23 months was used. Data management and processing were done using STATA version 15 software and Microsoft Office Excel. ArcMap version 10.7 software was used for mapping and spatial visualization of the distribution. Spatial scan statistics was performed using SaTScan version 9.5 software for Bernoulli-based model. Multilevel mixed effect logistic regression model was employed to identify associated factors., Results: Overall, 38.99% (95% CI: 36.46-41.62) of children aged 6- 23 months took vitamin A rich foods. Poor intake of vitamin A rich foods was significantly clustered Dire Dawa city, Somali and Harari regions of Ethiopia. Children aged 6-23 months lived in the primary cluster were 70% (RR = 1.70, P-value < 0.001) more likely to intake vitamin A rich foods than children lived outside the window. In the multilevel mixed effect logistic regression analysis, Primary educational status (AOR:1.42, 95% CI: 1.05, 1.93) and higher educational status (AOR:3.0, 95% CI: 1.59, 5.65) of mother, Dire Dawa (AOR:0.49, 95% CI: 0.22, 1.12) city, Afar (AOR: 0.16, 95% CI: 0.07, 0.36), Amhara (AOR: 0.37, 95% CI: 0.19, 0.71) and Somali (AOR: 0.02, 95% CI: 0.003, 0.08) regions of Ethiopia, children aged 13-23 months (AOR: 1.80, 95% CI: 1.28, 2.36), Mothers' exposure to media (AOR: 1.41, 95% CI: 1.04, 1.92) were statistically significant factors for vitamin A rich foods intake among children aged 6-23 months., Conclusions: Only 4 out of ten children took vitamin A rich foods which is too low compared to the national target and significantly clustered in Ethiopia. Mother's educational status, Region, Child age and Mother's media exposure are significant factors vitamin A rich foods intake. Stakeholders should strengthen mothers' education status, creating awareness for mothers on child feeding and using locally available natural resource to produce vitamin A rich foods., (© 2022. The Author(s).)

Background: The health impacts of COVID-19 are not evenly distributed in societies. Chronic patients are highly affected and develop dangerous symptoms of COVID-19. Understanding their information seeking about COVID-19 may help to improve the effectiveness of public health strategies in the future, the adoption of safety measures, and minimize the spread of the pandemic. However, there is little evidence on information seeking specifically on COVID-19 in this study setting. Therefore, this study aimed to assess information seeking about COVID-19 and associated factors among chronic patients., Method: An institutional-based cross-sectional study supplemented with qualitative data was conducted at Bahir Dar city public hospitals in Northwest Ethiopia from April 8 to June 15, 2021. A total of 423 chronic patients were selected using systematic random sampling techniques with an interval of 5. Bi-variable and multivariable logistic regression analysis was fitted to identify factors associated with information seeking about COVID-19. A p-value < 0.05 was used to declare statistical significance. Qualitative data were analyzed using a thematic approach. Finally, it was triangulated with quantitative findings., Result: The proportion of information seeking about COVID-19 among chronic patients was 44.0% (95% CI = 39.0, 49.0). Being living in urban [AOR = 4.4, 95% CI (2.01, 9.58)], having high perceived susceptibility to COVID-19 [AOR = 3.4, 95%CI (1.98, 5.70)], having high perceived severity to COVID-19 [AOR = 1.7, 95%CI (1.04, 2.91)], having high self-efficacy to COVID-19 [AOR = 4.3, 95%CI (2.52, 7.34)], and having adequate health literacy [AOR = 1.8, 95%CI (1.10, 3.03)] were significant factors associated with information-seeking about COVID-19., Conclusion: The overall proportion of information seeking about COVID-19 among chronic patients was low. Thus, health promotion programs should emphasize the chronic patients living in a rural area; enhance perceived risk and severity of COVID-19, enhancing self-efficacy and health literacy interventions to improve information seeking., (© 2022. The Author(s).)

Background: The adoption of an electronic health record (EHR) in the healthcare system has the potential to make healthcare service delivery effective and efficient by providing accurate, up-to-date, and complete information. Despite its great importance, the adoptions of EHR in low-income country settings, like Ethiopia, were lagging and increasingly failed. Assessing the readiness of stakeholders before the actual adoption of EHR is considered the prominent solution to tackle the problem. However, little is known about healthcare providers' EHR readiness in this study setting. Accordingly, this research was conducted aiming at examining healthcare providers' readiness for EHR adoption and associated factors in southwestern Ethiopia., Methods: An institutional-based cross-sectional study was conducted from September 1 to October 30, 2021. A total of 423 healthcare providers working in public hospitals were selected using a simple random sampling technique. Multivariable logistic regression was fitted to identify determinant factors of overall healthcare providers' readiness after the other covariates were controlled., Result: In this study, the overall good readiness level of EHR adoption was 52.8% (n = 204) [95% CI of 47.9% to 56.6%]. Age, computer literacy, computer access at health facilities, attitude towards EHRs, awareness about EHRs, perceived benefit, and perceived technology self-efficacy were significantly associated with the overall health care providers' readiness for the adoption of EHR using a cut point of P-value less than 0.05., Conclusion: Around half of the respondents had a good level of overall healthcare providers' readiness for the adoption of EHR which was considered inadequate. This finding implied that a huge effort is required to improve readiness before the actual implementation of EHRs. The finding implied that younger-aged groups were more ready for such technology which in turn implied; the older one needs more concern. Enhancing computer literacy, confidence building to raise self-efficacy of such technology, addressing the issue of computer availability at health facilities, building a positive attitude, awareness campaign of EHR, and recognizing the usefulness of such systems were the necessary measures to improve EHR readiness in this setting. Additionally, further studies are recommended to encompass all types of EHR readiness such as organizational readiness, technology readiness, societal readiness, and so on. Additionally, exploring the healthcare provider opinion with qualitative study and extending the proposed study to other implementation settings are recommended to be addressed by future works., (© 2022. The Author(s).)

Background: Coronavirus (CoV) is a novel respiratory virus that can cause severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS). It affects millions of people in the world and thousands of people in Ethiopia. In responding to this, digital health technologies help to reduce COVID-19 outbreaks by sharing accurate and timely COVID-19 related information. Additionally, digital solutions are used for remote consulting during the pandemic, in creating COVID-19 related awareness, for distribution of the vaccine, and so on. Therefore, this study aimed to assess digital health literacy to share COVID-19 related information and associated factors among healthcare providers who worked at COVID-19 treatment centers in the Amhara region, Northwest Ethiopia., Method: An institutional-based cross-sectional survey was conducted from April 4 to May 4, 2021. The study included 476 healthcare providers who worked at COVID-19 treatment centers in the Amhara region. A pretested, structured self-administered questionnaire was used to collect data. EpiData 4.6 and SPSS version 26 were used for data entry and analysis respectively. Bi-variable and Multivariable logistic regression analysis was used to identify factors associated with the dependent variable. A P -value of less than 0.05 was used to declare statistical significance., Result: A total of 456 respondents were participated in the study, with 95.8% response rate. Digital health literacy to share COVID-19 related information found to be 50.4% (95% CI: 46-55). Educational status [AOR = 4.37, 95% CI(2.08-9.17)], training [AOR = 3.00, 95% CI (1.80-5.00)], attitude [AOR = 1.99, 95% CI(1.18-3.36)], perceived usefulness [AOR = 2.01, 95% CI(1.22-3.32)], perceived ease of use [AOR = 2.00, 95% CI(1.25-3.21)] and smartphone access [AOR = 5.21, 95% CI(2.34-9.62)] were significantly associated with digital health literacy to sharing of COVID-19 related information at P -value less than 0.05., Conclusion: This finding indicated that approximately half of the respondents had digital health literacy to share COVID-19 related information which was inadequate. Improving respondents' educational status, computer training, smartphone access, perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, and attitude was necessary to measure digital health literacy to sharing of COVID-19 related information., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (© 2022 The Authors.)