Children In Rural Communities Research Articles

Exploring teachers’ and pupils’ behaviour in online and face-to-face instrumental lessons

ABSTRACTThe provision of instrumental lessons in certain areas of England can be hampered by the geographical position of some schools that are rural in nature, with teachers needing to travel long distances between schools. Internet-based technologies have been successfully used elsewhere to deliver instrumental lessons. A collaboration between the authors, North Yorkshire Music Action Zone and YouCanPlay allowed the delivery of instrumental lessons using Skype in combination with a Roland VR-3EX, an AV Mixer which offers 3 camera angles and good quality sound. Our aim was to repurpose existing technology to provide instrumental lessons in remote rural communities. The study was conducted in two-phases: a pilot study in North Yorkshire; and a further roll-out of the lessons in four additional areas (Cornwall; Cumbria; Durham/Darlington; and East Riding of Yorkshire). We wished to investigate the technical challenges and pedagogical aspects of the delivery, and also compare digitally-delivered and face-to-face instrumental lessons to explore the differences in behaviour. Data collected included pre- and post-project interviews with teachers, recordings of the teachers’ first and last lessons, and post-project questionnaires from pupils and their parents. Results suggested that there were technical challenges relating to sound, video and connection quality, and the physical environment of the lessons, some of which were alleviated by the Roland VR-3EX. Some concerns expressed by teachers in the initial interviews failed to materialise; others were overcome to some extent. Pupils concentrated well, were motivated to practice, and made good progress. Further analysis of the video data has allowed the comparison of face-to-face and digitally-delivered lessons. All teachers found the digital teaching more challenging than their usual face-to-face teaching; however, all reported that they would undertake similar teaching again. This paper focuses upon the exploring the behaviour of participants observed in the lessons. Digital delivery has the potential to provide greater access to instrumental lessons for children in rural communities.

Effectiveness of Health Education Among Mothers to Reduce Unintentional Home Injuries of Under- Five Year Old Children in Rural Community

Background: Unintentional home injuries are common in children. Unintentional home injuries are main causes of disability, morbidity and mortality in children, results show that every year 630,000 children died due to unintentional home injuries. Unintentional injuries occur in homes due to lack of awareness and due to improper knowledge, attitude and lifestyle of primary caregiver in homes. Aim of study: The aim of study was to assess the effectiveness of health education among mothers to reduce unintentional home injuries of under-five year old children in rural community. Method: A study design was quasi experimental, one group pre and post test design was used and data was collected at Ali Raza Abad community, Raiwand Road Lahore. Convenient sampling technique was used. Sample size was 71 community mothers who have children under 5- year of age with age group 18 to 45 years. Data was collected by administering knowledge and practice questionnaire before and after the health education programme. Results: The current study shows that the overall mean score of pretest is .4907 and overall mean score of post-test knowledge was .8422. The overall mean score of pretest was .4930 and overall mean score of post-test practice was .8003. These results show that health education is effective to enhance the knowledge and safety practice of mothers. Conclusion: Unintentional home injuries are commonly occur in children and unintentional home injury is also a global health issue in communities. Health education is very important to enhance the general knowledge and safety practice of mothers toward home injuries. On community level health education program is effective to improve the knowledge and safety practice of mother. Keywords: Effectiveness, Health Education, Mothers and Under Five – year old Children, Rural Community. DOI : 10.7176/JHMN/58-03

Architectural Design Solution for Reducing Smoke Build-Up inside Rural Kitchens in Kenya, Africa

Architectural Design Solution for Reducing Smoke Build-Up inside Rural Kitchens in Kenya, Africa Uwe Reischl, Lauren Haggerty, Olga Salinas Abstract Families living in rural Africa must rely on burning biomass as their fuel source for cooking. Examples of biomass sources include including wood, dried dung and crop residue, all of which produce high levels of smoke. Repeated long-term exposure to the smoke can cause pneumonia, emphysema and lung cancer. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that over 2 million persons die prematurely each year as a result of such exposure. The persons most affected are women and their young children. Scientists, engineers and public health professionals have attempted to address this problem in the past but have focused primarily on the use of more efficient stoves. New stoves are often difficult to maintain and cost more than families can afford. The introduction of innovative architectural ventilation design solutions has not been reported in literature. To determine whether new architectural design approaches could be used cost-effectively in reducing indoor air pollution, scale-model based laboratory simulations were carried out to study the thermodynamic and airflow characteristics inside traditional kitchens. The tests revealed that use of window and roof openings to increase ventilation negatively impacts smoke removal by lowering convection (buoyancy) of the smoke generated by a fire. Based on this insight, a new architectural design approach was developed which allows the smoke to exit the kitchen freely in spite of limited convection. The scale-model simulations yielded an 85% reduction of indoor smoke-build up. Testing of a full-scale prototype kitchen in Kenya, Africa showed a reduction of indoor kitchen smoke build-up in excess of 95%. Implementation of this design in the form of a retro-fit option for existing rural kitchens is proposed. Improvements in the health and wellbeing of women and children in rural communities is hoped for. Full Text: PDF DOI: 10.15640/jea.v7n1a1

Access and Usage of Long Lasting Insecticidal Nets (LLIN) in rural Communities of Benue State, Nigeria

Introduction: The main target of long lasting insecticidal nets (LLINs) distribution in Nigeria is to have at least 80% of households in rural communities own two or more LLINs and children under five and pregnant women sleep inside LLINs. Objectives: To determine access and usage of LLINs by women of reproductive age and under five children in rural communities of Benue State. Methods: This was a cross-sectional descriptive study in which a structured questionnaire was administered to 420 respondents (household head). Four Local Government Areas (LGA) - Konshisha, Kwande, Obi and Okpokwu and a total of seventeen settlements were sampled based on set criteria: hard to reach communities with cultural and seasonal barriers. We selected households were selected based on the presence of under - five children in such households using a systematic random sampling technique. Data analysis was carried out using SPSS version 23 and results were presented in frequencies and percentages. Results: Ninety three percent of the respondents used LLIN. Households had one (6%), two (26%), three (20%) and four (21%) bed-nets. The majority of the bed-nets were obtained from government hospitals (60%), mass campaign (30%) and open market (6%). Of those that used bed-nets regularly, 75% were male. The age distribution of net users was 0-59 months (67%), 6-14 years (8%) and 15-49 years (25%). Conclusion: Access to bed-net was high however; regular usage among the female population was low. We recommend that advocacy on bed-net usage should be targeted at women of child bearing age.

ACOMPAÑAMIENTO PEDAGÓGICO PARA MEJORAR EL RENDIMIENTO ESCOLAR EN NIÑOS DE COMUNIDADES RURALES

The article presents a brief descriptive analysis of the pedagogical accompaniment and its incidence in the school performance of children in rural communities of several provinces of Ecuador.The objective of this study is to assess how the pedagogical accompaniment carried out to seventh grade students of Basic General Education in the subjects of Language and Literature and Mathematics, have allowed to improve the academic performance through an extracurricular process of feedback and academic support. To this end, surveys were applied to parents and documentary analysis of the pedagogical intervention reports executed; the results provide evidence of positive and statistically significant impacts. Academic support and the role of parents are key factors in the comprehensive education of children.

Getting Rural Children through the Door: Perceived Barriers to Mental Health Care for School-Aged Children in Rural Areas

With creativity and collaboration, children in rural communities who have the same mental health needs as children in urban areas can achieve access to mental health care. This review of the literature explores barriers to mental health services facing school-aged children residing in rural communities and focuses on how challenges unique to rural communities affect the type of care rural children ultimately receive. This review aligns with the NREA Research Agenda priority area “access to counseling/mental health services” (NREA, 2018). The discussion incorporates national trends in the treatment of children with mental health concerns and highlights some surprising facts about the state of mental health care in rural school and examines the following factors: (1) belief, (2) family poverty, (3) school support, (4) community resources, and (5) awareness. The review concludes by outlining opportunities for advocacy and proposed solutions for improving mental health care access for rural children and suggesting directions for future research.

Remoteness, urbanization, and child nutrition in sub‐Saharan Africa

AbstractRural populations face a much higher burden of child undernutrition than urban populations, especially in sub‐Saharan Africa, a continent where many households still live in remote rural areas. Despite this, relatively little research has analyzed nutrition differences across rural and urban populations, or across gradients of rural remoteness. In this article, we study these differences in sub‐Saharan Africa by linking spatial data on travel times to urban centers with 20,000 or more people as our measure of remoteness to Demographic Health Survey data covering 74,398 children from 10,900 communities in 23 countries. We find that children in rural communities have much worse linear growth and dietary outcomes than urban children, but that children in more remote rural communities face only a small nutritional penalty compared to children from less remote communities. Moreover, the harmful effects of remoteness and rural living largely disappear once we control for education, wealth, and social/infrastructural services. This implies that the key nutritional disadvantages faced by rural populations stem chiefly from social and economic poverty. Combating these problems requires a combination of innovative cost‐effective mechanisms for extending basic services to isolated rural communities and facilitating welfare‐enhancing migration to urban areas.

Prevalence of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) among the children aged 18-36 months in a rural community of Bangladesh: A cross sectional study

Background: Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) refers to a group of complex neurodevelopment disorders characterized by repetitive and characteristic patterns of behavior and difficulties with social communication and interaction. In Bangladesh, autism in children is a significant burden of disease. Early identification of ASD could improve quality of life. The study has explored at the prevalence of ASD among rural community children aged between 18-36 months. Methods: A cross sectional study was conducted among the 5286 children aged between 18-36 months in a rural community. Household level data was collected using screening tool MCHAT. Primarily screening positive 66 children were invited for final diagnosis in a health camp. Diagnosis was made by different staging started from primary screening, followed by validation using MCHAT and flash card. Final diagnosis was made by the paediatric neurologists, child clinical psychologists and development therapist using diagnostic tools (DSM-IV & ADOS). Results: 04 children were diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Prevalence of the ASD in rural community was found 0.75/1000 children. Among the four ASD cases three were boys and one was girl and age range was between 20- 30 months. Whereas, the highest prevalence rate found was for the cerebral palsy which was 5.6/1000 children and Developmental delay (2.6/1000) was the next to that. Conclusions: Age specific autism (18-36 months) in children is found higher in rural community of Bangladesh. In order to get more comprehensive information on autism in other age groups of children in rural community, further study is required. Early detection in rural community could help the policy makers to decentralization of health services among the ASD children in rural community.

Prevalence of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) among the children aged 18-36 months in a rural community of Bangladesh: A cross sectional study.

Background: Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) refers to a group of complex neurodevelopment disorders characterized by repetitive and characteristic patterns of behavior and difficulties with social communication and interaction. In Bangladesh, autism in children is a significant burden of disease. Early identification of ASD could improve quality of life. The study has explored at the prevalence of ASD among rural community children aged between 18-36 months. Methods: A cross sectional study was conducted among the 5286 children aged between 18-36 months in a rural community. Household level data was collected using screening tool MCHAT. Primarily screening positive 66 children were invited for final diagnosis in a health camp. Diagnosis was made by different staging started from primary screening, followed by validation using MCHAT and flash card. Final diagnosis was made by the paediatric neurologists, child clinical psychologists and development therapist using diagnostic tools(DSM-IV & ADOS). Results: 04 children were diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Prevalence of the ASD in rural community was found 0.75/1000 children. Among the four ASD cases three were boys and one was girl and age range was between 20- 30 months. Whereas, the highest prevalence rate found was for the cerebral palsy which was 5.6/1000 children and Developmental delay (2.6/1000) was the next to that. Conclusions: Age specific autism (18-36 months) in children is found higher in rural community of Bangladesh.In order to get more comprehensive information on autism in other age groups of children in rural community, further study is required. Early detection in rural community could help the policy makers to decentralization of health services among the ASD children in rural community.

Together We STRIDE: A quasi-experimental trial testing the effectiveness of a multi-level obesity intervention for Hispanic children in rural communities

BackgroundHispanic children are disproportionally overweight and obese compared to their non-Hispanic white counterparts in the US. Community-wide, multi-level interventions have been successful to promote healthier nutrition, increased physical activity (PA), and weight loss. Using community-based participatory approach (CBPR) that engages community members in rural Hispanic communities is a promising way to promote behavior change, and ultimately weight loss among Hispanic children. ObjectivesLed by a community-academic partnership, the Together We STRIDE (Strategizing Together Relevant Interventions for Diet and Exercise) aims to test the effectiveness of a community-wide, multi-level intervention to promote healthier diets, increased PA, and weight loss among Hispanic children. MethodsThe Together We STRIDE is a parallel quasi-experimental trial with a goal of recruiting 900 children aged 8–12 years nested within two communities (one intervention and one comparison). Children will be recruited from their respective elementary schools. Components of the 2-year multi-level intervention include comic books (individual-level), multi-generational nutrition and PA classes (family-level), teacher-led PA breaks and media literacy education (school-level), family nights, a farmer's market and a community PA event (known as ciclovia) at the community-level. Children from the comparison community will receive two newsletters. Height and weight measures will be collected from children in both communities at three time points (baseline, 6-months, and 18-months). SummaryThe Together We STRIDE study aims to promote healthier diet and increased PA to produce healthy weight among Hispanic children. The use of CBPR approach and the engagement of the community will springboard strategies for intervention' sustainability.Clinical Trials Registration Number: NCT02982759 Retrospectively registered.

A descriptive study to assess the level of knowledge regarding rota virus vaccine for prevention of diarrhea among mothers of underfive children in rural community of Mehsana District

A descriptive study to assess the level of knowledge regarding rota virus vaccine for prevention of diarrhea among mothers of underfive children in rural community of Mehsana District

Comparison of haemoglobin assessments by HemoCue and two automated haematology analysers in young Laotian children

BackgroundHaemoglobin (Hb) assessment by Hemocue is used widely for anaemia screening in both adults and children. However, few studies have compared the diagnostic accuracy of Hemocue with an automated haematology...

Preschool classroom quality and social-emotional functioning: Findings across geographic regions

This study examined whether classroom quality is related to preschoolers’ social-emotional functioning (social competence and behavior problems) and explored whether urbanicity (variation in geographic region: rural, small city, or large urban living) moderates this relation. Participants included 102 children (51% female) who were approximately 4.5 years old (M=53.57months, SD=5.42). Fifty-one percent of children were enrolled in Head Start. Linear regression models indicated that classroom quality was moderately related to social competence and not significantly associated with behavior problems for the full sample; however, urbanicity moderated relations between quality and social competence and behavior problems. Specifically, higher classroom quality was significantly related to fewer externalizing behaviors and marginally related to fewer internalizing behaviors for children in rural communities, but not for children in small or large urban settings. Similarly, higher quality was associated with stronger social competence for children in small urban cities, but not for children in large urban cities. Discussion addresses the importance of the geographic regions families reside in as a context for children’s development, and how early educational experiences may be particularly important for children living in rural and small urban communities.

Profiles of academic/socioemotional competence: Associations with parenting, home, child care, and neighborhood

Studies have highlighted the need to better understand child development in rural contexts in the first years of life. This study uses a person-centered approach to determine patterns of academic/socioemotional competence profiles at 36months of age in a sample of 1292 children living in rural poverty in North Carolina and Pennsylvania who participated in the Family Life Project. This study explores factors that contribute to profiles of academic/socioemotional competence, including parenting behavior, and home, child care, and neighborhood environments. Three profiles of academic/socioemotional competence emerged: 1) Non-Compliant Average Achiever, 2) Unengaged Low Achiever, and 3) Engaged High Achiever. These three groups significantly differed on profile indicators and on early parenting behaviors, and home, child care, and neighborhood characteristics. Study findings have implications for understanding the different profiles of young children's academic/socioemotional competence, and the need to strengthen the early care and education environments of children in rural communities.

Strengthening the primary care workforce to deliver community case management for child health in rural Indonesia.

Objectives The aim of the present study was to report on the implementation of community case management (CCM) to reduce infant mortality in a rural district, namely Kutai Timur, Kalimantan Indonesia. Methods An interpretive qualitative methodology was used. In-depth interviews were conducted with 18 primary healthcare workers (PHCWs), and PHCWs were observed during a consultation with mothers to gain insight into the delivery of the new protocol and workforce issues. The field notes and interview transcripts were analysed thematically. Results PHCWs reported that their performance had improved as a result of increased knowledge and confidence. The implementation of CCM had also reportedly enhanced the PHCWs' clinical reasoning. However, the participants noted confusion surrounding their role in prescribing medication. Conclusions CCM is viewed as a useful model of care in terms of enhancing the capacity of rural PHCWs to provide child health care and improve the uptake of life-saving interventions. However, work is needed to strengthen the workforce and to fully integrate CCM into maternal and child health service delivery across Indonesia. What is known about the topic? Indonesia has successfully reduced infant mortality in the past 10 years. However, concerns remain regarding issues related to disparities between districts. The number of infant deaths in rural areas tends to be staggeringly high compared with that in the cities. One of the causes is inadequate access to child health care. What does this paper add? CCM is a model of care that is designed to address childhood illnesses in limited-resource settings. In CCM, PHCWs are trained to deliver life-saving interventions to sick children in rural communities. In the present study, CCM improved the capacity of PHCWs to treat childhood illnesses. What are the implications for practitioners? CCM can be considered to strengthen PHCWs' competence in addressing infant mortality in areas where access to child health care is challenging. Policy regarding task shifting needs to be examined further so that CCM can be integrated into current health service delivery in Indonesia.

A comparative analysis of policies addressing rural oral health in eight English-speaking OECD countries.

Oral health is fundamental to overall health. Poor oral health is largely preventable but unacceptable inequalities exist, particularly for people in rural areas. The issues are complex. Rural populations are characterised by lower rates of health insurance, higher rates of poverty, less water fluoridation, fewer dentists and oral health specialists, and greater distances to access care. These factors inter-relate with educational, attitudinal, and system-level issues. An important area of enquiry is whether and how national oral health policies address causes and solutions for poor rural oral health. The purpose of this study was to examine a series of government policies on oral health to (i) determine the extent to which such policies addressed rural oral health issues, and (ii) identify enabling assumptions in policy language about problems and solutions regarding rural communities. Eight current oral health policies were identified from Australia, New Zealand, Canada, the USA, England, Scotland, Northern Ireland, and Wales. Validated content and critical discourse analyses were used to document and explore the concepts in these policy documents, with a particular focus on the frequency with which rural oral health was mentioned, and the enabling assumptions in policy language about rural communities. Seventy-three concepts relating to oral health were identified from the textual analysis of the eight policy documents. The rural concept addressing oral health issues occurred in only 2% of all policies and was notably absent from the oral health policies of countries with substantial rural populations. It occurred most frequently in the policy documents from Australia and Scotland, less so in the policy documents from Canada, Wales, and New Zealand, and not at all in the oral health policies from the US, England, and Northern Ireland. Thus, the oral health needs of rural communities were generally not the focus of, nor included in, the oral health policy documents in this study. When the language of concepts related to rural oral health was examined, the qualitative analysis identified four discourse themes related to both causality and solutions. These ranked discourse themes focused on service models, workforce issues, social determinants of health, and prevention. None of the policies addressed the structural economic determinants of unequal rural oral health, nor did they specifically assert the rights of children in rural communities to equitable oral health care. This study documented the limited focus on rural oral health that existed in national oral health policies from eight different English-speaking countries. It supports the need for an increased focus on rural oral health issues in oral health policies, particularly as increased oral health is clearly associated with increased general health. It speaks to the critical importance of periodic analysis of the content of oral health policies to ensure that issues of inequality are addressed. Further, it reinforces the need for research findings about effective oral health care to be translated into practice in the development of practical and financially viable policies to make access to oral health care more equitable, particularly for people living in rural and remote areas.

Delivery of a Therapist-Facilitated Telecare Anxiety Program to Children in Rural Communities: A Pilot Study

Objective: This pilot study explored the feasibility and preliminary efficacy of a therapist-facilitated telecare cognitive behavioural anxiety program delivered through schools to children within rural communities. Method: Sixteen children aged 9–12 years (82.5% male), with a principal diagnosis of an anxiety disorder, and their mothers participated in the pilot study. The treatment program was an adaption of the Cool Kids Child and Adolescent Anxiety Management Program. Treatment was delivered by clinical psychologists and involved 10 weekly sessions with children via an interactive, real-time videoconferencing online platform at their school. Parents also received 4 phone calls during the treatment program. Outcome measures included clinician-rated diagnostic status and child- and parent-reported symptoms and interference. Results: According to combined parent and child reports, 62.5% of children no longer met diagnostic criteria for their primary anxiety disorder, and 31.25% did not meet diagnostic criteria for any anxiety disorder post-treatment. Results indicated that the severity of anxiety symptoms, functional impact of anxiety symptoms, externalising difficulties, and depressive symptoms in children decreased significantly post-treatment, as reported by both parents and children. Conclusions: A telecare model of therapy could be a feasible and effective way of delivering evidence-based intervention to children in rural communities.

Integrated nutritional intervention among mothers of under-five children in rural communities of a developing country: its effects on maternal practice of complementary feeding and child's nutritional status

Introduction: Complementary feeding is a feeding process that begins immediately after exclusive breast feeding ends at 6 months (from 6-24 months) and it prevents childhood malnutrition. Malnutrition is widespread in most developing countries and accounts for 11% of global disease burden.Methods: The study employs a quasi-experimental design, with baseline, intervention, and postintervention phases. Both experimental and control sites were rural communities. Intervention was conducted among 167 mothers/child pair independently selected from the study areas through a multi-stage sampling technique. Data was collected using interviewer-administered questionnaire at baseline and six months after intervention from both communities. Weights and heights/length of recruited children was measured. Data was analysed using SPSS statistics software.Results: The result indicated that malnutrition exists among under-five children in the study area: 65.5% were stunted, 32.3% were underweight and 8.4% were wasted. Post intervention, mothers of under-five children from the study community had higher frequency of giving complementary foods to breastfed children (p = 0.24 in all cases).Conclusion: Childhood malnutrition in our rural communities can be prevented through integrated nutritional interventions. However, the duration and follow up period of the intervention do have an effect on children's nutritional status. There is need for the Kaduna State Ministry of Health to put in place, prolonged (more than 4 weeks) integrated nutritional interventions that stresses correct complementary feeding practices; to be followed up for more than 6 months, preferably 18 months.Keywords: Nutritional intervention, complementary feeding, Under-fives, mothers

Assessment of Dietary Diversity and Vitamin A-Rich Foods Consumption of Pre-School Children in Rural Community in Burkina Faso, an Impact Study Approach

Assessment of Dietary Diversity and Vitamin A-Rich Foods Consumption of Pre-School Children in Rural Community in Burkina Faso, an Impact Study Approach

VARIABILITY OF URINE PARAMETERS IN CHILDREN INFECTED WITH SCHISTOSOMA HAEMATOBIUM IN UKAWU COMMUNITY, ONICHA LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREA, EBONYI STATE, NIGERIA.

Background:Schistosomiasis, a chronic, debilitating and neglected tropical and sub-tropical water-borne ailment, is highly endemic in Nigeria, especially among primary school children in rural communities. The study on the variability of urine parameters in children infected with Schistosomahaematobium in Ukawu community, Onicha Local Government Area of Ebonyi State, was undertaken.Materials and Methods:Urine samples were aseptically collected from 400 primary school children in the community and analysed using chemical reagent strips and sedimentation techniques.Results:The study revealed an overall prevalence of 27% as 108 pupils out of 400 were infected with S. haematobium in the area. Proteinuria, haematuria and leucocyturia were observed to occur in 67.0%, 79.0% and 74.9% respectively. Males had higher infections and higher occurrences of proteinuria, haematuria and leucocyturia (72.5%, 88.2% and 82.4% respectively). There was no significant difference with respect to sex (P<0.05). Children within ages 12-15 years had the highest prevalence of S. haematobium (35.5%) while those within the ages of 4-7 had the least prevalence (11.4%). The difference in the rate of infection between the different age groups was significant, statistically (P>0.05). Children within ages 12-15 had the highest occurrence of proteinuria, haematuria and leucocyturia while children within ages 4-7 had the least occurrence of the three urine parameters. All the pupils excreting above 40 egg/10ml of urine had proteinuria, haematuria and leucocyturia.Conclusion:The study revealed that the community studied is endemic with Schistosoma haematobium infections and the level of the urine parameters increased with the intensity of infection. Prompt case detection and treatment, good personal hygiene, eradication of snail hosts, public enlightenment and proper waste disposal are hereby recommended.