Lack Of Educational Opportunities Research Articles

Medical doctor’s perception of artificial intelligence during the COVID-19 era: A mixed methods study

ABSTRACT Background: Artificial intelligence (AI) has led to the development of various opportunities during the COVID-19 pandemic. An abundant number of applications have surfaced responding to the pandemic, while some other applications were futile. Objectives: The present study aimed to assess the perception and opportunities of AI used during the COVID-19 pandemic and to explore the perception of medical data analysts about the inclusion of AI in medical education. Material and Methods: This study adopted a mixed-method research design conducted among medical doctors for the quantitative part while including medical data analysts for the qualitative interview. Results: The study reveals that nearly 64.8% of professionals were working in high COVID-19 patient-load settings and had significantly more acceptance of AI tools compared to others (P < 0.05). The learning barrier like engaging in new skills and working under a non-medical hierarchy led to dissatisfaction among medical data analysts. There was widespread recognition of their work after the COVID-19 pandemic. Conclusion: Notwithstanding that the majority of professionals are aware that public health emergency creates a significant strain on doctors, the majority still have to work in extremely high case load setting to demand solutions. AI applications are still not being integrated into medicine as fast as technology has been advancing. Sensitization workshops can be conducted among specialists to develop interest which will encourage them to identify problem statements in their fields, and along with AI experts, they can create AI-enabled algorithms to address the problems. A lack of educational opportunities about AI in formal medical curriculum was identified.

Assessing the Job Satisfaction of Some Physicians in Rwanda and the Associated Factors

Background: Previous studies have shown poor job satisfaction is a major reason causing physicians to leave their jobs. Poor job satisfaction among physicians can also affect patient health outcomes and discourage young students from pursuing a medical career. This study assessed the level of physician job satisfaction in Rwanda and the associated factors.
 Methods: This was a descriptive cross- sectional study. An online survey was conducted to assess the level of physician job satisfaction using the Physician Worklife Survey (PWS) tool. Our sample size was 189. The tool has 41 Likert scale 5-point statements divided into ten domains. Job satisfaction was classified as low if the average survey score was less than 3. Ethical approval was obtained from the University of Global Health Equity IRB committee (Reference no: 0156).
 Results: Out of 100 respondents who filled the tool, 50% reported poor job satisfaction. The four domains with the most reported poor satisfaction were related to low income (87.6%), lack of personal time (76.8%), dissatisfaction with work (75.5%), and lack of resources at the workplace (74.5%). Other causes include poor infrastructure, lack of education opportunities, and ignored physicians’ rights. Physicians who were married, specialists, had more than two years of experience and had a second job had better satisfaction levels.
 Conclusion: Overall, satisfaction among physicians in Rwanda is low. The factors significantly associated with lower satisfaction were salaries, workloads, and resources. The findings suggest that addressing financial incentives, workloads, and resources may be effective in elevating physician job satisfaction in Rwanda.

Reflections on the Role of Indigenous Languages in the Context of Bilingualism Policies in Colombia

Colombia is one of the most diverse countries in cultural and linguistic terms, with 68 indigenous languages in different regions. However, because of the bilingualism policies implemented in the country and the decision to promote the teaching of English as a foreign language from a homogenization perspective, a great majority of languages have been disappearing over time, which affects the cultural and historical legacy that these languages allow. The trends of the globalized world have provoked non-English-speaking countries into starting bilingualism plans to enter the dynamics and requirements for new professionals. However, these initiatives have been detrimental to the cultures of the countries themselves. In Colombia, the teaching and preservation of aboriginal languages have been omitted to introduce foreign languages. The national bilingualism programs launched in Colombia during the last decades are focused on linguistic homogenization, leaving aside the cultural and linguistic richness of the country, which affects the communities that have a minority language and are in danger of extinction. This is qualitative research with a descriptive documentary research methodology whose main objective was to analyze the policies of bilingualism in Colombia and their impact on preserving aboriginal languages. A review of bilingualism policies, ethno-education policies, and academic offers in higher education were reviewed from the perspective of descriptive-documental research. The research results show that bilingualism policy decisions have favored the inclusion of modern languages, leaving indigenous languages at a disadvantage. A review of the academic offerings of higher education in modern languages and ethno-education shows that the latter is very limited while the former is increasing, as well as the reduction of aboriginal languages in the country and the lack of educational opportunities and teaching training for the indigenous population.

Integrated first‐level psychosocial response to disasters in low‐ and middle‐income countries

AbstractThe widespread occurrence of disasters in recent times has largely been attributed to climate change, with its long‐term consequences on the welfare and mental well‐being of individuals and communities. Increasingly, studies indicate that victims of disasters may experience a range of mental health issues, with post‐traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and major depressive disorder ranking as the most common. Low‐ and middle‐income countries (LMICs) face unique challenges in providing proper rehabilitation and adequate mental health services after a disaster, due to poverty, lack of educational opportunities, lack of awareness and knowledge of disaster, and lack of resources and infrastructure. Despite these challenges, some LMICs have made efforts to address mental health needs in the aftermath of disasters. However, they are faced with the challenge of implementing formalised mental health support programmes. Moreover, immediate mental health support should be provided to victims of disasters to ameliorate the psychopathologies that may develop afterwards. The current approach of providing mostly physical and social relief neglects the psychosocial implications of disasters on victims. The biopsychosocial model of health, which is being advocated for, suggests that treatment should encompass all aspects of an individual's life, and thus, a team of mental health workers can provide holistic interventions to aid victims in their recovery process by making efforts to involve them in the emergency response teams usually employed during disasters.

Modeling the challenges of technology adoption in dairy farming

Purpose The global research evidences indicate that the technology adoption in case of agribusiness has a potential to enhance the performance and bring operational efficiency. India is the world’s largest producer as well as consumer of milk but struggles with yield per cattle, overall productivity, low rate of technology acceptance and adoption, health detection of milching units, animal data recording and presence of dairy products in the global market. The purpose of this study is to focus on identifying the challenges of technology adoption in dairy farms and constructing a hierarchical model using soft systems methodology. Design/methodology/approach This study uses nominal group technique-based discussion with domain experts and personal interviews with dairy farm owners/managers for the identification of challenges, fuzzy interpretative structural modeling as well as FMICMAC to develop a hierarchical model of challenging elements and to divide the identified elements into four categories based on the dominance of driving-dependence power. Findings This research has developed a list of 12 challenges affecting the technology adoption in a dairy farm business unit, identified through the personal interviews with 60 dairy farms across three highest milk-producing states of India in terms of annual milk output – Haryana, Punjab and Uttar Pradesh. Lack of government support followed by lack of educational opportunities in dairy-based education were found as the most crucial and high driving challenges, whereas high cost, huge investment and low acceptance of decision-maker were found as the most dependent challenges of technology adoption. Research limitations/implications This research is one step ahead of interpretive structural modeling that considers the fuzzy-based dominance in the model to showcase the degree of relationship along with its existence, but it lacks to statistically validate the findings using techniques like SEM. Practical implications This paper has developed a list of challenges in adoption of technology along with their inter-relationships to highlight the required focus challenge that drives or is dependent on the other challenges. The goal is to bring performance improvement and assist Indian dairy farm business stakeholders or decision-makers in formulating strategic and action plans and help policy planners to make favorable policies based on the understanding of contextual relationship between challenges. Social implications In Indian context, dairy is an important part of agriculture sector, and milk is an essential item that facilitates income generation to small and rural households and a source item for several other businesses and activities. The results of this research suggested the policy planners and government to ensure subsidized and insured technologies, training support and facilities, educational opportunities and efforts for promotion of technology adoption among dairy farmers. The suggestions are purely on the basis of the relevance of challenges in the hierarchy and can play a significant role in improving the level of technology adoption and can ultimately uplift the social and economic well-being from micro-level of farmers to macro-stage concerning economic development of India. Originality/value To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is purely original and outcome of the research conducted by authors.

Pursuing innovative solutions to sustainability problems through openness: A future research agenda

Pursuing innovative solutions to sustainability problems through openness: A future research agenda

Using Project-Based Learning to Teach Advanced Practice Nurses About Quality Improvement

Using Project-Based Learning to Teach Advanced Practice Nurses About Quality Improvement

Exploration of exposure to artificial intelligence in undergraduate medical education: a Canadian cross-sectional mixed-methods study

BackgroundEmerging artificial intelligence (AI) technologies have diverse applications in medicine. As AI tools advance towards clinical implementation, skills in how to use and interpret AI in a healthcare setting could become integral for physicians. This study examines undergraduate medical students’ perceptions of AI, educational opportunities about of AI in medicine, and the desired medium for AI curriculum delivery.MethodsA 32 question survey for undergraduate medical students was distributed from May–October 2021 to students to all 17 Canadian medical schools. The survey assessed the currently available learning opportunities about AI, the perceived need for learning opportunities about AI, and barriers to educating about AI in medicine. Interviews were conducted with participants to provide narrative context to survey responses. Likert scale survey questions were scored from 1 (disagree) to 5 (agree). Interview transcripts were analyzed using qualitative thematic analysis.ResultsWe received 486 responses from 17 of 17 medical schools (roughly 5% of Canadian undergraduate medical students). The mean age of respondents was 25.34, with 45% being in their first year of medical school, 27% in their 2nd year, 15% in their 3rd year, and 10% in their 4th year. Respondents agreed that AI applications in medicine would become common in the future (94% agree) and would improve medicine (84% agree Further, respondents agreed that they would need to use and understand AI during their medical careers (73% agree; 68% agree), and that AI should be formally taught in medical education (67% agree). In contrast, a significant number of participants indicated that they did not have any formal educational opportunities about AI (85% disagree) and that AI-related learning opportunities were inadequate (74% disagree). Interviews with 18 students were conducted. Emerging themes from the interviews were a lack of formal education opportunities and non-AI content taking priority in the curriculum.ConclusionA lack of educational opportunities about AI in medicine were identified across Canada in the participating students. As AI tools are currently progressing towards clinical implementation and there is currently a lack of educational opportunities about AI in medicine, AI should be considered for inclusion in formal medical curriculum.

It Takes the University to Close the Equity Gap

Measured as the difference in performance outcomes between domestic students of color and domestic white students, the equity gap is rooted in systemic racism and a lack of educational opportunities. The equity gap has ramifications for all stakeholders in higher education, especially for domestic students of color. In this paper, we explore the causes of the equity gap and why it requires a university-wide effort to close it. Potential solutions in closing it are offered based on our experiences at Minnesota State University, Mankato.

Assessment of the Financial Benefits from Wind Farms in US Rural Locations

Rural locations provide limited economic opportunities, mainly relying on agricultural activities, with scarce industrial or commercial investment and employment. This has led to higher risks related to poverty, with a lack of opportunities for education, healthcare, and general services leading to rural migration. On the other hand, wind energy is growing exponentially in the United States (US). Rural locations offer very good siting options for wind farms considering the ever-growing size of their equipment and significant required area. Therefore, wind farms may provide financial opportunities to local rural communities, reducing poverty risks and improving living standards. These financial benefits include rental income for landowners, additional tax collection for public service funding, increased income for school districts, and overall larger local investments. However, the available data are too coarse, broad, and unconnected, not allowing local communities, wind developers, and stakeholders a clear panoramic of the benefits that each individual location, school district, or landowner may receive. This research compiled dispersed big data for its integration into a large Geographic Information System (GIS). This system is capable of performing analysis to provide a much better understanding of the actual benefits that the wind industry provides to each individual rural stakeholder. Data were converted to geospatial layers, when required, to allow for a fuller comprehension of all factors impacting financial benefits and risks from the wind industry. Analyses were expanded to evaluate the lease financial benefits for landowners in Texas, applying the data provided by local and state agencies. The approach developed in this research will allow for its application in diverse geographical locations to explore additional financial benefits that each individual rural stakeholder may receive from the wind industry. This will allow local authorities, landowners, wind developers, and communities to better negotiate for the future expansion of wind energy, providing all parties involved with significant benefits and allowing the continuous growth of renewable energy to overcome the damaging effects from climate change.

The need for artificial intelligence curriculum in medical education: A Canadian cross-sectional study of future oncology trainees.

e13583 Background: Emerging artificial intelligence (AI) technologies have diverse applications in medicine, with early evidence suggesting that AI tools can accurately perform key tasks in oncology. As AI tools advance towards clinical implementation, skills in how to use and interpret AI in a healthcare setting could become integral for physicians. This study seeks to assess exposure to AI in medical education among trainees interested in pursuing a career in oncology, and the need for AI education in medicine. Methods: A 32 question survey for Canadian undergraduate medical students was distributed to students at all 17 Canadian medical schools. The survey assessed the currently available and perceived need for learning opportunities about AI and barriers to educating about AI in medicine. Interviews were conducted with participants to provide narrative context to survey responses. Likert scale (LS) survey questions were scored from 1 (disagree) to 5 (agree), and analyzed using a two-sided one sample t-test vs a neutral value. Interview transcripts were analyzed using qualitative thematic analysis. Results are described as mean LS score ± standard deviation. Results: We received 486 responses from 17 of 17 medical schools. Of these respondents, 98 (20.2%) are willing to pursue a residency in an oncology-related field (pathology, radiology, general surgery, internal medicine, radiation oncology). Respondents agreed that AI applications in medicine would become common in the future (3.80±0.38) and would improve medicine (3.71±0.54). Further, respondents agreed that they would need to use and understand AI during their medical careers (3.76±0.572; 3.43±0.773), and that AI should be formally taught in medical education (3.43±0.756). In contrast, a significant number of participants indicated that they did not have any formal educational opportunities about AI (1.76±0.785) and that AI-related learning opportunities were inadequate (2.12±0.802). Interviews with 18 students were conducted. Emerging themes from the interviews were a lack of formal education opportunities and logistical challenges in adding AI to curriculum. Conclusions: A lack of educational opportunities about AI in medicine were identified across Canadian medical students. Given that medical students overwhelmingly believe that AI is important to the future of medicine, and AI tools are currently progressing towards clinical implementation, AI should be considered for inclusion in formal medical curriculum.

Barriers and Facilitators for Conducting Implementation Science in German-Speaking Countries: Findings from the Promote ImpSci Interview Study

On a global scale, implementation science has developed considerably as a discipline in recent years. In German-speaking countries, the field has been gaining significance as well, but respective efforts in building capacity and advancing the research infrastructure are still rare. The present study investigates barriers and facilitators for conducting implementation science in German-speaking countries with the goal of formulating recommendations for creating a more supportive research infrastructure. We conducted an interview study with nine well-established implementation researchers affiliated with universities in Austria, Germany, or Switzerland. The interviews were held via Zoom or phone in November and December 2020, transcribed verbatim and analyzed using thematic analysis. Barriers that relate to characteristics of the discipline were difficulties in building a common understanding of the field and the complexity of implementation research projects. Although supportive scientific networks were important facilitators, interviewees mentioned challenges in connecting with likeminded researchers. A further barrier was the lack of opportunities for education and training in implementation science, especially in the German language. Also, participants reported a missing readiness in academia for establishing implementation science that should be addressed by advocacy of the discipline toward academic decision makers. Moreover, since most national funding agencies prioritize basic research over applied research, some interviewees named flexibility in handling research funds as a facilitator for implementation research. The results inform an agenda for promoting implementation science in German-speaking countries and can be beneficial to other countries that are currently advancing their implementation research capacity and infrastructure.

Reframing Social Policy for Welfare and Equal Opportunities in a Digital Culture

A primary and crucial goal of social policy is to ensure, within prevailing economic frames, equality and social justice in the pursuit of sustainable development. An integrated pattern of beliefs, values, customs, and goals in its wider meaning constitutes culture as a whole perspective in human life. In the globalizing world, cultural diversity exists that complicates the achievement of consensus in decision-making. However, a welfare culture is evolving based on new values and perspectives of the society. A digital culture is also strongly asserting itself, allowing new application methods such as quantum computing in problem-solving. Within the expanding horizons of social policy, many calculations and forecasts have made it possible to reduce poverty rates. However, poverty as a great divide still plagues the world.Child poverty is a huge global as well as national problem. Lack of opportunities for education and employment is dividing our societies. Children and young people who are growing up in poverty, or at risk of poverty, also have inadequate nutrition, insufficient access to health services, and are thus not well equipped for employment on reaching working and productive age. Participation in early childhood care and education is nowadays given high priority in political agendas simultaneously with the effective organization of health care and social eldercare of the aging population. The economic recovery, getting started again in 2021 after strong efforts to curb the corona virus disease (COVID-19), together with good governance, guides transformative social policy. Risks and tensions have been shown to cause deviant and disruptive trends that require risk management actions to avoid, for example, cybercrime. Human-ethical principles become crucial supportive means to control and evaluate the effects of a rapidly increasing technological capacity.The purpose of this article is to awaken awareness of global inequality with focus on poverty causing social disadvantage. Responsible governance based on humane ethical values, new thinking together with acceptable risk management, could lead to a social policy aiming for social justice, solidarity, and equal values. Advanced technology could be efficiently used to assess these values in society, although concerns remain about the negative appearance of dark sides.

Afghan women and access to health care in the past 25 years.

Afghan women and access to health care in the past 25 years.

Role of electronic gadgets in removing inequalities

Electronic gadgets can be seen as a learning tool and a means of communication. Within learning situations, multimedia products and online services can be used creatively and reflectively. One of the side effects of India's internal diversities is the lack of equal opportunities for education for all. That is, inequality of educational opportunities. Education of students in India has been affected by caste, gender, religion, region, economic reasons. The effect of inequality exists on the entire education system of India. In addition, multimedia can be used to promote subject and cross-curricular learning. Multimedia is very helpful and fruitful in education due to its characteristics of interactivity, flexibility, and integration of various media that can support learning, taking into account individual differences among learners and enhancing their motivation.

Healthcare professionals' experiences with practice for managing disease-related malnutrition in general practice and proposals for improvement: A qualitative study.

Disease-related malnutrition is prevalent in all healthcare settings, including general practice, and is associated with negative consequences for the individual and the community. The aim of this study was to investigate general practitioners and general practice nurses' perceptions of how they manage disease-related malnutrition, and their view on introducing an early intervention against disease-related malnutrition. Content analysis was used to analyse individual semi-structured interviews with the general practitioners (n=9) and five focus group interviews with the general practice nurses (n=21) from five general practices in Denmark. General practice has no tradition for detection of disease-related malnutrition and find that they rarely see patients with unintended weight loss. Nutritional guidance is to a low degree and only randomly performed. Furthermore, most of the health professionals do not have access to nutritional guidance material for patients and lack information about patients' nutrition, when patients when patients receive treatment in the hospital. Suggestions for improvement were handouts with pictures and including nutritional status as a standard in the communication from hospital to general practice. An early intervention against unintended weight loss in specific groups was found feasible. Barriers and facilitators were seen as lack of time, lack of educational opportunities and skills. A financial incentive from the health authorities, and interventions adapted to the individual general practice were among suggested facilitators. Disease-related malnutrition was rarely recognised and managed in general practice. The health professionals found they lacked means to perform nutritional guidance to patients with unintended weight loss. However, the health professionals had suggestions for improvement for an early intervention including handouts for patients. Further research on implementation of early intervention against unintended weight loss in general practice is needed.

ASSESSMENT OF THE INFLUENCE OF EMPLOYMENT ON PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT OF YOUTH WITH DISABILITIES IN ELGEYO-MARAKWET COUNTY, KENYA

Disability is a natural part of the human experience and therefore should not affect the rights of individuals to live independently, contribute to society, enjoy full inclusion in education and pursue a meaningful career. However, youth with disabilities (YWDs) in Elgeyo Marakwet Kenya face socio-economic discrimination communally. Exclusion, isolation, abuse and lack of educational opportunities exist in Elgeyo-Marakwet County, Kenya. They do not enjoy the same human rights or equal access to goods and services as their peers without disabilities. The main objective of this study was to assess the influence of employment on personal development of youth with disabilities in Elgeyo-Marakwet County Kenya. Two theories, Catherine Sanderson’s (2010) theory of socio-cultural perspective and Adams Stacy’s (1965) equity theory were studied to enable an understanding of the influence of the socio-cultural support services on personal development of youth with disabilities. A mixed methodology, using a triangulation design with both quantitative and qualitative research was employed in this study to realize the objectives. The study targeted a total population of 492 of youth with disabilities, 320 parents of youth with disabilities in and out of school and 19 government officers. Sample size determination formula by Krejcie and Morgan (1970) was used to obtain the required sample of the youth with disabilities and their parents. Simple random sampling was used to select youth with disabilities and parents while purposive sampling was used to select government officers (key informants). A sample of 289 youth with disabilities, 175 parents and 19 government officers were picked for the study. Data was collected using questionnaires, interview schedule and an observation checklist. To determine content validity of the instruments, the supervisors were presented with the research instruments prior to the actual study. Their comments were adopted in modifying the instruments. The reliability of the instruments was established through a pilot study where a coefficient of Cronbach’s Alpha was determined, which was 0.741. Quantitative data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, while qualitative data were analysed thematically as the themes emerged. Employment contributed 19.7% to personal development of youth with disabilities. The study recommended, among others, funding of youth with disabilities support groups, initiating follow up support programs for youth with disabilities and wholly focusing on services that ensure that the ‘best’ is offered to the youth with disabilities as per government’s policies. The findings of this study may help in improving the education policy to have a focus on transition plans for youth with disabilities after school.
 
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931-P: Supporting Physical Activity in Children with Type 1 Diabetes: A Survey of Health Care Professionals

Background: The risk of some of the co-morbidities associated with type 1 diabetes (T1D) can be mitigated through physical activity. Despite benefits, research shows that children and adolescents with T1D are not meeting recommended levels of physical activity. Health Care Professionals (HCPs) have an important role in supporting and encouraging children and adolescents to be physically active. Therefore it is important to understand the perspectives of HCPs in relation to understanding physical activity behaviours in children and adolescents, prior to designing interventions to support physical activity. Methods: An online mixed methods survey of HCPs in England and Wales. Respondents were asked questions about how they support physical activity in the clinic and their perceptions of barriers/enablers of physical activity. Quantitative data were analysed descriptively, qualitative data were analysed using a combined deductive framework and inductive thematic analysis using the Capability, Opportunity, Motivation model of behaviour (COM-B). Results: Responses were received from 114 individual HCPs, representing 45% of paediatric diabetes units in England and Wales. Results show that HCPs felt that the promotion of physical activity is important in their clinic (90%) and advise children and adolescents to increase levels of physical activity (88%). Many respondents (43%) felt there was lack of education opportunities for HCPs on this topic. Qualitative responses highlighted three key areas of behaviour that might be a barrier to physical activity in their patients: (1) psychological capacity (i.e., fear of hypoglycaemia and lack of understanding of how to manage insulin and glucose levels), (2) physical opportunity (i.e., time, cost, and access to resources), and (3) social opportunity (i.e., family, school, and peer support). Conclusion: This understanding will help develop future interventions to support physical activity in children and adolescents with T1D. Disclosure E. Cockcroft: None. P. Narendran: Speaker’s Bureau; Self; Novo Nordisk Inc., Sanofi. E. Wooding: None. R. C. Andrews: None. Funding National Institute for Health Research Applied Research Collaboration South West Peninsula (to E.C.)

Mental health consequences of home demolition policy towered Palestinians: Literature review

Home demolition is considered a miserable and frequent reality of life for thousands of Palestinian people. Recently, in January 2020, at least 44 structures were demolished by Israeli forces, displacing at least 87 people. Studies have revealed high levels of stress was associated with losing a family home during home demolition, and the stress doesn’t only carry out immediate effects but also long-term mental consequences. This paper aims to provide an overview of the literature and established studies related to the mental health consequences of home demolitions in Palestine.MethodsPubMed, Science Direct, Semantic Scholar and Google Scholar were used to search for materials for the critical analysis of empirical articles. The following aspects were taken into consideration: study type, sample, and key findings.ResultsIn this review, nine studies related to mental health consequences of home demolition were found and considered in this paper. The results indicate depression, stress, anxiety, phobias and lack of hope in the future are mutual themes running throughout the lives of those Palestinian families who have actually experienced home demolition along with those who have experienced a constant threat of demolition to their homes. In addition, many of life stressors such as lack of educational opportunities, low incomes, and a tendency to live in poor housing conditions after and before demolition also play a role in developing serious mental disorders.ConclusionAs primary prevention, the practice of home demolition in Palestine has to be ended. In addition to conduct a constant monitoring of the resulting displacement and the damage caused, and ensuring the necessary assistance in particular mental health and psychological support for victims of home demolitions.

Rural voices: A social-ecological perspective on factors influencing youth substance use in rural South africa.

Youth can be a positive force for development when provided with the knowledge and opportunities they need to thrive, yet they continue to experience insurmountable challenges, such as poverty and absentee fathers, that prompt them to resort to risk behaviours such as substance use. In rural South Africa, women tend to be the breadwinners and more involved with parenting than men. The primary objective of the study was to explore perspectives of rural youth on factors influencing youth participation in substance use. The secondary objective was to obtain the perspectives of adult women on factors influencing substance use among young people. The qualitative study, informed by a social-ecological framework, utilised a semi-structured interview protocol in focus group discussions in rural South Africa. Seven focus group discussions, each with between 8 and 15 individuals were conducted with 79 youth. The eighth discussion was with nine adult women. Data were audio recorded and transcribed verbatim, manually coded and further analysed into themes using NVivo 12. Four themes emerged: hopelessness and lack of motivation, lack of adult role models such as father, lack of built environment for recreational activities and lack of educational opportunities. The social-ecological model provided a useful framework to understand the findings. In line with this model, rural youth in South Africa described a variety of factors that influenced youth substance use and other risk behaviours. These related to the individual, relationships with others, community and societal norms and values factors of the social-ecological model. The broadening spectrum of substances available to an increasing youth population bulge in Africa suggests a strong threat of social and disease burden due to substance use disorders. Given this threat, this study provides awareness to a multi-systems approach needed to support the rural South African youth.