Browsing by Author "Opio, Bosco."

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    PublicationOpen Access
    COVID-19 vaccination hesitancy and associatedfactors among the business communityin Lira City, Uganda: a cross-sectional research
    (Epidemiology biostatics and Public health, 2023-08-01) Kigongo, Eustes.; Achan, Everlyne.; Opio, Bosco.; Akello, Anne Ruth.; Musinguzi, Marvin.; Tumwesigye, Raymond; Kabunga, Amir.; Puleh, Sean Steven.
    Background: As of November 26, 2021, at least seven different vaccines across three platforms have been distributed globally. These vaccines include Pfizer/BioNTech released on December 31, 2020, AstraZeneca on February 16, 2021, Janssen by Johnson and Johnson on March 12, 2021, Moderna on April 30, 2021, Sinopharm on May 7, 2021, Sinovac CoronaVac on July 1, 2021, and COVAXIN on November 3, 2021. Despite this unprecedented scientific discovery, vaccine hesitancy is seen as a stumbling block towards achieving herd immunity in the battle to control this global pandemic. The effectiveness of vaccines has been based on the principle that the community was willing to take up the vaccine to achieve herd immunity. This study aimed to assess COVID-19 vaccination hesitancy and associated factors among the business community in Lira City, Uganda. Methods: Descriptive cross-sectional design was conducted among the business community from Lira City in Northern Uganda. The sample size was 421, however, only 407 members of the business community who responded were included in the analysis. Results: Of the 407 participants, 57.3% were females, 52.5% were married, 88.4% were Langi by Tribe, 43.5% had tertiary education, 33.4% were Anglicans, and 40.1% were market vendors. Results also show that about 32.3% of the respondents had either delayed or refused to take the COVID-19 vaccine. The correlates of vaccination hesitance were education level (aOR; 3.63, 95%CI; 1.49-8.79, p=0.04), having a chronic medical condition (aOR; 2.7, 95%CI; 1.39-5.38, p=0.04) and certainty in the COVID-19 vaccines (aOR; 0.27, 95%CI; 0.017-0.51, p=0.02). Respondents who had primary level education had a more than 2-fold increased odds of acceptance of COVID-19 vaccination compared to those who had not attained any formal education. Individuals who had chronic medical conditions had more than 2-fold increased odds of accepting the COVID-19 vaccine compared to those who did not have any chronic medical conditions. Those who were certain about the COVID-19 vaccine were 73% less likely to hesitate vaccination as compared to their counterparts who were uncertain. Conclusion: The study found a substantially high level of COVID-19 vaccination hesitancy in Lira City and its predictors were level of education, chronic medical conditions and certainty in COVID-19 vaccines. For this reason, it is important to raise awareness among the business community about the vaccine. To increase uptake, policymakers and other stakeholders need to create effective communication techniques for behavior change.
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    PublicationOpen Access
    Factors associated with first antenatal care (ANC) attendance within 12 weeks of pregnancy among women in Lira City, Northern Uganda: a facility-based cross-sectional study
    (Reproductive medicine Original research, 2023-07) Acup, Walter.; Opollo, Marc Sam.; Akullo, Betty Nancy.; Musinguzi, Marvin.; Kigongo, Eustes.; Opio, Bosco.; Kabunga, Amir.
    Objective This study aimed at assessing factors associated with first antenatal care (ANC) attendance within 12 weeks of pregnancy among women in Lira City. Design A cross-sectional study. Settings The study was conducted in health facilities offering ANC services in Lira City, Northern Uganda. Participants The study was among 368 pregnant mothers attending their first ANC in the three selected facilities (Lira Regional Referral Hospital, Ober Health Center IV and Pentecostal Assembly of God Mission Health Center IV) in Lira City. Primary and secondary outcome measures Level of first ANC attendance within 12 weeks of pregnancy and associated factors. Results Early ANC attendance was 36.1%. Women who were: unmarried (adjusted OR (aOR): 0.40, 95% CI: 0.16 to 0.99), took >2 hours to reach a health facility (aOR: 0.21, 95% CI: 0.07 to 0.62), or not visited by village health teams or healthcare workers at home (aOR: 0.33, 95% CI: 0.12 to 0.92) were less likely to attend their first ANC early. On the other hand, women who were: not knowing first that ANC guides parents on infant care (aOR: 2.22, 95% CI: 1.06 to 4.67); pregnant without consent of spouse (aOR: 4.29, 95% CI: 1.75 to 10.55); attending ANC from a private facility (aOR: 2.89, 95% CI: 1.27 to 6.15); and having two to three healthcare workers present at the ANC clinic (aOR: 1.79, 95% CI: 1.03 to 3.13) were more likely to attend ANC early. Conclusions Despite the fact that the WHO recommends that all women begin ANC within 12 weeks after conception, Lira City in Northern Uganda had a low overall incidence of timely ANC initiation. Being unmarried, distance to reach a health facility, and being visited by village health teams or healthcare workers at home were all linked to timely ANC commencement. As a result, intervention efforts should concentrate on the highlighted determinants in order to promote ANC initiation in Lira City, Northern Uganda. This can be accomplished by providing information and education to the community on the timing and necessity of ANC in Northern Uganda.
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    ItemOpen Access
    Prevalence and correlates of teenage pregnancy among in-school teenagers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Hoima district western Uganda–A cross sectional community-based study
    (PLOS ONE, 2022-12-16) Musinguzi, Marvin.; Kumakech, Edward.; Auma, Anne Grace.; Akello, Ruth Anne.; Kigongo, Eustes.; Tumwesigye, Raymond.; Opio, Bosco.; Kabunga, Amir.; Omech, Bernard.
    Background The COVID-19 pandemic related restrictions and lockdown measures had compromised the routine delivery and access of sexual and reproductive health and rights services to the population including the teenage girls. However, the teenage pregnancy rates during COVID-19 pandemic period were poorly documented. This study aimed at determining the prevalence and the factors associated with teenage pregnancy among in-school teenage girls during the COVID-19 pandemic period in Hoima District Uganda. Methods This was a descriptive cross-sectional study that employed quantitative research methods. A total of 314 in-school teenage girls aged 13–19 years were selected using a multi-stage sampling techniques. Interviewer-administered questionnaires were used to collect the data from the participant’s homes during the period December 2021-January 2022. Data analysis was done using univariate, bi-variate, and multivariate. Results The prevalence of teenage pregnancy among the in-school teenage girls in Hoima district Uganda was 30.6% [96/314]. Higher teenage pregnancy rates were prevalent among the unmarried teenage girls [aOR: 9.6; 95%CI: 4.64–19.87; p = 0.000], teenage girls studying from boarding schools [aOR 2.83, 95%CI 1.36–5.86, p = 0.005], contraceptive non-users [aOR: 2.54; 95%CI: 1.12–5.4; p = 0.015] and teenage girls involved in sex trade [aOR 3.16, 95%CI 1.5–6.7, p = 0.003]. The factors associated with the reduced likelihood for teenage pregnancy included being an adult teenage girl aged 18–19 years [aOR: 0.15; 95%CI: 0.07–0.32; p = 0.000] and not receiving sex education during the period [aOR 0.36, 95%CI 0.13–0.62, p = 0.024]. Conclusion The results indicated that 3 out of 10 in-school teenage girls from Hoima district Uganda got pregnant during the COVID-19 pandemic period of 2021. Teenage pregnancy was prevalent among teenage girls who don’t use modern contraceptive methods and those involved in sex trade. Teenage pregnancy was however, less prevalent among adult teenage girls aged 18–19 years. The findings point to the need for health stakeholders to innovate creative policies, contingency plans and programmes aimed at delaying age for sexual activities, increasing contraceptive use and minimizing pregnancy risk from sex trade among in-school teenage girls during COVID-19 pandemics.