Alcohol abuse and alcohol-related use problems among adolescents are highly prevalent and are a major concern worldwide. This study estimated the prevalence of drug abuse, knowledge about drug abuse and its effect on psychosocial well-being and induced behavioral problems among students of a public rural secondary school that admitted both girls and boys which offered both boarding and day school facilities. The students filled out a self-reporting substance use tool which measures the prevalence, frequency, and general patterns of substance use.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAlcoholism and other substance abuse continue to be a problem among younger and older populations. The prevalence of substance abuse has only been studied among outpatients and in limited samples of inpatients in Kenya. This study therefore aimed to establish patterns of substance abuse in patients admitted in general medical facilities in Kenya.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe objective of this study was to establish the association between substance abuse and the sociodemographic characteristics of secondary school students. All the students of 17 randomly stratified public secondary schools in Nairobi were required to complete self-administered sociodemographic and the School Toolkit questionnaires in a cross-sectional descriptive survey. Nearly all (96.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe objective of this study was to evaluate the influence of family, psychosocial, health, demographic, and behavioral characteristics on regular drug use. All the students of 17 randomly stratified public secondary schools in Nairobi were required to complete self-administered sociodemographic and the Drug Use Screening Inventory-Revised (DUSI-R) questionnaires in a cross-sectional descriptive study. All the 1328 students, of whom 58.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: The possibility that a significant proportion of the patients attending a general health facility may have a mental disorder means that psychiatric conditions must be recognised and managed appropriately. This study sought to determine the prevalence of common psychiatric disorders in adult (aged 18 years and over) inpatients and outpatients seen in public, private and faith-based general hospitals, health centres and specialised clinics and units of general hospitals.
Methods: This was a descriptive cross-sectional study conducted in 10 health facilities.
Soc Psychiatry Psychiatr Epidemiol
September 2008
Background: Knowledge of types and co-morbidities of disorders seen in any facility is useful for clinical practice and planning for services.
Aim: To study the pattern of co-morbidities of and correlations between psychiatric disorders in in-patients of Mathari Hospital, the premier psychiatric hospital in Kenya.
Study Design: Cross-sectional.
Background: When a patient presents with mental illness and displays psychotic symptoms which are not clearly delineated, a clinical diagnosis of psychosis is usually entertained.
Aim: To determine the underlying Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders-Fourth Edition (DSM-IV) disorders in clinical entities admitted with a working diagnosis of "psychosis" at Mathari Psychiatric Hospital, Nairobi, Kenya.
Study Design: Descriptive cross-sectional quantitative study
Method: A total of 138 patients with a working diagnosis of "psychosis" on admission at Mathari Hospital during the period of this study were recruited over a one-month period.
J Child Adolesc Ment Health
October 2007
Background: There is no information on the socio-demographic variations and determinants of Trauma and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) in Kenyan adolescents.
Objectives: To describe the traumatic experiences of Kenyan high school students and to determine the levels of Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) among them, and in relation to sociodemographic variables.
Design: A cross-sectional study of 1 110 students (629 males and 481 females), aged 12 to 26 years, using self-administered questionnaires.
Background: The prevalence and frequency of bullying in Nairobi public secondary schools in particular and in Kenyan schools in general is not known. Knowledge of the extent of the problem is essential in developing effective interventions.
Aim: To study the prevalence and frequency of bullying in Nairobi public secondary schools, Kenya.
Following the death of 67 boys in a fire tragedy at Kyanguli School in rural Kenya, the level of traumatic grief was assessed in a sample of 164 parents and guardians whose sons died in the fire. The study was cross-sectional. Counseling services were offered to all the bereaved parents soon after the tragedy.
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