Japan International Cooperation Agency

About: Japan International Cooperation Agency is a government organization based out in Tokyo, Japan. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Public health. The organization has 555 authors who have published 613 publications receiving 9536 citations.

Motivation and incentive preferences of community health officers in Ghana: an economic behavioral experiment approach

Abstract: Health worker shortage in rural areas is one of the biggest problems of the health sector in Ghana and many developing countries. This may be due to fewer incentives and support systems available to attract and retain health workers at the rural level. This study explored the willingness of community health officers (CHOs) to accept and hold rural and community job postings in Ghana. A discrete choice experiment was used to estimate the motivation and incentive preferences of CHOs in Ghana. All CHOs working in three Health and Demographic Surveillance System sites in Ghana, 200 in total, were interviewed between December 2012 and January 2013. Respondents were asked to choose from choice sets of job preferences. Four mixed logit models were used for the estimation. The first model considered (a) only the main effect. The other models included interaction terms for (b) gender, (c) number of children under 5 in the household, and (d) years worked at the same community. Moreover, a choice probability simulation was performed. Mixed logit analyses of the data project a shorter time frame before study leave as the most important motivation for most CHOs (β 2.03; 95 % CI 1.69 to 2.36). This is also confirmed by the largest simulated choice probability (29.1 %). The interaction effect of the number of children was significant for education allowance for children (β 0.58; 95 % CI 0.24 to 0.93), salary increase (β 0.35; 95 % CI 0.03 to 0.67), and housing provision (β 0.16; 95 % CI −0.02 to 0.60). Male CHOs had a high affinity for early opportunity to go on study leave (β 0.78; 95 % CI −0.06 to 1.62). CHOs who had worked at the same place for a long time greatly valued salary increase (β 0.28; 95 % CI 0.09 to 0.47). To reduce health worker shortage in rural settings, policymakers could provide “needs-specific” motivational packages. They should include career development opportunities such as shorter period of work before study leave and financial policy in the form of salary increase to recruit and retain them.

The reality of health information systems: challenges for standardization.

Abstract: Health information systems (HISs) serve as an indispensable foundation for developing health policy and strategies and improving delivery of routine health services in an evidence-based manner. In developing countries, HISs are not adequately functioning in spite of their important role such as monitoring tools for the progress of the Millennium Development Goals. This paper attempts to classify the HISs into four types according to their data sources. Information requirement by the diseases-specific funds (e.g. Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria) and projects implemented by development agencies increase the workloads of health professionals at facility level and subsequently compromise data quality. For the data quality assurance and comparability of data across countries overtime of major health indicators, standardization of HISs are the urgent task.

Gluconobacter nephelii sp. nov., an acetic acid bacterium in the class Alphaproteobacteria.

Abstract: Three strains, RBY-1T, PHD-1 and PHD-2, were isolated from fruits in Thailand. The strains were Gram-negative, aerobic rods with polar flagella, produced acetic acid from ethanol and did not oxidize acetate or lactate. In phylogenetic trees based on 16S rRNA gene sequences and 16S–23S rRNA gene internal transcribed spacer (ITS) sequences, the strains formed a cluster separate from the type strains of recognized species of the genus Gluconobacter. The calculated 16S rRNA gene sequence and 16S–23S rRNA gene ITS sequence similarities were respectively 97.7–99.7 % and 77.3–98.1 %. DNA G+C contents ranged from 57.2 to 57.6 mol%. The strains showed high DNA–DNA relatedness of 100 % to one another, but low DNA–DNA relatedness of 11–34 % to the tested type strains of recognized Gluconobacter species. Q-10 was the major quinone. On the basis of the genotypic and phenotypic data obtained, the three strains clearly represent a novel species, for which the name Gluconobacter nephelii sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is RBY-1T ( = BCC 36733T = NBRC 106061T = PCU 318T), whose DNA G+C content is 57.2 mol%.

Geographical characterization of the triatomine infestations in north–central Guatemala

Abstract: In an entomological study in 2002, the degree of domestic and peridomestic infestation with triatomine bugs and the geographical distribution of such infestations were investigated in north-central Guatemala. The survey team searched for triatomines in houses constructed with mud walls or thatched roofs, in villages suspected of being infested. The level of infestation observed was lower than that seen in the same area and in eastern Guatemala, in a preliminary survey, 3 years earlier. Most of the infestations detected were of Triatoma dimidiata but even this species was found in <7% of the houses investigated. Infestations with Rhodnius prolixus or other potential vectors of Trypanosoma cruzi were much rarer. The generally low levels of infestation make the elimination of R. prolixus and the reduction of the domestic population of Tri. dimidiata feasible in the study area. The southern part of the study area had higher levels of domestic infestation and colonization than the north, and peridomestic infestation was highest in the south-west. Given such geographical variation in the pattern of infestation, it would seem wise to stratify the study region into areas of high, moderate and low-risk of human-triatomine contact, so that appropriate vector-control strategies can be targeted at the worst-affected areas. Regular entomological surveillance, ideally with community participation, is recommended. Analysis of the relationship between the geographical patterns of infestation and factors such as vegetation, altitude and vector migration would be useful.