Explore the vast range of titles available.

Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) is experiencing a sharp rise in the size of the older population; consequently, the incidence and prevalence of Alzheimer's Disease Related Dementias (AD/ADRD) is also expected to rise. There is limited research on AD/ADRD lived experiences have been conducted in SSA including Kenya. Our project aimed to explore patient's and caregivers lived experiences with Alzheimer's disease in Kenya. This ethnographic study was conducted at the Aga Khan University hospital (AKUH), involving in-depth interviews with 21 health care providers, 26 patients with mild cognitive impairment and 36 caregivers. We also conducted 10 home visits and observations. Data were transcribed verbatim and thematically analysed. In what follows, we focus on vignettes of two people living with AD in Kenya, and their caregivers. Data from the other interviews are woven into the two vignettes to demonstrate lived experiences of AD. We identified 5 key themes: Knowledge and perception of dementia; Care pathways for patients; Dementia screening and diagnosis; Social support systems; Challenges and opportunities living with dementia. Overall, patients with dementia in Kenya have unique experiences - based their social-cultural and economic status, and access to healthcare services. Children or spouses are primary caregiver, and most reported caregiving burden. People's lived experiences with AD in Kenya is unique and influenced by multiple factors. Training primary health care providers in dementia screening and diagnosis, ensuring availability of diagnostic tools, increasing advocacy and awareness of dementia in Kenya are essential steps to enhance timely care seeking, screening, diagnosis and treatment. More research is needed to develop evidence-based community interventions to support informal care provision for persons with dementia in Kenya.

Background Sub‐Saharan Africa (SSA) is experiencing a sharp rise in the size of the older population; consequently, the incidence and prevalence of Alzheimer's Disease Related Dementias (AD/ADRD) is also expected to rise. There is limited research on AD/ADRD lived experiences have been conducted in SSA including Kenya. Our project aimed to explore patient's and caregivers lived experiences with Alzheimer's disease in Kenya. Methods This ethnographic study was conducted at the Aga Khan University hospital (AKUH), involving in‐depth interviews with 21 health care providers, 26 patients with mild cognitive impairment and 36 caregivers. We also conducted 10 home visits and observations. Data were transcribed verbatim and thematically analysed. In what follows, we focus on vignettes of two people living with AD in Kenya, and their caregivers. Data from the other interviews are woven into the two vignettes to demonstrate lived experiences of AD. Results We identified 5 key themes: Knowledge and perception of dementia; Care pathways for patients; Dementia screening and diagnosis; Social support systems; Challenges and opportunities living with dementia. Overall, patients with dementia in Kenya have unique experiences – based their social‐cultural and economic status, and access to healthcare services. Children or spouses are primary caregiver, and most reported caregiving burden. Conclusions & recommendations People's lived experiences with AD in Kenya is unique and influenced by multiple factors. Training primary health care providers in dementia screening and diagnosis, ensuring availability of diagnostic tools, increasing advocacy and awareness of dementia in Kenya are essential steps to enhance timely care seeking, screening, diagnosis and treatment. More research is needed to develop evidence‐based community interventions to support informal care provision for persons with dementia in Kenya. Keywords: Dementia, Lived experiences, Vignettes; Diagnosis, Treatment, Kenya.

End avoidable harm by tackling stigma and integrating services

Aim To reassess the capacity of mangroves for ecosystem services in the light of recent data. Location Global mangrove ecosystems. Methods We review four long-standing roles of mangroves: (1) carbon dynamics – export or sink; (2) nursery role; (3) shoreline protection; (4) land-building capacity. The origins of pertinent hypotheses, current understanding and gaps in our knowledge are highlighted with reference to biogeographic, geographic and socio-economic influences. Results The role of mangroves as C sinks needs to be evaluated for a wide range of biogeographic regions and forest conditions. Mangrove C assimilation may be under-estimated because of flawed methodology and scanty data on key components of C dynamics. Peri-urban mangroves may be manipulated to provide local offsets for C emission. The nursery function of mangroves is not ubiquitous but varies with spatio-temporal accessibility. Connectivity and complementarity of mangroves and adjacent habitats enhance their nursery function through trophic relay and ontogenetic migrations. The effectiveness of mangroves for coastal protection depends on factors at landscape/geomorphic to community scales and local/species scales. Shifts in species due to climate change, forest degradation and loss of habitat connectivity may reduce the protective capacity of mangroves. Early views of mangroves as land builders (especially lateral expansion) were questionable. Evidence now indicates that mangroves, once established, directly influence vertical land development by enhancing sedimentation and/or by direct organic contributions to soil volume (peat formation) in some settings. Main conclusions Knowledge of thresholds, spatio-temporal scaling and variability due to geographic, biogeographic and socio-economic settings will improve the management of mangrove ecosystem services. Many drivers respond to global trends in climate change and local changes such as urbanization. While mangroves have traditionally been managed for subsistence, future governance models must involve partnerships between local custodians of mangroves and offsite beneficiaries of the services.

Civil registration and vital statistics (CRVS) systems do not produce comprehensive data on maternal and child deaths in most low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), with most births and deaths which occur outside the formal health system going unreported. Community-based death reporting, investigation and review processes are being used in these settings to augment official registration of maternal and child deaths and to identify death-specific factors and associated barriers to maternal and childcare. This study aims to review how community-based maternal and child death reporting, investigation and review processes are carried out in LMICs. We conducted a scoping review of the literature published in English from January 2013 to November 2020, searching PubMed, EMBASE, PsycINFO, Joanna Briggs, The Cochrane Library, EBM reviews, Scopus, and Web of Science databases. We used descriptive analysis to outline the scope, design, and distribution of literature included in the study and to present the content extracted from each article. The scoping review is reported following the PRISMA reporting guideline for systematic reviews. Of 3162 screened articles, 43 articles that described community-based maternal and child death review processes across ten countries in Africa and Asia were included. A variety of approaches were used to report and investigate deaths in the community, including identification of deaths by community health workers (CHWs) and other community informants, reproductive age mortality surveys, verbal autopsy, and social autopsy. Community notification of deaths by CHWs complements registration of maternal and child deaths missed by routinely collected sources of information, including the CRVS systems which mostly capture deaths occurring in health facilities. However, the accuracy and completeness of data reported by CHWs are sub-optimal. Community-based death reporting complements formal registration of maternal and child deaths in LMICs. While research shows that community-based maternal and child death reporting was feasible, the accuracy and completeness of data reported by CHWs are sub-optimal but amenable to targeted support and supervision. Studies to further improve the process of engaging communities in the review, as well as collection and investigation of deaths in LMICs, could empower communities to respond more effectively and have a greater impact on reducing maternal and child mortality.

This study sought to determine the bidirectional relationship between research output and impact and economic development in selected countries in sub-Saharan Africa. Data was extracted from the African Development Indicators and the Clarivate Analytics’ Web of Science citation indexes. A Pearson correlation and a regression analysis were performed to determine the relationships between the variables, as well as the influence of the bibliometrics indicators on the economic development indicators and vice versa. Results revealed high and significant correlation values between some research indicators (i.e. number of research articles, citations, and H-index) and some economic development (i.e. GDPcur and GNI) at p < 0.01. A mixture of weak, moderate and strong relationships was witnessed between research and economic development. The study further found that the number of articles contributed the most to, and therefore could be a factor affecting economic development, followed by the number of citations. A reverse analysis whereby the economic indicators were assessed to determine their influence on research indicated that the indicators had some influence on the number of articles and citations with the GDPcur and the GNI having statistically significant contribution in sub-Saharan Africa. The correlation and regression analyses of the two sets of indicators in selected countries, too, revealed strong and/or very strong relationships. The paper concludes that both the quantity (volume of research) and quality (or impact) of research are essential for economic development while research output and citation impact depend on economic development in not only individual countries but also in sub-Saharan Africa, as a whole. However, normalized indicators represented by the average citations per paper (Nac) as well as CPI and GDPcap produced very low and mostly statistically insignificant coefficients implying weak bidirectional relationships between research and economic development in some cases.

PurposeThis study aims to explore the similarities and differences between the three concepts that are commonly used to describe the knowledge of traditional and indigenous communities, namely, indigenous knowledge, traditional knowledge and local knowledge, with a view to contributing to the discourse on conceptualizing indigenous knowledge.Design/methodology/approachData was extracted from the Scopus database using the main terms that are used for indigenous knowledge, namely, “indigenous knowledge” (IK), “traditional knowledge” (TK) and “local knowledge” (LK). Data were analyzed according to the themes drawn from the objectives of the study, using the VOSviewer software and the analytical tool embedded in the Scopus database.FindingsThe findings indicate that whereas IK and LK are older concepts than TK, TK has become more visible in the literature than the former; there is minimal overlap in the use of the labels in the literature; the three labels’ literature is largely domiciled in the social sciences; and that there were variations in representation of the labels according to countries and geographic regions.Practical implicationsThe author avers that the scatter of literature on the knowledge of traditional and indigenous peoples under the three main labels has huge implications on the accessibility and use the literature by stakeholders including researchers, students, information and knowledge managers and information service providers.Originality/valueThis study demonstrates the application of informetrics beyond is traditional use to assess trends, nature and types of research patterns and mathematical modeling of information patterns to encompass the definition of the scope of concepts as covered in the literature.

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most common type of dementia globally and is the fifth leading cause of death and disability. About half of all people suffering from the disease are living in sub-Saharan African Countries including Kenya. However, research on dementia has been almost exclusively focused on the Global North societies. In Kenya, little is known about patients' lived experiences with AD. To explore patient's experiences living with and managing Alzheimer's disease in Kenya. We employed ethnographic methods encompassing clinical and home observations and lengthy interviews among people with early-stage Alzheimer's disease (n = 30) in Kenya. Patients were purposively recruited from the neurology clinic at the Aga Khan University Hospital in Nairobi. We also conducted 10 home visits to understand existing social support systems and self-management practices. Field notes and qualitative interviews were transcribed and analyzed verbatim with use of QSR NVivo 12 software. Two-thirds of the patients were aged 50 years and above, had low education levels and fully depended on close family members for support. Patients experienced challenges such as higher cost of hospital care and treatment, comorbidities (e.g., depression, diabetes and hypertension), language barrier, forgetfulness, being misunderstood and conflicts with loved ones. These challenges made managing their AD difficult. Social connectedness - which entailed: (i) Self-connectedness - including active participation in self-care, relaxation and having personal time; and (ii) Connectedness with others (e.g., relationships with family, friends to prevent loneliness and isolation) were found to be key on how patients managed and coped with their Alzheimer's disease. People living with AD in Kenya cannot be understood without knowing about their inner lives, other people around them and the background where they belong. Alzheimer's disease can transform people's self-identities but with good social support system, patients can live quality lives. There is a need to train family members and other informal caregivers to improve care and foster a sense of belonging amongst the patients. More research on Alzheimer's disease in Kenya is needed as well as increased public awareness and community sensitization regarding dementias.

Reconfigurable arrays of 2D nanomaterials are essential for the realization of switchable and intelligent material systems. Using liquid crystals (LCs) as a medium represents a promising approach, in principle, to enable such control. In practice, however, this approach is hampered by the difficulty of achieving stable dispersions of nanomaterials. Here, we report on good dispersions of pristine CdSe nanoplatelets (NPLs) in LCs, and reversible, rapid control of their alignment and associated anisotropic photoluminescence, using a magnetic field. We reveal that dispersion stability is greatly enhanced using polymeric, rather than small molecule, LCs and is considerably greater in the smectic phases of the resulting systems relative to the nematic phases. Aligned composites exhibit highly polarized emission that is readily manipulated by field-realignment. Such dynamic alignment of optically-active 2D nanomaterials may enable the development of programmable materials for photonic applications and the methodology can guide designs for anisotropic nanomaterial composites for a broad set of related nanomaterials. Liquid crystals (LC) are promising materials for the fabrication of reconfigurable arrays of 2D nanomaterials but it remains difficult to achieve stable dispersions of nanomaterials. Here, the authors report on good dispersions of pristine CdSe nanoplatelets (NPLs) in LCs, and reversible, rapid control of their alignment and associated anisotropic photoluminescence using a magnetic field.