Background:The neonatal mortality rate in Ethiopia remains greater than 35 per 1,000 live births. Hence, identifying the reasons for neonatal admission and mortality in a hospital setting is crucial to improve the quality of existing practices in the hospital. The objective of this study was to describe the reasons for admission and the magnitude of neonatal mortality in the neonatal care unit of St Paul's Hospital Millennium Medical College. Methods and subjects: A prospective cohort study was conducted. A total of 216 neonates who were admitted to the neonatal care unit of St Paul's Hospital Millennium Medical College from March 1, 2015, to May 31, 2015, were included in this study. Data fields, determined prospectively, were collected by monitoring the neonates until discharge or death. The independent variables were demographic, obstetric, and clinical characteristics, while the dependent variable was neonatal mortality. Data were analyzed using simple frequencies, odds ratio, and finally binary logistic regression analysis for mortality outcome. Results: The most common primary diagnoses at admission to the neonatal care unit were prematurity with respiratory problem (36.6%), neonatal sepsis (22.7%), and asphyxia (16.2%). Out of the 216 neonates studied, 50 (23.2%) died. High case fatality was observed among neonates with the diagnosis of prematurity with respiratory problem (40.5%) and asphyxia (40.0%). Under multivariate analysis, diagnosis of asphyxia was an independent predictor of mortality (adjusted odds ratio =5.817; 95% confidence interval: 1.611-20.977), while gestational age above the mean of the study population (36.6 weeks) was protective of mortality (adjusted odds ratio =0.683; 95% confidence interval: 0.588-0.795). Conclusion: Nearly a quarter of admitted neonates died. This study identified asphyxia and prematurity as major causes of admission and mortality. Emphasis has to be given to prevent asphyxia and to improve the survival of preterm babies.

Background Nursing care closely influences patients’ satisfaction with the overall quality of care, and the importance of measuring patient satisfaction with nursing care cannot be emphasized enough. Data are however scarce regarding patients’ perception of quality of nursing care in Ethiopia. We performed this study to assess patient’s perception of the quality of nursing care in a tertiary center in Ethiopia. Methods Data were collected prospectively using Quality of Nursing Care Questionnaires-patient of Safford & Schlotfeldt. A total of 340 patients were included using systematic random sampling and data were analyzed using SPSS for windows version- 20. Result The nursing care performance was highest for nurse-physician relation (mean = 3.95) and low for education and home care preparation and physical care (mean score of 2.79 and 2.89 respectively). The emotional care and nurse administration mean score were 3.5 and 3.83 respectively. The overall nursing quality was neither satisfying nor dissatisfying (mean of 3.39). While only 36% of the respondents were satisfied with the nursing care, patient education has the strongest (AOR of 7.4) association with satisfaction. Conclusion Patients perceived low quality of physical care, education and preparation for home care but better nurse-physician relation and nursing administration. However the overall quality measure was neither satisfying nor dissatisfying. This calls for an action from the health care administrators, educators and other stakeholders to improve the patient perception of quality nursing care.

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BackgroundIrrational use of antibiotics is a global problem. Failure to follow clinical guidelines is one of the main reasons for irrational use of antibiotics. Cough and/or diarrhea are the main childhood illnesses in Ethiopia, and health care providers are expected to follow the national guideline while managing these illnesses. This study tried to assess the extent of adherence to the guideline while managing cases of childhood diarrhea and/or cough.MethodsThe study was conducted in 23 hospitals in Addis Ababa. Data were collected prospectively from April to June 2016 using a structured questionnaire. A total of 1,073 children aged 2–59 months who visited the hospitals for cough or diarrhea during the study period were included in the study. Equal number of cases were allocated to each hospital and consecutive cases were included in the study until the calculated sample size was attained for each hospital. Data collectors approached cases after they were seen by the health care provider. SPSS version 20 was used to analyze the data.ResultOf the total number of cases, an antibiotic was prescribed for 794 (74.0%) of the children. Cotrimoxazol 209 (26.3%), amoxicillin 185 (23.3%), and cephalosporines 174 (21.9%) were the three most commonly prescribed antibiotics. Six hundred eighty-eight (86.6%) of the prescriptions were determined to be inappropriate. Of the inappropriate prescriptions, 631 (91.7%) were for prescribing antibiotics when not necessary and 57 (8.3%) were for prescribing the wrong spectrum of antibiotics. Using multivariate analysis, a child not having diarrhea was independently associated with appropriate antibiotic prescription (adjusted odds ratio =0.261, 95% confidence interval: 0.095–0.714). The prescriber being qualified as a pediatrician was an independent predictor of inappropriate antibiotic prescription (adjusted odds ratio =9.967, 95% confidence interval: 4.221–23.532).ConclusionThe magnitude of inappropriate antibiotic prescription while managing cough and/or diarrhea in our setting was high. It needs urgent action to prevent emergence of antibiotic-resistant microorganisms.

Isolated unilateral absence of the pulmonary artery is a rare anomaly with congenital absence of the left or right pulmonary artery in the absence of other cardiac malformation, and diagnosis is usually made during adolescence. We report a 4-year old male child with isolated absence of the right pulmonary artery, who presented with recurrent chest infection and wheezing since infancy.