IntroductionSafe and easily accessible drinking water service generates substantial benefits for public health and the economy. Approximately 10% of the global burden of disease worldwide could be prevented with improved access to drinking water. The death of ~ 30% of children younger than 5 years in developing countries is attributable to inadequate access to improved drinking water. Despite the presence of abundant water sources in Ethiopia, uneven distribution and waste pollution coupled with unprecedented population growth, rapid urbanization, and climate change are hindering the country's ability to maintain the balance between the demand and supply of accessible and improved drinking water services. The importance of up-to-date evidence for actions regarding the distribution of access to improved drinking water services is indicated by the Ethiopian Ministry of Water and Energy. Therefore, this study aimed to explore the spatial distribution and determinants of limited access to improved drinking water service among households in Ethiopia.MethodsThis study used the 2019 Ethiopian Mini Demographic and Health Survey (EMDHS). The data were weighted using sampling weight to restore the representativeness and to obtain valid statistical estimates. After excluding ineligible households, a total weighted sample of 5,760 households was included in the final analysis. The analysis was performed using STATA version 14.2, ArcGIS Pro, and SaTScan version 10.1 software. To find significant determinants with limited access to improved drinking water service, we used a multilevel logistic regression model. A P-value of <0.05 was used to declare statistical significance.ResultsThis study found that in Ethiopia, 16.1% (95% CI: 15.2, 17.1) of households have limited access to improved drinking water services. The spatial distribution of households with limited access was identified to be clustered across a few regions of the country (Moran's I = 0.17, p-value < 0.01). The most likely significant primary clusters with highly limited access were seen in the Somali region (RR = 4.16, LLR = 162.8), the border between Amhara and Afar region (RR = 4.74, LLR = 41.6), the border between Oromia and Afar region (RR = 5.21, LLR = 13.23), and the northeastern Tigray region (RR = 2.52, LLR = 9.87). The wealth index, the age of household head, residence, and region were significantly associated with limited access to improved drinking water service. A high rate of limited access to improved drinking water service is predicted in the southwestern part of Gambella, the northeastern part of Oromia, the southwestern part of South Nation Nationalities and Peoples' region, and part of the Oromia region that surrounds Addis Ababa.ConclusionLimited access to improved drinking water service in Ethiopia varies across regions, and inequality in the service provision exists in the country. Prioritization and extra level of efforts should be made by concerned government and non-government organizations as well as other stakeholders for those underprivileged areas and groups of the population as they are found in the study.

Background Nowadays, Iodine deficiency has become a huge burden to the globe, leaving 2 billion people and 29.8% of school-age children iodine deficient. It is a leading cause of preventable brain damage among children, resulting in impaired cognitive and motor development. Even though, salt iodization was started to be implemented to alleviate this burden in Ethiopia, primary studies assessing Iodine deficiency in the country show inconsistent findings which make it difficult to assess the effect of the intervention as well as to design appropriate and timely measures. Therefore, this systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to determine the pooled prevalence of iodine deficiency and the common factors affecting its occurrence among school-age children in Ethiopia. Method To obtain the eligible studies, databases (EMBASE, Scopus, Hinari, and PubMed), websites (Google and Google Scholar), and references of the eligible studies were searched systematically. Data were extracted using an Excel spreadsheet and analyzed using STATA 17 version. I2 test was used to assess heterogeneity between the studies. Random-effect model was used to estimate the pooled prevalence and pooled odds ratio. Funnel plot and Egger’s test were done to detect publication bias. Result A total of 15 eligible studies, having 15,611 school-age children were included in the systematic review and meta-analysis. The pooled prevalence of Iodine deficiency among school-age children in Ethiopia was found to be 58% (95%CI: 44.00–77.00), while the highest prevalence was recorded in Oromia region, which was 64% (95% CI: 49–79). Goitrogenic food consumption (AOR: 2.93, 95% CI: 1.60–5.35) and sex of the child (AOR: 1.87, 95% CI: 1.43–2.44) showed a significant association with the prevalence of iodine deficiency. Conclusion Iodine deficiency among school-age children in Ethiopia was found noticeably high. Goitrogenic food consumption and the sex of the child were determinant factors for the occurrence of iodine deficiency among the children. Therefore, appropriate advice should be given to the households to limit goitrogenic foods in the diet of their children by giving due attention to their female children.

Background: Drugs can treat diseases, reduce symptoms, and enhance patients’ health and quality of life. However, taking a drug is not always as easy as just swallowing a pill. This is because drugs have some unwanted effects. Adverse Drug Reactions (ADRs) are one of the leading causes of morbidity and mortality and contribute to excessive health care costs. Objectives: To assess knowledge, attitude, and practice of health care providers on adverse drug reporting among community pharmacists, Gondar, Ethiopia Methods: Community-based cross-sectional study designs were used from July - August 2021. The sampling method was a survey from community pharmacists. Self-administered questioner was used, and the collected data was entered into Epi-info Version 7.0 and exported to SPSS version 20 software for analysis. Result: The study included 215 community pharmacy professionals to assess the knowledge, attitudes, and practices of adverse drug reaction reporting. From a total of 215 community pharmacy professionals, 34 (15.8%) of the respondents were able to differentiate ADR from side effects and only 56(26%) respondents felt that they are adequately trained in ADR reporting. Out of 215 respondents, 78(36.3%) and 146(67.9%) knew the availability of the national reporting system and ADR reporting form in Ethiopia respectively. The study revealed that 21.4% [95% CI: 18.6-35.9] and 42.3% [95% CI: 38.2-65.9] of community pharmacists have poor knowledge and negative attitude towards ADR reporting respectively. Conclusion: Underreporting of ADR by community pharmacists was identified in this study. Training sessions to clarify the role of various community pharmacists in ADR reporting will hopefully fill the observed gap in knowledge and practices. The community pharmacy should formulate strategies to enhance the detection and reporting of ADRs.