Community-based study on knowledge, attitude and practice on the mode of transmission, prevention and treatment of the Buruli ulcer in Ga West District, Ghana

Buruli ulcer disease (BUD), a devastating tropical disease caused by Mycobacterium ulcerans, occurs in more than 80% of the administrative districts of Ghana. To elucidate community perceptions and
understanding of the aetiology of BUD, attitudes towards Buruli patients and treatment-seeking behaviours, we conducted a survey with 504 heads of households and seven focus group discussions in Ga West District, Ghana. Although 67% of participants regarded BUD as a health problem, 53% did not know its cause. Sixteen per cent attributed the cause to drinking non-potable water, 8.1% mentioned poor personal hygiene or dirty surroundings, and 5.5% identified swimming or wading in ponds as a risk factor. About 5.2% thought that witchcraft and curses cause BUD, and 71.8% indicated that BU sufferers first seek treatment from herbalists and only refer to the hospital as a last resort. The main
reasons were prospects of prolonged hospital stay, cost of transport, loss of earnings and opportunity associated with parents attending their children’s hospitalization over extended period, delays in being
attended by medical staff, and not knowing the cause of the disease or required treatment. The level of acceptance of BUD sufferers was high in adults but less so in children. The challenge facing health workers is to break the vicious cycle of poor medical outcomes leading to poor attitudes to hospital treatment in the community. Because herbalists are often the first people consulted by those who contract the disease, they need to be trained in early recognition of the pre-ulcerative stage of Buruli lesions.

Promoting community capacity through university-community engagement: the Deakin University / Department of Human Services (Barwon South West) Partnership

The formal Partnership between Deakin University and the Victorian Department of Human Services (Barwon-South Western Region), based in Geelong, aims to bring together the knowledge, experience and resources of the Department and Deakin University for the benefit of the people living in that region, as well as for the mutual benefit of both organisations. A recent review process featured stakeholder interviews and focus groups. A special workshop on university-community engagement was also held for interested stakeholders in late 2006. This was facilitated by Prof. Judith Ramaley, President of Winona State University, during her visit to Deakin University as a Fulbright Visiting Senior Specialist. Visioning and strategic planing have continued throughout 2007.

This paper will describe the efforts and achievements of the Partnership through the complementary lenses of Healthy Cities, health-promoting universities and community capacity. This framework will be used to describe how the Partnership coordinators have used Prof Ramaley’s insights to establish a draft Business Plan that espouses a more mature form of collaboration and embraces shared, transformative goals. The paper will describe how the notion of community capacity is being used to evaluate the Partnership’s overall contribution to community engagement.

New species of Otionellina and Selenaria (Bryozoa-Cheilostomata) from the South West Shelf, Western Australia

Recent sediment samples recovered from the mid-latitude South West Shelf (SWS) of Western Australia (23°- 32° S) by a scientific team aboard the RV Franklin have produced large numbers of free-living, lunulitiform bryozoans. Among these are three undescribed species, Otionellina boneae sp. nov., Selenaria kayae sp. nov., and Selenaria meganae sp. nov. The Australasian lunulite fauna is both diverse and abundant and the new species bring the total of described taxa to sixty (P. Cook unpub.). Twelve lunulite species have been recorded from the SWS. These findings have extended the known geographical range of several lunulite species.

Permian of West Yunnan, Southwest China: a biostratigraphic synthesis

Recent progress in the study of Permian stratigraphy of western Yunnan, southwest China, is reviewed with particular references to the Tengchong and Baoshan blocks and the Changning–Menglian Belt. Where confusion or controversy exists in stratigraphical nomenclature and/or dating, we attempt to clarify the situation based on our recent field observations and newly obtained research results. The Permian within the Changning–Menglian Belt embraces different stratigraphic successions, suggesting different tectonic settings, ranging from passive margin and active margin, to oceanic basin and seamounts. Permo-Carboniferous faunas in the carbonate sequences of the Changning–Menglian Belt are of typical Cathaysian affinity, as demonstrated by abundant fusulinaceans and compound rugose corals. The Permian stratigraphy and faunas of the Tenchong and Baoshan blocks are markedly different from those of the Changning–Menglian Belt. The Baoshan Block lacks Upper Carboniferous deposits, and its subsequent Lower Permian sequence consists predominantly of siliciclastic strata yielding cool-water faunas and possibly glaciogene diamictites, overlain by thick basaltic lava and volcaniclastics of probably rift origin. The upper part of the Permian in the Baoshan Block is characterized by carbonates containing mixed Cathaysian and Gondwanan faunas. The Tengchong Block has a similar evolutionary history to the Baoshan Block, but completely lacks volcanic rocks.

Carboniferous and Permian Rugosochonetidae (Brachiopoda) from West Spitsbergen

The rugosochonetid brachiopod species Lissochonetes geinitzianus from the Kazimovian of the Nordenskioldbreen Formation, and Dyoros (Dyoros) mucronata sp. nov., Dyoros (Dyoros) spitzbergianus and Lissochonetes superba from the Artinskian to latest Permian Kapp Starostin Formation in West Spitsbergen are described and figured. Dyoros is generally restricted to the Boreal Realm, whereas Lissochonetes is mostly distributed in the Boreal Realm, but occasionally present in the Palaeoequatorial and Gondwanan Realms

A Meeting of East and West: Can Eastern-Influenced Therapies be Effective in the Treatment of Stress and Mood Disorders?

Given that the human brain is plastic and that structural alterations have been seen in monks who meditate on a regular basis, the question arises of whether these two facts are actually related. Furthermore, if this is in fact the case, would it be possible to apply these findings to the public? In this paper I will present the different conditions that induce neuroplasticity as well as give an overview of meditation and the ways that it is practiced nowadays. To this end I will argue that if monks are able to alter the structure of their brains and the brain is naturally inclined to heal itself then incorporating eastern practices, such as mindfulness and imagery, into western therapies could benefit patients suffering from mood disorders and, in particular, stress.

Islam and political violence : Muslim diaspora and radicalism in the West

How do we engage with the pressing challenges of xenophobia, radicalism and security in the age of the "war on terror"? The widely felt sense of insecurity in the West is shared by Muslims both within and outside Western societies. Growing Islamic militancy and resulting increased security measures by Western powers have contributed to a pervasive sense among Muslims of being under attack (both physically and culturally). Islam and Political Violence brings together the current debate on the uneasy and potentially mutually destructive relationship between the Muslim world and the West and argues we are on a dangerous trajectory, strengthening dichotomous notions of the divide between the West and the Muslim world.

An assessment tool for sub-catchment to catchment scale indicators of sustainability - a case study in south west Victoria, Australia

The research reported in this paper represents an attempt to produce a practical, indicator-based sustainability assessment tool incorporating all these elements is based on relationships between indicators determined considering spatial influences. Through the use of an existing sustainability indicator set and data currently available, relationships will be determined using Arcview Geographic Information Systems (GIS), correlation analysis and Principal Component Analysis (PCA). Indicator interactions will be identified at two spatial scales and compared to determine impacts of changing spatial scale. Further PCA and multiple regression analyses will then be used to reduce the complexity of the indicator set. These findings will be incorporated into a practical indicator-based assessment tool through the adoption of the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) combined with GIS techniques that will then be validated. Once validated the tool can be used to aid in guiding planning and decision-making regarding sustainable development in the Glenelg Hopkins catchment, Victoria; while also moving towards producing a standard set of procedures for assessing sustainability.