Department of Public Health

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Browsing Department of Public Health by Author "Katangolo-Nakashwa, Ndasilohenda"

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    Assessing healthcare accessibility and quality for Namibian learners under the National School Health Programme
    (Namibia Educational Reform Forum Journal, 2024) Katangolo-Nakashwa, Ndasilohenda; Josua, Lukas Matati; Newaka, Ester
    This study delved into the intricate landscape of analysing the National School Health Policy in Namibia. By gathering data from the Khomas, Oshana, and Kavango regions, this research analysed the perspectives of various stakeholders on the execution of the policy. Foucault’s theory of Power Relations and Talcott Parson’s Social Action provided the appropriate theoretical conceptual tools to unearth inequalities in the health policy implementation in Namibia. Power was considered a system that was used to suppress learners from accessing quality health care. Methodologically, a mixed approach was employed to unearth gaps in the challenges and successes of implementing the National School Health Policy. Through interviews and focus group discussions, the study highlighted the scarcity of essential resources and personnel dedicated to school health programmes, leading to potential gaps in health service provision. The prevalent inequalities in the health sector emerged when learners were insufficiently informed about their entitlements to medical care accessibility within the school premises. Generally, there was a positive attitude toward the policy's implementation evidence among stakeholders. Nevertheless, despite this attitude, inadequate accessibility of health care services among learners was rampant in Namibia. Nonetheless, areas necessitating increased attention became apparent, such as enhancing awareness across all groups involved in school health initiatives and to pave the way for enhanced effectiveness, strategic recommendations were proposed such as addressing the communication ambiguities. These included the enhancement of communication channels between educators, administrators, and parents, ensuring ample availability of resources and personnel, including an adequate number of trained nurses, with requisite governmental support. Moreover, tackling barriers stemming from geographical distances or financial constraints that limit healthcare access emerged as a crucial facet of policy improvement
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    Effectiveness of maternity waiting homes in improving maternal and child health outcomes in Africa: A scoping review
    (Journal of Global Health Science, 2025) Katangolo-Nakashwa, Ndasilohenda; Shilunga, Anna; Mahoto, Sylvia; Haufiku, Desderius; Alfeus, Anna; Iita, Hermine; Namidi, Mateus; Mitonga, Honore Kabwebwe
    There is a strong correlation between the African continent's high maternal mortality rates and the lack of access to birthing facilities. Maternity Waiting Homes (MWHs) offer pregnant women in remote areas a secure place to stay near the time of delivery. This scoping review aimed to systematically analyse the use, implementation, and effectiveness of MWHs in improving maternal and child health outcomes in Africa. We systematically searched electronic databases and resources, analysing 30 articles from 2010 to 2023 using the Joanna Briggs Institute framework, guided by Arksey and O'Malley's 6-stage approach. For transparency, we adhered to the modified Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses framework for scoping reviews. MWHs were linked with lower perinatal mortality and increased facility-based deliveries (adjusted odds ratio, 1.19; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.10–1.29) in 30 studies, the majority of which were conducted in East Africa (relative risk, 0.17; 95% CI, 0.05–0.76). They offer clean settings, which mitigate the danger of infection. However, they are constrained by socio-cultural obstacles and a localised impact that lacks community integration, resulting in poor utilisation (10%– 50%). The successful reduction of maternal and perinatal mortality in Africa is contingent upon the elimination of barriers to proactive utilization prior to labor and the integration of MWHs with health systems. It is essential to adjust to local settings, such as those in Namibia, in order to achieve a more extensive influence
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    Evaluation of the implementation of the national policy for school health in Namibia
    (University of South Africa, 2022) Katangolo-Nakashwa, Ndasilohenda; Mfidi, F.H.
    Background: A school health policy is intended to improve learners’ quality of life; however, three challenges are faced in the policy implementation: i) low coverage of health assessments; (ii) poor and inequitable nurse-to-school ratios; and (iii) the lack of data collection. Purpose: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the implementation of the national policy for school health in Namibia with the view of proposing a framework to strengthen the national school health policy (NSHP). Setting and population: The study was conducted in three regions of Namibia. The population from which the study’s sample was derived comprised school principals, primary healthcare supervisors and NSHP national and regional managers in the Khomas, Oshana and Kavango regions of Namibia. Methods: A sequential, exploratory mixed-methods design was used for this study to evaluate the NSHP’s implementation across management levels, schools and health facilities in the country. A purposive sampling method was used to select participants for interviews and focus group discussions in the qualitative strand. Non-probability convenience sampling was used to select respondents for the quantitative strand’s structured questionnaires. Quantitative data from completed structured questionnaires (n=300) were analysed using SPSS. Thematic analysis was used to derive themes and subthemes from the qualitative data. Results: Qualitative findings indicated a lack of skilled staff, training, equipment and recordkeeping as factors contributing to non-compliances with the NSHP’s implementation. These findings were further described statistically by the quantitative results. The quantitative results indicated a correlation between job position and work experience in the policy’s implementation. This was revealed by the study findings that managers at the national level (n=66; 100%), had sufficient knowledge and better attitudes towards the NSHP. Also, employees with more than 10 years of experience (n=114; 60.3%) had good knowledge of the policy (variation). The findings indicated poor implementation of NSHP interventions, thus assuming low compliance with Namibia’s NSHP. The results show that eighty-one (n=81; 71.1%) and (n=63; 52.5%) schoolteachers from urban and rural schools indicated negative attitudes toward school health policy implementation, respectively. The results indicate that nurses who conducted health programmes at the time were completely uninformed of the NSHP (n=102; 68%), had not implemented NSHP or had never even seen the policy document. Development of conceptual framework: The qualitative and quantitative results and literature review contributed to the formulation of an NSHP implementation conceptual framework in Namibia. The framework consists of monitoring and evaluation strategies to enhance the school health policy’s implementation. Conclusion: The study reflected a gap between policy knowledge, attitudes and implementation of the NSHP. Insufficient documentation of interventions led to poor reporting in the database system. Based on the findings, a framework was formulated to improve implementation and compliance with the NSHP
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    Exploring the hurdles of implementing National School Health Policy in Namibian Schools: Insights from stakeholders
    (BMC Health Services Research, 2025) Katangolo-Nakashwa, Ndasilohenda; Mfidi, Faniswa Honest
    This qualitative research study explores stakeholders’ perspectives on the challenges of implementing Namibia's National School Health Policy (NSHP) in schools. The interview guide used for this study was specifically developed to address the research objectives and themes. A total of 20 stakeholders participated, including educators, nurses, principals, and health program administrators from three regions in Namibia. The study identifies significant barriers to effectively implementing the school health policy. These barriers include staffing shortages, inadequate resources, limited learner awareness of health rights, and insufficient teacher well-being. Additional challenges involve resource constraints, a lack of monitoring and evaluation, and limited coordination between the education and health sectors. The thematic analysis reveals recurring patterns and emphasizes the need for increased resource allocation, comprehensive training, collaborative policy development, and initiatives to improve teacher well-being. These findings provide valuable insights for refining future implementation strategies for school health programs in Namibia, highlighting the importance of strong leadership, stakeholder involvement, and adequate funding to support the goals of the NSHP