Thesis (MPH.) -- University of Limpopo, 2016 / Background: Disabled children with different conditions such as cerebral palsy, traumatic brain injuries, developmental delays, severe orthopaedic impairment, hydro and micro-cephalous are brought to Elim Hospital for rehabilitation therapy. Most of these disabled children stay with caregivers who are responsible for their care including rehabilitation therapy at home to avoid complications. The aim of the study was to establish factors that contribute to development of complications in disabled children. Methods: The quantitative descriptive study design was used and convenience sampling method was used to select 52 caregivers out of the population of 60. Questionnaires and observation checklist were used for data collection at the rehabilitation therapy clinic during their rehabilitation therapy visit. Data were analysed using SPSS version 22. Results: The results show that there is no association between diagnosis and the development of complications. There was an association between availability of resources which is one of the caregiver factors and the development of complications. Conclusion: The study concludes that, availability of resources to provide the rehabilitation therapy on the disabled children is the contributing caregiver factors on the development of complications in disabled children at Elim Hospital.

MPH / Department of Public Health

Department of Nutrition / MSCPNT

Thesis (M.A. Education (Community and Continuing Education)) -- University of Limpopo, 2015 / This report describes the research conducted at Kgotlelelang Basadi Home-based Care centre, in the Capricorn District Limpopo Province of South Africa. The centre serves four villages: Ngwanamago, Makata, Matobole and Thaba. Statement of the problem It seems the home-based caregivers of chronic patients at Kgotlelelang Basadi HBC centre do not have the necessary qualifications, knowledge, skills, and health care and protective resources such as gloves, thermometers and masks. It looks like the homebased caregivers are not adequately and continuously trained as there are always new discoveries and developments with regard to the treatment of diseases. It apprears they perform their duties without sufficient support by relevant institutions like clinics and hospitals. Furthermore, it appears the home-based caregivers are not recognised, and are also undermined. The aim of the study is to explore the educational needs and assets of home-based caregivers for homebound chronic patients at Kgotlelelang Basadi Home-based Care centre. After establishing the educational needs and assets of home-based caregivers I recommended the formulation of possible relevant educational programmes. In an attempt to achieve the said aims, the following research questions were formulated and put forward in chapter 1. Objectives  To establish the existing qualifications of home-based caregivers for home-bound chronic patients at Kgotlelelang Basadi HBC Centre.  To determine the relevancy of the existing educational programmes of home-based caregivers for home-bound chronic patients.  To contribute towards formulating relevant educational programmes of home-based caregivers for home-bound chronic patients.

MPH / Department of Public Health / Background: Globally, more than one billion people, or approximately 15% of the world’s population are living with some form of disability and 80% of them are found in developing countries. There are different types of disability; these include sensory, neurological, physical, intellectual, cognitive and psychiatric disabilities. Persons with disabilities may require specialized care, resources and commitment which place a very high demand of time and responsibilities on the one caring for them. Therefore, Community-Based Rehabilitation (CBR) was promoted by the World Health Organisation (WHO) as a strategy to respond to the needs of persons with disabilities, through the provision of basic services at community level, particularly in developing countries with limited resources. Methodology: The purpose of this study was to explore and describe the challenges faced by Community-Based Rehabilitation caregivers for persons with disabilities in Vhembe District, South Africa. A qualitative phenomenological design was used to explore and develop an in-depth understanding of the CBR caregiver’s challenges. The study was conducted in three Community-Based Rehabilitation centres located within Vhembe District with a sample size of six caregivers who were purposively selected. An interview guide was developed as an instrument for data collection. Data was collected through in-depth individual interviews and analyzed using thematic analysis. Results: Six main themes emerged from the data which shed light on the CBR caregiver’s challenges, namely; Poor relationships between caregivers, government v department and families, unavailability of material and human resources, poor funding system, caregivers’ well-being, education and training and the coping strategies of CBR caregivers Conclusion: This study pointed out that there is a need for intervention from different stakeholders such as government departments, family members of persons with disability, and the community members as well for CBR caregiver’s challenges to be resolved or minimized.

MSCPNT / Department of Nutrition / Malnutrition is a problem facing virtually every country in the world. Inappropriate feeding practices such as bottle feeding, early introduction of weaning foods, lack of variety in the diet are a known major cause of the onset of malnutrition in young children. Lack of nutrition knowledge, particularly about feeding practices, is critical as it affects the nutritional status of children. The purpose of this study was to determine the influence of caregivers’ nutrition knowledge and feeding practices on the nutritional status of 2 to 5 years old children in the Makhuduthamaga Municipality, South Africa. A crosssectional study with an analytical component was carried out in the Makhuduthamaga Municipality in the Limpopo Province, South Africa. One hundred and twenty children aged 2 to 5 years and their caregivers were conveniently sampled from four villages. A validated questionnaire was used to gather demographic information, caregivers’ nutritional knowledge and feeding practices. Anthropometric measurements taken were weight, height and mid-upper arm circumference (MUAC) of the children as well as weight and height of the caregivers. Descriptive and inferential statistics were utilized. Chi-square was used to determine the influence of caregiver’s nutrition knowledge and feeding practices on the nutritional status of children. The significance level was set at p< 0.05. Most caregivers (66.7%) were between the ages of 19 and 35 years. More than half (54.2%) of the children were male. Most of the caregivers (70%) had attended school up to secondary level and only 4.2% had obtained a tertiary qualification. Most of the caregivers (85%) were unemployed. Children were mostly (70.2%) cared for by their biological mothers. Some caregivers reported not to have any source of nutrition education (41.7%), while 43.3% reported that health professionals were their source of nutrition education. Both nutrition knowledge and feeding practices were not satisfactory in the current study. Almost all children (94.2%) were breastfed at some stage in their lives. However, 47.5% were given infant formula while they were still less than six months old. It was found that more than half of the caregivers (62.5%) introduced solids foods before 6 months. Maize meal soft porridge was reported as the main solid food first introduced to 66.7% of the children, followed by infant cereals (25%). Stunting was found in 41.7% of children. Prevalence of overweight and obesity was observed amongst both caregivers and children. Overweight and obesity prevalent of caregivers was at 30.8%. No significant correlation was observed between the caregivers’ nutrition knowledge, the feeding practices and the nutritional status of children. However, family income showed positive correlation with the nutritional status of children. Nutrition education strategies intertwined with economic empowerment of mothers should be enforced to capacitate caregivers to voluntarily make proper feeding practices. / NRF

MPH / Department of Public Health / See the attached abstract below

MPH / Department of Public Health / Human Immune Deficiency Virus (HIV) and Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) place a significant burden on the caregivers for people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA). Caring for PLWHA is usually carried out by community members who are recruited from the same community as the PLWHA. These community members are trained to provide services as volunteer caregivers. The caregivers face various challenges in the process of giving care to PLWHA, often inadequately assisted by relatives, friends, neighbours, private individuals, grassroots traditional and political leaders. This results in caregivers being overwhelmed by their responsibilities, making their coping process even more difficult. The aim of this study was to explore the challenges experienced by community home-based caregivers (CHBCGs) caring for people living with HIV/AIDS at Tsianda Village, in Makhado Municipality, South Africa. This study adopted a qualitative explorative design. The population for this study were all CHBCGs caring for PLWHA. Non probability purposive sampling was used to select the community home-based caregivers working at Tsianda Community Home-based care organisation. In-depth interviews, using a semi-structured interview guide, was conducted by the researcher and a voice recorder were used to record data from participants. Data saturation was reached at the 11th participant. This is when the participants were no longer giving new information. The data collected from the study were analysed thematically. The following themes emerged from data analysis: Challenges for community home-based caregivers, perceived support for community home-based caregivers, coping strategies for community home-based caregivers. Measures to ensure trustworthiness and the code of ethics to protect the rights of the participants was applied and observed. The findings of the study revealed that community home-based caregivers experience various challenges which have a negative impact on their personal life, as well as their physical and psychological wellbeing. Community home-based care also uses different strategies to cope with these challenges. It was concluded that the community home-based caregivers are experiencing serious shortages of personal protective equipment, which makes them work with the fear of being infected with the diseases. It is recommended that the DOH should take it into consideration to provide the CHBCG’s organization with enough personal protective equipment for their safety and working without fear of being infected with deadly viruses. / NRF

MPH / Department of Public Health / Cerebral palsy is a condition which affects the normal functioning of children. Most children with this condition rely on other people for the execution of basic skills on a daily basis. The study aim was to explore the experiences of caregivers for children with cerebral palsy in Vhembe District, Limpopo Province. A qualitative approach using explorative, descriptive, and contextual design was used for this study. Simple random sampling was used to sample eight caregivers. Data was collected using semi-structured in-depth individual interviews which were pre-tested in Vhembe District, using two caregivers who did not form part of the study. Data was analysed using thematic analysis approach. Credibility, dependability, conformability and transferability were upheld to ensure trustworthiness of the study. Ethical considerations were adhered to throughout the study. Two main themes emerged during data analysis, namely: positive experiences of caregivers and challenges faced by caregivers. The study recommends: development of a model to support caregivers in caring for children with cerebral palsy; and the investigation of the prevalence of back-pain amongst caregivers of children with cerebral palsy in Vhembe District. / NRF

MCur / Department of Advanced Nursing Science / Malnutrition is globally considered the key risk factors of illness and death which affect over 90 million children under the age of five. The study aim was to determine the perception of caregivers regarding factors contributing to malnutrition in children under 5 years in the Vhembe District of the Limpopo province. A qualitative approach, explorative, descriptive and contextual design was used in the study. Nine participants were sampled through simple random sampling. Data was collected through in- depth individual interview and was analysed through Tesch‘s analytical approach. Measures to ensure trustworthiness and ethical consideration were adhered to throughout the study. Three themes emerged from study, namely: caregivers perceived contributory factors to malnutrition, financial difficulties and help that were sought from various available resources. In conclusion, feeding practices to most of the participants was a challenge, they had financial difficulties since they were not working and depended on social and child grants for living, and the study recommends the development of strategies to assist caregivers in preventing malnutrition in children. / NRF