Includes bibliographical references / Thousands of women and children experience sexual assault trauma annually in South Africa. The challenge posed by recovery from sexual assault trauma is a reality that confronts the victims and survivors of sexual assault, their families and the larger community of service providers in the context of the threat of HIV/AIDS. Yet, little research has been conducted on recovery from sexual assault as a phenomenon. There are even fewer studies about the women's response to or recovery from sexual assault trauma. The purpose of the study was to explore and analyse the journey of recovery which is undertaken by women who have been sexually assaulted, with the aim of discovering and developing the grounded theory of recovery from sexual assault trauma within the first six months following the event of rape. The main research question was: What constitutes the journey of recovery undertaken by women within the first six months following sexual assault?

Osteoarthritis contributes to the burden of physical disabilities globally, as it is the most common cause of severe chronic pain impacting the function of millions of people. Osteoarthritis is more commonly reported by women who are obese and are physically inactive. These modifiable risk factors of obesity and lack of physical activity are also associated with other chronic diseases of lifestyle (CDL). A paucity of epidemiological data exists on the relationship between OA and CDL in women attending primary health care centres in Cape Town in South Africa, therefore, there was a need to further explore these inter-relationships to be able to plan and implement effective nonpharmacological management strategies to address the multidimensional health problem. To inform the development and implementation of a contextually relevant non-pharmacological intervention for women with osteoarthritis at primary health care level, several studies were conducted. The primary aim of this research project was to develop, implement and evaluate an evidence-based non-pharmacological rehabilitation intervention, advocating a patient-centred selfmanagement approach, for women with OA and CDL at primary health care centres in Cape Town. The literature review highlighted that a non-pharmacological intervention, consisting of selfmanagement principles, health education and exercise would be an effective management strategy for women with both OA and CDL. However, there is a dearth of high-quality randomised controlled trials investigating the effects of such interventions on function and health outcomes in women with OA and comorbidities at primary health care level in a South African context. Standardised outcome measures were selected and used to gather data for the different studies. The WHODAS 2 12-item questionnaire measured functional ability, EQ-5D-3L questionnaire measured health-related quality of life, Brief pain inventory (BPI) measured pain severity and pain interference, and Self-efficacy for Managing Chronic Disease 6-item Scale (SE-6) measured the level of confidence in managing chronic diseases were used and were available in English, Afrikaans, and isiXhosa languages. However, the COPCORD (survey about general health and osteoarthritis) and IPAQ (survey about physical activity levels) were not available in these languages and therefore needed crosscultural adaptation and translation.

Based on the experiences of the researcher who is a quadriplegic, people with disabilities still encounter many challenges within the built environment. As civil engineers play a central role, this study set out to address the question - How are undergraduate Civil Engineering students at the University of Cape Town (UCT) being prepared to contribute to an inclusive society that accommodates people with disabilities? Based on a conceptual theoretical framework that draws from a broader context of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the United Nations Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities, a production line analogy was adopted to explore the resources, approaches and experiences of key stakeholders involved in the preparation of the students. The adopted model recognised the students as the "raw materials", the graduates as the "products", UCT as the "factory", the Engineering Council of South Africa (ECSA) as the "quality controller", the Engineering Industry "utilised and refined" the product, while people with disabilities were the "consumers". A qualitative, exploratory, multiple case design was utilised incorporating interviews with representatives of UCT, the Engineering Industry, and people with disabilities, while the contents of the website of ECSA was reviewed. ECSA has a transformation agenda that does not explicitly identify issues about disability. However, there were opportunities to incorporate the concept of Universal Design (UD) into the exit level outcomes of the undergraduate civil engineering programme. Furthermore, while UCT, Industry and people with disabilities identified legislation around disability as a major resource for the training of students, and UCT and Industry shared an open minded approach to the concept of UD, its inclusion in the education programme is still lacking. There was a conspicuous gap for collaboration between the stakeholders, which seem to hinder the adoption of a multidisciplinary approach in the preparation of the students. The study highlighted the need to formalise a platform that brings the key stakeholders together in the preparation of civil engineering students to contribute to the development of an inclusive society that accommodates people with disabilities.

Bibliography: leaves 148-159. / This qualitative, phenomenonological study describes fathers living with HIV/AIDS' experience of occupational adaptation. Rich data was collected through unstructured interviews. The data was analysed by thematic analysis. The level describing the fathers living with HIV/AIDS' experience emerged as adaptive occupations and proxy occupations.

BACKGROUND Participation in ultramarathon races is increasing globally. Although endurance running has numerous physical and psychological benefits, due to the excessive volume of training and the physical and emotional demands of completing an ultramarathon event, exercise-induced muscle damage and delayed-onset muscle soreness are common. Recovery is central to improving performance and is also a determining factor in return to training. Recovery requires both physical and psychological adaptation. However, there is limited research exploring the effect psychosocial factors play on pain recovery following competition, particularly in endurance runners. More specifically, the role fear avoidance beliefs, pain catastrophizing and self-efficacy play in pain recovery following an ultramarathon race. This information is important to contribute to the limited research on the association between psychosocial factors and recovery from pain in endurance runners. Additionally, this information may provide insight into pain recovery following the Comrades Marathon and reduce time away from running. AIMS AND OBJECTIVES The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between psychosocial factors (fear avoidance beliefs, pain catastrophizing and self-efficacy beliefs) and pain recovery in runners following the 2017 Comrades Marathon. The specific objectives of the study were to explore whether the psychosocial factors of pain catastrophizing, fear avoidance beliefs and self-efficacy beliefs: a) predict pain in ultramarathon runners after competing in the Comrades Marathon; and b) affect recovery in runners competing in the Comrades Marathon. METHODS This study had a descriptive, longitudinal cohort design. Healthy ultramarathon runners between the ages of 20 and 60 who had qualified for and were intending to compete in the 2017 Comrades Marathon were included in this study. Participants who failed to provide informed consent, reported any signs of illness two weeks prior to the race or any relevant medical or surgical procedure that would prevent participation in the race, were diagnosed with a history of chronic pain or who did not complete the race were excluded. All participants were required to complete a medical and sports history questionnaire and baseline psychosocial questionnaires (Athlete Fear Avoidance Questionnaire, Pain Catastrophizing Questionnaire, Self-Efficacy Questionnaire) two weeks prior to the race at a presentation evening held at participating running clubs. Recovery from pain was recorded by completing a pain logbook (Pain Severity Score of the Brief Pain Inventory) starting the evening of the day on which the Comrades Marathon was run and on each night for nine days following the race, with a total of 10 entries. The questionnaires were validated in previous studies by a panel of experts and were available in both hard copy and electronic format. RESULTS The study sample consisted of 77 participants with a mean age of 41 years, 45 (58%) of whom were male and predominantly English speaking (74%). The majority of participants (78%) had completed the Comrades Marathon previously with 13% being novices to the ultramarathon distance. The average finishing time for the study participants in the 2017 Comrades Marathon was 10 hours and 16 minutes. Seventy percent reported that they had previously used pain-relieving medication after a race. The majority of participants(86%) documented a history of injury, with 55% reporting a current injury. Only 6% reported currently using chronic pain-relieving medication. The baseline psychosocial questionnaires revealed that the majority of the participants demonstrated low fear avoidance beliefs (79%), low pain catastrophizing beliefs (88%) and high self-efficacy beliefs (97%). It took five days from the day of the Comrades Marathon for 75% of the runners to score a pain rating of one or lower in the pain logbook and seven days for 75% of the runners to report no pain. There were no correlations between psychosocial factors and pain recovery in this sample of Comrades runners. There was no correlation between finishing times and pain during recovery. CONCLUSION In conclusion, this study showed that in this sample of ultramarathon runners pre-race psychosocial factors had no effect on recovery following the 2017 Comrades Marathon. High self-efficacy scores, previous experience, higher pain tolerance and better coping strategies in ultramarathon runners may be contributing factors to these results. Future research needs to explore endurance runners who do not complete the race, assess the profile of the ultramarathon race and assess different recovery markers

Includes bibliographical references. / Since no scientifically obtained information existed on engagement in EBP by Namibian-based occupational therapists, the researcher set out to explore the usefulness and feasibility of evidence-based practice (EBP) for occupational therapists in Namibia. An action research, specifically co-operative inquiry was chosen as methodology. This enabled the researchers to simultaneously raise awareness of and disseminate information reading EBP and collect experience based data from co-researchers. Purposive sampling, in particular maximum variation sampling, promised a wide yield of data; this was collected from participants' experiences as they engaged in and reflected on retrieving evidence and participation in focus group meetings. A qualitative content analysis and coding of verbatim transcriptions of focus group meetings together with written reflections of participating occupational therapists (co-researchers) revealed three themes. Co-researchers reported mixed feelings about the possibilities of evidence-based practice; they observed shifts in their understanding and skills base of EBP; and they provided suggestions on how EBP could be implemented in Namibia. An interpretation of the findings of the study suggest, however, that intent to change and gain knowledge and skills do not necessarily lead to changed behaviour; social structures, including hegemonies related to lack of access to evidence, are shown to impact negatively on implementing EBP in Namibia. It is suggested that a group approach with agreed upon targets, incorporating monitoring of attitudes and intention to perform, broadening and deepening knowledge and skills, while addressing structural constraints and bad habits, could deliver positive results.