The main objective of the study is to analyze the role of family planning program in reducing maternal mortality in Bangladesh. A conceptual framework has been developed in which family planning is shown to be integrated in reducing maternal mortality. This study found that the risk factors of maternal mortality e.g. unwanted pregnancy, high parity, and early and old age at child birth still prevail in Bangladesh. It is hypothesized that the prevalence of these factors can be substantially reduced by a proper practice of family planning. There is a high level of unmet need for family planning Bangladesh, and its removal will substantially help in reducing maternal mortality in the country. The risk factors of maternal mortality are strongly associated with lack of family planning practice and other socio-economic and demographic background characteristics of women. By using data from the Bangladesh Demographic and Health Survey (BDHS) of 2004 and the Bangladesh Maternal Health and Maternal Mortality Survey (BMMS) of 2001 the study has analyzed the relationship of the risk factors of maternal mortality, namely wantedness of pregnancy, age at child birth, parity and birth interval with various socio-demographic factors. The analysis has shown that use status of family planning is influenced by the risk factors of maternal mortality. Wantedness of pregnancy has been found to be significantly related with age at birth, parity and birth interval. It has been also found that the risk factors of maternal mortality also affect on antenatal care. The study has identified some policy implications regarding family planning and maternal mortality, and has made appropriate recommendations. One of the major aspects of the strategies to reduce maternal mortality through family planning is to provide family planning services to all women, regardless of any group affiliation. Fulfilment of unmet for family planning has been recommended as an important strategy to reduce maternal mortality in the country. It addition, it is also recommended to raise the age at marriage and child birth, to space births and to limit family size by empowering women through education.

Σε αυτή τη διπλωματική εργασία, με τη χρήση ενός δείγματος που αποτελούνταν από 4458 καυκάσια άτομα, για τα οποία ήταν γνωστά: - ο Δείκτης Μάζας Σώματος (ΔΜΣ), - το φύλο, - η ηλικία, και - τα γενετικά χαρακτηριστικά 23 γονιδίων τους (δηλ. τα αλληλόμορφα γονίδια), διερευνήθηκε: - η ύπαρξη κύριων (μεμονωμένων) επιδράσεων αυτών των παραγόντων (φύλο, ηλικία, αλληλόμορφα γονίδια) στον ΔΜΣ, και - ο αντίκτυπος των αλληλεπιδράσεων μεταξύ έως και τριών παραγόντων στον ΔΜΣ. Μετά από την απαραίτητη προ-επεξεργασία των δεδομένων (αναζήτηση διπλών καταχωρήσεων και διαγραφή τους, κωδικοποίηση, εξαγωγή περιγραφικών στατιστικών στοιχείων, κ.λπ.) εκτελέστηκαν παραμετρικοί και μη παραμετρικοί στατιστικοί έλεγχοι με τη χρήση των 26 συνολικά διαθέσιμων μεταβλητών. Οι στατιστικές μέθοδοι που χρησιμοποιήθηκαν ήταν οι ακόλουθες (σε παρένθεση δίνονται κάποια συνοπτικά χαρακτηριστικά των μεταβλητών που ελέγχονταν κατά περίπτωση): - γραμμική συσχέτιση του Pearson (μεταξύ του ΔΜΣ και της Ηλικίας, καθώς και μεταξύ του ΔΜΣ και του Φύλου), - ανάλυση της διακύμανσης (ANOVA) (με χρήση του ΔΜΣ ως ποσοτική συνεχής μεταβλητή και των υπόλοιπων μεταβλητών σε κατηγορική μορφή), - μέθοδος x2 (chi-square): o με χρήση του ΔΜΣ σε κατηγορική μορφή 4 κατηγοριών (λιποβαρείς, κανονικού σωματικού βάρους, υπέρβαροι, παχύσαρκοι) και των υπόλοιπων μεταβλητών σε κατηγορική μορφή, και o με χρήση του ΔΜΣ σε κατηγορική μορφή 2 κατηγοριών [κανονικού βάρους (ενσωματώνει τις κατηγορίες λιποβαρών ατόμων και ατόμων κανονικού βάρους), μη κανονικού βάρους (ενσωματώνει τις κατηγορίες υπέρβαρων και παχύσαρκων ατόμων)] και των υπόλοιπων μεταβλητών σε κατηγορική μορφή, - μέθοδος μείωσης πολυπαραγοντικής διάστασης (MDR - Multifactor Dimensionality Reduction) με χρήση του ΔΜΣ σε κατηγορική μορφή 2 κατηγοριών [κανονικού βάρους (ενσωματώνει τις κατηγορίες λιποβαρών ατόμων και ατόμων κανονικού βάρους), μη κανονικού βάρους (ενσωματώνει τις κατηγορίες υπέρβαρων και παχύσαρκων ατόμων)] και των υπόλοιπων μεταβλητών σε κατηγορική μορφή. / In this thesis, using a sample that consisted of 4458 Caucasian men, for which we had the following available: - Body Mass Index (BMI) - Sex, - Age, and - The genetic characteristics of 23 genes (ie alleles) we examined: - The existence of major (individual) effects of these factors (gender, age, alleles) in BMI, and - The impact of interactions between up to three factors in BMI. After the necessary pre-processing of data (search for duplicate entries and deletion, coding, extraction of descriptive statistics, etc.) we performed parametric and non parametric statistical tests using the total of 26 available variables. The statistical methods used were as follows (in brackets are some brief features of the controlled variables as appropriate): - Linear correlation of Pearson (between BMI and age, and between BMI and sex) - Analysis of variance (ANOVA) (using BMI as a quantitative continuous variable and other variables in categorical form) - Chi-square test: o Using the BMI, in categorical form of four categories (underweight, normal weight, overweight, obese) and other variables in categorical form, and o Using the BMI, in categorical form of two categories [normal weight (incorporates underweight and normal weight), non-normal weight (incorporates overweight and obese)] and other variables in categorical form - Multifactor Dimensionality Reduction (MDR), using the BMI in categorical form of two categories [normal weight (incorporates underweight and normal weight), non-normal weight (incorporates overweight and obese)] and other variables in categorical form.

Introduction: The quality of life related to oral health is a multidimensional concept that includes the subjective evaluation of the oral health of the individual, functional aspects, general well-being, emotional well-being, expectations and satisfaction with their self-care. Furthermore, it is part of the general state of health and wellness. This paer is to assess the impact of oral health and sociodemographic factors in life quality of elderly people. Methods: A cross-sectional survey with elderly participants in a social group in Santa Maria, RS state, was performed. Data were collected in the same living group by previously trained interviewers. It was used for data collection, the instrument Oral Health Impact Profile (OHIP -14), and a structured interview addressing sociodemographic and health issues. Data were analyzed using STATA 13.0 (Stata 13.0 for Windows; Stata Corporation, College Station, TX, USA). The descriptive analysis provided the statistics of clinical and sociodemographic characteristics as well as the average values of OHIP-14 scores and their respective domains. The differences between the mean scores of OHIP-14 according to the clinical and sociodemographic variables were statistically compared using the Mann- Whitney test, adopting a significance level of 5%. The conducted study design was approved by the Ethics Committee of the Federal University of Santa Maria and all participants signed a term of consent form. Results: A total of 64 subjects were analyzed. The average age was 69.8 years, ranging from 60 to 88 years. BMI ranged from 17.99 to 42.64 kg/m (average of 28.28 ± 5.05 kg/m²), and 53, 13% (34/64) had normal weight, 15.62% (10/64) low weight and 31.25% (20/64) had obesity according to BMI classification. The mean weight was 68.7 kg ranging from 46.3 kg to 107.9 kg. The highest average of the total scores of OHIP-14 was observed in subjects who had low education (<5 years), low income (≤ R $ 2,500), altered taste, difficulty in feeling the taste of food, which were depressed and malnourished. Schooling also associated with OHIP-14 scores in the psychological discomfort and disability fields, just as changes in taste also influenced the areas of functional limitation and disability. Individuals malnourished worsened their quality of life when compared to individuals with excess weight in the total scores and disability domain. Conclusion: Oral disorders associated with worse quality of life were found in elderly women who had low family income, low education and those who had a worse nutritional diagnosis. / Introdução: A qualidade de vida relacionada com a saúde oral é um conceito multidimensional que inclui a avaliação subjetiva da saúde oral do indivíduo, aspectos funcionais, bem-estar geral, bem-estar emocional, expectativas e satisfação com o seu auto cuidado. Além disso, é parte integrante do estado geral de saúde e bem estar. Objetivos: Avaliar o impacto da saúde oral e dos fatores sociodemográficos na qualidade de vida de idosas. Métodos: Foi realizada uma pesquisa do tipo transversal com idosas participantes de um grupo de convivência na cidade de Santa Maria RS. Os dados foram coletados no próprio grupo de convivência por entrevistadores previamente capacitados. Foram utilizados para coleta dos dados o instrumento Oral Health Impact Profile (OHIP -14), e uma entrevista estruturada abordando questões sociodemográficas e de saúde. Os dados foram analisados utilizando-se o programa STATA 13.0 (Stata 13.0 for Windows; Stata Corporation, College Station, TX, USA). As análises descritivas forneceram as estatísticas das características clínicas e sociodemográficas, bem como os valores médios dos escores do OHIP-14 e seus respectivos domínios. As diferenças entre os escores médios do OHIP-14 de acordo com as variáveis clínicas e sociodemográficas foram comparadas estatisticamente através do teste de Mann-Whitney, adotando nível de significância de 5%. O projeto do estudo realizado foi previamente aprovado pelo Comitê de Ética em Pesquisa da Universidade Federal de Santa Maria e todos os participantes assinaram um termo de Consentimento Livre e Esclarecido. Resultados: Um total de 64 sujeitos foram analisados. A média de idade foi de 69,8 anos, variando de 60 a 88 anos. O IMC variou de 17,99 a 42,64 kg/m² (média de 28,28 ± 5,05 kg/m²), sendo que 53,13% (34/64) apresentava-se eutrófico conforme IMC, 15,62% (10/64) magreza ou desnutrição e 31,25% (20/64) apresentava excesso de peso de acordo com a classificação do IMC. A média de peso corporal foi de 68,7 kg, variando de 46,3 kg a 107,9 kg. As maiores médias dos escores totais do OHIP-14 foram observadas em indivíduos que possuíam baixa escolaridade (<5 anos), baixa renda familiar (≤ R$2.500), alteração do paladar, dificuldade de sentir o gosto dos alimentos, depressivos e desnutridos. A escolaridade também se associou com escores do OHIP-14 nos domínios desconforto psicológico e incapacidade física, do mesmo modo que as alterações no paladar influenciaram também os domínios de limitação funcional e incapacidade física. Indivíduos desnutridos apresentaram piora de qualidade de vida quando comparados aos indivíduos com excesso de peso nos escores totais e no domínio de incapacidade física. Conclusão: As desordens orais associadas a pior qualidade de vida foram encontradas em idosas que possuíam baixa renda familiar, baixa escolaridade e que apresentavam um pior diagnóstico nutricional.

The recent and well debated topic of sustainable investments together with the contradiction of the typical sustainable individual and the typical investor constitutes the purpose for the empirical research. Secondary shareholder data obtained from the Central Securities Depositary, Euroclear Sweden, together with corporate sustainable ratings from Thomson Reuters contributes to portraying the typical Swedish sustainable investor. Together with previous research we find that women tend to invest more in sustainable companies than men and that a lower income is related to a higher degree of sustainable investments. In conflict with presented theories we state that, based on our sample, investors over age 65 hold more sustainable companies than their younger counterpart. Regarding gender the results show that women invest more in sustainable companies than men. / Hållbara investeringar är ett ämne som fått ett allt större fokus vid investeringsbeslut och påverkan på miljö och social rättvisa är högaktuellt i den vardagliga debatten. Den grupp individer som beskrivs vara intresserade av hållbarhetsfrågor i allmänhet är unga kvinnor. Samtidigt visar tidigare undersökningar att i sammanhanget investerare är den typiske investeraren en man över 50 år. Uppsatsens problemformulering utgår från denna skillnad mellan den hållbara individen och den typiske investeraren för att undersöka vilka investerare som står för investeringar i hållbara företag. De demografiska faktorerna kön, ålder, årsinkomst, portföljvärde och bostadsort används i uppsatsen för att identifiera skillnader mellan hållbara och icke-hållbara investerare. Samt ifall demografiska faktorer har något samband med en investerares grad av hållbarhet. Ägardata för de demografiska faktorerna har baserats på Euroclear Swedens värdepapperscentral. Företagen i urvalet har hållbarhetsklassificerats utifrån Thomson Reuters ESG-score, en betygsättning av företag med hänsyn till deras arbete kring miljö, social och bolagsstyrningspåverkan.  Tidigare forskning presenterar demografisk utformning för investerare som tar hänsyn till hur deras placeringar påverkar omvärlden. Enhälligt för tidigare forskning är att det är kvinnor som bryr sig om hållbarhet och investerar socialt ansvarsfullt, samt att unga investerare väljer i större utsträckning hållbarhet jämfört med äldre. För inkomst pekar tidigare forskning inte på en gemensam inkomstklass utan beroende på i vilket land undersökningen är gjord samt på vilken investerartyp den är gjord skiljer sig resultatet åt. Storstadsbor investerar enligt tidigare forskning mer hållbart än övrig befolkning och portföljvärdet för hållbara investerare beskrivs i regel vara lägre än för de icke hållbara. Genom t-test undersöks skillnaden mellan hållbara samt icke-hållbara och genom regressionsanalyser undersöks hur demografiska variabler har en påverkan på graden av hållbarhet i svenska privata aktieportföljer.  Undersökningen finner vad gäller skillnaden mellan hållbara och icke-hållbara investerare att variabeln ålder utgör en statistiskt signifikant skillnad mellan de olika investerartyperna. Resultatet talar emot den teoretiska referensramen och visar att investerare över 65 år har högst koncentration i hållbara företag, jämfört med åldersklasserna 18-44 och 45-64. Skillnaden mellan könen tyder även på att kvinnor investerar mer hållbart än män och att hållbara investerare har en lägre genomsnittlig inkomst än de icke hållbara investerarna.

La situation d’insécurité alimentaire et nutritionnelle récurrente dont souffrent environ 155 millions d’enfants dans le monde dont 59 millions en Afrique et particulièrement ceux du Sahel et de la Corne de l’Afrique, constitue un problème majeur de santé publique, de développement et de conscience collective mondiale dans ce nouveau contexte de globalisation de la prospérité, des droits de survie, d’éducation et de protection des enfants.La malnutrition des enfants de moins de cinq ans caractérisée par le rachitisme, l’insuffisance pondérale ou l’émaciation, augmente leurs risques de décès, handicape le développement psycho moteur de même que leurs réussites scolaires et professionnelles et impacte négativement le développement économique des pays entrainant un cercle vicieux de pauvreté familiale et sociétale et d’émigrations.Parmi les pays les plus touchés par la malnutrition des enfants, les cinq pays ayant fait l’objet de cette thèse (le Burkina Faso, le Niger, le Sénégal, l’Ethiopie et le Ghana), sont fragilisés à des degrés variés, par un environnement climatique et géo-écologique austère, une instabilité du régime politique, un faible développement économique et social ainsi qu’une gouvernance nutritionnelle déficiente causée par le déficit d’engagements politiques, législatifs et financiers réels et les faiblesses des capacités institutionnelles.En plus de l’insécurité alimentaire, les enfants et leurs familles sont confrontées au manque de disponibilité et d’infrastructures sociales et de santé communautaires, à la pauvreté du ménage, au statut social précaire, au fardeau démographique, aux inégalités de genre entre hommes et femmes, aux contraintes de normes sociales, culturelles et de croyances traditionnelles, à l’ignorance qui entretiennent des pratiques comportementales inappropriées d’alimentation et de nutrition des enfants ainsi que l’environnement insalubre vecteur de maladies.Le réveil politique, l’investissement multi sectoriel et l’éducation de masse en faveur de la nutrition des enfants sont requis pour l’atteinte des engagements mondiaux pour 2030 visant le développement, la prospérité pour tous, l’élimination de la faim et de la malnutrition. / Continuous food and nutrition insecurity that affect lives of 155 millions of children in the world including about 59 million in African countries mostly in the Sahel and horn of Africa represent a critical public health and underdevelopment problem which creates a deep worldwide collective moral issue within the new global transformative agenda for the universal prosperity (no one is left behind) and child rights for survival, development and protection.Under five child malnutrition characterized by stunting, underweight or wasting increase the risk of child morbidity and mortality, handicap readiness of learning and professional skills and impact on economic development of the country resulting to a vicious circle of poverty and fragility of the family and causing international migrations.Four countries mostly affected by child malnutrition in the Sahel and horn of Africa that we have selected for this study (Burkina Faso, Niger, Senegal and Ethiopia) in comparison to Ghana are facing the severity of climatic and geo-ecologic environment, political instability, weak economic and social development and the gap of nutritional governance undermined by the lack of political, legal and financial commitments of Government and the limited institutional capacities to combat strongly undernutrition.In addition to food insecurity, malnourished children and their families are confronted to bottlenecks of supply and demand of access and use of community based basic social services, to the household poverty, the poor family social status, to demographic burden, gender based inequality, heavy social norms, traditional cultural and believes and ignorance of malnutrition which cause inadequate behavioral practices of child feeding and nutrition, child health care including unsafety water & sanitation conditions that facilitate diseases & malnutrition.Strengthening effective political engagement, accountable governance and massive financial investment for multi sector integrated interventions, promoting social protections systems and massive community based social and behavior changes in favor of child and mother nutrition are required for achieving SDG of “no one left behind prosperity, ending hunger, malnutrition… by 2030” and achieving child rights.

Magister Philosophiae - MPhil / Background: Professional health assistance is a significant indicator in monitoring progress towards Millennium Development Goal five to reduce the maternal mortality ratio by three quarters and child mortality by two-thirds between 1990 and 2015. It is also significant that mothers deliver their babies in an appropriate setting, where life saving equipment and hygiene can also help reduce the risk of complications that may cause death or illness to mother and child. But in developing countries access to health services is still an issue. Objective: From a fundamental research view point, this study aims to investigate the determinants of place of delivery and professional health providers by analysing the factors that are likely to influence young mothers’ accessibility and use of prenatal facilities in the developing world. Specifically in Kenya, Ethiopia, Nepal, Bangladesh, Guyana and Haiti. Methodology: Univariet and bivariet analysis were performed to determine a relation or association between dependent and independent variables. Using secondary data from Demographic and Health Survey secondary data requested from the DHS selected between 2005 and 2010, the analysis was performed by means of SPSS software. Bringing together the demographic variables and access and the use of health services related variables, the study captures the differences and similarities across these countries. Results: The study has identified the main factors influencing the use of professional health providers and health facilities according to the variables examined from the DHS. The finding showed the use health facilities for delivery, professional health providers were influenced by economic status of young mothers, level of education, place of residence, religion, marital status, in all six countries. Access to health facilities was much influence availability of transport, the presence of health providers at facilities and availability of drugs at facilities. Family members’ knowledge about the importance of delivering a baby at health facilities was found to be the strongest predictors of use of health facilities for delivery in all six countries. These findings suggest that these factors cited are associated with access and use of professional health providers and health facilities, and should be the target of interventions aimed to increase the use of prenatal facilities and professional health providers among young women in these countries in order to improve maternal and child health in accordance with Millennium Development Goals four and five.

Generation Y is the cohort that are facing the risk of being affected if the public pension system runs out of funds. Luckily enough time are at their favor with roughly 30 years until retirement. By creating a better understanding about what factors effects the individual investor the most it becomes easier to motivate a higher level of saving and investments. That can prevent an increased number of elderly living in poverty. Previous research has for a long period of time studied different aspects of invest behavior. The aim of the thesis is to explain the impact of different demographical factors on the long term financial planning behavior of Generation Y in comparison with Generation X. The study was performed with a quantitative method, a positivistic philosophy and deductive approach. The results show that the only demographic factors affecting Generation Y are age and ethnicity. Other variables affecting the investment behavior was financial knowledge and overconfidence. The key conclusion is that demographic factors does not affect Generation Y to the same extent as with previous Generations. Financial knowledge on the contrary turns out to be the singlehanded most affecting factor on the long term financial planning of the Generation. / Generation Y är den kohort som riskerar att bli drabbad om de statliga pensionsmedlen visar sig inte räcka till. Gynnsamt nog har generationen tiden till sin fördel då de har cirka 30 år kvar till pensionen. Genom att bättre förstå vad som påverkar en individs investeringsbeteende blir det lättare att kunna motivera till ökad grad av sparande och investeringar. Detta kan förhindra en ökande mängd fattigpensionärer. Tidigare forskning har länge studerat olika aspekter på investeringsbeteende. Denna uppsats syftar till att förklara olika demografiska faktorers påverkan på Generation Ys långsiktiga investeringsbeteende i jämförelse med sina föregångare Generation X. För att uppfylla syftet utgår studien ifrån en positivistisk kunskapssyn med en deduktiv ansats samt en kvantitativ metod som grundas på en urvalsundersökning genom frågeformulär. Resultaten visar att de enda demografiska faktorerna som påverkar Generation Ys långsiktiga finansiella planering är ålder och etnicitet. Ytterligare variabler som kunnat påvisas påverka generationens investeringsbeteende är framförallt finansiell kunskap, men även karaktärsdraget overconfidence. En viktig slutsats är att demografiska faktorer inte påverkar Generation Y i samma utsträckning som hos tidigare Generationer. Istället visar sig finansiell kunskap vara den enskilt starkast påverkande faktorn till långsiktig finansiell planering hos Generationen.

Advances and integration of information and communication technologies into healthcare systems offer new opportunities to improve public health worldwide. In Sweden, there are already unique possibilities for epidemiological research from registers because of a long tradition of centralized data collection into population-based registers and their allowance for linkage. The growing efficiency of automated digital storage provides growing volumes of archived data that increases the potential of analyses further. The purpose of this thesis can be divided into two parallel themes: illustrations and discussions of the use and usefulness of population-based registers on the one hand, and specific research questions in epidemiology and healthcare research on the other. The research questions are addressed in separate papers. From the Swedish Cancer Registry, 25 years of incidence data on testicular cancer was extracted for a large cohort. Record linkage to survey data on serum cholesterol showed a highly significant positive association, suggesting that elevated serum cholesterol concentration is a risk factor for testicular cancer. Since the finding is the first of its kind and because of wide confidence intervals further studies are needed to confirm the association. Östergötland County council’s administra-tive database (the Care Data Warehouse in Östergötland (CDWÖ)) provided data for preva-lence estimations of four common chronic diseases. The prevalence rate agreed very well with previous estimates for diabetes and fairly well with those for asthma. For hypertension and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, the observed rates were lower than previous prevalence estimates. Data on several consecutive years covering all healthcare levels are needed to achieve valid prevalence estimates. CDWÖ data was also used to analyse the impact of diabetes on the prevalence of ischemic heart disease. Women had higher diabetes/non-diabetes prevalence rate ratios across all ages. The relative gender difference remained up to the age of 65 years and thereafter decreased considerably. The age-specific direct healthcare cost of diabetes was explored using data from the CDWÖ, the county council’s Cost Per Patient database and the Swedish Prescribed Drug Register. The cost per patient and the relative magnitude of different cost components varied considerably by age, which is important to consider in the future planning of diabetes management. The Cancer Registry was established mainly as a basis for epidemiological surveillance and research, exemplified in this thesis by a study on testicular cancer. In contrast, the newly established and planned healthcare databases in different Swedish counties are mainly for managerial purposes. As is shown in this thesis, these new databases may also be used to address problems in epidemiology and healthcare research.

This diploma thesis deals with ethnic differences in the incidence of colorectal cancer. One of the primary aims is to analyze the influence of selected socio-demographic factors, health factors and lifestyle factors on the incidence of colorectal cancer. Another main aim is to find out if there are ethnic differences in the incidence of colorectal cancer in the United States to determine the contribution of the influence of selected socio-demographic and lifestyle factors using the data from the PLCO database. PLCO is a case-control study which includes individual data collected from approximately 155,000 respondents in the United States. The main finding is a significant influence of respondents' age structure, gender, ethnicity, education, family history of colorectal cancer as well as diabetes on the incidence of colorectal cancer. It has also been suggested that alcohol consumption, smoking and obesity increase the risk of colorectal cancer. On the contrary, an increased intake of vitamin D and drugs containing acetylsalicylic acid (in this case aspirin) reduces the risk of colorectal cancer. The influence of age structure and gender on the risk of developing colorectal cancer has been determined as statistically significant in African Americans, Caucasians and others (including the remaining...

>Magister Scientiae - MSc / This thesis is a quantitative and qualitative study, reflecting the health promotion I needs of individuals with lower limb amputation in Rwanda. Individuals with physical disabilities are at risk of secondary complications due to the impact of the disability, and this may be exacerbated by poor choices of lifestyle. Rehabilitation services have been traditionally designed for those experiencing sudden on-set, traumatic disabling conditions. Although physically disabled persons desire to engage in wellness-enhancing activities, limited programs based on their health promotion needs' assessment have been developed. In this study, participants' health promotion needs and factors that influence their health-related behaviours were examined using a questionnaire survey and in-depth face-to-face interviews. Data analysis, using SPSS version 10.0, was used to obtain frequency tables and histograms. Chi-square tests, Fisher's exact Tests and Pearson's correlation coefficient were utilized to test for associations between several variables. Audiotape recordings and process notes were translated, and then transcribed verbatim. Strong themes that ran through the data were identified. In order to qualify for between method triangulation used in the study, complementally strengths were identified by comparing textual qualitative data with numerical quantitative results and vice versa. Participants were 334, comprising more males (8O%) than females (20%). The most frequently reported cause of amputation was land mines injuries (44.6%). Most participants were either unilateral below-knee (40.7%) or above-knee (40.1%) amputees. The. majority of participants led physically inactivity lifestyles (64.7%), others consumed alcohol (60.5%), used tobacco (33.5%) and drugs (9.6%). In-depth interviews revealed that participants' low psycho-social status and self-perception led to depression and frustration. Negative peer influence and lack of access to relevant information predisposed them to involvement in risky health behaviours. Further interviews indicated that the participants' perceived health-related needs included access to relevant information and new lifestyle habits to improve their health. Participants also desired job opportunities, particularly vocational training programmes and the formation of support groups, to enhance various programmes. The study findings are extremely challenging. Over 50% of participants were engaged in health-risk behaviours, which would certainly result in the deterioration of their health status. This places a greater demand on rehabilitation services, increasing morbidity and mortality rates, thus further straining the national health -- budget. There is therefore an urgent need to develop, encourage and promote - wellness-enhancing behaviours and activities, to improve the participants' health status and ultimate quality of life. Finally, further studies need to focus on barriers and determinants of health-promoting behaviours, and to explore more about issues related to self-perception and risky health behaviours.