Linda Skaal - Academia.edu (original) (raw)

Papers by Linda Skaal

African Journal of Primary Health Care & Family Medicine

Health and Educational Success - Recent Perspectives [Working Title]

Diabetes is a fast-growing disease that is costly to manage, leading to both financial and non-fi... more Diabetes is a fast-growing disease that is costly to manage, leading to both financial and non-financial burdens. These burdens are worsened in the presence of diabetes complications, so improved interventions are critical. Prior to developing new interventions, a baseline analysis should be conducted to gain insight into the strengths and weaknesses of current interventions. Furthermore, a baseline analysis helps in identifying discrepancies to be addressed and outlining how the environment impacts diabetes management. A comprehensive literature review was adopted to collect data regarding the importance of a baseline analysis in diabetes interventions. The findings of the literature review indicated that a baseline analysis is a critical step for the development of effective diabetes interventions. Knowledge, attitudes, practices, and anthropometric factors such as quality of life and social determinants of health, should be assessed when conducting a baseline analysis. A baseline...

Background: Most of diabetes care happens at the household in which patients resides; and this ha... more Background: Most of diabetes care happens at the household in which patients resides; and this has larger influences of diabetes management behaviours. Therefore, family members should actively be involved in supporting and caring for patients. Family support is associated with improved coping and quality of life, better diabetes, and health outcomes, including prevention of complications. Conversely, it has been established that patients without family support are likely to experience poor diabetes outcomes and increased mortality.Objectives: To explore existence or non-existence of family support for patients living with diabetes.Methodology: Qualitative method and phenomenological exploratory descriptive design were used to collect data from 25 participants selected using purposive sampling. One-on-one interviews were conducted using voice recorders and field notes for non-verbal cues. The use of unstructured interview guide with a grand tour question enabled probing. The 8 Steps...

Additional file 1. Qualitative interview guide domains and examples.

BMC Cardiovascular Disorders, 2021

Background In the Southern African countries, cardiovascular disease burden is increasing and the... more Background In the Southern African countries, cardiovascular disease burden is increasing and the second most prevalent cause of death after infectious diseases. The sustainable primary prevention of cardiovascular disease is associated with the engagement of facilitators that support it and hindered by barriers that undermine the support of a healthy lifestyle at the community level. The purpose of the study was to investigate facilitators and barriers at the level of primary health care facilities, on prevention of cardiovascular disease in Limpopo Province of South Africa. Methods This study is an exploratory and descriptive qualitative design, where open-ended key informant interviews were conducted among 20 primary health care managers conveniently sampled in their respective health care facilities. Coding and analysis were done using the thematic analysis method with the assistance of Atlas ti qualitative software. Results Various facilitators for the prevention of CVD were id...

Pan African Medical Journal, 2020

The Open Public Health Journal, 2019

Background and Aim: South Africa is a middle-income country that did not reach the United Nations... more Background and Aim: South Africa is a middle-income country that did not reach the United Nations Millennium Development Goal 5 by 2015, because maternal mortality ratio increased between 1990 and 2015. Limpopo is a rural province, and its institutional maternal mortality ratio is higher than the national average. Studies reported that there is a shortage of midwives and medical equipment in the province. This study is part of a broader research program focusing on strengthening health systems for maternal care in Limpopo province, and it was aimed at exploring the experiences of Midwives prior to debriefing and training sessions conducted. Methods: Qualitative research was used whereby five focus group interviews were conducted with midwives from five districts to share experiences during the provision of maternal healthcare and to propose solutions thereof. Tesch’s open coding qualitative data analysis was used. Results: The findings revealed that there is a lack of resources, fee...

International journal of STD & AIDS, Jun 21, 2016

Alcohol use may have a negative impact on the course of HIV disease and the effectiveness of its ... more Alcohol use may have a negative impact on the course of HIV disease and the effectiveness of its treatment. We studied patients with HIV who use alcohol and associated socio-demographic, health and psychosocial factors. Outcomes from this study may help in selecting patients from clinical practice with high-risk alcohol use and who are likely to benefit most from alcohol reduction interventions. In a cross sectional study in three primary health care clinics in Pretoria, South Africa, from January 2012 to June 2012, patients with HIV infection were interviewed and patients' medical files were reviewed to obtain data on levels of alcohol use (Alcohol Use Disorder Identification Test), patients' socio-demographic characteristics, HIV-related information, health related quality of life (WHOQoL-HIVBref), internalized AIDS stigma, symptoms of depression and adherence to antiretroviral therapy. Analyses consisted of descriptive statistics, bi- and multivariate logistic regression ...

South African Family Practice, 2011

BMC public health, Jan 6, 2014

In persons 15 years and above in South Africa the prevalence of pre-diabetes and diabetes has bee... more In persons 15 years and above in South Africa the prevalence of pre-diabetes and diabetes has been estimated at 9.1% and 9.6%, respectively, and the prevalence of systolic prehypertension and hypertension, 38.2% and 24.6%, respectively. Elevated blood glucose and elevated blood pressure are prototype of preventable chronic cardiovascular disease risk factors.Lifestyle interventions have been shown to control high normal blood pressure and/or high normal blood glucose. This study proposes to evaluate the efficacy of a community (church)-based lifestyle intervention programme to control high normal blood pressure and/or high normal blood glucose in church members in a randomized controlled trial in Gauteng, South Africa. The objectives are to: (1) measure non-communicable diseases profile, including hypertension and diabetes, health behaviours, weight management and psychological distress of church members; (2) measure the reduction of blood glucose and blood pressure levels after the...

Trials, 2012

BackgroundAlcohol abuse comes with risks for increased morbidity and mortality among patients wit... more BackgroundAlcohol abuse comes with risks for increased morbidity and mortality among patients with HIV. This study aims to determine the prevalence of alcohol use and other risk factors in a sample of primary care patients with HIV in South Africa and to assess a brief intervention to reduce the use of alcohol in this group.Methods/DesignA single-blinded randomized controlled trial is designed to determine the efficacy of a brief intervention to reduce hazardous alcohol use in patients with HIV. The study will be carried out on out-patients with HIV in two primary healthcare HIV clinics near Pretoria, South Africa. Alcohol use will be assessed with the Alcohol Use Disorder Identification Test questionnaire. Other data that will be collected relate to health-related quality of life, depression, sexual behavior, internalized AIDS stigma, HIV-related information and adherence to antiretroviral therapy (self-reported 7-day recall of missed doses, Visual Analog Scale and pill count). The...

South African Journal of Psychiatry, 2013

International Journal of Infectious Diseases, 2012

Translational behavioral medicine, 2012

There have been studies conducted on the effectiveness of the transtheoretical model (TTM) in imp... more There have been studies conducted on the effectiveness of the transtheoretical model (TTM) in improving the level of physical activity at worksites worldwide, but no such studies have been conducted in South Africa. The aim of this study was to determine the predictive validity and effects of using the Transtheoretical Model to increase the physical activity of healthcare workers in a public hospital in South Africa. A quasi-experimental design in the form of a single-group, pretest-posttest model was used to examine the possible relationship between an exposure to interventions, attitude, knowledge, and an increased level of physical activity. Two hundred hospital staff members (medical and nonmedical staff) were randomly selected for participation in the study. The following variables were measured: TTM stages of physical activity, knowledge and attitudes, fitness level, body mass index, and level of exposure to the intervention. The interventions designed were based on the concep...