ABSTRACT
Background: The Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has triggered a global emergency in all social realms, including but not restricted to the economy, health, and education. The health sector requires all healthcare professionals to be well-equipped with the latest advances in knowledge and research through Continuing Professional Development (CPD). These educational endeavors have been severely affected and potentially compromised since they heavily rely on learning through face-to-face interactive activities. Although it is mandatory for nurses in Kenya to participate in continuing professional development programmes the evidence on the effect of their continuing professional development programmes remains unclear. Besides the CPD requirement in Kenya, there is no clear evidence that the nurses and midwives have an enabling environment to accomplish these requirements. Purpose: The aim of this study was to determine utilization of Continuous Professional Development on nurses’ performance of in Narok County amid the Covid-19 pandemic in Kenya. Methodology: A cross sectional descriptive study was conducted in Narok County Health facilities. A mixed method approach, which provided for triangulation that sought convergence and corroboration of the results from questionnaire, was adopted. Purposive sampling was used to recruit 40 respondents for the study. Data was checked for completeness and consistency and then entered into SPSS version 26.0 for analysis. Descriptive statistics used included frequencies, percentage, mean and standard deviation. Findings: Results of the study established that majority (58.6%) of the nurses often participated in formal CPD activities like conferences workshops and seminars (M = 4.27, SD = 0.933). It was also established by the study that that continuing professional development had improved their skills and competencies (M =4.03, SD =1.097); had improved their techniques in nursing care (M = 4.02, SD = 0.891) and had ......

ABSTRACT
The use of partograph in managing labour is imperative to decrease obstetric issues associated with child birth. Prolonged and obstructed labour is a major cause of maternal mortalityThe purpose of this study was to assess the level of utilization of partographs in providing care for…. among Obstetric care providers in healthcare centers in Orlu Local Government Area of Imo State, southeast Nigeria. A descripive design was adopted for the study. A semi-structured questionnaire was used to collect data from obstetric care giver; a structured validated proforma was also used to collect data from patient records in all the health centres. SPSS version 24 was used to analyze the data, and the results were presented in tables. Result showed that partograph utilization was poor as only only 1(0.6%) showed record of descent 2(1.3%) had record of cervical dilatation plotted four hourly apart. In none was the alert line reached nor any drug given. On the recordings for second stage of labour in the partograph table three showed information on maternal monitoring, it showed that blood pressure, pulse, and temperature were documented on the 3(1.90%) partographs, but no information on nature of urine (protein, acetone or volume) was done. The study suggests that the poor Partograph utilization by obstetric care givers could be due to some factors which will require investigation. It is however recommended that further training should be required to improve the use of partograph.

ABSTRACT
Vaccines are critical in the control and prevention of infectious diseases’ transmission. The COVID-19 vaccine is a new innovation, for a relatively new virus. Therefore, in rolling it out, the government should bear in mind the Diffusion of Innovation theory, which places people on a spectrum, ranging from those who are open to innovation and those who are more conservative. Just as with the general public, nurses develop confidence at different rates and may be susceptible to misinformation about vaccines. This study aimed at appraising nurses’ perceptions and attitudes towards COVID-19 vaccines. We conducted a cross-sectional study in September 2021 at a sub-county hospital in Nyamira County, Kenya. Eligible nurses completed structured self-administered questionnaires anonymously. The Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS), version 22, was used to code, enter, analyse, organize, present and store data from the study. Logistic regression was performed to test if perceptions and attitudes had any association with uptake of Covid-19 vaccine. The results showed that all the perceptions and attitudes were positively associated with uptake of Covid-19 vaccine except vaccine safety and the importance of the vaccine to one’s health. The study concluded that there was poor perceptions and negative attitudes towards COVID-19 vaccines which were significant factors for refusal to get vaccinated. It is therefore recommended that the management authorities and stakeholders should promote positive perceptions and attitudes through instituting targeted vaccination campaigns to improve the level of COVID-19 vaccine knowledge among the nurses in particular, and all health care workers in general, in order to achieve a better coverage among them, as well as to influence the patients, clients, their relatives, as well as the general public for ultimate positive vaccine acceptance and uptake.

ABSTRACT
The prevalence of chronic kidney disease (CKD) is rising alarmingly throughout the world, and it is one of the major public health menace due to the significant morbidity and mortality it is associated with. The burden of CKD inexplicably affects low-income nations like Kenya, where the two main public health concerns for the CKD growth rate are hypertension and diabetes mellitus. The aim of this study was to identify the determinants of chronic kidney disease diabetes mellitus patients and also assess their awareness, perspectives and prevalence of CKD. A hospital based cross-sectional study design was conducted at a rural hospital in central Kenya among adult (≥18 years) diabetes mellitus patients. Sample size was determined using Yamane Taro formula. Informed written consent was obtained from each participant and data was collected by interview and chart review; Glomerular filtration rate (GFR) was estimated from serum creatinine using modification of diet in renal disease (MDRD) formula, while CKD was defined as eGFR of less than 60mls/min/1.73m2 for more than three months. Multivariate logistic regression was used to identify independent determinants of CKD and a p-value of <0.05 was considered to be statistically significant. Majority of the participants (43.42%) were aged between50-60 years and 95 (62.5%) of them were females. Participants with history of high blood pressure had a 129.4 %(AOR;1.29495% CI, 2.401-.698) risk of having CKD, while those who did not perform physical exercises were found to be 123.3% (AOR 1.233, 95% CL,1.889-.805) times more likely to have CKD Only 39 (25.8%) of the participants had average awareness about CKD and its risk factors. The overall unadjusted prevalence of CKD among diabetic patients was 78.2% (n= 119, 95% CI). The researcher found that existing history of hypertension, lack of physical exercises, family history of kidney disease, rural residency and low levels of education were independent determinants associated ......