International Journal of Professional Practice

Influence of Disability Diversity Policy Implementation on Service Delivery among Chartered Universities in Kenya

2024-10-11T09:01:50+00:00

Diversity entails embracing and recognizing the contribution of people with differences in education background, perspectives and experiences. Organizations have realized that they can attract and retain competent employees by embracing diversity. In Kenya, a diversity policy has been developed to guide the public institutions on the management of diversity at the workplace. The policy outlines the management of diverse workforce, such as persons with disability and ethnicity. However, there remains a notable research gap concerning the effect of diversity policies on service delivery in the universities. This study aimed at determining the influence of disability diversity policy implementation on service delivery in Chartered Universities in Kenya. The study was guided by the Social Identity theory, self-categorization and SERVQUAL model. Descriptive survey research design was adopted. The target population comprised eight Chartered universities in Kenya (both private and public) which were purposively selected; comprising 15,545 administrative staff and full-time lecturers. A sample size of 390 was drawn using the Yamane (1967) formula. Data was collected using questionnaires. Both validity and reliability of the research instruments were ensured. Inferential and descriptive statistics were adopted in the analysis. The findings of the study indicated that universities have a strong affirmative action policy for persons with disability. The study concluded that disability policy implementation established a positive and statistically significant effect on service delivery among chartered universities in Kenya. It recommends university management to collaborate with organizations dedicated to persons with disabilities, and to utilize accessible recruitment channels such as sharing job opportunities in braille, so as to attract individuals with disabilities. Furthermore, universities ought to enhance the accessibility of their premises by expanding the provision of assistive and supportive devices. The findings have implications to human resource practitioners in universities in enhancing quality service delivery by implementation of diversity policies.

Effectiveness of Lazarus’ Multimodal Therapy in Treatment of Burnout Symptoms, Compassion Fatigue and Compassion Satisfaction

2025-03-19T09:37:08+00:00

Critical care nurses globally face significant psychological distress due to prolonged trauma exposure, excessive workloads, and limited mental health support. These challenges reduce their ability to sustain Compassion Satisfaction (CS) and manage Burnout Symptoms (BOS) and Compassion Fatigue (CF), contributing to high staff turnover and compromised patient care. This study assessed the effectiveness of Lazarus’ Multimodal Therapy (MMT) in addressing BOS, CF, and CS among nurses at the Critical Care Unit (CCU) of Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH). A randomized controlled trial was conducted with 78 nurses divided into treatment and control groups. A social demographic questionnaire and the Professional Quality of Life Scale (Pro-QOL v5) were used to assess BOS, CF, and CS at baseline, midline, and end line. Only the treatment group received MMT. Analysis using ANOVA at a 95% confidence interval via SPSS 29.0 revealed significant improvements in CS at baseline (p = .003), midline (p = .032), and end line (p = .021); BOS at midline (p = .022) and end line (p = .018); and CF at baseline (p = .012), midline (p = .007), and end line (p = .007). MMT effectively reduced BOS and CF while increasing CS. Participants in the treatment group experienced reduced emotional exhaustion and depersonalization, along with enhanced professional fulfillment. The study concluded that MMT is a highly effective intervention for improving the psychological well-being of critical care nurses. It recommends that healthcare administrators incorporate MMT into wellness programs and training, allocate resources for regular psychological assessments, and that nursing curricula include MMT to foster resilience. Government health agencies should also develop supportive mental health policies to enhance nurses’ well-being and improve healthcare delivery.

Hypertension Occurrence and Associated Risk Factors in HIV Patients on Antiretroviral Therapy in Nairobi County, Kenya

2025-05-13T09:25:06+00:00

Due to advances in antiretroviral treatment, the incidence of HIV infection has declined in recent years. However, cardiovascular illnesses continue to be the primary cause of death and morbidity among HIV-positive individuals, accounting for 10% of all deaths that are not related to AIDS. The paper aimed to determine occurrence and risk factors associated with hypertension among HIV patients on antiretroviral treatment in Nairobi County. The study adopted a cross-sectional design, and a sample size of 552 respondents. Purposive sampling technique was used to select the area, and systemic random sampling was used to select participants. Structured questionnaires were used to collect data, which was analyzed using excel and SPSS. Results indicated (64.86%) female and 35.69% male participants. About 55.43% participants were married, 61.41% had informal jobs, 43.48% had attained elementary school level, and 99.64% identified as Christians. Accordingly, 14.52% of people had elevated blood pressure, and 85.48% recorded normal blood pressure. About 44.21% of people were overweight/obese as indicated by their waist circumference and BMI findings, and 24.64% were at risk because of their elevated waist circumference. The risk of hypertension is substantially higher among respondents 46 years and older than in respondents under 25 years (p = 0.008) at 95%CL. A higher waist circumference is linked to a higher risk of hypertension (p = 0.012), family history (p=0.021) Cl, whereas a person's chance of developing hypertension is higher when their heart rate remains constant than when it changes slightly (p = 0.036). In conclusion, advancing age, female gender, increase in waist circumference, overweight/obesity and family history were predictors for hypertension in this study. The study recommended Nairobi health service to integrate hypertension and HIV services; to give health education to patients and care givers and promote lifestyle modification; and the Ministry of Health (MoH) to formulate integration policies.