University of Cape Coast

High-confidence predictors of childhood anemia in Ghana: a parallel multilevel and machine learning analysis of the 2022 demographic and health survey

Abstract Background Childhood anemia still remains a major public health concern in Ghana, with a national prevalence of 49.0%. Understanding this burden using a combined multilevel and machine learning framework is essential for designing effective interventions. Objective This...

Cross-cultural measurement of social overload and social networking sites exhaustion: Rasch and DIF evidence from Ghana, Hong Kong, Türkiye

Social media research increasingly examines the psychological costs of constant connectivity, yet the cross-cultural comparability of widely used social overload and Social Networking Sites (SNS) exhaustion measures remains insufficiently tested. This study examined the dimension...

Building Sustainable Neuroscience Systems in Africa: Evidence and Policy Lessons From GHANA

ABSTRACT Neuroscience research, education, and clinical care in low‐ and middle‐income countries (LMICs) remain underdeveloped compared to the burden of neurological disease. Despite the global recognition of this issue, comprehensive documentation of existing capacities and grow...

Aphrodisiac Use and Male Sexual Health in Ghana: Prevalence, Attitudes, and Sociocultural Determinants

Abstract Introduction Aphrodisiac use is an important but understudied sexual health behavior shaped by sexual performance expectations, peer influence, and access to enhancement products. Evidence from sub-Saharan Africa remains limited. This study examined the prevalence, attit...

Spatially Validated Machine Learning Flood Susceptibility Assessment in the Volta River Basin Using Extreme Rainfall and Multi-Source Geospatial Data

Flood susceptibility mapping in large transboundary basins is often constrained by sparse observations, heterogeneous environmental conditions, and validation strategies that overstate model skill when spatial dependence is ignored. This study develops a machine learning framewor...

Knowledge, awareness, attitude and role of males in menstrual health and hygiene in low- and middle-income countries: a systematic review

Background Menstrual health and hygiene research in LMICs has largely focused on girls and women, with limited synthesis of male knowledge, attitudes and roles. Yet, male engagement is important because boys and men can shape sociocultural norms and support for menstrual health a...

Parents’ subjective understanding, use, reasons for non-use and perceived effectiveness of food labelling formats in Germany: a cross-sectional study of the Nutri-score, nutrition information panel and ingredients list

Abstract Background Food labels are intended to support healthier food choices, yet little is known about how parents engage with different labelling formats in Germany. This study examined parents’ subjective understanding and use of three food labelling formats in Germany, the...

Biochar and compost application synergistically enhance soil microbial activity in coastal savanna Acrisol

The use of organic fertilizers such as compost and biochar have received much research attention but their potential synergistic effects on soil biological properties have not been sufficiently investigated. This study investigated the effects of combined application of empty fru...

Perceived campus walkway attributes, walkway-use satisfaction and continued use intention among university students: a cross-sectional PLS-SEM study

This study explores walkway use satisfaction and factors influencing continuous use intention among university students, which is critical for promoting sustainable campus mobility. A descriptive cross-sectional survey was conducted with 369 students. Data were analysed using Par...

Enhancing Clinical Competence through Akan Proficiency: Perspectives of Medical Students in Ghana

In 2020, the University of Cape Coast’s School of Medical Sciences introduced the Akan proficiency course to address linguistic disconnects usually observed during community-based experience and service rotations. This study adopts an interpretive phenomenological design to explo...

Reproductive health factors associated with clinical breast examination uptake among Ghanaian women

Early detection of breast cancer through screening and timely clinical assessment plays a crucial role in reducing breast cancer-related deaths and improving survival rates among women. Based on this, the study sought to investigate the role of reproductive health factors in pred...

Long‐Term Evolution of Rainfall Extremes and Land–Atmosphere Interactions in the Volta River Basin Using Multi‐Source Satellite Observations

ABSTRACT Hydro‐climatic variability in tropical river basins is shaped by changes in rainfall extremes and coupled land‐surface responses. This study assesses rainfall extremes and land‐atmosphere interactions across the Volta River Basin, West Africa, using daily CHIRPS precipit...

Lipid profile alterations in pulmonary tuberculosis patients with and without diabetes mellitus: a systematic review and meta-analysis

This systematic review and meta-analysis explored lipid alterations associated with tuberculosis-diabetes comorbidity. We quantitatively synthesised the lipid parameters, comparing high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, triglycerides, and total...

TransUNet-GradCAM: a hybrid transformer-U-Net with self-attention and explainable visualizations for foot ulcer segmentation

Automated segmentation of diabetic foot ulcers (DFUs) supports clinical diagnosis, treatment planning, and longitudinal wound monitoring, but remains difficult owing to the heterogeneous appearance, irregular morphology, and cluttered backgrounds of ulcers in clinical photographs...

Linking occupational risk exposure to individual out-of-pocket health expenditure in Ghana

Occupational risk exposure (ORE) is a major but underexplored driver of health need in Ghana’s labour market, where informal and hazardous employment is widespread. While theory predicts that elevated health need from ORE should increase healthcare spending, limited access to car...

Heavy metal concentrations in composite breast milk and health risk assessment for breastfed infants in Ho, Ghana

Background Breast milk is the optimal source of infant nutrition but may serve as a pathway for exposure to environmental contaminants. Objectives To quantify aluminum (Al), arsenic (As), cadmium (Cd), lead (Pb), and mercury (Hg) in composite breast milk and assess non-carcinogen...

Research neglect of root system architecture in root and tuber crops important for Sub-Saharan African Food Security

Background Root and tuber crops (RTCs) provide 354 kcal/capita/day across sub-Saharan Africa (17.7% of dietary energy from major crop categories), and several countries derive over 40% of crop calories from cassava, yam, sweet potato, taro, and cocoyam. Despite this, research on...

Democratic governance, public service satisfaction, and health equity in Africa: a multivariate statistical analysis

Abstract This study examines the political determinants of health access in Africa by analyzing how democratic demand, democratic supply, and perceptions of government health performance shape reported difficulty in accessing health care. We conducted a cross-sectional, multi-cou...

Psychometric properties of the 7-item game addiction scale among Ghanaian university students

Recent studies have reported that video game addiction is prevalent among university students. Despite this, video game addiction studies in Ghana are scarce. In addition, there is no validated scale for assessing video game addiction in Ghana. The purpose of this study was to ex...

Centralisation without digitalisation? The missing configuration in Cross-Country procurement architectures

Purpose This study aims to document cross-country configurations of procurement centralisation and digitalisation, focusing on the unrecorded combination of a central purchasing body (CPB) without national e-procurement. Design/methodology/approach The analysis combines Global Pu...