Browsing by Author "Kanyoni, Maurice"

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    Factors associated with physical activity levels among older adults in selected institutions in Rwanda
    (University of the Western Cape, 2009) Kanyoni, Maurice; Phillips, Julie
    BACKGROUND: The size of the elderly population both in numbers and proportions of the whole world is increasing rapidly. The increase in the number of elderly people in the world will exert a big impact on health and social services. It is established that physical activity is one way of limiting age related disabilities. OBJECTIVES: This study aims to asses the levels of physical activity and the factors associated with it among older adults in selected institutions for the elderly in the Southern Province of Rwanda. METHOD: A cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted at 2 institutions for older adults in Rwanda. An interview questionnaire with closed-ended questions was used to collect data. RESULTS: More than one-third of the study sample was categorized as sedentary. Physical activity levels decrease with age. Females reported higher prevalence of physical activity than males. CONCLUSION: Older adults should be encouraged to engage in physical activity to gain the physical and mental health benefits associated with it.
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    Factors associated with physical activity levels among older adults in selected institutions in Southern Province of Rwanda
    (University of the Western Cape, 2008) Kanyoni, Maurice; Phillips, Julie
    The size of the elderly population both in numbers and proportions of the whole world is increasing rapidly. The increase in the number of elderly people in the world will exert a big impact on health and social services. Population aging is also likely to cause serious societal challenges due to its associated increase in the number of individuals at risk for chronic diseases and injury. Participation in regular physical activity elicits a number of favorable responses that contribute to healthy aging, it is therefore established that physical activity is one way of limiting age related disabilities. Several studies have investigated factors that may be associated with physical activity participation and levels of physical activity in Rwanda among different age groups. However little has been done to investigate physical activity levels among older adults in Rwanda. This study aims to asses the levels of physical activity and the factors associated with it among older adults in Rwanda. A cross-sectional and descriptive study with a quantitative design was conducted. Sixty-three (63) participants from two institutions for the elderly located in the Southern Province of Rwanda were purposively selected. An interview questionnaire with closed-ended questions was used to collect data. Descriptive and inferential data were analysed statistically with SPSS version 15.0. Frequencies and percentages were calculated for demographic data. Mean score values and standard deviations for each variable were calculated. Chi-square test was used to test the relationship between selected variables and physical activity participation. The mean age of the participants was 7l years (SD = 9.82; range : 55-l0l years) and more than half (58,7%) of the participants were females. Furthermore the majority of participants were widowed (58'7 %) andreported alcohol consumption (60.3 %). Females were significantly more likely to be physically active than males. Younger participants were more likely to be physically active than the older participants, although not statistically significant. No statistically significant association was found for physical activity participation, marital status, location of residence and education level. Fear of falling and alcohol consumption were significantly related to physical activity participation. Conclusively the study recommends that there is need to promote physical activity among older adults so that this part of the population do not loose on the benefits of physical activity.
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    Psychosocial reintegration post-traumatic spinal cord injury in Rwanda: an exploratory study
    (AOSIS (Pty) Ltd, 2024) Kanyoni, Maurice; Philips, Joliana; Wikmar, Lena N.
    Background: Traumatic spinal cord injury (TSCI) survivors are confronted by both physical and psychosocial barriers when returning to their communities. Therefore, reintegration is an important aspect of their journey back into social life. Objectives: To assess psychosocial reintegration after TSCI in Rwanda. Method: All community-dwelling adults who were registered in the previous epidemiological study were recruited and injury characteristics questionnaire and the Sydney psychosocial reintegration scale version 2 (SPRS-2) were used to collect data through a telephone interview. Results: The study traced 58 participants, 77.6% (n = 45) were male and 56.9% (n = 33) were categorised with paraplegia. Overall, the results show poor community reintegration. The SPRS-2 and domain mean (SD) scores were: overall SPRS-2 of 20.95 (11.56), occupational activity (OA) of 3.68 (4.31), interpersonal relationship (IR) of 7.11(4.31) and living skills (LS) of 7.43 (5.32). Gender significantly influenced overall SPRS-2 (p = 0.011) and two domains: OA (p = 0.005) and LS (p = 0.012). Level of injury was significantly associated with an OA domain score of SPRS-2 (p = 0.002). Gender explained 29% of the variance in the LS domain of SPRS-2, with males reporting better psychosocial reintegration. Conclusion: Gender strongly predicted psychosocial reintegration following a TSCI, which is an indication of the role of social support. Clinical Implications: Traumatic SCI rehabilitation should be holistic to help prepare the person to return to the community. There should be an assessment of an individual’s readiness to return to the community before discharge from the hospital.