Analyzing the Seismic Activity in Dodoma City and Insights on Possible Hazard Mitigation Strategies and Technologies for the City

Dodoma, the capital city of Tanzania, lies within the East African Rift System (EARS) prone to earthquake of moderate to strong ground shaking. In the recent years, Dodoma area has been hit by earthquakes with considerable damages to build environments as the case for the magnitude 5.5 earthquakes of November 2002 that induced several cracks to National Parliament building and brought several panics to Tanzanian Members of Parliament who was in the session. By revisiting the geologic setting of Dodoma, earthquake activities and the current technologies for earthquake monitoring in the urban areas, the study proposes the community earthquake monitoring network for Dodoma City and the nearby populations that are currently dwelling in background with possibility for earthquake of magnitude larger than 5. The proposed network of seismic sensors can help in providing 10 seconds of warning times to Dodoma city dwellers

Self-Reported Occupational Exposure to HIV and Factors Influencing its Management Practice: A Study of Healthcare Workers in Tumbi and Dodoma Hospitals, Tanzania.

Blood borne infectious agents such as hepatitis B virus (HBV), hepatitis C virus (HCV) and human immune deficiency virus (HIV) constitute a major occupational hazard for healthcare workers (HCWs). To some degree it is inevitable that HCWs sustain injuries from sharp objects such as needles, scalpels and splintered bone during execution of their duties. However, in Tanzania, there is little or no information on factors that influence the practice of managing occupational exposure to HIV by HCWs. This study was conducted to determine the prevalence of self-reported occupational exposure to HIV among HCWs and explore factors that influence the practice of managing occupational exposure to HIV by HCWs in Tanzania. Self-administered questionnaire was designed to gather information of healthcare workers' occupational exposures in the past 12 months and circumstances in which these injuries occurred. Practice of managing occupational exposure was assessed by the following questions: Nearly half of the HCWs had experienced at least one occupational injury in the past 12 months. Though most of the occupational exposures to HIV were experienced by female nurses, non-medical hospital staff received PEP more frequently than nurses and doctors. Doctors and nurses frequently encountered occupational injuries in surgery room and labor room respectively. HCWs with knowledge on the possibility of HIV transmission and those who knew whom to contact in event of occupational exposure to HIV were less likely to have poor practice of managing occupational exposure. Needle stick injuries and splashes are common among HCWs at Tumbi and Dodoma hospitals. Knowledge of the risk of HIV transmission due to occupational exposure and knowing whom to contact in event of exposure predicted practice of managing the exposure. Thus provision of health education on occupational exposure may strengthen healthcare workers' practices to manage occupational exposure