Journal of Health
Year:2010 | Volume:1 | Issue:1 (1)|Papers Count:8

Background and Objectives: Anxiety is an unpleasant feeling in the case of uncontrollable or unwanted events. Going to university and facing with new situations may cause anxiety in many students and especially in medical or paramedical students because of their stressful working environment. These problems may be more serious among female students. Anxiety may impair learning and working function. So, in this article we have evaluated the anxiety level among medical and paramedical students of Mashhad University of Medical Sciences.Methods: One hundred and fifty female medical and paramedical students were evaluated by Spielberger anxiety scale. Those with positive history of stressors such as a serious physical or mental disease, divorce, death of related person or other unpleasant events were excluded from our study so the sample volume finally was reduced to 136 students.Results: Among medical students, 46 were intern and 46 were externs and 44 were paramedical students. 76.6% were single and 32.4% were married. Moderate to severe level of anxiety was reported in 45.6% of interns, 36.9% of externs and 20.5% of paramedical students, while trait anxiety was observed in 43.5% of interns, 32.6% of externs and 20.5% of paramedical students. Level of anxiety in paramedical students was significantly lower than medical students. Excluding marriage status as an interventional factor, the difference in severe anxiety was diminished, but trait anxiety was still more prevalent among medical students.Conclusion: Medical students are at risk for anxiety disorders and need a special attention in this field.  

Background and Objectives: Corrosion and sedimentation potential is one of the main factors in water quality control issues. Water tendency towards each of them, can be play very effective role in the transmission and distribution of drinking water in terms of economic and health aspects. The purpose of this study was evaluation of chemical quality, corrosive and sedimentation rate of drinking water in Ardabil water supply network and providing relevant solutions for probable problems.Methods: In a cross-sectional research conducted in autumn 2009, the city was divided into 12 blocks and water samples were taken in two instances (in the first half of October and the second half of December). Parameters of alkali, calcium hardness, electrical conductivity, temperature and pH were determined. Water samples were handled according to standard procedures, and corrosion and sedimentation potential were estimated using indicators Lanzhlyh (LSI) and Rayznr (RSI).Results: The results of tests and calculations showed that the respective value for average of LSI index in the first and 2nd stage of water sampling was -0.23 and-0.46, and the average for RSI index in the first and 2nd stage of sampling was 7.98 and 8.24, respectively. Based on LSI index, drinking water in the water supply system has a tendency to corrosion in 9 and 12 stations in the first and second sampling campaigns, respectively; with the other stations tending to have sedimentation. However, according to RSI index six stations had tendency to corrosion and others was balanced in the first samples. For the second samples, ten stations tend to have corrosive property and the others had conditions of relative equilibrium.Conclusion: Based on the results obtained, water in Ardabil drinking water supply have slight tendency to corrosion and water quality must be controlled for the relevant parameters e.g. pH, alkali, and hardness. Application of corrosion-resistant pipes and materials should be considered in drinking water networks.

Background and Objectives: Malaria is a mosquito-borne infectious disease caused by protozoan parasites. More than one billion people get infected and more than 3 millions die annually from Malaria. In the recent years Iran has been accepted about 2 millions Afghan refugees causing many problems for country's malaria control programs. This study elucidates the epidemiology of malaria in Rafsanjan.Methods: In a descriptive study all symptomatic cases admitted to private and governmental medical centers in different areas of Rafsanjan were referred to Malaria Control Center from 1999 to 2005. A questionnaire was filled in for each case by health workers. Data analysis has been done by SPSS software.Results: The incidence rate of malaria decreased when Afghan refugees retuned to their country in a period of 1999 to 2005. The highest rate (62 per100000) occurred in 1999 and the lowest was observed in 2005 with a rate of 29 per 100.000. The majority of cases (92.3%) were male and worker (85.7%) with 98.9% of affected people being Afghans. 46.12% of cases was in age group 20-29.Conclusion: Base on the results obtained it is recommended that:1.Questionnaires should be filled in and kept more carefully.2.Seasonal workers should be checked for contagious disease prior to their employment.3.Health education and epidemic diseases prevention trainings should be provided at different levels (e.g. ordinary people, health workers, and physicians).4.Control of borders in terms of checking overall health of emigrants especially at the eastern border of Iran should be considered.

Background and Objectives: clinical education is very important and influential part of Nursing Education curriculum, since it forms about half of the nursing students' education time. Quality Improvement is one of the most important aspects of the clinical education that requires continuous monitoring to determine present situation and identify strengths and weaknesses of the program.Methods: This descriptive, cross-sectional study performed to determine the status of clinical education based on nursing students' viewpoints in Ardabil city. Questionnaire in five fields including goals and education program, instructor performance, student interaction with staff and patients, facilities of clinical environment, and clinical evaluation system were completed by 90 nursing students. Data were analyzed by descriptive and analytical statistical tests using SPSS software.Results: Based on nursing students' viewpoints the status of clinical education in the field of instructor performance and goals and education program was good and facilities of clinical environment, student interaction with staff and patients, and clinical evaluation systems were evaluated as moderate. Data analysis also showed no significant relationship between courses, being native or non-native, number of semester, and being resident of student dormitory with the status of clinical training.Conclusion: Considering that quality of education environment is very effective in teaching and learning process, it is necessary to: promote facilities and equipment of clinical education, make atmosphere of clinical environment more educational, justify ward's staff, and design an appropriate evaluation system.  

Background and Objectives: Iron is one of the essential nutrient elements for infants and children and it is also important for cells growth. The aim of the current study was evaluation of supplementary iron-drop taking and its related factors in 8-24 months infants of mothers attending to Gorgan health centers.Methods: In a Cross-Sectional study four hundred subjects were selected through cluster sampling method. Data was gathered using a valid and reliable questionnaire. Data analysis was conducted via descriptive methods such as frequency distribution, percentage, mean and standard deviation, as well as the ANOVA, t-test, and Chi-square using SPSS software. Confidence Coefficient was 95%.Results: 62% of mothers gave iron-drop to their child regularly, 35.2% occasionally, and 2.8% do not give it at all. The most common reason for interruption in iron-drop giving was mother's neglect (33.9%). there was a significant relationship between mothers knowledge and education levels and supplementary iron-drop taking by their children (p<0.05).Conclusion: While knowledge and practice of mothers on iron-drop were higher than those of other studies, however, more than one third of mothers had not satisfactory performance. Due to importance of supplementary iron-drop taking among children under 2 years, it's necessary to improve mother's performance via intervention and health education.

Background and Objectives: Addiction is one of the factors influencing human health. The trend of addiction in Iran shows that the number of addicted people is doubled every 12 years and increase by 8% each year. One of the risk factors of people tendency to addict is Joblessness. The aim of this study was comparison of socio-economic status, religious attitudes, and being hopeful to future between two groups of unemployed male youths: drug abusers and non-users.Method: This case control study carried out in 2007. 200 unemployed young men (20 to 30 years of age) who had referred to four job centers in Isfahan were selected via cluster random sampling and divided into two groups: Group 1; those who had experience of drugs abuse during the first 6 months after unemployment (n=65) and Group 2; those who had not used any illicit drugs during this period (n=135). These groups were compared in terms of socio-economic status, religious attitudes, and being hopeful to future.Results: Logistic regression model showed that drug abuse could be predicted by probability of having a pleasant life after 10 years (OR=0.985, CI: 0.973-0.998, P=0.024, fasting (OR=0.985, CI:0.976-0.995 P=0.004), and avoiding illicit sexual relationship (OR=0.988, CI: 0.977-0.998, P=0.025).Conclusion: This study highlights the importance of probability of having a pleasant life after 10 years and some of religious attitudes (i.e. fasting and avoiding from illicit sexual relationship) on preventing from drug abuse in unemployed male youths. We suggest that policy makers take into account these results in preventive program planning.

Background and Objectives: Cervical cancer is the second most prevalent cancer among females worldwide and the most common in developing countries. It can be prevented through early diagnosis by cervical screening (Pap smear). The aim of this study was determination of Pap smear frequency and women's attitude about it.Methods: This is a descriptive, cross-sectional study that assesses the frequency of Pap smear and women's attitude about it in Alzahra hospital in 2009. The subjects were postpartum women referred to the hospital. Data were collected using a questionnaire consisted of three parts; demographic information, attitude statements, and questions concerning to having or not having Pap smear. After data collection, chi-square, t-test and ANOVA were performed using SPSS version16. P<0.05 was determined as statistical significance level.Results: In this study 225 women were assessed. The mean age of the women was 26±4.9 years. Data showed that 46 subjects (20.4%) had a Pap test. The mean score of attitude in women performing Pap smear was significantly higher than the other group. There were significant relationship between age (p=0.005), residency (p=0.004), job (p=0.0001), education level (p=0.0001), and number of pregnancies (p=0.01) with to practice of Pap smear test. There were significant relationship between age (p=0.0001), residency (p=0.0001), education level (p=0.0001), job (p=0.0001), number of pregnancies (p=0.02), marriage age (p=0.002), and insurance (p=0.0001) with score of attitude.Hindrance to practice of Pap smear included: embarrassment (20.8%), worry (23.6%), being painful (12.4%), being expensive (12.9%), fear of the test result (11.6%), lack of information on address of Pap test clinics (42.2%).Conclusion: Our results revealed that the majority of women do not have Pap test and the attitude of women doing pap is higher than those of not having the test. Regarding to the importance of Pap smear in preventing cervical cancer, widespread awareness for the women is recommended.

Background & Objectives: Tuberculosis is one of the most important causes of mortality in undeveloped countries and causes more than 8 million deaths worldwide annually. In this research we studied epidemiologic parameters of tuberculosis in a period of five years in Rafsanjan and highlighted weakness and strength of health services.Methods: In a descriptive study all TB patients referred to Rafsanjan Health Centers were studied. The demographic data (e.g. sex, age, name, address, nationality, residence), result of sputum smear before and after treatment, type of disease, and success of treatment were included in a questionnaire and compiled for each case. Data were analyzed using SPSS software.Results: In total, 239 cases were diagnosed and the majority of them (148 cases) were Afghans. The number of cases decreased from 2002 to 2006 when the Afghans start to come back to their country. The majority of cases were female from urban areas with pulmonary tuberculosis. Most of them were in a range of 21 to 30 years old. The majority of cases was treated through prescribing 4 anti tuberculosis medicine and had negative sputum smear after treatment course. The sputum smear were not tested in 16.5% and 22.5% of pulmonary TB patients before and after treatment, respectively.Conclusion: As the majority of cases were Afghans, more attention should be paid on screening and preventive measures amongst them. Since the incidence rate of pulmonary TB in women was higher than men, their children should be checked for the disease. Although the majority of cases were treated successfully but the sputum smear test before and after treatment were not administered sufficiently and that more attention should be paid on this matter. The lower mean age of patients might be related to immigration of young Afghan job seekers to Rafsanjan.