Search results for: oral health promotion

Authors: Mengjie Zhou

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Under the rapid promotion of digital logistics, the old consumption space in cities is undergoing profound transformation and reconstruction. This article systematically analyzes the impact of digital logistics on existing consumer spaces in cities and how these spaces can adapt to and lead this change through distinct ‘spatial production’ models. The digital transformation of the logistics industry has significantly improved logistics efficiency and service quality while also putting forward new requirements for the form and function of consumer space. In this process, the old consumption space in cities not only faces the trend of material consumption transforming into spiritual consumption but also needs to face profound changes in consumer behavior patterns. Taking Fengying Xili in Changsha as an empirical case, this article explores in detail how it successfully transformed from a traditional consumption space to a modern cultural consumption space by introducing new business formats, optimizing spatial layout, and improving service quality while preserving its historical heritage. This case not only provides valuable practical experience for the transformation of old urban consumption spaces but also demonstrates the feasibility and potential of the new model of ‘spatial production’.

Keywords: digital logistics, urban consumption space, space production, urban renewal

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Authors: B. S. Premalatha, Mereen Rose Babu, Vaishali Prabhu

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Background: Dysphagia must be assessed, either subjectively or objectively, in order to properly address the swallowing difficulty. Providing therapeutic care to patients with dysphagia via tele mode was one approach for providing clinical services during the COVID-19 epidemic. As a result, the teleassessment of dysphagia has increased in India. Aim: This study aimed to identify challenges faced by Indian SLPs while providing teleassessment to individuals with dysphagia during the outbreak of COVID-19 from 2020 to 2021. Method: After receiving approval from the institute's institutional review board and ethics committee, the current study was carried out. The study was cross-sectional in nature and lasted from 2020 to 2021. The study enrolled participants who met the inclusion and exclusion criteria of the study. It was decided to recruit roughly 246 people based on the sample size calculations. The research was done in three stages: questionnaire development and content validation, questionnaire administration. Five speech and hearing professionals' content verified the questionnaire for faults and clarity. Participants received questionnaires via various social media platforms such as e-mail and WhatsApp, which were written in Microsoft Word and then converted to Google Forms. SPSS software was used to examine the data. Results: In light of the obstacles that Indian SLPs encounter, the study's findings were examined. Only 135 people responded. During the COVID-19 lockdowns, 38% of participants said they did not deal with dysphagia patients. After the lockout, 70.4% of SLPs kept working with dysphagia patients, while 29.6% did not. From the beginning of the oromotor examination, the main problems in completing tele evaluation of dysphagia have been highlighted. Around 37.5% of SLPs said they don't undertake the OPME online because of difficulties doing the evaluation, such as the need for repeated instructions from patients and family members and trouble visualizing structures in various positions. The majority of SLPs' online assessments were inefficient and time-consuming. A bigger percentage of SLPs stated that they will not advocate tele evaluation in dysphagia to their colleagues. SLPs' use of dysphagia assessment has decreased as a result of the epidemic. When it came to the amount of food, the majority of people proposed a small amount. Apart from placing the patient for assessment and gaining less cooperation from the family, most SLPs found that Internet speed was a source of concern and a barrier. Hearing impairment and the presence of a tracheostomy in patients with dysphagia proved to be the most difficult conditions to treat online. For patients with NPO, the majority of SLPs did not advise tele-evaluation. In the anterior region of the oral cavity, oral meal residue was more visible. The majority of SLPs reported more anterior than posterior leakage. Even while the majority of SLPs could detect aspiration by coughing, many found it difficult to discern the gurgling tone of speech after swallowing. Conclusion: The current study sheds light on the difficulties that Indian SLPs experience when assessing dysphagia via tele mode, indicating that tele-assessment of dysphagia is still to gain importance in India.

Keywords: dysphagia, teleassessment, challenges, Indian SLP

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Authors: Deinzel R. Uezono, Vivien Fe F. Fadrilan-Camacho, Bianca Margarita L. Medina, Antonio Domingo R. Reario, Trisha M. Salcedo, Luke Wesley P. Borromeo

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The environment of health care workers is considered one of the most hazardous settings due to the nature of their work. In developing countries especially, the Philippines, this continues to be overlooked in terms of programs and services on occupational health and safety (OHS). One possible reason for this is the existing information gap on OHS which limits data comparability and impairs effective monitoring and assessment of interventions. To address this gap, there is a need to determine the current conditions of Filipino health care workers in their workplace. This descriptive cross-sectional study assessed the occupational health and safety conditions of health care workers in barangay health centers in a selected city in Metro Manila, Philippines by: (1) determining the hazards present in the workplace; (2) determining the most common self-reported medical problems; and (3) describing the elements of an OHS system based on the six building blocks of health system. Assessment was done through walkthrough survey, self-administered questionnaire, and key informant interview. Data analysis was done using Epi Info 7 and NVivo 11. Results revealed different health hazards present in the workplace particularly biological hazards (exposure to sick patients and infectious specimens), physical hazards (inadequate space and/or lighting), chemical hazards (toxic reagents and flammable chemicals), and ergonomic hazards (activities requiring repetitive motion and awkward posture). Additionally, safety hazards (improper capping of syringe and lack of fire safety provisions) were also observed. Meanwhile, the most commonly self-reported chronic diseases among health care workers (N=336) were hypertension (20.24%, n=68) and diabetes (12.50%, n=42). Top commonly self-reported symptoms were colds (66.07%, n=222), coughs (63.10%, n=212), headache (55.65%, n=187), and muscle pain (50.60%, n=170) while other diseases were influenza (16.96%, n=57) and UTI (15.48%, n=52). In terms of the elements of the OHS system, a general policy on occupational health and safety was found to be lacking and in effect, an absence of health and safety committee overseeing the implementing and monitoring of the policy. No separate budget specific for OHS programs and services was also found to be a limitation. As a result, no OHS personnel and trainings/seminar were identified. No established information system for OHS was in place. In conclusion, health and safety hazards were observed to be present across the barangay health centers visited in a selected city in Metro Manila. Medical conditions identified as most commonly self-reported were hypertension and diabetes for chronic diseases; colds, coughs, headache, and muscle pain for medical symptoms; and influenza and UTI for other diseases. As for the elements of the occupational health and safety system, there was a lack in the general components of the six building blocks of the health system.

Keywords: health hazards, occupational health and safety, occupational health and safety system, safety hazards

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Authors: Georgios A. Fragkiadakis, Antonia Psaroudaki, Theodora Mouratidou, Eirini Sfakianaki

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Research: Within the project "Actions for the optimal utilization of the potential of carob in the Region of Crete" which is financed-supervised by the Region, with collaboration of Crete University and Hellenic Mediterranean University, a SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats) survey was carried out, to evaluate the prospects of carob in human nutrition, in Crete. Results and conclusions: 1). Strengths: There exists a local production of carob for human consumption, based on international reports, and local-product reports. The data on products in the market (over 100 brands of carob food), indicates a sufficiency of carob materials offered in Crete. The variety of carob food products retailed in Crete indicates a strong demand-production-consumption trend. There is a stable number (core) of businesses that invest significantly (Creta carob, Cretan mills, etc.). The great majority of the relevant food stores (bakery, confectionary etc.) do offer carob products. The presence of carob products produced in Crete is strong on the internet (over 20 main professionally designed websites). The promotion of the carob food-products is based on their variety and on a few historical elements connected with the Cretan diet. 2). Weaknesses: The international prices for carob seed affect the sector; the seed had an international price of €20 per kg in 2021-22 and fell to €8 in 2022, causing losses to carob traders. The local producers do not sort the carobs they deliver for processing, causing 30-40% losses of the product in the industry. The occasional high price triggers the collection of degraded raw material; large losses may emerge due to the action of insects. There are many carob trees whose fruits are not collected, e.g. in Apokoronas, Chania. The nutritional and commercial value of the wild carob fruits is very low. Carob trees-production is recorded by Greek statistical services as "other cultures" in combination with prickly pear i.e., creating difficulties in retrieving data. The percentage of carob used for human nutrition, in contrast to animal feeding, is not known. The exact imports of carob are not closely monitored. We have no data on the recycling of carob by-products in Crete. 3). Opportunities: The development of a culture of respect for carob trade may improve professional relations in the sector. Monitoring carob market and connecting production with retailing-industry needs may allow better market-stability. Raw material evaluation procedures may be implemented to maintain carob value-chain. The state agricultural services may be further involved in carob-health protection. The education of farmers on carob cultivation/management, can improve the quality of the product. The selection of local productive varieties, may improve the sustainability of the culture. Connecting the consumption of carob with health-food products, may create added value in the sector. The presence and extent of wild carob threes in Crete, represents, potentially, a target for grafting. 4). Threats: The annual fluctuation of carob yield challenges the programming of local food industry activities. Carob is a forest species also - there is danger of wrong classification of crops as forest areas, where land ownership is not clear.

Keywords: human nutrition, carob food, SWOT analysis, crete, greece

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Authors: Marvin Ricardo Awarab

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There has never been a greater need for telecom services. The Internet of Things (IoT), 5G networking, and edge computing are the driving forces behind this increased demand. The fierce demand offers communications service providers significant income opportunities. The telecom sector is centered on automation, and realizing a digital operation that functions as a real-time business will be crucial for the industry as a whole. Automation in telecom refers to the application of technology to create a more effective, quick, and scalable alternative to the conventional method of operating the telecom industry. With the promotion of 5G and the Internet of Things (IoT), telecom companies will continue to invest extensively in telecom automation technology. Automation offers benefits in the telecom industry; developing countries such as Namibia may not fully tap into such benefits because of the lack of funds and infrastructural resources to invest in automation. This paper fully investigates the benefits of automation in the telecom industry. Furthermore, the paper identifies hiccups that developing countries such as Namibia face in their quest to fully introduce automation in the telecom industry. Additionally, the paper proposes possible avenues that Namibia, as a developing country, adopt investing in automation infrastructural resources with the aim of reaping the full benefits of automation in the telecom industry.

Keywords: automation, development, internet, internet of things, network, telecom, telecommunications policy, 5G

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Authors: M. Mutoti, J. Gumbo, A. Jideani

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Cyanobacteria or blue green algae have been part of the human diet for thousands of years. Cyanobacteria can multiply quickly in surface waters and form blooms when favorable conditions prevail, such as high temperature, intense light, high pH, and increased availability of nutrients, especially phosphorous and nitrogen, artificially released by anthropogenic activities. Consumption of edible cyanotoxins such as Spirulina may reduce risks of cataracts and age related macular degeneration. Sulfate polysaccharides exhibit antitumor, anticoagulant, anti-mutagenic, anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, and even antiviral activity against HIV, herpes, and hepatitis. In humans, exposure to cyanotoxins can occur in various ways; however, the oral route is the most important. This is mainly through drinking water, or by eating contaminated foods; it may even involve ingesting water during recreational activities. This paper seeks to present a review on cyanobacteria/cyanotoxin contamination of water and food and implications for human health. In particular, examining the water quality used during maize seed that passes through mill grinding processes. In order to fulfil the objective, this paper starts with the theoretical framework on cyanobacteria contamination of food that will guide review of the present paper. A number of methods for decontaminating cyanotoxins in food is currently available. Therefore, physical, chemical, and biological methods for treating cyanotoxins are reviewed and compared. Furthermore, methods that are utilized for detecting and identifying cyanobacteria present in water and food were also informed in this review. This review has indicated various routes through which humans can be exposed to cyanotoxins. Accumulation of cyanotoxins, mainly microcystins, in food has raised an awareness of the importance of food as microcystins exposure route to human body. Therefore, this review demonstrates the importance of expanding research on cyanobacteria/cyanotoxin contamination of water and food for water treatment and water supply management, with focus on examining water for domestic use. This will help providing information regarding the prevention or minimization of contamination of water and food, and also reduction or removal of contamination through treatment processes and prevention of recontamination in the distribution system.

Keywords: biofilm, cyanobacteria, cyanotoxin, food contamination

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Authors: Haga Abdelrahman Elimam

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This paper investigates the connotation, and some of the realistic implications, of the economic reform of health sector in under developed countries. The paper investigates the issues that economic reforms have to address, and the policy targets they are considered to accomplish. The work argues that the development of economic reform is not connected only with understanding the priorities and refining them, furthermore with reformation and restructuring the organizations through which health policies are employed. Considering various organizational values, that are likely to be regular to all economic reform programs, a regulatory approach to institutional reform is unsuitable. The paper further investigates the selection of economic reform that may as well influence via technical suggestions and analysis, but the verdict to continue, and the consequent success of execution, eventually depends on the progressive political sustainability. The paper concludes by giving examples of institutional reforms from various underdeveloped countries and includes recommendation of the responsibility and control of donor organizations.

Keywords: economic reform, health sector, underdeveloped countries, technical suggestions

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Authors: Priscilla Deede Hammond

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Healthcare seeking behaviour has emerged as a tool to tackle perceived ill-health by taking remedial actions. And currently, efforts are being directed towards encouraging people (especially parents) to learn and use health-promoting behaviours in seeking their children’s healthcare. Regardless of these efforts, most parents encounter challenges with raising a child with a disability. The purpose of the study was to explore the healthcare-seeking behaviours of parents of children with disabilities. In order to achieve the purpose of the study, a case study design was employed where the researcher used a qualitative approach such as semi-structured interview to gather the required data. Data from participants were analysed using a thematic analysis approach. It was revealed from the findings of the study that, some of the parents after the first diagnosis by health professionals consulted a spiritualist or a herbalist for help. Also, some parents stated that their response to their children’s healthcare depended on the severity of the sickness. The study recommends the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection and other social agencies such as the Social Welfare Department to provide health assessment and financial support to families of children with disabilities.

Keywords: healthcare, health, parents, disabilities

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Authors: Denis Özdemir, Max Senges

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There are many examples of AI-supported apps for better health and wellbeing. Generally, these applications help people to achieve their goals based on scientific research and input data. Still, they do not always explain how those three are related, e.g. by making implicit assumptions about goals that hold for many but not for all. We present a seven-step method for designing health and wellbeing AIs considering goal setting, measurable results, real-time indicators, analytics, visual representations, communication, and feedback. It can help engineers as guidance in developing apps, recommendation algorithms, and interfaces that support humans in their decision-making without patronization. To illustrate the method, we create a recommender AI for tiny wellbeing habits and run a small case study, including a survey. From the results, we infer how people perceive the relationship between them and the AI and to what extent it helps them to achieve their goals. We review our seven-step engineering method and suggest modifications for the next iteration.

Keywords: recommender systems, natural language processing, health apps, engineering methods

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Authors: Celestina Omoso Isiramen

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The influence of witchcraft belief on disease causation, cure and public health system in Nigeria cannot be underrated. This paper investigated the nexus between witchcraft phenomenon and health-seeking behaviour of HIV sufferers in Edo state, Nigeria. Survey methodology was adopted and stratified random sampling technique was employed in the selection of 600 sample group spread into 200 HIV sufferers, 200 spiritual healers and 200 bio-medics from the three Senatorial districts of the state. Data were collected through the use of structured questionnaire and in-dept interview and analyzed using simple percentage and frequency. Major findings were: belief in witchcraft significantly influenced the people’s perception of HIV causation and wellness and this impacted adversely on public health-care. Poverty, ignorance and dearth of retroviral drugs enhanced the people’s recourse to spiritual healers. Collaboration between spiritual healing techniques and biomedicine was recommended as panacea for curbing HIV/AIDS related morbidity and mortality. It concluded that socio-economic problems must be addressed while the importance of integrating the values of spiritual healing into biomedicine cannot be overstressed.

Keywords: biomedicine, health care, HIV/AIDS, spirituality, witchcraft

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Authors: Lídia Chienda, Tchilissila A. Simoes

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Angola is known for the low quality of maternal health services, registering one of the highest maternal and child mortality of Africa. Working in these health facilities may be of great challenge for health professionals. In this study, we aimed to identify the presence of occupational stress in 76 nurses working in a maternity ward in Lubango, Southern Angola. The participants completed the Health Professional Stress Questionnaire and reported a moderate and high level of stress. To these individuals, 'receiving a low salary,' 'inadequate/insufficient salary,' 'overwork or very demanding work' and 'working long hours in a row' seemed to be the main indicators of occupational stress. Moreover, there was an influence of the work overload, the remuneration earned, the career, and family conflicts in the occupational stress index. These results contributed to a better understanding of the difficulties Angolan nurses are facing and the need to implement policies that envisage the wellbeing of this population.

Keywords: Africa, maternity wards, nursing, occupational stress

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Authors: Sahar B. Ahmed, M. Mostafa Said, Mona I. Mohamed

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Streptozotocin (STZ) caused a significant increase in blood glucose and malondialdehyde (MDA) levels in serum accompanied by a significant decrease in blood reduced glutathione (GSH) and superoxide dismutase (SOD) activities. Also, ALT, AST, albumin and urea were markedly affected by STZ injection. The oral administration of Mango leaves extract (MLE) one hour before STZ injection was significantly improved the blood glucose level, ALT, AST activities, albumin and urea that associated with the regulation of MDA, GSH and SOD levels. The antimicrobial activity of MLE showed a significant inhibitory activity against multidrug resistant gram positive and gram negative bacteria isolated from patients in Egyptian hospitals especially Salmonella typhi and typhimurium. In conclusion, results revealed the antioxidant, hypoglycemic effect and antimicrobial potentials of MLE under investigation. Further studies will be needed to investigate the prolonged period of MLE administration and its possible side effects.

Keywords: aqueous extract of mango leaves, STZ, antioxidant, hypoglycemic effect, antimicrobial potentials.

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Authors: Kingkan Pongsiri

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The study of marketing mix influencing on hotel booking decision making: Japanese senior traveler case aims to study the individual factors that are involved in the decision-making reservation for Japanese elderly travelers. Then, it aims to study other factors that influence the decision of tourists booking elderly Japanese people. This is a quantitative research methods, total of 420 completed questionnaires were collect via a Non-Probability sampling techniques. The study found that the majority of samples were female, 53.3 percent of 224 people aged between 66-70 years were 197, representing a 46.9 percent majority, the marital status of marriage is 212 per cent.50.5. Majority of samples have a bachelor degree of education with number of 326 persons (77.6 percentages) 50 percentages of samples (210 people) have monthly income in between 1,501-2,000 USD. The Samples mostly have a length of stay in a short period between 1-14 days counted as 299 people which representing 71.2 percentages of samples. The senior Japanese tourists apparently sensitive to the factors of products/services the most. Then they seem to be sensitive to the price, the marketing promotion and people, respectively. There are two factors identified as moderately influence to the Japanese senior tourists are places or distribution channels and physical evidences.

Keywords: Japanese senior traveler, marketing mix, senior tourist, hotel booking

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Authors: Ioannis Andrianakis, Panagiotis Panagiotopoulos, Kyriakos Chatzidimitriou, Dimitrios Tampakis, Manolis Falelakis

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Live music, whether performed in organized venues, restaurants, hotels or any other spots, creates value chains that support and develop local economies and tourism development. In this paper, we describe PerformAnts, a platform that increases the mobility of musicians and their accessibility to remotely located venues by rationalizing the cost of live acts. By analyzing the event history and taking into account their potential availability, the platform provides bespoke recommendations to both bands and venues while also facilitating the organization of tours and helping rationalize transportation expenses by realizing an innovative mechanism called “chain booking”. Moreover, the platform provides an environment where complicated tasks such as technical and financial negotiations, concert promotion or copyrights are easily manipulated by users using best practices. The proposed solution provides important benefits to the whole spectrum of small/medium size concert organizers, as the complexity and the cost of the production are rationalized. The environment is also very beneficial for local talent, musicians that are very mobile, venues located away from large urban areas or in touristic destinations, and managers who will be in a position to coordinate a larger number of musicians without extra effort.

Keywords: machine learning, music industry, creative industries, web applications

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Authors: A. Gazdzinska, P. Jagielski, E. Kaniewska, S. P. Gazdzinski, M. Wylezol

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Background: In the multi-factor etiology of obesity, an increasing degree of importance is attributed to behavioral factors. Lifestyle and health-oriented behaviors heavily influence the treatment of multiple diseases, including obesity. However, only a few studies evaluated health-related behaviors exhibited by patients qualified for bariatric surgery. None of them was performed in Polish population. Aim: Assessment of health behaviors of obese patients according to the degree of mood disorders. Method: The study involved 93 patients (66 females) who were qualified for bariatric surgery in the Department of Surgery of the Military Institute of Aviation Medicine in Warsaw. Diagnostic instrument was the Juczynski’s Inventory of Health Behavior (HBI), which evaluates health behavior in four categories, i.e. proper nutrition habits (PNH), preventive behavior (PH), health practices (HP) and positive mental attitude (PMA). The average HBI falls in the range between 24 and 120 points, for each category of health behaviors fall between 1 and 5 (higher score means higher severity declared healthy behaviors). The depressive symptoms in patients were assessed with Beck Depression Inventory (BDI). All analyses were conducted using STATISTICA 12. Results: The average age was 44.2 ± 11.5 years, mean BMI was 44.3 ± 10.5 kg/m2 and 46.8 ± 7.6 kg/m2, in females and males respectively. According to BDI, 32% patients had mild level of depression, 10% moderate and 14% severe depression. BDI scores were not different between females and males. Low results with regard to the health behaviors declared were obtained by 35.5 % of patients, medium by 44.0%, while high ones by only 20.5%. On average, patients gained 3.28 points in PNH, 3.37 points in PH, 3.29 points in HP, while 3.42 in the PMA category, showing average intensity of these behaviors. These health behaviors were practiced significantly more often by women (p = 0.04). The average HBI was 80.2; with average score of 81.5 for females and 76.6 for males, respectively (p = 0.03). Women were better in the PNH category (p = 0.02). A positive correlation was found between age and all categories of health behaviors, in particular PNH (R = 0.38; p = 0.001), PH (R = 0.26; p = 0.01), HP (R = 0.27; p = 0.01) and PMA (R = 0.24; p = 0.02), independent of gender. The severity of depression had a significant impact only on the behaviors associated with proper eating habits, which saw a negative correlation between BDI scores and the PNH (R = -0.21; p = 0.04). Conclusions: Majority of morbidly obese patients qualified for bariatric surgery obtained low to average scores in health behavior questionnaire. However, these results are similar in comparison with the Polish adult population. In accordance to these results, it seems that healthy behaviors, among them eating behaviors, do not appear to be a cause of obesity epidemic or they might be acquired when the disease is already underway. Female gender and age had a positive effect, and depression had a negative effect on the level of health behaviors among patients qualified for bariatric surgery.

Keywords: depression, habits, health behaviours, obesity

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Authors: Vivian Uchechi Okpala

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Background: Millions of workers die every year as a result of occupational hazards, accidents and injuries, which are as a result of non- compliance to the laws or legislations guiding the health, safety and welfare of workers in the industries. This and many more lead to the assessment of implementation of the health and safety contents of the Nigerian Factories Act (NFA) by small and medium scale industries in Anambra State. Objectives: The study is aimed at achieving the following specific objectives; to assess the extent of implementation of Part-II Health and Part -III Safety (General Provisions), implementation of Part II Health and Part -III Safety (General Provisions Nigerian Factories Acts based on the age of the industries, locations of the industries and level of education of the workers of the small and medium scale industries Methods: the research design that was used for this study was descriptive survey research design, Area of this study was Anambra state, The population for this study comprised 180 chairmen/presidents of union workers of manufacturing industries in Anambra State, The instrument used for this study was structured questionnaire titled ‘assessment of implementation of NFA health and safety contents by small and medium scale industries, results: From the analysis, the following findings were made: Results: The medium scale industries implemented the Part-II Health and Part III Safety (General provisions) better than the small scale industries in Anambra state, the age of the industries, location of the industries and the level of education of the workers in the industries significantly influenced the implementation of the Part III Safety (General Provisions) of NFA, the location of the industries significantly influenced the implementation of the Part II-Health (General Provisions) of NFA. Conclusion: there was generally a certain level of implementation of the factories Act, there is need for more improvement, strict inspection by the regulatory agencies. Implications of the study were highlighted and several suggestions for further studies were made. Based on the findings, several recommendations were made including that the Ministry of Labour and Productivity and the Ministry of Health should strengthen planned information, strict policies to sanction the offenders. Keywords: Occupational Health and Safety, Nigerian Factories Act

Keywords: occupational health and safety, Nigerian factories act, workers, welfare

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Authors: Sara Sahraoui

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This research studied the effect of Alzheimer's disease (AD) on language information processing in subjects with Alzheimer’s disease (AD) who were bilingual (French and dialectical Arabic). The results show a disorder of certain semantic aspects of their mother tongue (L1). On the other hand, grammatical levels appeared to be relatively unaffected in oral speech in L1 but were disturbed in the second language (L2). In consequence, we constructed a cognitive-language stimulation protocol for bilingual patients (PSCLAB) to respond to this disorder. The efficacy of this protocol in terms of rehabilitation was assessed in 30 such patients through discourse analysis carried out before and after initiating the protocol. The results show that cognitive/language training using the PSCLAB appears to improve the language behaviour of bilingual patients with AD. However, this survey study aims to verify the satisfaction of patients’ relatives with the results of cognitive language training by PSCLAB. We developed a brief instrument to measure the satisfaction of family members. The results report that the patient's relatives are satisfied with the results of cognitive training by PSCLAB.

Keywords: satisfaction, Alzheimer's disease, rehabilitation, levels language

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Authors: Mulusew G. Jebena, David Lindstrom, Tefera Belachew, Craig Hadley, Carl Lachat, Patrick Kolsteren

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Background: The biological and psychosocial consequence of food insecurity on physical health and nutritional status has been reported. But, its effect on mental health during adolescence remains unexplored. Thus, the main aim of this analysis is to examine the mechanism by which food insecurity is linked to mental health among adolescents living in Jimma, Southwest Ethiopia. Methods: We used data from third round observation of Jimma Longitudinal Family and Youth Survey (JLFSY). A total of 1,521 adolescents included for the main analysis. Food insecurity was measured using 5-items scale and The Self Reporting Questionnaire (SRQ-20) was used to measure mental distress. Structural equation modeling analysis was done using maximum likelihood estimation method. Model diagnostics test was reported. All p values were two tailed and P value ≤ 0.05 was used to determine statistical significance. Results: The prevalence of mental distress was 20.8%, 95% CI: (18.8, 22.9). After adjusted for covariates, the final model depicts food insecurity was associated with adolescent mental distress (β=.324). This analysis showed 94.1% of the effect of food insecurity on mental distress is direct. By contrast, 5.9% of the food insecurity effect is mediated by physical health. In addition, Self-rated health (β=.356), socioeconomic status (β=-.078) parental educational (β= .170), living in urban (β= .193) and female headed household (β=.205) were associated with adolescent mental distress. Conclusions: This finding highlights the direct effect of food insecurity on adolescent mental distress. Therefore, any intervention aimed to improve mental distress of adolescents should consider strategies to improve access to sufficient, safe, and nutritious food. Beside this, prevention of underlying factors such as psychosomatic health illness and improving socio economic status is also very critical. Furthermore longitudinal relationship of the long term effect of food insecurity on mental health should be investigated.

Keywords: adolescent, Ethiopia, food insecurity, mental health

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Authors: Zasha Romero

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This poster will detail a family oriented event which introduced individuals with visual impairments and individuals with secondary disabilities to social interaction and helped promote life-long fitness and recreational skills. Purpose: The poster will detail a workshop conducted for individuals with visual impairments, individuals with secondary disabilities and their families. Methods: Families from all over the South Texas were invited through schools and different non-profit organizations and came together for a day full recreational games in an effort to promote life-long fitness, recreational opportunities as well as social interactions. Some of the activities that participants and their families participated in were tennis, dance, swimming, baseball, etc. all activities were developed to engage the learner with visual impairments as well as secondary disabilities. Implications: This workshop was done in collaboration with different non-profit institutions to create awareness and provide opportunities for physical fitness, social interaction, and life-long fitness skills associated with the activities presented. The workshop provided collaboration amongst different entities and novel ideas to create opportunities for a typically underserved population.

Keywords: engagement, awareness, underserved population, inclusion, collaboration

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Authors: Srna Jenko Miholic, Marta Borovec, Josipa Persun

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The constant expansion of technology has further accelerated the development of media and vice versa. Although its promotion includes all kinds of interesting and positive sides, the poor functioning of the media is still being researched and proven. Young people, as well as children from the earliest age, resort to the media the most, so it is necessary to defend the role of adults as it were parents, teachers, and environment against virtual co-educators such as the media. The research aim of this study was to determine the time consumption of using electronic media by primary school children as well as their involvement in certain physical activities. Furthermore, to determine what is happening when parents restrict their children's access to electronic media and encourage them to participate in alternative contents during their leisure time. Result reveals a higher percentage of parents restrict their children's access to electronic media and then encourage children to socialize with family and friends, spend time outdoors, engage in physical activity, read books or learn something unrelated to school content even though it would not be children's favorite activity. The results highlight the importance of parental control when it comes to children's use of electronic media and the positive effects that parental control has in terms of encouraging children to be useful, socially desirable, physically active, and healthy activities.

Keywords: elementary school, digital media, leisure time, parents, physical engagement

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Authors: Saeeda Batool, Ather Maqsood Ahmed

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This study investigates the impact of public healthcare facilities and socio-economic circumstances on the status of child health in Pakistan. The complete analysis is carried out in correspondence with fourth and sixth millennium development goals. Further, the health variables chosen are also inherited from targeted indicators of the mentioned goals (MDGs). Trends in the Human Opportunity Index (HOI) for both health inequalities and coverage are analyzed using the Pakistan Social and Living Standards Measurement (PLSM) data set for 2001-02 to 2012-13 at the national and provincial level. To reveal the relative importance of each circumstance in achieving the targeted values for child health, Shorrocks decomposition is applied on HOI. The annual point average growth rate of HOI is used to simulate the time period for the achievement of target set by MDGs and universal access also. The results indicate an improvement in HOI for a reduction in child mortality rates from 52.1% in 2001-02 to 67.3% in 2012-13, which confirms the availability of healthcare opportunities to a larger segment of society. Similarly, immunization against measles and other diseases such as Diphtheria, Polio, Bacillus Calmette-Guerin (BCG), and Hepatitis has also registered an improvement from 51.6% to 69.9% during the period of study at the national level. On a positive note, no gender disparity has been found for child health indicators and that health outcome is mostly affected by the parental and geographical features and availability of health infrastructure. However, the study finds that this achievement has been uneven across provinces. Pakistan is not only lagging behind in achieving its health goals, disappointingly with the current rate of health care provision, but it will take many additional years to achieve its targets.

Keywords: socio-economic circumstances, unmet MDGs, public healthcare services, child and infant mortality

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Authors: Susanne Gustafsson

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Life-history research is an extraordinarily fruitful method to use for social analysis and gendered health analysis in particular. Its potential is illustrated through a case study drawn from a Swedish project. It reveals an old type of masculinity that faces difficulties when carrying out two sets of demands simultaneously, as a worker/manager and as a father/husband. The paper illuminates the historical transformation of masculinity and the consequences of this for health. We draw on the idea of the “changing faces of masculinity” to explore the dynamism and complexity of gendered health. An empirical case is used for its illustrative abilities. Jan, a middle-level manager and father employed in the energy sector in urban Sweden is the subject of this paper. Jan’s story is one of 32 semi-structured interviews included in an extended study focusing on well-being at work. The results reveal a face of masculinity conceived of in middle-level management as tacitly linked to the neoliberal doctrine. Over a couple of decades, the idea of “flexibility” was turned into a valuable characteristic that everyone was supposed to strive for. This resulted in increased workloads. Quite a few employees, and managers, in particular, find themselves working both day and night. This may explain why not having enough time to spend with children and family members is a recurring theme in the data. Can this way of doing be linked to masculinity and health? The first author’s research has revealed that the use of gender in health science is not sufficiently or critically questioned. This lack of critical questioning is a serious problem, especially since ways of doing gender affect health. We suggest that gender reproduction and gender transformation are interconnected, regardless of how they affect health. They are recognized as two sides of the same phenomenon, and minor movements in one direction or the other become crucial for understanding its relation to health. More or less, at the same time, as Jan’s masculinity was reproduced in response to workplace practices, Jan’s family position was transformed—not totally but by a degree or two, and these degrees became significant for the family’s health and well-being. By moving back and forth between varied events in Jan’s biographical history and his sociohistorical life span, it becomes possible to show that in a time of gender transformations, power relations can be renegotiated, leading to consequences for health.

Keywords: changing faces of masculinity, gendered health, life-history research method, subverter

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Authors: Haveesha Buddhdev

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The most important right for a human being in a society is the freedom of expression as stated by Article 18 and 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human rights pledged by member states of United Nations. Will it be fair to expect him/her to be of sound mental health if this right is taken away? Religion as a primary social institution controls many rights, freedoms and duties of people in a society. It does so by imposing certain values and beliefs on people which would either enhance quality of life or curb their freedom adversely thus affecting individual mental health. This paper aims to study the positive and negative role that religion plays in influencing one’s freedom of expression. This paper will focus on reviewing existing studies on the positive and negative impacts of religion on mental health. It will also contain data collected by the researcher about the impacts of religion on freedom of expression which will be obtained by surveying a sample of 30 adolescents and young adults. The researcher will use a Likert scale for these purpose, with response options ranging from strongly disagree to strongly agree and quantify it accordingly. Descriptive statistics would be used to analyse the data. Such research would help to identify possible problems faced by adolescents and young adults when it comes to religio-cultural ethos and also facilitate further researches to study the role that religion plays in mental health.

Keywords: cultural Ethos, freedom of expression, adolescent mental health, social science

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Authors: Susumu Fukita, Hiromi Kawasaki, Satoko Yamasaki, Kotomi Yamashita, Tomoko Iki

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The increase in the number of workers with mental health problems has become an issue. Many workers work in small- and medium-sized enterprises, which often support local employment and economy, especially in underpopulated mountainous areas. It is important for managers to take mental health measures for employees since there is no budget to hire health staff in small- and medium-sized enterprises. It is necessary to understand the manager's attitude toward the mental health of employees and to publicly support the manager in promoting mental health measures for employees. The purpose of this study was to study the awareness of managers of small- and medium-sized enterprises regarding the mental health of employees and to consider support for managers to take measures for the mental health of employees. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with six managers of small- and medium-sized enterprises in underpopulated mountainous areas in November 2019. Managers were asked about their awareness of the mental health of their employees. Qualitative descriptive analysis was used, and subcategories and categories were extracted. Four categories emerged. Regarding the mental health of employees, the managers acknowledged that if the appearance and behavior of the employees do not interfere with their lives, the manager judges that the employees’ mental health is normal. It was also found that the managers acknowledged that there is a comfortable working environment due to the characteristics of the underpopulated mountainous area. On the other hand, the managers acknowledged that employees are dissatisfied with salaries and management systems. In addition, it was found the manager acknowledged that some employees retire due to mental health problems. Although managers recognized that employees may be dissatisfied with salaries, they also recognized that there was a comfortable working environment due to the characteristics of the areas, with good interpersonal relationships. Economic challenges are difficult to solve in underpopulated mountainous areas. It is useful to consider measures that take advantage of the characteristics of the areas where it is easy to work because of good relations with each other, for example, to create a family-like workplace culture where managers and employees can engage in daily conversation. The managers judged that the employees were in good health if there was no interference with their lives. However, it is too late to take measures at the stage when it becomes an obstacle to life. Therefore, it is necessary to provide training for managers to learn observation techniques by which they quickly notice changes in the situation of employees and give appropriate responses; and to set up a contact point for managers to consult. Local governments should actively provide public support such as training for managers and establishing consultation desks to maintain valuable employment and local economics in underpopulated mountainous areas.

Keywords: employer, mental health, small- and medium- sized enterprises, underpopulated areas

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Authors: Keo Mbebe

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The South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) is widely regarded as a blueprint for countries seeking to transcend the atrocities of their past and create a new human rights-based administration. The aim of these societies is to establish historical truth. Within the TRC, the aspects of truth-finding and truth-telling were considered to be catalysts for national unity and reconciliation. Truth-seeking, in addition, was mandated in the Promotion of National Unity and Reconciliation Act (TRC Act), which is the legislation behind the TRC. However, there is an incongruency between the conception of truth outlined in the Act, and the conception of truth explained in the Report of the TRC proceedings. The aim of this paper is to delineate these two kinds of “truth” and to critically analyze them. Doing so, it will then be evident in the discussion that there is a need for substantial clarity in the conception of truth used in transitional justice settings based on truth-finding and truth-seeking, and the paper will present ways in which such clarity may be achieved. The paper will begin with a philosophical engagement on the notion of historical truth used by the TRC legislation. Thereafter, the historical background to the political context in which the TRC Act was mandated will be provided. The next section would then be a sketch of the conceptions of historical truth and historical injustice in the Act, as well as its supporting documents. Lastly, it will be argued that the subversion of the TRC’s mandate to promote reconciliation and national unity by bringing to light past human rights violations during apartheid is betrayed by its amorphous conception of historical truth.

Keywords: historical truth, human rights, transitional justice, truth commission

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Authors: Sabiha Sahin

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Introduction: We have planned this study because of the increasing number of corrosive substance poisoning who admitted to the Pediatric Emergency Department. Method: 636 corrosive substance poisoning cases applied to the Osmangazi University PED between 1 January 2015 - 31 December 2017 were retrospectively analyzed. Results: 438 (69%) cases were male.The poisoning rate of groups 0-4 was significantly higher and occurred by accident. A total of 616 cases (96.9%) were poisoned by the oral route, and 20 cases were poisoned by inhalation.462 Patients were admitted to the hospital within an hour (72.8%). Of the 134 patients who had only erosion and redness around the mouth, 24 patients had salivation and dysphagia symptoms besides these. Of the 28 cases of 158 patients with symptoms, eusaphegeal stenosis was detected. on third day examination. Although there was no statistically significant correlation between esophageal stenosis and erosion and redness around the mouth, there was a statistically significant correlation between dysphagia and salivation between esophageal stenosis Conclusion: The increased salivation and the dysphagia are important signs of risk of devoloping esophageal stenosis at first examination corrosive poisoning in children.

Keywords: caustic, corrosive, poisoning, children

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Authors: Hatairuk Tungkasen, Somrudee Phetchrid, Suwapat Jaidee, Supinya Yoomak, Chantana Kankamol, Mayuree Pumipaiboon, Mayuva Areekijseree

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Ovaries of reproductive female pigs were obtained from local slaughterhouses in Nakorn Pathom Province, Thailand. Follicular fluid of medium follicle (5-6 diameters) and large follicles (7-8 mm and 10 mm in diameter) were aspirated and collected by sterile technique and analyzed protein pattern. The follicular fluid protein bands were found by SDS-PAGE which has no protein band in difference compared to standard protein band. So we chose protein band molecular weight 50, 62-65, 75-80, 90, 120-160, and >220 kDa were analyzed by LC/MS/MS. The result was found immunoglobulin gamma chain, keratin, transferrin, heat shock protein, and plasminogen precursor, ceruloplasmin, and hemopexin, and protease, respectively. All proteins play important roles in promotion and regulation on growth and development of reproductive cells. The result of this study found many proteins which were useful and important for in vitro oocyte maturation and embryonic development of cell technology in animals. The further study will be use porcine follicular fluid protein of medium and large follicles as feeder cells in in vitro condition to promote oocyte and embryo maturation.

Keywords: follicular fluid protein, LC/MS/MS, porcine oocyte, SDS-PAGE

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Authors: Kopila Shrestha

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Adolescent sexual reproductive health is one of the most important issues in the world. Reproductive ability is taking place at an earlier age and adolescents are indulging in risk taking behaviors day by day. A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted in Kathmandu valley to assess the knowledge regarding sexual and reproductive health among adolescent. Total of 200 respondents were selected through non-probability convenient sampling technique. Self-administered written questionnaires using semi-structured questions were used. The collected data were analyzed by using descriptive statistics such as frequency, percentage, mean, standard deviation and inferential statistics such as Chi-square test. The findings revealed that most of the respondents had adequate knowledge regarding transmission and protection of HIV/AIDs and STIs but still some respondents had a misconception regarding it. Few respondents had knowledge regarding legal age for marriage and the minimum age for first child bearing. The statistical analysis revealed that the total mean knowledge score with standard deviation was 45.02±8.674. Nearly half of the respondents (49.5%) had a moderate level of knowledge, followed by an inadequate level of knowledge 29.5% and adequate level of knowledge 21.0% regarding sexual and reproductive health. There was significant association of level of knowledge with area of residence (p-value .002) but no association with age (p-value .067), sex (p-value .999), religion (p-value .082) and ethnicity (p-value .114). Nearly half of the participants possess some knowledge about sexual and reproductive health but still effective educational intervention is required in higher secondary school to encourage more sensible and healthy behaviour.

Keywords: adolescents, higher secondary school, knowledge, sexual and reproductive health

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Authors: James D. Beauchemin

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This study tested whether youth mental health care quality, operationalized as the extent to which youth and families experienced system-of-care principles in service interactions with providers, varied by level of youth need after adjusting for sociodemographic and treatment factors. The relationship of quality to clinical outcomes was also examined. Using administrative data and cross-sectional surveys from a stratified random sample of 1,124 caregivers of youths ages 5 to 20 within a statewide system-of-care, adjusted analyses indicated youths with the most intensive needs were significantly less likely to experience high-quality care (51% vs. 63%, p=0.016), with marked deficits on 6 of 9 items. Receipt of lower-quality care predicted less improvement in youth functioning. Despite considerable effort to develop systems-of-care for youths with the most severe mental health needs, these data suggest quality disparities remain for the most impaired youths. Policy and intervention development may be needed to improve the quality of care for this population.

Keywords: system-of-care, adherence, mental health, youth

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Authors: Salwa Obeisat

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Obesity had become a global issue and a major public health concern, because of its impact on the public health. Obstetric and midwifery evidences reported that maternal obesity an important issue, because of its associated complications like obstructed labors, infections, and hemorrhage. People who are obese are often stigmatized and blamed for their weight. Health care providers are not immune to obesity-related prejudice, and the literature features several examples of their negative attitudes towards obese patients. In Jordan, few studies were conducted to investigate obesity prevalence rate and its associated factors. The purposes of this study were to assess the health care providers' attitudes toward overweight and obese women during the childbirth in the North of Jordan and to investigate the relationships between health care providers' socio-demographic characteristics and their attitudes. A descriptive, cross-sectional design was utilized. A convenient sample was consisted of 95 midwives, 30 nurses and 62 obstetricians, who were working in the labor rooms. A self-administered questionnaire consisted of three sections: demographical data, Arabic version of Fat Phobia Scale (FPS), and Arabic version of Nurses' Attitudes toward Obesity and Obese Patients Scale (NATOOPS). Results: The study findings revealed that the majority of Jordanian health care providers held negative attitudes toward overweight and obese women during childbirth. Midwives held less negative attitudes than did obstetricians and nurses. The majority of participants were perceived the overweight and obese pregnant women during childbirth as overate people, shapeless, slow and unattractive. Age, specialty, education and years of experience were found to be associated with health care providers’ attitudes. The Conclusion: Health care providers negative attitudes toward overweight and obese pregnant women are a cause for concern. Therefore, maternal obesity was needed to be more adequately addressed in basic education courses, and in the continuing professional education classes of practicing health care providers.

Keywords: attitudes, obesity, prevalence rate, nurses, midwives, obstetrician, childbirth

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