Journal of Education and Health Promotion

Abstract BACKGROUND: Fluoride Ion can cause remineralization of primary caries lesions in the presence of
calcium and phosphate. New compounds of calcium‑containing casein phosphopeptides‑amorphous
calcium phosphate (CPP‑ACP), make the remineralization more effective. This research has been
done to evaluate the awareness, attitude, and performance of Isfahan general dentists regarding
the prescription of new caries prevention materials containing calcium and fluoride components.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: This cross‑sectional‑descriptive‑analytic study has been conducted on
152 general dentists in Isfahan ensuring confidentiality of information and obtaining informed consent.
Isfahan general dental offices and clinics were selected using a simple random method. Data of this
research were collected using a questionnaire from previous studies. The questions were divided
into four sections, including demographic information, awareness, attitude, and performance towards
products containing calcium and fluoride prescription. The significance level of P was considered
0.05. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 22, T statistical test, Pearson correlation coefficient,
and one‑way analysis of variance.
RESULTS: The mean score for dentists awareness was 46.3 (standard deviation [SD] = 15.4),
the mean score of attitude was 91.4 (SD = 26.1) and the Mean Score of performance was
54.3 (SD = 27.3) (the scores range from 0 to 100). According to the Pearson correlation coefficient,
there was no significant relationship between dentists’ awareness, attitude besides performance,
and their ages together with dentistry work experiences (P > 0.05).
CONCLUSION: According to the study results, dentists’ awareness of compounds containing
CPP‑ACP is overall average. However, attending to their positive attitudes toward this context,
providing appropriate training programs seem to stimulate them for optimum cooperation as well as
using these products for patients.

Abstract BACKGROUND: The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS‑CoV‑2) has become
a public health concern worldwide. It is important for pregnant women to know about the mode of
transmission, symptoms, and preventive measures against COVID‑19. The aim of this study was
to evaluate the awareness and outlook of pregnant women and practical measures taken by them
against COVID‑19.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: This cross‑sectional questionnaire‑based study was conducted for
1 month (June 10, 2020– July 10, 2020) in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, All India
Institute of Medical Sciences, Jodhpur, Rajasthan, India. A prevalidated questionnaire was given to
109 pregnant women to assess the knowledge, attitude, and practice acquired against COVID‑19
infection. The Chi‑square test or Fischer’s exact test was used to compare categorical data.
RESULTS: Among 109 participants, 103 (94.5%) had good knowledge, 4 (3.7%) had average
knowledge and 2 (1.8%) had poor knowledge about COVID‑19. Majority of them had a positive
attitude for the protective measures taken for the prevention of disease.
CONCLUSIONS: Since there is no valid treatment for COVID‑19, prevention is the only key to curve
this infection. In the present study, 94.5% pregnant women had overall good knowledge score about
the ode of transmission, symptoms, and preventive measures against COVID‑19.

BACKGROUND: The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS‑CoV‑2) has become
a public health concern worldwide. It is important for pregnant women to know about the mode of
transmission, symptoms, and preventive measures against COVID‑19. The aim of this study was
to evaluate the awareness and outlook of pregnant women and practical measures taken by them
against COVID‑19.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: This cross‑sectional questionnaire‑based study was conducted for
1 month (June 10, 2020– July 10, 2020) in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, All India
Institute of Medical Sciences, Jodhpur, Rajasthan, India. A prevalidated questionnaire was given to
109 pregnant women to assess the knowledge, attitude, and practice acquired against COVID‑19
infection. The Chi‑square test or Fischer’s exact test was used to compare categorical data.
RESULTS: Among 109 participants, 103 (94.5%) had good knowledge, 4 (3.7%) had average
knowledge and 2 (1.8%) had poor knowledge about COVID‑19. Majority of them had a positive
attitude for the protective measures taken for the prevention of disease.
CONCLUSIONS: Since there is no valid treatment for COVID‑19, prevention is the only key to curve
this infection. In the present study, 94.5% pregnant women had overall good knowledge score about
the mode of transmission, symptoms, and preventive measures against COVID‑19.

Abstract BACKGROUND: Intellectual property rights (IPRs) are increasingly becoming significant for
sustainable growth of today’s knowledge‑based society. An inappropriate knowledge regarding IPR
can fail to reserve rights for one’s intellectual creation. Hence this study was planned with an aim to
assess knowledge, awareness, and practices regarding intellectual property rights in India amongst
the health-care professionals in Belagavi city.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: A descriptive cross‑sectional study was conducted among the
postgraduate students and faculty of six health‑care professional institutions in Belagavi, Karnataka.
A total of 724 responses were recorded using convenient sampling. Data was collected using
self‑administered validated questionnaire which included demographic details and total 20 questions
pertaining to knowledge, awareness, and practices regarding IPR. Two‑point Likert scale was used.
Descriptive statistics, Mann–Whitney U‑test, and Chi‑square test were applied.
RESULTS: A total of 724 responses were recorded, 411 from postgraduate students and 313 from
faculty of 6 health‑care professional institutions. It was observed that 24.3% and 39.3% of postgraduate
students and faculty participants, respectively, had maximum knowledge while 35.5% of faculty and
27.5% of postgraduate students had maximum awareness regarding IPR in India. Only 17.6% and
10.2% of faculty and postgraduate students had previously attended workshops on IPR.
CONCLUSION: The present study identified that both faculty and postgraduate students of health‑care
profession have less knowledge and awareness regarding IPR. However, both knowledge and
awareness regarding IPR were better among faculty when compared to postgraduate students.
Thus, the academic community requires a higher level of sensitization and exposure to IPR in India.

Abstract BACKGROUND: Addressing good breastfeeding practices among antenatal and postnatal mothers 
is important as it helps in bringing about a positive change in the behavior, attitude, and practice 
with appropriate health education. Hence, this study was done to determine the awareness level 
of antenatal and postnatal mothers about the breastfeeding practices and benefits and identify the 
factors associated with it in rural Chengalpattu, Tamil Nadu, India.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: We conducted this community‑based cross‑sectional study among 
377 antenatal and postnatal mothers in the selected rural villages of Chengalpattu between October 
2019 and September 2020. Details regarding the sociodemographic characteristics and awareness/
knowledge about the breastfeeding were collected using pretested semistructured questionnaire. 
Knowledge adequacy was summarized as proportion with 95% confidence interval (CI), and factors 
associated with knowledge were interpreted as adjusted prevalence ratio (aPR) with 95% CI using 
log‑binomial regression.
RESULTS: About 19.6% (95% CI: 15.7%–24.0%) mothers had inadequate knowledge about 
breastfeeding. Women who were unemployed (aPR = 1.60; 95% CI: 1.02–2.51), belonging to the lower 
socioeconomic status (aPR = 2.62; 95% CI: 1.80–3.82), belonging to Muslim religion (aPR = 1.63; 
95% CI: 1.14–2.35), and living in joint family (aPR = 1.58; 95% CI: 1.12–2.21) had significant higher 
risk of inadequate knowledge about breastfeeding practices compared to those who were employed, 
belonging to upper socioeconomic status, Hindu religion, and living in nuclear family.
CONCLUSION: We found that almost one‑fifth of the antenatal and/or postnatal mothers had 
inadequate knowledge about the breastfeeding benefits and practices. Health education sessions are 
required to promote the awareness about breastfeeding during antenatal and postnatal check‑ups.

Abstract BACKGROUND: Burnout is a syndrome of emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and low 
professional efficacy that health workers, especially nurses, experience the highest rates of this. 
Burnout causes stress and negative attitude towards work and feeling unable to perform tasks in 
the person. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of a method called compassion, 
awareness, resilience, and empowerment (CARE) on nurses’ burnout.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: This study was a semi‑experimental study with control group, the 
statistical population in this study was nurses of Kashani Hospital in Isfahan as intervention group and 
nurses of Al‑Zahra Hospital as control group. The samples were selected by stratified sampling. For 
both groups before and after and 3 months after the intervention, the burnout questionnaire (Maslach 
Burnout Inventory) was completed. The intervention was performed in 5 sessions of 90 min 1 day 
a week. Data were analyzed by SPSS version 25 software (IBM Inc., USA) and independent t‑test, 
repeated measures analysis of variance and Chi‑square test and Friedman test, significance level 
was set at P < 0.05.
RESULTS: The comparison of mean and intensity of burnout and two dimensions of emotional 
exhaustion and depersonalization showed a difference between the two groups and this difference 
was statistically significant (P < 0.05). Mean of Individual performance also had a statistically significant 
difference between the two groups (P < 0.05), but its intensity did not change.
CONCLUSION: CARE method can be effective in burnout of nurses and it can be used as a practical 
method. This training program can be implemented both preservice and in‑service for health workers.

Abstract BACKGROUND: The development of any society depends on proper planning in various fields such
as population and birth control. Fertility control is designed to create a level of population growth
appropriate to the resources available and to ensure a good life. Receiving information and education
is one of the basic strategies to change the attitude toward fertility and awareness in most people in
society. Therefore, this study was conducted to determine the effect of education on knowledge of
fertility counseling and attitudes toward fertility control in health workers.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: The present study was a randomized clinical trial with a control
group that was conducted in the presence of 107 health workers of health centers and community
health centers working in Mashhad in 2017. The research units were randomly divided into three
groups (webinar training, group discussion training, and control). Research tools were researcher‑made
questionnaires on attitudes toward fertility and measuring healthy reproductive awareness that all
study participants completed at the beginning of the study and 2 weeks after the intervention. Data
analysis was performed by the Chi‑square, one‑way analysis of variance, and independent t‑test
using the SPSS software version 16.
RESULTS: The results of this study showed that at the beginning of the study, all three groups
were homogeneous in terms of quantitative and qualitative demographic variables including age,
education, work experience, type of employment, and number of family members. The results of
Kruskal–Wallis test showed that before the intervention, the three groups did not have a statistically
significant difference in terms of mean scores of awareness about fertility counseling (P = 0.77) and
attitude toward fertility control (P = 0.523), but this relationship was significant after the interventions.
Furthermore, the results of Mann–Whitney intragroup test showed that the scores before and after
the intervention were significant in both educational groups (P = 0.001).
CONCLUSION: Considering the importance of healthy fertility counseling and the important place
of education in promoting awareness and attitude toward healthy fertility, it is recommended to use
active educational methods to promote the awareness and attitude of health workers to provide
healthy fertility services to couples.

Abstract INTRODUCTION: It is universally acknowledged that strengthen the participation rate in breast
cancer (BC) screening can find cancer in its earlier stages. The aim of this study was to determine the
effect of regular visits to the health centers on women’s knowledge and attitude about BC screening.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: In a cross‑sectional study, data were collected from 380 women
identified with Kurdish background, who were registered in health care centers of Islamabad‑e Gharb
during January and February 2017. The subjects were divided into two regular and irregular groups
based on the quantity of presence in health centers. Data on women’s awareness and attitude about
BC screening were collected by a trained interviewer using a structured questionnaire. Bivariate
analysis, analysis of variance, and independent sample t‑test were used to see the mean differences
within the groups. The level of confidence was set at 0.05 significant.
RESULTS: Women were representative of four health‑care centers of the city, mainly ≤39 years
old  (73.9%), married  (96.3%), with high school education  (44.2%) characteristics. The total
mean  ±  standard deviation of awareness score about BC was 6.03  ±  3.90. In total, 19.2% of
participants had poor  (<2.13), 64.2% had an average  (2.13–9.93), and 16.6% had good  (˃9.93)
awareness about BC. The results showed that the level of knowledge and attitude about BC screening
was significantly different between regular and irregular groups (P < 0.05).
CONCLUSION: An important message from this study is the need for improved and coordinated
BC education for all social classes of women. It is necessary to discover ways to encourage women
with academic education to visit health centers regularly during interventional studies.

Abstract BACKGROUND: COVID‑19 was declared an emergency of international concern by the World Health
Organization in 2020. This study assesses patients’ awareness, perception, and mitigating measures
taken during the COVID‑19 outbreak visiting an apex tertiary health‑care center in North India.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: A cross‑sectional study was conducted between September 15,
2020, and November 15, 2020, in a tertiary care public hospital, North India, using a structured
self‑administered questionnaire. The survey included 809 patients using a consecutive sampling
strategy. The self‑structured and prevalidated questionnaire was used to collect information on
study variables. Chi‑square test and independent samples t‑test, followed by binary and multivariate
logistic regression, was used to determine the factors associated with awareness toward COVID‑19.
RESULTS: The mean age of participants was 32.41 (±11.24) years. Multivariate logistic regression
shows that married participants (OR: 0.660, 95 % CI: 0.440-0.989, P= 0.044), reading books/
magazine or attended institutional lectures (OR: 2.241, 95% CI: 1.545–3.249, P = 0.001), and watching
television and radio (OR: 1.824, 95% CI: 1.283–2.592, P = 0.001) are significantly more aware than
their counterparts. Participants with higher income group (>20,000 Indian rupee) significantly had
higher awareness than participants having salary <10,000 rupees (OR: 0.280, 95% CI: 0.178–0.440,
P = 0.001) or 10,001–20,000 rupees (OR: 0.481, 95% CI: 0.297–0.777, P = 0.003). Patients
avoiding traveling across or abroad had significantly much reasonably good awareness than their
counterparts (OR: 0.357, 95% CI: 0.139–0.918, P = 0.033).
CONCLUSIONS: Participants demonstrated good awareness, encouraging perception, and complied
with appropriate mitigating measures during the outbreak. Considering frequent waves and the
pandemic’s long duration, consistent reinforcement of government measures, including masks,
maintaining social distance, and frequent handwashing, is much needed.

Abstract BACKGROUND: During the 2nd week of July 2020, the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID 19)
infection spreading in the community. Now more than 15 lakhs peoples have been infected in India,
out of the 26816 patients were deceased. COVID 19 outbreaks become an additional hazard to the
health‑care workers (HCWs), leading to fatigue, anxiety, depression and fear of death. The objective
of this questionnaire‑based study is to know about the knowledge of HCWs about COVID 19, their
experiences while dealing with the disease, and the protective measures taken to prevent the infection.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: A cross‑sectional, questionnaire‑based study was conducted for
1 month starting from the 2nd week of June 2020 after getting institutional ethical clearance. This
study included 240 HCWs posted in the medical and surgical Departments of All India Institute of
Medical Sciences, Jodhpur, Rajasthan. This questionnaire was prepared in online Google forms and
required 2 min to complete. Mean, median, range, and standard deviation were used to describe the
continuous variables, and percentages were used to describe the categorical data.
RESULTS: Among 240 HCWs, 79.16% (n = 190) participants have good knowledge and adapted
good precautions (score 15–23) for COVID 19 infection. Rest 20% (n = 48) and 0.8% (n = 2)
participants has average (score 8–14) or poor knowledge (score <8) with adaptation of average or
poor precautionary measures against COVID 19, respectively.
CONCLUSION: This study concluded that we have the requirement of more educational training
programs for awareness of HCWs and precautionary measures against COVID 19. Thereby, HCWs
can improve their knowledge and participate in this fight against COVID 19 with more efficiency and
confidence.

Abstract INTRODUCTION: The pandemic caused by novel coronavirus (severe acute respiratory syndrome
coronavirus 2) in Wuhan, China, in December 2019 is a highly contagious disease. The World Health
Organization has declared the outbreak of coronavirus diseases (COVID‑19) as a global public health
emergency. Currently, the research on novel coronavirus is still in the primary stage. The aim of this
study is to assess the knowledge and awareness on COVID‑19 disease and related infection control
measures among the dental fraternity in Visakhapatnam – the smart city.
METHODS: A total of 808 dentists from the Visakhapatnam region completed a questionnaire‑based
survey on the knowledge, awareness, and infection control measures related to COVID‑19 infection.
The questionnaire was tailored from the guidance and information for health‑care workers issued
by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Suitable sampling method was used for the
collection of data and the distribution of responses was presented as percentages. Explanatory
statistics were performed for all groups and subgroups based on the percentage of correct responses.
Individual pair‑wise comparisons were done using the Chi‑square test for the percentage of correct
responses.
RESULTS: A total of 825 participated in the survey, of which 808 dentists completely answered the
survey, and the response rate was 98%. Among the respondents, males and females are 46.8%
and 53.2%, respectively. There was a statistically significant difference for all the questions solicited,
among age groups (P = 0.001, 0.001) and occupation (P = 0.001, 0.001, 0.004). Private practitioners
seem to more awareness compared to teaching faculty, undergraduates, and postgraduates, as they
have answered correctly (>70%) for almost all the questions.
CONCLUSION: The inputs from the survey help us throw some light and fill up lacunae where required.
There is a strong need to implement periodic educational interventions and training programs on
infection control practices for COVID‑19 among dentists in particular. The information from this survey
helps us to make necessary changes in implementing periodic educational webinars and stress on
areas where necessary, which is important for the dental fraternity for protecting themselves and
shielding our society from COVID‑19.

Abstract INTRODUCTION: Many infertile people have heard about adoption, but little is known about the true
meaning of adoption and how it is accepted. Giving the right information about adoption is effective
in making the right decision for couples. As a result, there is a need to intervene and provide training
to improve community attitudes and increase adoption among infertile people. Therefore, the present
study aimed to determine the effect of two counseling methods (face‑to‑face and telephone) on
awareness and attitude toward adoption in infertile couples.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: The present study is a randomized quasi‑experimental study of two
groups in the Milad Infertility Center of Mashhad on 34 (each group of 17 couples) infertile couples
with the criteria to enter the study. Couples were randomly assigned to two telephone and face‑to‑face
counseling groups, and each individual’s awareness and attitudes toward adoption were completed
separately before and after counseling. The average number of face‑to‑face sessions for face‑to‑face
counseling was three 60‑min sessions and six 30‑min sessions for telephone counseling.
RESULTS: Based on the results of t‑test, there was a statistically significant difference between
the average score of awareness of adoption before and after the intervention (2 weeks after the
last counseling session), in infertile couples in face‑to‑face training group and in telephone training
group (P < 0.0001). The score of the attitude toward adoption before counseling in the face‑to‑face
counseling group was 60.55 ± 5.5, which reached 66.76 ± 4.7 after counseling. Based on the results
of the T‑pair test, this difference was significant (P < 0.0001). In addition, in the telephone counseling
group, the score of attitude toward adoption increased from 59.53. 7.4 to 67.73 ± 7.5, which was a
significant difference in terms of t‑pair test. The mean score of attitudes toward adoption was not
statistically significant in the two groups (P = 0.653).
CONCLUSION: The results of this study showed that both counseling methods (face to face and
telephone) increase the level of awareness and attitude of couples about adoption, but neither
method was superior to the other.

Abstract INTRODUCTION: Considering the trend of reducing fertility in recent decades, the level of awareness
and attitude of health workers to fertility has an important role in achieving the country’s demographic
goals. Improving attitudes and improving the scientific level and skills of health workers are the basic
pillars to improve the quality and quantity of health‑care services. Therefore, this study was conducted
with the aim of improving the level of awareness and attitude toward fertility and fertility counseling
skills of health workers with both face‑to‑face and virtual training methods.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: This study was a randomized controlled trial of three groups and
pre‑test‑posttest experiments performed on 108 midwives and health‑care workers working in
Mashhad Health Center and Community Health Centers and Health Centers in 2015. The tools
used in this study were four researcher‑made questionnaires that were validated and reliable. Data
analysis was performed by Chi‑square test, one‑way, and independent t‑analysis of variance using
SPSS software version 16.
RESULTS: The results showed a significant increase in awareness level, attitude toward fertility,
and counseling skills in the studied groups after the implementation of interventions (P < 0.001).
Furthermore, there was a significant inverse relationship between the attitude score of the research
units at the beginning of the study and the demographic variables with only the average work
experience.
CONCLUSION: Training is effective in raising the level of awareness and changing the attitude of
health workers. The use of group discussion methods in person as well as through a webinar in
which learners think, interact, and gain experience in promoting healthy fertility counseling promotes
awareness, attitudes toward fertility, and their counseling skills in providing healthy reproductive
counseling.

Abstract INTRODUCTION: Reporting medical errors is one of the common methods for identifying and
preventing mistakes in‑hospital care. This study was conducted to identify the status of reporting
and related factors in two groups of midwives and midwifery students.
METHODOLOGY: This research was analytic correlational; it was conducted among all the midwives
working in the midwifery and labor departments and midwifery students in Isfahan University of
Medical Sciences. The data collection tool included a checklist of errors and the researcher‑construed
questionnaires of awareness and attitude toward reporting errors. The results were examined using
descriptive and inferential statistics (ANOVA, Pearson and Spearman correlation coefficient, and
independent t‑test) by SPSS software version 20.
RESULTS: In this research, the error reporting in midwifery staff was 79.1% and the most frequent
error was related to the patient’s process of testing; the error reporting among the students was
90% and the most frequent error occurred in the labor processes. The present study also showed
that there was a direct relationship between awareness and attitude toward reporting medical
errors (P < 0.001), while there was not a significant relationship between the midwifery students’
awareness and attitude toward reporting the medical errors (P = 0.31).
CONCLUSION: According to the study, hospital midwives reporting is less than midwifery students.
Accordingly, it is recommended to focus on the error and risk management committee to strengthen
the reporting system.

Abstract BACKGROUND AND AIM: Considering the important role of universities in advancing educational,
social, cultural, economic, and political affairs and given the significant and effective role of social
determinants of health (SDH) in personal and social life, this study aimed to design a preliminary
questionnaire to assess the awareness and attitude of students and professors of relevant medical
sciences departments toward the SDH.
METHODS: This is a descriptive survey study of the instrumentation type and is done on the
students and professors of Isfahan and Kashan medical sciences universities in 2019. The
content and face validity of the questionnaire were assessed. Cronbach’s alpha coefficient and
the correlation coefficient for each question as well as the total score of the questionnaire were
reported for this attitude measurement questionnaire. The difficulty coefficient, optimum difficulty
level, discrimination coefficient, and the relevant variance were calculated for every question in the
awareness measurement questionnaire.
RESULTS: The internal consistency of the questionnaire for the awareness toward the SDH for 15
questions was 0.742. This consistency was acceptable for 18 questions in the attitude measurement
questionnaire after omitting two questions with not appropriate distinguishing ability. The difficulty
level of the questions was relatively high.
CONCLUSION: Given that no tool was observed in the search strategy to measure the SDH,
therefore, the design and psychometrics of such a tool can be used to measure the awareness and
attitude of the target audiences; since this tool had an acceptable validity and reliability at its initial
stages, researchers are suggested to apply it for standardization in different academic societies.

Abstract BACKGROUND: Cancer cervix is caused by human papillomavirus (HPV), oncogenic virus and has
vaccines and screening as its preventive measures. This study analyzes the change in awareness
and attitudes of nonmedical students toward the condition following the use of an educational module.
METHODOLOGY: The study design was quasi‑experimental. The interprofessional (IP) team
implemented an educational module and analyzed the difference in awareness of young individuals
toward the cancer cervix. A pretest and posttest written questionnaire, customized for both genders,
was administered with the intervention of the educational module in between. The module consisted
of a short educational presentation along with a group activity. A follow‑up survey was also done after
2 months to check the attrition of awareness. The statistical analysis was done using MacNemar test
using SPSS 12 IBM software and significance of differences were determined.
RESULTS: There was a significant improvement of knowledge and awareness on linkage between
HPV and cervical cancer (P < 0.001). There was also significant change with regard to attitudes
toward cervical cancer vaccination (P = 0.004). The knowledge of HPV linkage to the malignancy
was maintained after 2 months of gap. The subjects also wished for more future awareness program.
CONCLUSIONS: There is improved awareness in the dental and foundation in science students,
and this improved awareness will ensure favorable attitudes toward cervical cancer vaccines or
will attend regular screening programs. Awareness program must be held at regular intervals at
different locations to enhance the knowledge dissemination of this common yet preventable genital
malignancy of females. The IP collaboration and practices will help in reducing the disease burden
of the society in future.

Abstract BACKGROUND: Organ donation is considered to be a noble act. Medical and nursing students will
be the major healthcare providers in this field in the future. Hence, their knowledge, attitude, and
perception toward organ donation are essential to improve this field in the future.
OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study is to assess the knowledge, attitude, and perception on
organ donation among undergraduate medical and nursing students. This study brings forth the
basic understanding level of the medical and nursing students on the concept of organ donation.
METHODS: A cross‑sectional descriptive study was conducted among the first 4 academic years of
medical and nursing students in a tertiary care teaching hospital using convenient sampling. A total
of 620 students participated in this study. They were assessed using a pretested semi‑structured
self‑administered questionnaire. The data were analyzed using Statistical Package of the Social
Sciences version 19.
RESULTS: The median score on knowledge, attitude, and perception among the medical students
was 16 (14–17), 25 (23–28), and 41 (38–45), respectively, and among the nurses, the scores were
14 (12–16), 25 (22–27), and 39 (33–42), respectively. Almost half (46.9%) of the study participants
knew the definition for brain death. Twenty‑nine percent of the study participants knew about the
existence of law toward organ donation; more than half of those participants (52.7%) mentioned few
rules and regulation involved in the laws pertaining to organ donation.
CONCLUSION: Media is the major source for information. Only less than half of the study participants
were knowledgeable on the definition of brain death and existence of organ donation law. Although
they are in favor of organ donation, doubts still exist among few of the participants which could be
understood through further research in this field.

Abstract BACKGROUND: Teledentistry is a rapidly forming subset of dentistry being used extensively in urban
as well as rural areas addressing problems related to cost‑effectiveness, efficiency, and quality in
delivering oral health‑care services. The present study aims to evaluate the knowledge, awareness,
and attitudes regarding teledentistry among the dental postgraduates of Kanpur city, India.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: A cross‑sectional descriptive survey was carried out on a total of
120 postgraduate students. A pretested, self‑structured, close‑ended questionnaire was administered
that consisted of 20 questions were included. The data collected was compiled in a systemic manner
and analyzed in terms of frequency (yes/no).
RESULTS: Only 77 postgraduate students responded, and it was observed that 74.4% of students
had knowledge regarding teledentistry and 79.2% of students contemplated to practice teledentistry
in the future. The overall awareness and attitudes regarding teledentistry were found to be 71.7%.
CONCLUSION: The knowledge, awareness, and attitudes were found to be satisfactory among the
postgraduate dental students.

Abstract BACKGROUND: Dengue is the most common life‑threatening arboviral infection contributing to
92 million infections worldwide. India alone contributes for 34% of the global burden. Success of
dengue control depends largely on adequate knowledge and good practices of preventive measures.
However, there is a need to find the existing awareness among the general population, especially
in rural areas. Thus, our present study was done to determine the awareness, attitude, and practice
measures regarding dengue fever in rural Tamil Nadu.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: A community‑based cross‑sectional survey was done among 303
individuals belonging to the selected village in rural Tamil Nadu during November 2016. Information
regarding sociodemographic details and awareness, attitude, and practice toward dengue were
collected using a semi‑structured questionnaire. Adequacy of knowledge and attitude was summarized
as proportion with 95% confidence interval.
RESULTS: Among 303 participants, 204 (67.3%) were above 30 years of age; 196 (64.6%) were
females; 255 (84.1%) were ever married; 149 (49.1%) were employed and most of them 93 (30.6%)
were educated up to secondary level; 103 (33.9%) belonged to the Class 4 socioeconomic status.
About 33.3% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 28.2–38.8) of the study participants had adequate
knowledge and 56.1% (95% CI: 50.5–61.6) had positive attitude toward dengue prevention. About
57.7% (95% CI: 52.1–63.2) were practicing preventive measures.
CONCLUSION: The current study found that only one‑third of the participants had adequate
knowledge regarding dengue but more than half of them had positive attitude toward dengue
prevention and practicing mosquito control measures. Hence, large‑scale information, education,
and communication campaigns need to done at frequent intervals for rural population.

Abstract BACKGROUND: Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) is a procedure performed in an emergency
when the heart stops. Early initiation of CPR can save many lives. Thus, the aim of the present
study was to assess the level of awareness toward CPR in a community‑based study in
Northern Saudi Arabia.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: This is a cross‑sectional survey conducted in the city of Hail,
Northern Saudi Arabia. Data about CPR were obtained from 442 Saudi volunteers living in the city of Hail.
RESULTS: A family history of ischemic heart disease was indicated in 148/442 (33.5%) of the
participants. On asking the participants whether they have previous information about CPR, about
258/442 (58.4%) persons indicated “Yes,” 118/442 (26.6%) replied “May be,” and the remaining
66/442 (15%) replied “No.”
CONCLUSION: The study showed a high level of awareness about CPR, which might be attributed to
the majority of highly educated participants. Effective and sustainable public CPR training programs
are needed to be implemented to preserve better knowledge and awareness of CPR in the general
population.

Abstract BACKGROUND: India is currently having a deceased donation rate of 0.05–0.08 per million
population. The National Organ and Tissue Transplant Programme have planned strategies to
improve organ donation by creating awareness and capacity building. There is great need to assess
the knowledge regarding organ donation among general population.
OBJECTIVE (S): Among the adult population (≥18 years) residing in urban slum of Puducherry to
determine the knowledge, attitude, and practice regarding organ donation.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: Community‑based cross‑sectional study was conducted during April
to May 2017 among 257 randomly selected participants in selected wards of urban Puducherry.
Data regarding knowledge, attitude, and practice were collected through pretested semi‑structured
questionnaire.
RESULTS: Mean (standard deviation) age of the study participants was 45 (15) years and
majority (57%) were female, 41% of them were educated more than secondary. Almost 90% of the
study participants have heard about organ donation. However, only 28% (95% confidence interval [CI]:
22.9–33.8) had adequate knowledge regarding organ donation. 58% (95% CI: 51.5–63.5) had positive
attitude toward organ donation. Practice regarding registration for organ donation was only 2.3%.
Knowledge regarding organ donation was more among joint family (odds ratio [OR] = 1.86, P = 0.02)
and middle socioeconomic status (OR = 2.40, P = 0.01). Positive attitude was more among those
who were educated above secondary (OR = 3.47, P = 0.001) and less among Muslim/Christian
religion (OR = 0.49, P = 0.03).
CONCLUSION: Less than one‑third of the study population had adequate knowledge regarding
organ donation. Even though more than half of them had positive attitude toward organ donation
only six individuals registered for organ donation.

Abstract INTRODUCTION: The use of social media to disseminate major communications, particularly for
campaigns related to days of health importance, is becoming much popular. The use of Twitter,
Instagram, and Facebook is gaining an integral place in public life online with hashtag campaigns.
OBJECTIVES: The objectives of this study were to assess the characteristics of hashtag campaigns
related to health in social media and to compare three different campaigns in three commonly used
social media platforms, namely, Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.
METHODOLOGY: This was a cross‑sectional study which analyzed contents of three health‑related
campaigns in Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter. The campaigns were #let’s talk (World Health day
2017), Hands up #HIV prevention (World AIDS day 2016), and #No tobacco (World No Tobacco Day
2017). Public posts related to each were searched from three platforms and assessed separately.
Source, publicity, credibility, reach outs, and other characteristics were assessed among each
campaign and comparison was also done among the three social media.
RESULTS: Out of 812 posts, 507 (62.4%) were related to the study. Facebook posts were more
related (67.33%), popular (45.05%), and authenticated (28.22%). Among the campaigns, # let’s talk
was more credible (96.33%) and authenticated (33.94%). Also in that, 57.79% from individual source
and 79.82% were awareness related.
CONCLUSION: Posts in social media related to hashtag campaigns are more credible, related, and
less popular. These factors have to be considered for the campaigns to become an effective tool.

Abstract INTRODUCTION: Tobacco epidemic is one of the biggest public health threats the world has ever
faced. Tobacco use is a significant public health problem worldwide and the single‑most preventable
risk of human health. Mass media anti‑tobacco advertisements can reach large sections of the society
and increase awareness about the harms of tobacco use and increase quit attempts.
METHODOLOGY: This cross‑sectional study was conducted to find out the awareness of anti‑tobacco
advertisements and to assess the influence of anti‑tobacco advertisements among 16 to 18‑year‑old
students in Belgaum city. A self‑structured, close‑ended, 26‑item questionnaire was distributed to 600
preuniversity students. The questionnaire consisted of sociodemographic data, tobacco usage status,
questions related to awareness about anti‑tobacco advertisements, and influence of anti‑tobacco
advertisements on attitude toward tobacco use. Frequency distributions and percentages were
examined for each item and Chi‑square test was used.
RESULTS: Majority of the study participants (89.4% males and 86.7% females) were aware of the
anti‑tobacco advertisements. Television and movie theaters were considered as the most effective
means for anti‑tobacco advertisements. Nearly 90.8% had noticed the statutory warning which is
shown during tobacco products’ usage on television/movies. Almost 78.35% of males and 90.6%
of females had a positive change in attitude toward tobacco use due to influence of anti‑tobacco
advertisements.
CONCLUSION: There is an increased awareness on anti‑tobacco and this has been proved to be
effective in motivating them to quit tobacco as well as stop them from initiating tobacco use.

Abstract BACKGROUND: To provide quality care to the patient’s perspective and patient satisfaction are
two major multidimensional concepts. In India, patient satisfaction with dental services has received
only minor attention as the importance of the teeth is always neglected.
OBJECTIVE: To assess the satisfaction level among patients toward dental treatment rendered at
an academic institution.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: A cross‑sectional study was conducted among 474 voluntary camp
patients visiting Department of Public Health Dentistry, Swami Devi Dyal Hospital and Dental College,
Barwala, using a 14‑item closed ended questionnaire which included demographic details, attitude,
and practices of the participants and their satisfaction level to the treatment rendered to them was
graded as highly satisfied, satisfied, and not satisfied. The data were analyzed using SPSS version 18
which covered both descriptive and inferential statistics.
RESULTS: Curative and preventive treatment was mostly required in younger age groups whereas
extraction and prosthetic rehabilitation were found to be present in older age groups. Lack of
education and awareness was the most common reason behind not seeking treatment. Majority of the
participants were satisfied with the treatment rendered and were found to be statistically significant
with visiting and referrals (P < 0.01).
CONCLUSION: Imparting proper and appropriate information regarding the dental treatment will
definitely change the attitude of the patients, thus help in raising the satisfaction levels.

Abstract BACKGROUND/AIM: Today, the problem of obesity is a chronic condition that affects all age groups
in developed and developing countries. Since adolescence is a transitional period and behavioral
patterns formed in this period affect people in their adult years, attention to obesity and extra weight
in this age group is more important than other groups. Therefore, this study aims to investigate the
effects of nutrition education course on awareness of female 1st‑year high school students of Isfahan
based on transtheoretical model ( TTM) of behavioral change.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: In this semi‑empirical study, 64 female 1st‑year high school students
with weight problem were selected using nonpercent stratified sampling and divided into two control
and test groups. Data gathering was carried out using researcher‑made nutrition awareness and
stages of change questionnaire whose validity and reliability was confirmed. Participants in the
test group participated in a 2‑month education with sessions every 2 weeks and received one
brochure and 3 educational massages each week. Data were analyzed using independent t‑test
and Mann–Whitney test.
RESULTS: The results showed that the average nutrition awareness score of students in test group
was significantly higher than control group after intervention. Students in test group were also in
higher stages of change compared to control group after intervention.
CONCLUSION: The results show that TTM was effective in changing nutritional behavior in students.

Abstract INTRODUCTION: Breast milk provides nutritional, immunological, behavioral, and economic benefits
and helps to build mother‑infant bonding. Antenatal mothers need to be sufficiently aware about the
benefits of breastfeeding.
OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study is to assess the awareness and perception of breastfeeding
among antenatal mothers and to find out any association between sociodemographic factors and
breastfeeding awareness.
METHODOLOGY: A cross‑sectional study was conducted among 250 antenatal women residing in the
urban slums of field‑practice area of urban health and training center; using a predesigned, pretested,
semi‑structured interview schedule. Antenatal checkup followed by one to one counseling for the
women regarding breastfeeding was provided. Data were represented by frequencies, proportions,
and associations using Chi‑square, and the P < 0.05 was considered statistically significant.
RESULTS: Most (55.6%) of the women were in the age group of 18–24 years. The mean age at
marriage was 19.2 ± 2.5 years. 81.2% of them were Hindus, 13.2% had adequate, 49.6% had
moderately adequate, whereas 37.2% women had inadequate awareness about breastfeeding.
About 100% intended to breastfeed their children, but only 64% said that they intended to exclusively
breastfeed. 66.4% knew about the importance of colostrum. Age‑group, religion, literacy, occupation,
type of family, gravida, and number of antenatal visits showed highly significant (P < 0.001) association
with awareness of breastfeeding.
CONCLUSION: Nearly one‑third of the antenatal mothers lacked awareness on breastfeeding
practices. Although all intended to breastfeed, still only 64% knew about exclusive breastfeeding.
These gaps need to be addressed by awareness generation activities during antenatal counseling.