Health Promotion articles list

Dengue is an acute infection disease caused by a flavi virus (species Dengue virus of the genus Flavi virus), transmitted by female mosquito aedes mosquito, infection has globally become a major public health concern since the incidence of the dengue fever has increased more than 30-fold over the last decades. The dengue fever has been a most important public health problems since many years and the various outbreak of the dengue cases has been seen time to time. One of the reasons for the increasing and time to time outbreak of the dengue may be the reason of climate change, global warming, lack of knowledge about signs, symptoms, transmission, preventive measure and lack of ignorance or lack of the preventive practice of the dengue fever. Method: Descriptive, cross-sectional study on 192 head of household's was study population residing in Kanchan RM, Rupandehi Respondent was selected using Non probability judgmental sampling techniques by face-to-face interview was used. Result shows 58.3% good knowledge and 62% good practice. Knowledge was found to be associated with Age, Types of family, Size of family, educational level and Family suffered from dengue. Preventive practice was found to be associated with the Ever heard from health professional. Study will contribute towards development of appropriate policy strategies at local level that will tackle the problem associated with the knowledge and preventive practice of DF and provide a basis for future research on this area. Inferential analysis shows that there is significant association between the level of knowledge with age, types of family, size of family, educational level and family suffered from dengue and the level of preventive practice was associated with the ever heard from health professional.

Raju Khanal

It is with more sorrow and tremendous sadness we remember the death of our colleague the Libyan pharmacist, professor Mokhtar Ramadan Haman, at his home in Tripoli, Libya after long-suffering from brain cancer. He died on 02, February 2017 and his immaculate corpse was buried on the following day at the Souk-Al-Ahad cemetery, Bin Ghashir Palace. Professor Haman, was born in Tripoli, Libya, on January 1, 1957. He obtained his Bachelor of Pharmaceutical Sciences in 1981 at the University of Tripoli and his Ph.D. in Pharmacognosy in 1989 at Cardiff University, UK.

Mediterranean Journal of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences

The aim of this study was to evaluate the knowledge, attitude, and practice of pharmacovigilance by healthcare professionals in Benghazi. A structured questionnaire adapted from a previous validated study. One hundred questionnaires were distributed in August 2019 and filled by healthcare providers working at different hospitals in Benghazi, Libya. Participants were 57% physicians and 43% pharmacists (age average 31-40 years). 47% had correctly defined Pharmacovigilance while 19% know what is meant by adverse drug reactions. Moreover, 61% of the participants did not share information about raising adverse drug reactions in some patients with other healthcare professionals. 35% of them did not know about the adverse drug reactions reporting system in Libya. Whereas, 42% have strongly agreed that reporting adverse drug reactions is essential. 41% and 45% of participants believed that reporting adverse drug reactions is not time-consuming and increases patient safety, respectively. In conclusion, educational programs and training courses about the importance of Pharmacovigilance for physicians and pharmacists in Benghazi are needed.

Mediterranean Journal of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences

This review was aimed to describe a new approach of healthcare performance strategy based on individual genetic variants. Personalized medicine is a model for health care which is a combination of preventive, personalized, participatory and predictive measures. It is an approach for a better treatment by identifying the disease causing genomics makeup of an individual. This work features key advancements in the improvement of empowering advances that further the objective of customized and precision medication and the remaining difficulties that, when tended to, may produce phenomenal abilities in acknowledging genuinely individualized patient consideration. Customized treatment for patients determined to have strong tumors has brought about a few advances as of late. To improve a multi-drug approach ready to coordinate DNA and RNA adjustment, proteomics and metabolomics will be essential. The execution of translational examinations dependent on fluid biopsy and organoids or xenografts to assess molecular changes because of clonal weight produced because of the utilization of target specialists or tumor heterogeneity would help in the recognition of systems of opposition, proposing opportunities for novel mixes. The investigation of massive data in oncology can profit altogether from being engaged by artificial intelligence and machine learning strategies.

Mediterranean Journal of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences

Vaccination hesitation may affect the national efforts to slow down the spread of coronavirus among the population. This study was aimed to explore the views of final year pharmacy students at Faculty of Pharmacy, Elmergib University, Al kums, Libya towards COVID-19 vaccination. The study was conducted before the vaccine becomes available in Libya. A semi-structured questionnaire was distributed on March 14, 2021 to the fourth- year pharmacy students at Elmergib ‎University, Al khums Libya. Results showed a high degree of hesitancy towards vaccination against this virus (52.6%). Student's participants who said they would take the vaccine probably have said that because of their stress that caused by COVID-19 pandemic (47.4%). With regard to the gender, the participants’ views had no significant difference between male and female students on whether to take the vaccine or not (P = 0.825). In conclusion, hesitations towards vaccination and stress caused by student fear from the virus need to be addressed to minimize public reluctant to take the vaccine and to improve the education process during the pandemic.

Mediterranean Journal of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences

Nowadays, the pharmacy profession is moving toward a multidisciplinary approach. Besides the pharmacists’ role beyond dispensing and checking the safety, quality and efficacy of the delivered medications, pharmacists are currently using their clinical knowledge to serve the community through different disciplines including drug counseling, vaccination, screening, and drug therapy management

Mediterranean Journal of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences

Thrombocytopenia is a recurrent hematological disturbance in pregnancy. In pregnant women with thrombocytopenia, the risk of excessive bleeding during or after child-birth is high, particularly when they require a cesarean section, other surgery during pregnancy, labor or in the puerperium period. The objective of this study was to assess the prevalence of thrombocytopenia among pregnant women attending antenatal care service at Tripoli University Hospital, Libya. A cross-sectional analysis was used to determine the prevalence thrombocytopenia in pregnant women attending prenatal care services from July to December, 2020 at Tripoli University Hospital. A structured pretested questionnaire was used to obtain socio-demographic data, nutritional factors, obstetrics and gynecological factors, history and clinical conditions. Venous blood samples were collected for platelet count and other platelet parameters, which determined by using Sysmex automation. A total of 72 participated women; about 40%, 35% and 259% of the participants were in the third, second and first trimester, respectively. The mean number of children that women have was 2, with 2.7% having just one child and 47% having three or more children. This study concluded that the prevalence of thrombocytopenia and mostly with mild form is 8.3% and as being greater among pregnant women living in rural areas. Health care providers should do thrombocytopenia test regularly for every pregnant woman in order to prevent excessive bleeding during pregnancy, especially whom living in rural areas.

Mediterranean Journal of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences

Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a mental disorder that causes repeated unwanted thoughts or sensations, or do something over and over again. It is affecting all ages in the world. It is unusual for symptoms to begin after the age of 35 and half of people develop problems before 20. This making university students a target of OCD. This study investigates the prevalence of symptoms of OCD and identifies possible risk factors among pharmacy students of University of Tripoli, Libya. 80 pharmacy students registered in the final academic year 2019/2020 were enrolled in this study. All the participants were females ranging of 22 to 24 years old of a same environmental background. This study is based on a validated questionnaire for screening of OCD as mentioned by the American Psychiatric Association without modification. A total of 63 students have returned the questionnaire (response rate, 78.8%). The study shows that OCD symptom is relatively common among pharmacy students. The most common symptoms are losing something of importance (71%) and checking things over and over or repeat actions many times to be sure they are done properly (63%). Among OCD symptoms, the most common associated trigger factors were stress and phobia which representing 62% of the participated students. This study indicates that pharmacy students are at risk of being susceptible to getting OCD. OCD affects academic performance and quality of student life, therefore, a psychological and health services for university students should be implanted.

Mediterranean Journal of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences

Contact between pharmaceutical company representatives (PCRs) and medical practitioners is viewed by drug companies as a vital part of their marketing strategy. Studies show that PCRs employ persuasion disguised as information. Because PCRs are keenly involved in competitive marketing, they are more likely to use persuasion than information during their promotional visits. Information increases customer awareness of a particular product without influencing the preferences. Persuasive marketing directly influences a consumer’s brand preference. Positively influencing a prescriber’s attitude towards a product is essential for effective marketing since there is an association between attitude, intention and behaviour. Numerous studies find that pharmaceutical promotional interactions have an impact on physician’s perceptions and their prescribing practices. Yet, many of today's health professionals do not acknowledge their vulnerability to being misled by pharmaceutical marketing. This study demonstrate that Pharmaceutical promotion strategies do not differ greatly from those of other types of marketing, PCRs more likely to use persuasion to highlight the perceived difference of their particular brand. Persuasion often has a subtle influence that is not easy to detect and physicians should receive education regarding the drug promotion techniques used by pharmaceutical companies. Persuasion often has a subtle influence that is not easy to detect. Overconfidence is a major risk factor for being misled. This analysis highlights some critical aspects of persuasive communication by PCRs in promotional visits. It will help prescribers to interpret, evaluate and respond appropriately to manipulative behaviour by PCRs.

Mediterranean Journal of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences

COVID-19 pandemic has spread all over the world and has caused psychological impacts. Medical students are known to be vulnerable population, experiencing higher levels of anxiety, depression and other psychological disorders compared to non-medical students. The nature of life changes like what happened and still happening during the pandemic have its impact on mental health of the students. The aim of this study was to identify the psychological impacts of COVID-19 on medical students among different universities to develop profiles to characterize students' anticipated levels of psychological impacts during the pandemic. Also, to search for potential risk factors that could make students more likely to experience these impacts. An online survey was filled by medical students (n = 100) at faculties of medicine, dentistry, pharmacy and medical sciences of different universities: University of Benghazi, Libyan International Medical University, Omar Almokhtar University, Cairo University and Alexandria University. The students were taken to the further analysis. Thus, 55% of the participants had psychological impacts due to the pandemic and 17% had severe effect. Some of these impacts were actually positive as a large number (58%) of the participants felt relaxed during the pandemic. Multiple stressors were identified that contributed to the increased levels of stress, anxiety and depression. These included concern about academic performance (80%), concern about self/dear-one’s health (90%), difficulty with concentration (46%), disruption to sleeping patterns (78%), increased social isolation (26%), disruption to eating patterns (48%), changing in the living environment (26%), financial difficulties (34%) increased class workload (20%) depressive thoughts (37%) and suicidal thoughts (07%). In conclusion, the study indicates that COVID-19 pandemic have positive and negative impacts on medical students. Thus, it is suggested that measures need to alleviate students’ stress, which might have harmful effects in different aspects.

Mediterranean Journal of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences

The valuable effects of regular exercise for promotion of health and therapy of diseases were obviously evaluated. The notion that exercise can be considered as a medication has been hypothesized. The growing problems of obesity and non-communicable diseases have placed a great burden on public health experts to promote physical literacy and physical activity among the modern day population. Physical literacy and physical activity have become the cornerstones of women’s health. Women have certain special needs that includes reproductive health. Increased physical activity and maintaining normal body image and body weight will help a woman attain physical, mental and spiritual development. With the growing number of women with obesity and the implication of obesity as one of the main risk factors for non-communicable diseases like diabetes, hypertension, stroke and osteoarthritis, a knowledge and awareness about physical activity is essential. Thus, physical activity is a fundamental aspect of the improvement of motor skills and work performance, allowing a better healthy lifestyle. Physical exercise is effective to be measured as a drug, however, more care should be considered to the dosing and individual variations between genders.

Mediterranean Journal of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences

HIV/AIDS cases in Indonesia continue to increase and have spread to all provinces in Indonesia. Bandung is one of the cities with a high number of people living with HIV/AIDS in Indonesia. As one of the areas with the highest number of reported HIV cases, the Bandung city government seeks prevention and treatment through the role of existing stakeholders. However, stigma and discrimination against people living with HIV & AIDS, now referred to as PLHIV, are still found and are difficult to eliminate. People diagnosed as contaminated with the HIV & AIDS virus often get a negative stigma. This study aims to analyze how to remove the stigma and discrimination of people with HIV/AIDS through the role of civil society. The research results show that stigma against HIV is often directed at certain minority groups and is often associated with morals and religion. Meanwhile, discrimination against people with HIV is manifested in violations of individual rights in the economic, social, and cultural spheres. The issue of stigma and discrimination against PLWHA has not received serious attention. Therefore, the role of civil society is very important because it can open a dialogue with the community regarding HIV/AIDS to dispel myths that tend to discriminate against PLHIV.

Syahrul Tuba

This study investigated the effect of health education on posture practices in reducing low back pain among patients in Rivers state, Nigeria. To achieve this, pretest-posttest quasi-experimental design was employed, and the study targeted 170 patients at the University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital in Nigeria. Two objectives having corresponding research questions and hypotheses guided the study, while convenience and stratified sampling techniques were used to select 50 participants, comprising 35 patients from the general outpatient clinic department and 15 patients from the spine physiotherapy unit, with 20 male and 30 female participants. Data collection was done by administering a self-structured, self-administered questionnaire, titled health education effect on ergonomic practices and low back pain, which had a reliability coefficient of 0.75. Both descriptive and inferential statistics were used to answer the research questions and test the hypotheses. The research found that educating patients on various methods of preventing low back pain, including healthy weight maintenance, warm-up exercises, and proper postural habits while sitting and standing, had a noteworthy impact on reducing pain. Moreover, the study also revealed that health education programmes were successful in therapeutic posture practices and reducing low back pain in patients residing in Rivers state. Therefore, the study concluded and recommended that health education interventions for functional and therapeutic posture practices are effective strategies for reducing low back pain among patients in Rivers state, and healthcare providers should incorporate these interventions into their treatment plans for patients suffering from low back pain.

FXintegrity Publishing

In the context of emerging sustainability challenges, demarketing has continued to draw the attention of academicians and practitioners globally over the past few years. It is interesting to note that demarketing is as old as marketing itself, yet its application and scope have grown from the past two decades only. Kotler and Levy, (1971) has defined demarketing as “that aspect of marketing which deals with discouraging customers in general or a certain class of customers in particular on a temporary or permanent basis”. This systematic literature review attempts to enrich the discussion on demarketing research through a systematic and comprehensive review of 64 articles published between 2000 and 2022. Using TCCM framework, we present relevant theories, research contexts, study characteristics, and methodologies used in demarketing research. Our review (1) Presents a systematic and comprehensive overview of the research in demarketing over the last two decades (2) Examines studies in demarketing within the framework of ‘triple bottom line’ approach for sustainability (3) Suggests a suitable definition of demarketing considering its exorbitant application within the sustainability context (4) Identify gaps and sets agenda for future research. Our systematic literature review found that research in demarketing has been growing considerably over the past two decades, twice as much in the last decade compared to the previous decade with spill-over to new sectors. The literature review, through the lens of ‘triple bottom line’ approach, is able to establish that demarketing can be employed to effectively address the sustainability challenges encountered by policymakers and practitioners.

Jeevan lawrence

The utilization of traditional medicine (TM) is prevalent among the general population in Africa; however, its use among individuals with diabetes in the region remains underdocumented. This review aimed to synthesize the available literature to identify the prevalence and predictors of TM use among persons with diabetes in Africa. A systematic search was conducted across multiple databases, including MEDLINE, Embase, CINAHL, and AMED, covering studies published from 2000 to April 2023. Of 1560 records identified, 24 articles met the inclusion criteria. The prevalence of TM use varied significantly, ranging from 12.4% to 77.1%, with a median prevalence of 50%. TM was commonly used concurrently with conventional medicine (CM) (35.4–88.4%), with a majority (63.8–91.3%) not disclosing TM use to healthcare providers. Female gender, long diabetes duration, use of oral antiglycaemic medication and family history of diabetes emerged as the most common factors that predicted the use of TM. This review highlights the widespread use of TM among individuals with diabetes in Africa, often in conjunction with CM. The high prevalence of undisclosed TM use emphasizes the urgent need for healthcare providers to actively inquire about TM use during clinical consultations to address potential herb–drug interactions and adverse effects.

Emmanuel Ekpor