Caregiver strain and its predictors among parents of autistic children: a cross-sectional study.

This study estimates the frequency and predictors of caregiver strain (CGS) among parents of autistic children. Demographic details and CGS were collected through a validated tool from 403 parents of autistic children in Karachi, Pakistan. Regression modelling was performed to report associations between social, behavioural, and communication problems and socioeconomic predictors of CGS.

Validation of HF-Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis versus Body Mass Index in Classifying Overweight and Obese Pakistani Adults.

Purpose: To determine the validity of hand-to-foot bioelectrical impedance analysis (HF-BIA) versus body mass index (BMI) to assess overweight and obesity status in adults against a reference method, dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (DXA).

Patients And Methods: It is a validation study conducted on 206 Pakistani adults ≥20 years recruited through convenience sampling technique at PNS Shifa Hospital and Jinnah Post Medical Centre, Karachi, Pakistan.

Results: HF-BIA showed better sensitivity of 90.

Violence against health care workers in rural areas of Sindh, Pakistan.

Objective: To determine the magnitude of violence against healthcare workers in a rural setting, and the consequences of this violence on their personal and professional lives.

Methods: The descriptive, quantitative, cross-sectional study was conducted in 4 rural districts of the Sindh province of Pakistan from February to December 2019, and comprised healthcare workers, including doctors, nurses, support staff and field workers. Data was collected using a structured questionnaire.

Comparison of Peer-Assisted Learning with Traditional Faculty-led Teaching in Family Medicine Clerkship: An Experimental Study.

Objective: To compare the effects of reciprocal peer-assisted learning (PAL) with traditional faculty-led teaching on the academic performance of fourth-year medical students in Family Medicine clerkship.

Study Design: An experimental study.

Place And Duration Of Study: Department of Health Professions Education and Department of Family Medicine, Shifa College of Medicine, Islamabad, Pakistan, from 22nd February 2019 to 25th February 2020.

Role of Politics, Guilds and Pedagogy in defining Policies in Medical Education: The Pakistan Scenario.

Politics in education is not a new concept and has been a sore point of discussion between academia and policy makers. The politics of medical education has led to the formation of informal guilds that have taken control over medical education. Policy decisions concerning medical/dental education affecting the lives of the community, at large are implemented without giving due consideration to the pedagogy of medical education.

Prevalence of anxiety and depression in high school students of Karachi, Pakistan.

Objectives: Anxiety and depression are commonly occurring mental disorders in school-going students and if not considered can result in a worse outcome. The objective of our study was to determine the prevalence, risk factors and relationship of anxiety and depression with different variables among high school students of Karachi.

Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted in October - November 2020 in government and private high schools of four districts of Karachi.

Enhancing satisfaction and respect for health care personnel: a mixed-methods case study of a community-based intervention.

Health care personnel (HCP) face violence as a result of lack of satisfaction and respect among community members. It is imperative for HCP to engage in social work by involving communities for enhancing satisfaction and respect for them. This study attempted to provide insight on this phenomenon by using a mixed-methods concurrent embedded approach.

Validation of a Public Health Tool used for the Assessment of Violence against Healthcare Providers in the Rural Areas of Sindh.

Objective: To validate a public health tool for assessing violence and its effects against healthcare providers (HCPs).

Study Design: Cross-sectional study.

Place And Duration Of Study: Rural districts of Sindh from June to December 2019.

Difference in memory recall among medical students after reading printed text (hard copy) vs. on screen text (soft copy).

Objective: To compare the difference in "memory recall" among undergraduates (UGs) and postgraduates (PGs) medical students reading printed text (hard copy) vs. on-screen text (soft copy).

Methods: Final year UGs medical students (Group A) were divided into two batches, one batch was given hard copy of 1258 worded text and other group was given a soft copy of the same text.

Systematic development and refinement of a contextually relevant strategy for undergraduate medical ethics education: a qualitative study.

Background: Delivery of medical ethics education is complex due to various reasons, compounded by the context-dependent nature of the content. The scarcity of relevant resources in the contexts of some developing countries adds a further layer of difficulty to ethics education in these contexts. We used a consultative approach with students, teachers and external experts to develop a practical approach to medical ethics education.

Assessment of a mass media campaign on giving way to ambulances in five cities of Pakistan.

Objective: To determine the contribution of a mass media campaign towards encouraging more vehicles to give way to ambulances, and to identify the factors associated with higher likelihood of giving way to ambulances.

Methods: The three-phase observational study was conducted from December 2017 to March 2018 in Karachi, Lahore, Rawalpindi, Islamabad and Peshawar cities of Pakistan. Six road sites in different areas of each city were selected for observation.

Does watching violent electronic and social media content lead to increased levels of aggression? A survey among adolescents in an urban slum of metropolitan Karachi.

Objectives: Increased levels of aggression and desensitization of adolescents has been witnessed as a result of exposure to violent social/electronic media content. It is imperative for policymakers to study such behavioral outcomes in order to make sound policies regarding media literacy. The objective of the study therefore was to assess relationship between violent electronic/social media exposure and level of aggression.

The magnitude and determinants of violence against healthcare workers in Pakistan.

Objectives: To determine the magnitude and determinants of violence against healthcare workers (HCWs) and to identify the predominant types and causes of violence experienced by them.

Methodology: A cross-sectional survey based on structured questionnaire adopted from previous surveys and qualitative data was conducted in 4 large cities and 12 districts in 3 provinces of Pakistan. The survey covered 8579 from all cadres of HCWs, including doctors, nurses, technicians, support staff, ambulance workers, vaccinators, lady health visitors, midwives and lady health workers (LHWs).

Attitudes of faculty and residents of surgical specialties towards professionalism at a tertiary care hospital of Islamabad.

Objectives: To determine the attitudes of faculty and residents of surgical specialties towards professionalism and to test the validity and reliability of a tool developed in USA for Pakistan.

Methods: An exploratory validation study was carried out at Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS), Islamabad from 01-Aug-2016 to 31-Jan-2017. Penn State College of Medicine Professionalism Questionnaire (PSCOM) was used, being a reliable and valid survey tools.

Multiple dimensions of violence against healthcare providers in Karachi: Results from a multicenter study from Karachi.

Objective: To investigate the causes, consequences and possible solutions for violence against healthcare.

Methods: The qualitative study was conducted in Karachi June 2015 to December 2015 using in-depth interviews and focus groups discussions with all stakeholders. Transcription was done verbatim using both audio and videotapes of all the sessions.

Violence Against Health Care Providers: A Mixed-Methods Study from Karachi, Pakistan.

Background: Violence against health care providers (HCPs) remains a significant public health problem in developing countries, affecting their performance and motivation.

Objectives: To report the quantity and perceived causes of violence committed upon HCPs and identify strategies intended to prevent and de-escalate it.

Methods: This was a mixed-methods concurrent study design (QUAN-QUAL).

Identifying a parsimonious model for predicting academic achievement in undergraduate medical education: A confirmatory factor analysis.

Objectives: This study was conducted to adduce evidence of validity for admissions tests and processes and for identifying a parsimonious model that predicts students' academic achievement in Medical College.

Methods: Psychometric study done on admission data and assessment scores for five years of medical studies at Aga Khan University Medical College, Pakistan using confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and structured equation modeling (SEM). Sample included 276 medical students admitted in 2003, 2004 and 2005.

Effectiveness of media awareness campaigns on the proportion of vehicles that give space to ambulances on roads: An observational study.

Background And Objective: The findings of the Health Care in Danger project in Karachi suggests that there is presence of behavioral negligence among vehicle operators on roads in regards to giving way to ambulances. A mass media campaign was conducted to raise people's awareness on the importance of giving way to ambulances. The main objective of this study was to determine the effectiveness of the campaign on increasing the proportion of vehicles that give way to ambulances.

Reflections by potential health care providers on a research methodology course taught under a primary health care centre: An experience of inter-professional education.

Objectives: Public health research demands a collaborative approach in working with communities to combat expected challenges in the field. Therefore, to improve primary care services, a training programme on research methodology, focusing on the principles of inter-professional education (IPE), was introduced at Karachi Medical and Dental College. The objectives of this study were to assess the level of learning by participants in the domain of communication and to explore participants' opinions and evaluations of the training programme.

Effect of Leadership Styles on Job Satisfaction Among Critical Care Nurses in Aseer, Saudi Arabia.

Objective: To evaluate the effect of transformational and transactional leadership styles of head nurses on the job satisfaction of staff nurses in critical care units (CCU) of a tertiary care hospital.

Study Design: Cross-sectional study.

Place And Duration Of Study: Critical care units at Aseer Central Hospital (ACH), Abha, Saudi Arabia, from July to December 2012.

Reliability and validity of the faculty evaluation instrument used at King Saud bin Abdulaziz University for Health Sciences: Results from the Haematology Course.

Objective: To assess reliability and validity of evaluation tool using Haematology course as an example.

Methods: The cross-sectional study was conducted at King Saud Bin Abdul Aziz University of Health Sciences, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, in 2012, while data analysis was completed in 2013. The 27-item block evaluation instrument was developed by a multidisciplinary faculty after a comprehensive literature review.

Effect of course coordinator behavior and motivation on students' achievement: Results from five curriculum blocks of two undergraduate student cohorts at King Saud bin Abdulaziz University of Health Sciences.

Objective: The purpose of the study was to assess the relationship between students' perception of course/block coordinators performance and attributes with students' assessment scores in respective courses.

Methods: This retrospective data based study was conducted at the College of Medicine, King Saud bin Abdulaziz University of Health Sciences (KSAU-HS). It was started in March 2013 and completed in June 2013 after the graduation of the fourth cohort.