Treatment Outcomes of Severe Acute Malnutrition and Its Determinants Among Paediatric Patients in Quetta City, Pakistan.

Purpose: Severe acute malnutrition (SAM) is the most prevalent reason for admission to a paediatric unit, and it is a leading cause of mortality in many countries, including Pakistan. This study aimed to assess treatment outcomes and associated factors among children aged 6-59 months with severe acute malnutrition.

Patients And Methods: A retrospective cohort study was conducted at the Outpatient Therapeutic Feeding Program Centre established at the Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan Medical Complex Quetta.

Hospital Pharmacists' Viewpoint on Quality Use of Antibiotics and Resistance: A Qualitative Exploration from a Tertiary Care Hospital of Quetta City, Pakistan.

Suboptimal antibiotics use and the development of antibiotic resistance is a universal calamity. The theoretical model of therapeutic efficacy correlates quality use of antibiotics with healthcare practitioners' understanding of antibiotic use and resistance. Keeping this phenomenon in mind, we aimed to evaluate hospital pharmacists' understanding of antibiotic use and resistance at a public healthcare institute in Quetta city, Pakistan.

Doctors' adherence to guidelines recommendations and glycaemic control in diabetic patients in Quetta, Pakistan: Findings from an observational study.

Background: Poor control of diabetes mellitus (DM) is partly attributed to doctors' poor adherence to guidelines.

Objective: To evaluate doctors' adherence to pharmacotherapeutic recommendations of DM management guidelines and factors associated with guidelines adherence and glycaemic control.

Methods: This prospective observational study included 30 doctors who were treating DM patients in their private clinics in Quetta, Pakistan.

Physicians' Response and Preparedness of Terrorism-Related Disaster Events in Quetta City, Pakistan: A Qualitative Inquiry.

Background: Besides catastrophes, infrastructural damages, and psychosocial distress, terrorism also imposes an unexpected burden on healthcare services. Considerably, adequately-prepared and responsive healthcare professionals affirms effective management of terrorism-related incidences. Accordingly, the present study aimed to evaluate physicians' preparedness and response toward terrorism-related disaster events in Quetta city, Pakistan.

Disposal practices of unused and expired pharmaceuticals among the general public in Quetta city, Pakistan.

Objective: Although community practices towards disposal of expired and unused medications vary globally, the phenomenon is neglected specifically in developing countries. We, therefore, aimed to assess the disposal practices of unused and expired pharmaceuticals among the general public in Quetta city, Pakistan.

Methods: A questionnaire-based, cross-sectional survey was conducted among 830 respondents in Quetta city, Pakistan.

Translation, Validation, and Psychometric Evaluation of the Diabetes Quality-of-Life Brief Clinical Inventory: The Urdu Version.

Purpose: The study is aimed to examine the psychometric properties of the Urdu version of the Diabetes Quality-of-Life Brief Clinical Inventory.

Methods: We adopted the forward-backward procedure to translate the Diabetes Quality-of-Life Brief Clinical Inventory (DQoL-BCI) into the Urdu language (lingua franca of Pakistan). The intraclass correlation (ICC) confirmed the consistency of retaining the items, and Cronbach's alpha established the test-re-test reliability.

Medication Errors and Type 2 Diabetes Management: A Qualitative Exploration of Physicians' Perceptions, Experiences and Expectations From Quetta City, Pakistan.

Background: Type 2 Diabetes-related medication errors are frequently reported from the hospitals and consequently are of major concern. However, such reports are insufficient when developing healthcare settings are pursued in literature. Keeping this inadequacy in mind, we therefore aimed to explore physicians' perceptions, experiences and expectations of medication errors when managing patients with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus.

Profile and Predictors of Maternal Quality of Life During Physiological Pregnancy: A Cross-Sectional Analysis.

Background: Quality of Life (QoL) and its determinants are significant in all stages of life, including pregnancy. The physical and emotional changes during pregnancy affect the QoL of pregnant women, affecting both maternal and infant health. Hence, assessing the QoL of pregnant women is gaining interest in literature.

Prescribing Patterns for Upper Respiratory Tract Infections: A Prescription-Review of Primary Care Practice in Quetta, Pakistan and the Implications.

To identify and address the potential overuse of antibiotics, it is important to ascertain the prescribing practices of physicians. We, therefore, conducted this prescription analysis to document URTI-specific antibiotic prescription frequency in a public primary healthcare setting of Quetta city, Pakistan. A retrospective record review was conducted of all prescriptions for URTIs in Combined Military Hospital, Quetta from 1 March to 31st May 2021.

Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Among Nurses During the COVID-19 Wave III: Results of a Cross-Sectional Assessment.

Purpose: The current study was aimed to evaluate depression, anxiety, and stress among nurses during the COVID-19 (wave III) at a public hospital in Quetta city, Pakistan.

Participants And Methods: By using the validated Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale - 21, three hundred and twenty-five nurses practicing at the Sandeman Provincial Hospital, Quetta were approached for data collection. Through SPSS, both descriptive and inferential statistics were used during data analysis.

Translation and validation study of Quality of Life Questionnaire for Physiological Pregnancy at Sandeman Provincial Hospital, Quetta, Pakistan.

Objective: To examine the psychometric properties of the Urdu version of Quality of Life Questionnaire for Physiological Pregnancy.

Methods: The cross-sectional study was conducted from August 1 to October 31, 2020, at the Obstetrics and Gynaecology department of Sandeman Provincial Hospital, Quetta, Pakistan. The Quality of Life Questionnaire for Physiological Pregnancy was translated into Urdu by using a forward-backward procedure.

Exploring Nurses' Perception of Antibiotic Use and Resistance: A Qualitative Inquiry.

Purpose: Quality use of antibiotics and the development of antibiotic resistance is a global catastrophe. In the conceptual context, the phenomenon is correlated with the healthcare practitioners' understanding of antibiotic use and resistance. Therefore, the study aimed to highlight nurses' perception of antibiotic use and resistance at a public healthcare institute in Quetta City, Pakistan.

"Expecting the Unexpected:" Nurses' Response and Preparedness of Terrorism-Related Disaster Events in Quetta City, Pakistan.

In addition to the psychiatric and societal misery, terrorism places an exceptional burden while delivering healthcare services. Accordingly, a responsive and well-prepared healthcare system ensures effective management of terrorism-related events. Within this context, with a strong historic grounding in addressing situations of societal crisis nurses are well-placed in contributing to the global arena of humanitarian policy and social research.

Effectiveness of Shorter Treatment Regimen in Multidrug-Resistant Tuberculosis Patients in Pakistan: A Multicenter Retrospective Record Review.

In Pakistan, the treatment of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) with a shorter treatment regimen (STR), that is, 4-6 months of amikacin, moxifloxacin (Mfx), ethionamide, clofazimine (Cfz), pyrazinamide (Z), ethambutol (E), and high-dose isoniazid, followed by 5 months of Mfx, Cfz, Z, and E, was initiated in 2018. However, there is a lack of information about its effectiveness in Pakistani healthcare settings. Therefore, this retrospective record review of MDR-TB patients treated with STR at eight treatment sites in Pakistan aimed to fill this gap.

Diabetes-related Knowledge, Medication Adherence, and Health-related Quality of Life: A Correlation Analysis.

Context: Even though positive treatment outcomes for type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) are linked to disease knowledge and adherence to medications, inadequate knowledge, poor adherence, and resistance to lifestyle modifications are still common among patients. This situation has been a continuing dilemma for patients and healthcare providers, and these factors negatively affect the health-related quality of life (HRQoL) of patients.

Objective: The current study intended to evaluate the correlations between diabetes-related knowledge, medication adherence, and HRQoL among T2DM patients in Pakistan.

Religious Cliché and Stigma: A Brief Response to Overlooked Barriers in COVID-19 Management.

For decades, religion has provided explanations and answers to existential questions and queries that can emerge during a pandemic. This characteristic of religion has helped communities in finding answers and meanings to their confusions. During a pandemic, healthcare professionals are often unprepared in answering the patients' religious beliefs regarding the diseases.

Satisfaction Levels of Medical Attendants at a Pakistani Emergency Department.

Introduction Healthcare services all over Pakistan are facing an ever-growing patient flow. Rapid urbanization and a population boom are mainly responsible for this phenomenon. This is most evident in the emergency department.

Knowledge and practice of adolescent females about menstruation and menstruation hygiene visiting a public healthcare institute of Quetta, Pakistan.

Background: The current study is aimed to assess menstruation-related knowledge and practices of adolescent females visiting a public health care institute of Quetta city, Pakistan.

Methods: A questionnaire-based cross-sectional survey was conducted. Nine hundred and twenty three female adolescents attending general out-patient departments of Mohtarma Shaheed Benazir Bhutto Hospital Quetta, Balochistan, was approached for data collection.

Development of a rapid resolution HPLC method for the quantitative determination of sitagliptin in Human plasma.

A new high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) method for the quantitative determination of sitagliptin in human plasma was developed and validated for pharmacokinetics study. The plasma was spiked with the internal standard (Salbutamol, IS), extracted with trichloro acetic acid. The extracted analyte was injected into a Symmetry® ODS C18 column (250mm×4.

Design and synthesis of 2,6-di(substituted phenyl)thiazolo[3,2-b]-1,2,4-triazoles as α-glucosidase and α-amylase inhibitors, co-relative Pharmacokinetics and 3D QSAR and risk analysis.

Ten fused heterocyclic derivatives bearing the 2,6-di(subsituted phenyl)thiazolo[3,2-b]-1,2,4-triazoles as central rings were synthesized and structures of the compounds were established by analytical and spectral data using FTIR, EI-MS, H NMR and C NMR techniques. In vitro inhibitory activities of synthesized compounds on α-amylase, α-glucosidase and α-burylcholinesterase (α-BuChE) were evaluated using a purified enzyme assays. Compound 5c demonstrated strong and selective α-amylase inhibitory activity (IC=1.

Frequency and predictors of anxiety and depression among pregnant women attending tertiary healthcare institutes of Quetta City, Pakistan.

Background: Anxiety and depression (A&D) are commonly reported among pregnant women from all over the world; however, there is a paucity of workable data from the developing countries including Pakistan. The current study, therefore, aims to find out the frequency and predictors of A&D among pregnant women attending a tertiary healthcare institutes in the city of Quetta, in the Balochistan province, Pakistan.

Methods: A questionnaire based, cross-sectional survey was conducted.

Profile and predictors of health related quality of life among type II diabetes mellitus patients in Quetta city, Pakistan.

Background: This study aims to assess the profile and predictors of Health-Related Quality of Life (HRQoL) in Type II Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM) patients in Quetta, Pakistan.

Methods: The study was designed as a questionnaire based, cross sectional analysis. 300 Type II diabetic patients attending public and private hospitals were targeted for data collection.

Frequency and evaluation of the perceptions towards caesarean section among pregnant women attending public hospitals in Pakistan and the implications.

Objectives: There is increasing prevalence of caesarean sections (CS) worldwide; however, there are concerns about their rates in some countries, including potential fears among mothers. Consequently, we aimed to determine the frequency of CS, and explore patient's perception towards CS attending public hospitals in Pakistan, to provide future guidance.

Methods: A two-phased study design (retrospective and cross sectional) was adopted.