Occupational Health Profiles among Informal Sector Workers in Jepara, Central Java

Background: Every industry presents various kinds of safety hazards to its employees. The spectrum of possible occupational safety risks ranges from severe and immediate physical dangers to milder hazards. Occupational accidents directly impact the company’s bottom line. An injured employee easily means countless lost man hours and quickly adds up to not only billion rupiahs in company’s expenses. This study aimed to describe occupational health profiles among informal sector workers in Jepara, Central Java. Subjects and Method: This was a cross-sectional study conducted in Plajan village, Jepara, Central Java. A total of 58 informal sector workers were selected for this study. The dependent variable was occupational health. The independent variables were personal protective equipment (PPE), PPE use, occupational disease, work accident, availability of occupational safety and health regulations, smoking prohibition, availability of health workers, availability of the national health insurance (NHI)/BPJS personnel, availability of first aid box, water supply and toilet. The data were collected by questionnaire and described in percent. Results: Out of 58 informal workers under study, 41 (70.68 %) worked in the wood craft industry. PPE was available in 25 (43.1%) locations. PPE use was 2 (3.4%). Occupational accidents and illness occurred in 52 locations. Occupational illnesses included cough (10.3%), eye irritation (27.2%), and hand irritation (10.3%). Causes of occupational accidents included sharp equipment or machine (89.6%) and fire (3.4%). Occupational health and safety regulation was available at 3 (6.8%) locations. Smoking prohibition, health workers, and the NHI personnel, were absent. First aid boxes were available in 31% locations. Water supply and toilet were available at all locations. Conclusion: Occupational health and safety remain sub-optimal among informal sector workers, which require close attention from the management. Keywords: occupational health, safety, accident, informal sector workers

Effect of “Contraceptive Technology Update” Pre-Service Training on the Knowledge and Skill of Medical Student

Background: Contraception is an effective method of lowering the population rate. However, anecdotal evidenceshowed that generally doctors were unable to provide IUD and implant contraceptive installation services. This study aimed to determine the effect of Contraceptive Technology Update (CTU) pre-service training on the knowledge and skill of the medical college students. Subjects and Method: This was a quasi experiment using one group before and after with no comparison design. A sample of 50 college students from the medical college was selected for this study. All of the study subjects received CTU training for 5 days, comprising 3 days of in-class training using mannequin, and 2 days of practical training with patients. The independent variable was CTU pre-service training. The dependent variables were knowledge and skill. The knowledge data were measured by questionnaire. IUD and implant fixing skills were observed using MiniCEX. The data were analyzed by Wilcoxon test. Results: Knowledge after CTU training (median= 77.5) was higher than before CTU training (median= 62.5) with p= 0.001. IUD fixing skills after CTU training (median= 13.0) was higher than before CTU training (median= 10.0) with p= 0.001. Conclusion: CTU pre-service training significantly improves both knowledge and skills of IUD and implant fixingof medical college students. Keywords: CTU pre-service training, contraceptive, medical college studen

Diversity studies of freshwater goby species from three rivers ecosystem in Luwuk Banggai, Central Sulawesi, Indonesia

Inland public water areas which include freshwater lakes and several rivers in Sulawesi Island have native and endemic fish species which potential as ornamental fish. One of them is a member of Gobiidae. Several studies have reported the species of freshwater goby in Central Sulawesi Province. However, the information is still lacking, especially in the Luwuk Banggai, Central Sulawesi. Therefore, research is needed to examine the diversity of gobies in this area. Observations were conducted in three rivers (Salodik, Kintom, and Simpong). The results of fish inventory in the three Luwuk Banggai rivers obtained 131 fish specimens, namely 26 specimens from the Salodik river, 29 specimens from the Kintom river, and 76 specimens from the Simpong river. The Simpong River has the highest Shannon- Wiener index (H’) followed by the Kintom and Salodik rivers, which are 2.6313, 2.0114, and 1.3656, respectively. Similarity analysis of the three rivers produced 2 clusters. The Salodik River in fish diversity shows differences with the other two rivers, while the Simpong and Kintom rivers are in one cluster. Further research is needed related to the biodiversity of gobie

Factors Affecting the Slenderness Limit for RC Columns-The Use of the (ACI-318M-05) Provisions

The current ACI code and many other codes permit the moment magnification method for design of slender reinforced concrete (RC) columns. Manually, the design/analysis procedure is tedious, so that the codes state a pre-prediction if the column is slender or not. In other words, before starting design codes provide slenderness limits to be considered to decide whether a column is slender or not. This work will concentrate on the slender RC column provisions of the latest ACI Code. Using this method some columns are found to be short. In the proposed method of this work, it is found that some of these short columns are found to be long , thus needing moment magnification. Since column analysis/design represents dealing with one of the most critical parts of RC buildings, this proposed magnification is presented in this work

Prevalence and Determinants of Metabolic Syndrome in Qatar: Results from a National Health Survey

OBJECTIVES: To determine optimum measurements for abdominal obesity and to assess the prevalence and determinants of metabolic syndrome in Qatar. DESIGN: National health survey. SETTING: Qatar National STEPwise Survey conducted by the Supreme Council of Health during 2012. PARTICIPANTS: 2496 Qatari citizens aged 18-64 representative of the general population. PRIMARY AND SECONDARY OUTCOME MEASURES: Measure of obesity (body mass index, waist circumference or waist-to-height ratio) that best identified the presence of at least 2 other factors of metabolic syndrome; cut-off values of waist circumference; frequency of metabolic syndrome. RESULTS: Waist circumference ≥102 for men and ≥94 cm for women was the best predictor of the presence of other determinants of metabolic syndrome (raised blood pressure, fasting blood glucose, triglycerides and reduced high-density lipoprotein cholesterol). Using these values, we identified 28% of Qataris with metabolic syndrome, which is considerably lower than the estimate of 37% calculated using the International Diabetes Federation (IDF) criteria. Restricting the analysis to participants without known elevated blood pressure, elevated blood sugar or diabetes 16.5% would be classified as having metabolic syndrome. In a multivariable logistic regression analysis, the prevalence of metabolic syndrome increased steadily with age (OR=3.40 (95% CI 2.02 to 5.74), OR=5.66 (3.65 to 8.78), OR=10.2 (5.98 to 17.6) and OR=18.2 (7.01 to 47.5) for those in the age group \u2730-39\u27, \u2740-49\u27, \u2750-59\u27, \u2760-64\u27 vs \u2718-29\u27; p CONCLUSIONS: Waist circumference was the best measure of obesity to combine with other variables to construct a country-specific definition of metabolic syndrome in Qatar. Approximately 28% of adult Qatari citizens satisfy the criteria for metabolic syndrome, which increased significantly with age. Education and physical activity were inversely associated with this syndrome

Narghile (water pipe) smoking among university students in Jordan: prevalence, pattern and beliefs

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background and objectives</p> <p>Narghile is becoming the favorite form of tobacco use by youth globally. This problem has received more attention in recent years. The aim of this study was to investigate the prevalence and pattern of narghile use among students in three public Jordanian universities; to assess their beliefs about narghile's adverse health consequences; and to evaluate their awareness of oral health and oral hygiene.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>The study was a cross-sectional survey of university students. A self-administered, anonymous questionnaire was distributed randomly to university students in three public Jordanian universities during December, 2008. The questionnaire was designed to ask specific questions that are related to smoking in general, and to narghile smoking in specific. There were also questions about oral health awareness and oral hygiene practices.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>36.8% of the surveyed sample indicated they were smokers comprising 61.9% of the male students and 10.7% of the female students in the study sample. Cigarettes and narghile were the preferred smoking methods among male students (42%). On the other hand, female students preferred narghile only (53%). Parental smoking status but not their educational level was associated with the students smoking status. Smokers had also significantly poor dental attendance and poor oral hygiene habits.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>This study confirmed the spreading narghile epidemic among young people in Jordan like the neighboring countries of the Eastern Mediterranean region. Alarming signs were the poor oral health awareness among students particularly smokers.</p