How do Iranian older adults define place attachment? a qualitative study

Background: Place attachment is the emotional bond between individuals and environment, which seems to increase wellbeing in old age. The purpose of this study was to explore the concept of place attachment from older adults’ perspective. Methods: In this qualitative study, a total of 14 older adults were purposively included in Aran and Bidgool city, Isfahan, Iran. The data were collected using a semi-structured interview and analyzed applying a directed content analysis approach. Results: As participants reported, place attachment meant intensive love, pride, dependency, and familiarity with the environment. Socio-economic attachment was identified as the most prevalent dimension of place attachment, followed by affective, physical, autobiographical, and religious-cultural attachment. Conclusion: Our findings provided a new understanding of place attachment in the context of Iran. The concept of place attachment was identified with a multidimensional nature from Iranian older adults’ perspective. Such a multidimensionality of place attachment should be considered while planning for age-friendly cities or the operationalization of the subject of aging in place, particularly in the developing societies, like Iran

Designing and verifying an instrument to measure religiosity

For downloading the full-text of this article please click here.Background and Objective: In spite of the paramount importance of religion in human life, the definition of its domain, concepts, and components is subject to theoretical and methodological uncertainty. The root of many of these ambiguities lies in the absence of appropriate measurement tools. Given that, the main purpose of this research is validating and determining reliability of a local instrument for measuring religiosity.Method: This study aimed at developing an instrument. The participants were provided with researchers' questionnaire developed after studying documents and providing the theoretical framework, preparing question banks and validity. The sample, 500 adult citizens over 18 years old in 22 districts of Tehran selected by using random sampling and classification according to gender, age, and area of residence. The obtained data were utilized for exploratory factor analysis, Cronbach's alpha reliability, validity criteria, indicators fitted, and eventually the introduction of religiosity questionnaire. In this research, all the Ethical issues were observed and authors declared no conflicts of interest.Results: Based on exploratory factor analysis (EFA), seven factors accounted for 65.67% of the religiosity variance. The results of exploratory factor analysis (RMSEA=0.08, CFI=0.907, GFI=0.869) show the 21-item questionnaire has an acceptable fit. The internal consistency (α=0.83) and consistency over time also indicated that the final questionnaire has acceptable reliability.Conclusion: Results show that the developed questionnaire is acceptable in terms of validity and reliability to be used in Islamic societies for measuring religiosity.For downloading the full-text of this article please click here.Please cite this article as: Shahmirzalou H, Rafiey H­, Mousavi MT, Ghaedamini Harouni Gh, Hosseini Safa Z. Designing and verifying an instrument to measure religiosity. J Res Relig Health. 2019; 5(2):6- 22. doi: https://doi.org/10.22037/jrrh.v5i2.1930

Decomposing disparity in adult individual’s mental health in Tehran among lower and higher economic groups; an Oaxaca- Blinder analysis on urban HEART Survey- round 2

Background: Mental health is one of the main aspects of social well-being. Tehran -capital of Iran- is metropolitan, where the mental health status of citizens is not prioritized effectively. Objectives: The purpose of this study was identifying contributors of mental health inequality between lower and higher economic groups in Tehran through Oaxaca- Blinder method. Methods: The study was conducted by the data of Tehran’s Urban Heart Survey- Round 2 (2012). Through a three- stage stratified and clustered sampling method, 34,700 were selected  as samples. The mental health status was measured by the General Health Questionnaire 28- items (GHQ- 28) and the quantity of the inequality in mental health was measured by corrected concentration index. The Fairlie’s decomposition approach was performed in STATA 14.Results: The corrected concentration index were: -0.0967 and -0.1004 by Erreyger’s and Wagstaff’s approaches. Being of the Iranian origin, disability conditions, employment status and smoking were identified as the main contributors of inequality in mental health among lower and higher economic groups.Conclusion: Thus, re-organizing strategies and plans on promoting the socio- economic status of non-Iranian residents, improving employment opportunities, developing well-designed environment for disabled individuals and supporting plans to reduce smoking is recommended to the urban policy makers. Keywords: Mental health, decomposing inequality, urban heart survey, Tehran

Decomposing disparity in adult individual\u2019s mental health in Tehran among lower and higher economic groups; an Oaxaca- Blinder analysis on urban HEART Survey- round 2

Background: Mental health is one of the main aspects of social well-being. Tehran -capital of Iran- is metropolitan, where the mental health status of citizens is not prioritized effectively. Objectives: The purpose of this study was identifying contributors of mental health inequality between lower and higher economic groups in Tehran through Oaxaca- Blinder method. Methods: The study was conducted by the data of Tehran\u2019s Urban Heart Survey- Round 2 (2012). Through a three- stage stratified and clustered sampling method, 34,700 were selected as samples. The mental health status was measured by the General Health Questionnaire 28- items (GHQ- 28) and the quantity of the inequality in mental health was measured by corrected concentration index. The Fairlie\u2019s decomposition approach was performed in STATA 14. Results: The corrected concentration index were: -0.0967 and -0.1004 by Erreyger\u2019s and Wagstaff \u2019s approaches. Being of the Iranian origin, disability conditions, employment status and smoking were identified as the main contributors of inequality in mental health among lower and higher economic groups. Conclusion: Thus, re-organizing strategies and plans on promoting the socio- economic status of non-Iranian residents, improving employment opportunities, developing well-designed environment for disabled individuals and supporting plans to reduce smoking is recommended to the urban policy makers

Checking the Validity and Reliability of the Persian Version of the Resilience Assessment Questionnaire in Patients With Multiple Sclerosis

Objective This study aimed to investigate the validity and reliability of the Persian version of the “resilience assessment questionnaire” in patients with multiple sclerosis. Materials & Methods The statistical population of the present study included all multiple sclerosis patients living in Tehran City in 2022. Of them, 250 people were selected through available sampling. The participants completed the questionnaires of Gromis et al. resilience and the hospital anxiety and depression scales. The validity of the questionnaire was investigated using the formal, content, construct, and predictor methods. Also, the reliability of the test was checked through the Cronbach α method and retesting. Data analysis was done using SPSS software, version 26. Results The face validity was confirmed by checking the content and solving the appearance problems. The content validity of the questionnaire was confirmed after correcting the questions. The results of exploratory factor analysis showed that the resilience questionnaire includes 5 components: Emotional and cognitive strategies, physical activity and diet, family and friends support, peer support, and spirituality. Also, the Cronbach α values of these components were 0.88, 0.79, 0.62, 0.76, 0.50, and 0.89, respectively. The eigenvalues of these components explained 47.49% of the variance. There was a significant relationship between the resilience and anxiety/depression questionnaire components. The correlation value between the first and second stages confirmed the retest validity of the resilience questionnaire. Conclusion The Persian version of the “multiple sclerosis resilience” scale is a valid and reliable tool for assessing resilience features in Iranian MS patients, which can be used in policymaking and research studies

Comparing Job Satisfaction of Prehospital and Hospital Emergency Nurses in Mashhad, Iran

Background: Job satisfaction and its effective factors are important issue in productivity improvement. The main purpose of this study is to determine the job satisfaction of nurses in pre-hospital and hospital emergency rooms of Mashhad health system. Materials and Methods: The present study was descriptive-analytic with cross-sectional design carried out on nurses working in 168 pre-hospital emergency bases and 12 emergency departments of public hospitals of Mashhad affiliated to Mashhad University of Medical Sciences in 2017. A total of 232 nurses working in pre-hospital and hospital emergency units were selected and studied. A reliable and valid questionnaire including personal and professional information was used for collecting data based on the standardized Brayfield and Ruth Job Satisfaction test. Data analysis was performed by 1-sample t test, 1-way t test, two Independent samples, and linear regression analysis in SPSS V. 18. Results: A total of 232 nurses answered to questionnaires. The average quality level of job satisfaction based on Brayfield and Ruth test was 62.6% in pre-hospital emergency nurses and 62.4% in nurses of emergency hospital. It was also found that the variables of age, gender, educational level, service record, working hours, income level and marital status were significant determinants of job satisfaction, so that these variables were altogether explain about 30%(F=13.5, P<0.001) of job satisfaction. Conclusion: Based on the findings of this study, nurses' workplace is not associated with their job satisfaction. Also, job satisfaction is affected by many demographic variables, which change due to time and place and social conditions

Iran Health System Responsiveness in regared to Provision of Physical Rehabilitation: Results of a National Survey

Background and Aim: The health system's responsiveness to provision of health services displays the ability of the system to meet the non-medical needs of people. The present study aimed to assess Iran's health system responsiveness in providing rehabilitation for people with disabilities (PWD). Materials and Methods: This population-based cross-sectional study included 1537 PWD referring to physical rehabilitation centers in all provinces of Iran by using a multistage cluster sampling method in 2019. A valid self-administrated questionnaire was used for data collection. Stata software (version 14.0) was used for data processing and analysis. Results: The frequency rate of good responsiveness to meet physical rehabilitation needs was 64.5%. The health system's highest and lowest frequency rates of good responsiveness were related to rapid response (74.5%), independence  and participation in decision-making (52.5). Having basic health insurance coverage (OR=1.97, 95% CI:1.20-3.25), severity of disability (OR=2.02, 95% CI:1.14-3.60), economic status of individuals (OR=2.04, 95% CI:1.17-3.56), and household size (OR=0.82, 95% CI:0.72-0.94) were significant determinants in regard to poor responsiveness of the health system. Conclusion: To maintain and enhance responsiveness and eliminate inequalities, interventions such as expanding the rehabilitation facilities, holding special skills training courses for rehabilitation-related assistants, general practitioners, and health workers, and also, empowering PWD are recommended. Further studies are also recommended to identify the causes of poor responsiveness and take measures that can make the health system more responsible

Examining the relationship between social support and tendency to substance use among Iranian earthquake survivors:The mediating role of positive mental health

Increasing natural hazards have caused various social issues among survivors. This study was conducted to investigate the mediating role of positive mental health between social support and tendency to substance use among Kermanshah earthquake survivors in Iran. This cross-sectional study was conducted in 2021. Participants were 450 survivors over 18 years old experienced 2017 Kermanshah Earthquake and were selected using a multistage sampling method. Data were analyzed using SPSS software, AMOS Graphics, and Stata. According to the results, the relationship between positive mental health and socioeconomic status (β = 0.25), and having an own home (β = 0.082) was positive and significant. The relationship between tendency to substance use and education level (β = −0.126) was negative and significant. Men were also more likely to use substance than women (β = 0.10). Indirect relationship between social support and the tendency to substance use was not statistically significant (Beta = 0.03, p = 0.54, Z = 0.613). In addition, the main hypothesis of the study, namely the mediating role of positive mental health between social support and tendency to substance use was not confirmed. According to the findings, another variable may play a mediating role in relationship between social support and substance use among earthquake survivors. Considering the relationship between social support and positive mental health separately with the tendency to substance use, relevant authorities should plan and policy by acting appropriately to improve social support and positive mental health and, consequently, reduce substance use

Quality-of-life index and its related factors during COVID-19 pandemic: A community-based study in Rashtian women/Iran

BACKGROUND: The changes in everyday life, caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, were rapid and unprecedented. This pandemic affected not only physical health but also well-being and life satisfaction. This study was designed to assess the status of a quality-of-life index and some related factors during the coronavirus pandemic in the public population of Rashtian women. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This cross-sectional study was performed on 784 Rashtian women who were selected by cluster random sampling between 2020 and 2021. The data collection tool was the Ferrans and Powers Quality of Life questionnaire, which has two parts: satisfaction and importance of life. Each section consists of four subscales: health and performance, social and economic, psychological/spiritual, and family. Data analysis was done using descriptive and analytic statistics. RESULTS: The mean score of the quality-of-life index in this study was 21.39 (of 30), which is higher than the mean level. The scores obtained from the satisfaction section were inferior to the similar questions in the important section. The findings showed that there was no statistically significant difference between the quality-of-life scores of women living in different urban areas (P > 0.05). CONCLUSION: The feeling of satisfaction increases the ability to cope with problems and mental pressures and improves the level of mental and physical health of couples and ultimately of all members of society. So although the overall quality of life was above average, appropriate interventions should be designed to maintain and improve their satisfaction

The impact of interventions on management of frailty in hospitalized frail older adults: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Abstract Background: One of the most challenging issues for the elderly population is the clinical state of frailty. Frailty is defined as a cumulative decline across psychological, physical, and social functioning. Hospitalization is one of the most stressful events for older people who are becoming frail. The aim of the present study was to determine the effectiveness of interventions focused on management of frailty in hospitalized frail older adults. Methods: A systematic review and meta-analysis of research was conducted using the Medline, Embase, Cochrane, ProQuest, CINAHL, SCOPUS and Web of Science electronic databases for papers published between 2000 and 2019. Randomized controlled studies were included that were aimed at the management of frailty in hospitalized older adults. The outcomes which were examined included frailty; physical, psychological, and social domains; length of stay in hospital; re-hospitalization; mortality; patient satisfaction; and the need for post discharge placement. Results: After screening 7976 records and 243 full-text articles, seven studies (3 interventions) were included, involving 1009 hospitalized older patients. The quality of these studies was fair to poor and the risk of publication bias in the studies was low. Meta-analysis of the studies showed statistically significant differences between the intervention and control groups for the management of frailty in hospitalized older adults (ES = 0.35; 95% CI: 0. 067–0.632; z = 2.43; P < 0.015). However, none of the included studies evaluated social status, only a few of the studies evaluated other secondary outcomes. The analysis also showed that a Comprehensive Geriatric Assessment unit intervention was effective in addressing physical and psychological frailty, re-hospitalization, mortality, and patient satisfaction. Conclusions: Interventions for hospitalized frail older adults are effective in management of frailty. Multidimensional interventions conducted by a multidisciplinary specialist team in geriatric settings are likely to be effective in the care of hospitalized frail elderly. Due to the low number of RCTs carried out in a hospital setting and the low quality of existing studies, there is a need for new RCTs to be carried out to generate a protocol appropriate for frail older people