The Current Status of Knowledge and Behavior Related to STI Prevention among High School Students in Korea

This study explores coping with STIs and related factors including knowledge, sexual behavior, and sex education among Korean adolescents. Anonymous self-administered questionnaires were distributed to 135 male and 150 female high school students. The results showed that 2.1% of participants had had sexual experience. Males had less information than females (p<0.05); 38.5% of males did not consult anyone. In contrast, females acquired information from and consulted with their parents. Although females' sexual abstinence behavior was higher than that of males (p<0.001), there were no significant differences in the STI knowledge test. Regarding sex education, 32.4–59.5% of students had received education on STIs. Students' degree of satisfaction with sexual knowledge was 10.2%, their understanding of STIs was poor, and they could not cope with having a checkup. In conclusion, high school students receive insufficient education to protect themselves from STIs. Their knowledge was not related to sexual abstinence behavior and coping behavior. Therefore, schools in Korea should provide high school students with appropriate education on STI prevention and coping behavior. In addition, an environment that facilitates consultation and clinics for helping young people deal with sexual problems should be provided

Knowledge, Attitude, and Practice Concerning the Prevention of STIs among High School Students in Northern, Thailand

The objectives of this study were to examine the current state of knowledge and sexual behavior concerning the prevention of Sexually Transmitted Infections(STIs), and to evaluate attitudes toward safe sex and coping with STIs. We performed a self-administered questionnaire and focus group interview among 197 high school students in Northern, Thailand. We also determined the presence or absence of chlamydia and gonorrhea infections in urine samples taken from 70 students. The participants were actively concerned with emotional relationships and homosexuality, but held negative attitudes toward sexual behavior including premarital sex and kiss, and had less chance for sex education along with their developmental stages. Consciousness of sexuality, knowledge level of STI prevention, self-efficacy toward safe sex, and coping ability with STIs were significantly higher in females than in males. In the urine test, all of the participants as a sub-set of those surveyed had negative results for STIs. In conclusion, the knowledge level of the participants on STI prevention correlated with self-efficacy toward safe sex and coping ability with STIs. Thus, the authors of this study conclude that sex education is effective for students to get comprehensive knowledge about STI prevention, and educators need to consider students' individual sexual issues

Knowledge, Behavior and Attitudes Concerning STI Prevention among Out-of-School Youth in the Philippines

The purpose of this study is to determine the current knowledge, behavior and attitude toward STI prevention among out-of-school youth in the Philippines. Anonymous self-administered questionnaires were distributed separately to 28 out-of-school youth (15 male, 12 female, one unspecified). The mean age of the subjects was 18.0 ± 3.0 years, with an overall age range of 15 to 24 years. The female respondents were younger than the male respondents on average. The out-of-school youth obtained information on STIs mainly from the media, and had fewer information sources than in-school students. Although the out-of-school youth had insufficient knowledge of STIs compared to the students, they were fairly knowledgeable about cervical cancer. They were also more sexually active than the students. The out-of-school youth consulted their parents on STI prevention, but received insufficient knowledge on STI prevention from just this source. It was concluded that out-of-school youth could constitute a high risk demographic for STIs, and health education may be essential to help them protect themselves from STIs

Current Status of Knowledge and Attitude toward STI Prevention among Out-of-school Youth in the Philippines

The objectives of this study were to determine the knowledge and attitude toward STI prevention, and actual situation of infections (chlamydia and gonorrhea infections) among out-of-school youth in the Philippines. As many as 129 out-of-school youth age 13-20 years old were participated in this study in September 2017. A self-administered questionnaire was used to assess characteristics, knowledge of STIs; sexual behavior; counselors for sexual problems; access to the internet; concerns about STIs; coping with STI symptoms using the scenario setting; sexual risks for STIs; and opinion. The presence or absence of chlamydia and gonorrhea infections in urine was determined with using Aptima Combo 2 Assay. Data was analyzed statistically with using mean, standard deviation, percentage, Mann-Whitney U, and Chi-square. p Value of <0.05 were considered statistically significant. The subjects were concerned about STI and had basic knowledge toward STI prevention but negative attitude toward safer sex. On the urine test, ten out of 126 participants (7.9%) had positive reactions about chlamydia and three of them were co-infection with gonorrhea. Female participants were much more likely to get infected (12.8%) than male (3.2%). In conclusion, the knowledge toward STI prevention had no correlation with their attitude. Therefore, sexual education is not enough to focus on STI knowledge but also put more emphasis on practice to promote safer sexual behavior

The Current Situation and Issues of Sexual Health Education by School Nurses in Muntinlupa City, Philippines

Cases of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and teenage pregnancy have been increasing among adolescents in the Philippines. School nurses (SNs) are expected to deliver quality healthcare services and provide relevant sexual health education for students. This study explores the current situation of providing sexual health education by SNs in Muntinlupa City toward health promotion and gains understanding of school health issues in the Philippines. This study employed a cross sectional research design using anonymous self-administered questionnaires, which were distributed to 23 SNs. Then, a semi-structured interview was conducted with them in Muntinlupa City. Among the 23 SNs, 30.4% of them were affiliated to high schools. The most frequent health issues experienced by primary school students were malnutrition, gastrointestinal pain due to hunger, upper respiratory tract infection, and poor hygiene. In high schools, the most frequent health issues were poor mental health, malnutrition and early pregnancy. SNs lacked knowledge on STI, mental health, sex education, safe sex, teenage pregnancy and nutritional care for children. In conclusion, SNs lack knowledge about sex education (early pregnancy and STIs) and mental health. Therefore, seminars should be provided for all SNs to gain adequate knowledge and skills to teach students of all types of school

Healthcare service utilization in postpartum women

Background: A low ratio of utilization of healthcare services in postpartum women may contribute to maternal deaths during the postpartum period. The maternal mortality ratio is high in the Philippines. The aim of this study was to examine the current utilization of healthcare services and the effects on the health of women in the Philippines who delivered at home. Methods: This was a cross-sectional analytical study, based on a self-administrated questionnaire, conducted from March 2015 to February 2016 in Muntinlupa, Philippines. Sixty-three postpartum women who delivered at home or at a facility were enrolled for this study. A questionnaire containing questions regarding characteristics, utilization of healthcare services, and abnormal symptoms during postpartum period was administered. To analyze the questionnaire data, the sample was divided into delivery at home and delivery at a facility. Chi-square test, Fisher’s exact test, and Mann–Whitney U test were used. Results: There were significant differences in the type of birth attendant, area of residence, monthly income, and maternal and child health book usage between women who delivered at home and those who delivered at a facility (P<0.01). There was significant difference in the utilization of antenatal checkup (P<0.01) during pregnancy, whilst there was no significant difference in utilization of healthcare services during the postpartum period. Women who delivered at home were more likely to experience feeling of irritated eyes and headaches, and continuous abdominal pain (P<0.05). Conclusion: Financial and environmental barriers might hinder the utilization of healthcare services by women who deliver at home in the Philippines. Low utilization of healthcare services in women who deliver at home might result in more frequent abnormal symptoms during postpartum

Maternal Knowledge Associated with the Prevalence of Iron and Folic Acid Supplementation Among Pregnant Women in Muntinlupa, Philippines : A Cross-Sectional Study

Purpose: The World Health Organization advocates that all pregnant women in areas where anemia is prevalent receive supplements of iron and folic acid. However, owing to a myriad of factors, the uptake of iron and folic acid supplementation (IFAS) is still low in many countries. Therefore, this study was conducted to assess the prevalence of IFAS and its associated factors among pregnant women. Patients and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted at a hospital in Muntinlupa, Philippines, between March and August 2019 among 280 pregnant women. A systematic random sampling technique was used to select participants. Data were collected using interviewer-administered questionnaires. Multivariable logistic regression analyses were employed to identify factors associated with the prevalence of IFAS among pregnant women. Results: Among 280 pregnant women, a majority (85.6%, n= 238) took IFAS during pregnancy. Among the respondents, 128 (45.9%) women had knowledge about signs and symptoms of anemia, 126 (45.3%) had knowledge of the benefits associated with IFAS, and 42 (15.4%) had knowledge about side effects associated with IFAS. The main sources of information about IFAS were health care providers (41.8%), followed by community health workers (CHWs) (14.6%). Maternal knowledge concerning IFAS benefits (OR =  2.50, CI =  1.04– 5.97, p=0.04) was positively associated with the prevalence of IFAS. Conclusion: Maternal knowledge about the benefits of taking IFAS was significantly associated with the prevalence of IFAS among pregnant women in Muntinlupa, Philippines. There is a pressing need to improve health education on the benefits of IFAS among pregnant women to increase its prevalence. This emphasizes the necessity of increased involvement of health care providers and CHWs to increase women’s knowledge of IFAS benefits and support them through pregnancy

Assessment of daily step differences between youth and elders

[Purpose] The main objective of this study was to assess daily steps differences between youth and elders. [Method] Thirty-five youth and fifteen elders participated in this study. The following variables were assessed: age, body mass index, frequency of exercise,and pedometer data. The participants were asked to wear pedometer (Tanita PD-646) fortheir waist for 7 days and recorded daily steps. We assessed of daily steps differences between youth and elders. [Results] The daily steps average of youth was 5,267 steps, and that of elders was 6,711 steps. The result showed significantly fewer daily steps in youth than elders. There was no significant correlation between the weekly steps and age, BMI,frequency of moderate exercise in both youth and elders