School-based study to assess the nutritional status (BMI based) of adolescents of Gojra city of district Toba Tek Singh, Punjab, Pakistan

Adolescence is the make-or-break stage of life. Major physical, mental, and psychological growth takes place at this age. Adequate and balanced nutrition is a vital requirement to support this phase. Adolescents living in developing and low-income countries are more likely to face nutritional challenges. Poor nutritional status during adolescence is an important determinant of health outcomes.Objective: To analyze the nutritional status (BMI based) of school-going adolescents in Gojra city, Punjab, Pakistan. Methods: A school-based cross-sectional survey was carried out covering 635 (6-8 grade) school-going adolescents (boys and girls) from public schools in Gojra city. Data were collected through anthropometric measures taken. Symptoms of malnutrition were also assessed. Mean and frequencies were reported for demographic variables and symptoms of malnutrition while two sample Independent T-test was used to compare the means of groups under study using SPSS version-23.Results: The overall prevalence of underweight in boys was found (33.9%) as compared to adolescent girls (32.3%). It was also found that malnutrition and related health complications were higher in adolescents with lower BMI values.Conclusions: Adolescent boys and girls were found with a high prevalence of malnutrition along with other symptoms

Potential benefits and perceived need for health promoting hospitals in Pakistan: a healthcare stakeholder\u27s perspective

OBJECTIVES: To explore perceptions of healthcare stakeholders\u27 about health promoting hospitals, potential benefits and need in Pakistan.METHODOLOGY: A qualitative exploratory study was conducted between July-August 2007. The data was collected through key-informant (KI) interviews and focus group discussions (FGD) with purposively selected hospital administrators, healthcare providers, health policy makers, and UN-donor agency representatives. The thematic analysis was done using QSR NVivo 2.0; and nodes representing themes were generated.RESULTS: The study participants perceived health promotion, a concept synonymous to health education. Those participants with public health background were better able to relate their perceptions to a more holistic view of health promotion; than those without public health background. Participants largely revealed HPH to benefit not only patients, but also community, hospital staff and hospitals at large. HPH transition was also perceived as \u27opportunistic step\u27 for controlling triple burden of diseases, curtailing morbidity and mortality toll, and \u27sole answer\u27 to promote population health, and wellbeing. Given the view, HPH was strongly recommended as Need of the hour for Pakistan.CONCLUSION: The HPH settings would bring positive change in the healthcare delivery system, by empowering patients and local community. Technical trainings on health promotion for healthcare providers, constant policy dialogue, political will and support from community stakeholders will further strengthen the scope of health promoting hospitals in Pakistan

Integration of health promotion into nursing practice: a case study in Pakistan.

The purpose of this study was to understand the concept of health promotion and perceptions related to the integration of health promotion in nursing practice in Pakistan. The study utilized the qualitative single case study approach to explore and describe the concept of health promotion, its significance and ways to integrate health promotion strategies in nursing practice. The data were collected from three different sources; focus group discussion among final year Post-RN BScN students, key informant interviews of practicing nurses, faculty, and MScN students, as well as a document review of the Post-RN BScN curriculum. Data analysis included a content and thematic analysis, yielding four major themes—”Health Promotion as Diverse”, “Health Promotion as Necessary”, “Health Promotion as Nursing Role”, and “Health Promotion as a Strategic Imperative”. Further, the findings highlighted the competencies, support mechanisms, and barriers which select nurses faced while integrating the health promotion strategies in practice

Are we empowered? A qualitative approach to unfold the experiences of female nurses in Pakistan

The disparity of men and women in certain societies, such as Pakistan, is a growing concern. The disparity, unchanging mind-set, and definitions rooted in traditions do not free individuals from the socially bound gender identities. In such circumstances, educational institutions can become a way of transforming social structures. Considering female nurses in Pakistan as a case study, this paper explores the notion of “empowerment” and the factors responsible for empowerment or disempowerment of female nurses. The study also evaluates the role of a leading nursing institution in Pakistan namely the Aga Khan University- School of Nursing and Midwifery (AKUSONAM) in empowering female nurses. The data is collected through five focus group discussion among forty-five alumni of AKU-SONAM. The findings of the study presents an “inside-out” understanding of the term “empowerment” by female nurses of Pakistan and; enlists the challenges faced by women in Pakistan in becoming and working as nurses. The study also put forward recommendations for nursing professional bodies such as Pakistan Nursing Council and Pakistan Nursing Federation and other nursing institutions in Pakistan. The paper would serve as a guide to enhance further development in nursing and women empowerment

Attitudes toward intimate partner “honor”-based violence in India, Iran, Malaysia and Pakistan

Although intimate partner violence (IPV) and ‘honor’-based violence (HBV) are major concerns throughout the world, little research has investigated the acceptance of these forms of abuse outside of the West. This study therefore responds to this gap in the literature by exploring attitudes towards HBV in a fictional depiction of IPV across four Asian samples: India, Iran, Malaysia and Pakistan. Participants (n=579) read a hypothetical scenario in which a husband, despite his own marital infidelity, verbally abuses and physically assaults his wife after discovering that she has been unfaithful. Participants then completed a questionnaire that assessed perceptions of damage to the husband’s honor, approval of intimate partner HBV against the wife, and perceptions of both the victim-wife and the perpetrator-husband. Findings revealed that more males than females, across all four nations, were endorsing of honor-adhering attitudes in response to the perceived threat to the husband’s reputation resulting from the wife’s infidelity. Additionally, of the four samples, Pakistani participants were the most approving and Malaysians least endorsing of honor-adhering attitudes. Results are discussed in relation to studies of honor-adherence in Asian populations. This study provides an original glimpse into the perceptions of intimate partner HBV in these not-often sampled nationalities

In the name of Riwaj: An ethnographic study to explore the notion of women empowerment among BISP recipients in rural Sakhro-Sindh, Pakistan

Women empowerment is a national agenda for Pakistan and, one of its manifestations is the nationwide cash transfer program namely Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP). With the help of Bourdieu methodological paradigm of “habitus” this paper analyses empowerment among BISP recipients in their social settings where various social actors such as her husband and wadera of the village dominate her agency but, at the same time, women herself submits her agency to these social actors under the veil of riwaj (social customs). This ethnographic study reveals that the performance of submission among women follows an inner drive for conformation to riwaj that becomes a significant part of their habitus. Women’s continuous physical performance of submission inscribes moral ideas onto their body and, fuses both her outer obedience and inner feelings to a point where she herself endorses submission of agency to riwaj

Behavioral change communication tool kit to promote hygiene among school children

https://ecommons.aku.edu/books/1098/thumbnail.jp

Women trafficking: causes, concerns, care!

Pakistan is both a country of origin and destination as far as women trafficking is concerned. Poverty, gender discrimination, lack of education, and ignorance about legal rights are some of the underlying causes. Available data suggest several areas of concern, like, for instance: direct health effects, maladaptive coping leading to the use of illicit drugs, and inaccessibility to healthcare facilities. Therefore, numerous interventions would be required at three levels: the prevention of trafficking, the protection of victims and the prosecution of the traffickers

Promoting Positive Birth Experiences: Supporting Pregnant and Lactating Women During the COVID-19 Crisis

The World Health Organization (WHO) declared the COVID-19 outbreak a public health emergency of international concern, in January 2020. While international organizations and governments strive to strengthen the world’s emergency response mechanism to combat the pandemic, the public in general faces anxiety and fear. One of the most vulnerable groups is pregnant and lactating women. The pandemic has given rise to many apprehensions about the state of their health and well-being as well as that of their unborn or newly born child. A live Facebook session was conducted by a group of experts from a private university in Karachi, Pakistan, to proactively address the concerns of pregnant and lactating mothers during this challenging time. Worries raised by pregnant and lactating mothers during the live session helped in understanding the anxieties of this group amidst the COVID-19. This paper presents some recommendations in response to the apprehensions shared by pregnant and lactating mothers, that could help in promoting a positive birth experience. These recommendations include a) alternative methods of professional caregiving and support, b) engaging and strengthening midwifery services, c) safety of pregnant and lactating frontline health care workers, and d) supporting mental health and wellbeing. The proposed measures, if adopted by the government and the healthcare industry, could potentially, promote the safety and wellbeing of pregnant and lactating mothers during the pandemic

Antigay “Honor” Abuse: A Multinational Attitudinal Study of Collectivist-Versus Individualist-Orientated Populations in Asia and England

Objective: Cultural collectivism, a core feature of honor cultures, is associated with the acceptance of aggression if it is used in the name of so called ‘honor’. Currently overlooked in the research literature, this study explored perceptions of anti-gay ‘honor’ abuse in collectivist orientated honor cultures, where homosexuality, in particular, is considered to be dishonorable. Method: To conduct exploratory and comparative analysis, this study recruited 922 students in four Asian countries (India, Iran, Malaysia and Pakistan), as well as Asian British and White British students in England. All participants read a brief vignette depicting a man whose relatives verbally abuse him and threaten him with life-threatening violence, after suspecting that he is gay and has joined an online dating website to meet men. Participants then completed a short questionnaire that assessed the extent to which they thought the man’s actions had damaged his family’s honor and their approval of the anti-gay ‘honor’ abuse depicted in the scenario. Results: Broadly in line with predictions, data analyses revealed attitudes more supportive of anti-gay ‘honor’ abuse in all five collectivist-orientated populations than the sample of individualistic-orientated counterparts in England. Notably, however, a series of one-way ANOVAs demonstrated that these results varied depending on country of residence, gender, religious denomination, educational status and age. Conclusions: The findings show that individual and demographic differences influence perceptions towards homophobic ‘honor’ abuse in collectivist cultures. These differences are a useful indices of the psychosocial factors that underpin hostile attitudes towards gay males in cultures where homosexuality is denounced