Awareness and usage of emergency contraceptive pills among working women: a hospital based survey from north India

Background: In spite of the decline observed in total fertility rate (TFR) in India during the last few decades, the unintended pregnancy rates continue to remain the same. With increasing employment levels of women, there has been an increase in the contraceptive usage rates, but evidence among the working women regarding the emergency contraceptive pills is lacking. The Objectives of the study was to assess, among the working women regarding the emergency contraceptive pills (ECP).Methods: A cross sectional survey was conducted among the reproductive age group working women attending the obstetrics and gynecology outpatient department clinic of a private hospital in Delhi. Face to face interviews were conducted using a sem-structured questionnaire.Results: Out of the 206 participants studied, around one-third (35.0%) were not aware about ECPs. Amongst the aware, 81.3% and 44.8 % did not know about the correct indication and correct timing of ECP use respectively. Amongst those who were aware about ECPs, 91.8% had never used it.Conclusions: Even though the awareness about ECPs is not low, the correct knowledge about its indications and correct timing is poor. More emphasis on increasing the awareness about ECPs is required to increase its correct use thereby reducing TFR further

TORCH infection in antenatal women: A 5-year hospital-based study

Objectives: The diagnosis of acute TORCH infection in pregnant women being pertinent for the management of such infections prompted the current study due to lack of published data from India describing the seroprevalence of specific IgM antibodies to TORCH agents in this part of Northern India. Material and Methods: Blood samples of a total of 240 high-risk pregnant women attending the antenatal clinic of our tertiary care hospital during a 5-year period (2005–2009) were analyzed for specific IgM antibodies to Toxoplasma gondii, rubella, Cytomegalovirus (CMV), and combined herpes simplex virus (HSV) 1 and 2 by capture enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Results: Overall, seropositivity to TORCH infection in the present study was 98.8%. Seropositivity to T. gondii was 24.2%, rubella 9.2%, CMV 53.8%, and 11.7% were positive for combined HSV-1 and 2 infections. The average age of the study population was 27.5 years. Overall, 15.4% of women were seropositive for coinfections. Conclusion: The high seropositivity of 98.8% and presence of multiple infections seen in the present study communicate to all health authorities to screen routinely all pregnant women for TORCH infections for appropriate intervention in the proper management of these patients

Routine immunization services during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic

Routine immunizations (RI) keep the infectious diseases under control in the community. However, during the coronavirus pandemic, to prevent the associated exponential rise in the number of cases, it became necessary to stop routine health services across the country. Routine Immunization also had to be discontinued. It is to be realized however that the risk of vaccine-preventable diseases is gradually increasing in direct proportion to the delay in administering vaccinations to eligible children. It’s likely that we will face outbreaks of VPD if we keep RI halted for weeks together. Various dimensions of RI need to be examined from the perspective of the COVID-19 pandemic ranging from vaccine hesitancy to operationalization of services. In this article, we highlight this hidden problem, which has the potential to further challenge our already challenged health and healthcare-related situation. The domains which deserve careful consideration are discussed to supporting policymakers in making informed decisions in this regard

Awareness and usage of emergency contraceptive pills among working women: a hospital based survey from north India

Background: In spite of the decline observed in total fertility rate (TFR) in India during the last few decades, the unintended pregnancy rates continue to remain the same. With increasing employment levels of women, there has been an increase in the contraceptive usage rates, but evidence among the working women regarding the emergency contraceptive pills is lacking. The Objectives of the study was to assess, among the working women regarding the emergency contraceptive pills (ECP).Methods: A cross sectional survey was conducted among the reproductive age group working women attending the obstetrics and gynecology outpatient department clinic of a private hospital in Delhi. Face to face interviews were conducted using a sem-structured questionnaire.Results: Out of the 206 participants studied, around one-third (35.0%) were not aware about ECPs. Amongst the aware, 81.3% and 44.8 % did not know about the correct indication and correct timing of ECP use respectively. Amongst those who were aware about ECPs, 91.8% had never used it.Conclusions: Even though the awareness about ECPs is not low, the correct knowledge about its indications and correct timing is poor. More emphasis on increasing the awareness about ECPs is required to increase its correct use thereby reducing TFR further

Data entry skills in a computer-based spread sheet amongst postgraduate medical students: A simulation based descriptive assessment

Background: In India, research work in the form of a thesis is a mandatory requirement for the postgraduate (PG) medical students. Data entry in a computer-based spread sheet is one of the important basic skills for research, which has not yet been studied. This study was conducted to assess the data entry skills of the 2 nd year PG medical students of a medical college of North India. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional, descriptive study was conducted among 111 second year PG students by using four simulated filled case record forms and a computer-based spread sheet in which data entry was to be carried out. Results: On a scale of 0-10, only 17.1% of the students scored more than seven. The specific sub-skills that were found to be lacking in more than half of the respondents were as follows: Inappropriate coding (93.7%), long variable names (51.4%), coding not being done for all the variables (76.6%), missing values entered in a non-uniform manner (84.7%) and two variables entered in the same column in the case of blood pressure reading (80.2%). Conclusion: PG medical students were not found to be proficient in data entry skill and this can act as a barrier to do research. This being a first of its kind study in India, more research is needed to understand this issue and then include this yet neglected aspect in teaching research methodology to the medical students