Health concerns of Iranian adolescents: Protocol for a mixed methods study

Background: Adolescents have particular health and developmental needs that suggest they should neither be treated as older children nor younger adults. Objectives: The aim of this paper is to report the protocol for a mixed methods study that set out to investigate the health concerns of Iranian adolescents and their sources of health information with the goal of identifying suitable strategies to address their health concerns. Materials and Methods: This mixed methods study consists of an explanatory sequential design to be conducted in two phases. The first phase was a population-based cross-sectional survey of 915, 14-18 year old adolescents who were selected by stratified cluster random sampling method from the 22 main municipal sectors of Tehran, Iran. They completed a series of self-administered questionnaires which were analyzed using quantitative approaches. The second phase was a qualitative study in which adolescents were selected using purposeful sampling for individual in-depth semi-structured interviews on the basis of the quantitative findings from the first phase. These data, together with a literature review and data obtained through nominal group technique, would then be used to in the development of strategies to reduce adolescents' health concerns. Results: The findings of this mixed methods sequential explanatory study are expected to provide unique information about the health concerns of Iranian adolescents and their sources of information, which to date have received little attention. Conclusions: These data will provide a rich source of information that can be used by intervention programs, health professionals and policy makers in addressing the health concerns of adolescents, with the goal of facilitating a successful passage to adult life. © 2014, Iranian Red Crescent Medical Journal

"konkoor Giant", a narrative of high school female students from Gorgan, Iran

The university entrance exam or Konkoor is a determining event for the Iranian adolescents and their families. It is considered as the most important opportunity for adolescents for creating their ideal futures. Hence, regarding the importance of this exam and its accompanying pressures during the critical and stressful adolescence period, this study describes adolescents' perspective about what make them worried about the university entrance exam. This study is based on responses of 500 high school female students to an open-ended question completed in their class. In total 482 adolescents wrote down their answers. Using quantitative content analysis, these statements were analyzed. The findings showed that three categories including "individual" category (87.90) with three subcategories; Konkoor's outcome, readiness for Konkoor, self-blame, and "family" category (7.12) with three subcategories; consequences of failure, family expectations, family conflicts, and "religious- socioeconomic" category (4.98) with three subcategories; religion, financial status, educational policies as the main adolescents concern sources about the university entrance exam. Considering the high concerns of female adolescents about the university entrance exam and the pressures that they receive from their families, society, and even themselves, modifying the educational policies, applying some measures to promote knowledge, and gaining required skills to deal with different aspects of such concerns are necessary for adolescents and their parents. © 2017 Walter de Gruyter GmbH, Berlin/Boston

Parents as Teachers: Mothers� Roles in Sexual Abuse Prevention Education in Gorgan, Iran

Background: Parents play an important role in protecting their children from sexual abuse. Mothers, in particular, play key roles in the sexual socialization of their children and in educating their children about child sexual abuse (CSA). Objectives: The purpose of this study was to determine whether preschool girls in Gorgan (a city in northern Iran) could learn personal safety skills when taught by their mothers. Participants and setting: Fifty-six participants (mother-daughter pairs) were recruited from patients visiting health centers. Mean age of girls was 6.34 years. Methods: Girls were pretested using Persian versions of the Personal Safety Questionnaire and 'What If' Situations Test, randomly assigned to either a mother-taught program or wait-list control, and post-tested. Mothers assigned to the education group participated in a two-hour workshop on preventing CSA and were given the Body Safety Training workbook to teach their daughters. Following the one-week training by their mothers, children in both groups were post-tested and follow-up tested one month later. Results: Children taught by their mothers demonstrated significant increases in knowledge about sexual abuse and higher levels of personal safety skills compared to controls, and these gains were maintained at the one-month follow-up. Conclusion: Results suggest that mothers can effectively teach their young daughters personal safety skills. Difficulties female children have in recognizing appropriate-touch requests are discussed and compared to results in other developing countries. Advantages of home-based instruction for young children are described and suggestions for increasing parent participation are offered. © 2020 Elsevier Lt

Preschool children�s knowledge of correct names of genital body parts in Gorgan, Iran

This study sought to identify Iranian preschool children�s (N = 318) knowledge of genital and non-genital body parts. Assessment consisted of children naming selected external body parts in drawings of same-sex counterparts. Results indicated that almost all children knew the correct terms for their non-genital body parts, but few knew the correct terminology for their genitals. Many used slang terms and some appeared embarrassed or reluctant to reply (girls were more likely than boys not to respond). No statistically significant difference between the sex of children in knowledge of correct names of all genitals emerged. Boys knew the correct name of their genitalia (penis) significantly more than girls. Results indicated children are learning the names of their body parts but not their genitals, perhaps indicative of a lack of sexual health education that may be representative of the conservative culture in Iran. It is critical for young children to learn about their genitals as this knowledge provides the foundation for subsequent sex education and facilitates discussion about bodily safety to prevent sexual abuse. When children learn these names, it can facilitate disclosure of abuse and can assist those working with young children in medical settings, child protection and legal arenas. © 2021 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group

�Konkoor Giant�, a narrative of high school female students from Gorgan, Iran

Background: The university entrance exam or Konkoor is a determining event for the Iranian adolescents and their families. It is considered as the most important opportunity for adolescents for creating their ideal futures. Hence, regarding the importance of this exam and its accompanying pressures during the critical and stressful adolescence period, this study describes adolescents' perspective about what make them worried about the university entrance exam. Methods: This study is based on responses of 500 high school female students to an open-ended question completed in their class. In total 482 adolescents wrote down their answers. Using quantitative content analysis, these statements were analyzed. Results: The findings showed that three categories including �individual� category (87.90) with three subcategories; Konkoor's outcome, readiness for Konkoor, self-blame, and �family� category (7.12) with three subcategories; consequences of failure, family expectations, family conflicts, and �religious- socioeconomic� category (4.98) with three subcategories; religion, financial status, educational policies as the main adolescents concern sources about the university entrance exam. Conclusion: Considering the high concerns of female adolescents about the university entrance exam and the pressures that they receive from their families, society, and even themselves, modifying the educational policies, applying some measures to promote knowledge, and gaining required skills to deal with different aspects of such concerns are necessary for adolescents and their parents. © 2019 Walter de Gruyter GmbH, Berlin/Boston

Low birth weight and some factors affect it in newborns (Gorgan 1996)

Low birth weight (LBW) is the main known determinant mortality in under 1 year old children particularly in neonates. The aim of this research is to study the rate of LBW and evaluation of some effective factors in LBW, such as: Difference races, residential conditions, maternal age, parity. This research is analytic-descriptive and cross-sectional study. The study population consists of 2183 newborns that are given birth in Dezyani Hospital during 1996. These samples were chosen by systemic randomized technic (3:1). Information was gathered by a questionnaire. The findings show that LBW rate was 6.3% in population under study, which in male and female newborns were 5.7% and 6.9% respectively. The LBW rates in newborns with mothers age?18 years old and those with ?35 years were 1.8% and 1.4% folds higher than LBW rates for newborns with mothers age 19-35 years. The LBW percentage for primiparous women were 1.9 folds to multiparous who had 2-4 deliveries. LBW rates for newborns with Systanie race were approximately 1.8 folds higher than newborns with Torkman ethnic. The results of this study indicate factors such as: Maternal age, race, parity, affect on LBW rates

Characterizing mental health status of couples in high-risk pregnancy and its relevant characteristics

Objectives: Considering the increasing morbidity and mortality in high-risk pregnancies, it is essential to identify the mental health status of women during their pregnancy since this type of pregnancy is associated with the stress for the women and also their spouses. The present study was designed to determine the mental health status of the couples in high-risk pregnancies and its respective characteristics. Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted on couples faced with high-risk pregnancy situations in hospitals and public health centers of Gorgan during 2016-2017. The sample size included 375 couples who were selected by cluster random sampling technique based on the inclusion criteria. Four questionnaires were used to collect the required data. Descriptive and analytical statistics were employed to analyze the obtained data. Results: The results of the study showed that 31.7 of mothers and 25.6 of fathers had mental disorders in high-risk pregnancy situations. Examining the mental health relevant characteristics, the findings indicated an inverse relationship among the following variables: duration of marriage (P = 0.041), number of children (P = 0.050), maternal age (P = 0.018), number of previous pregnancies (P = 0.032), age of the spouse (P = 0.013), gestational age (P = 0.12), social support (P = 0.001), and the mean score of pregnant women’ mental health. It was found that the above-mentioned factors were associated with an improved mental health. The mean scores for the spouse’s mental health (P = 0.000), the need for counseling (P = 0.12), opening the pregnancy file before the first trimester (P = 0.015), and concern (P = 0.000) were found to have a direct relationship with the mean score of the pregnant women’ mental health. Conclusions: Checking mental health during prenatal care is recommended to promote the mental health status of the couples encountered with high-risk pregnancy. © 2018 The Author (s)

Influencing factors on high-risk sexual behaviors in young people: An ecological perspective

In recent years, high-risk sexual behaviors due to their negative consequences both for the individual and society have received more attention than other high-risk behaviors. The aim of this study was to review the influencing factors of high-risk sexual behaviors among young people from an ecological point of view. This review was conducted through searching databases including PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, Google Scholar and the Cochrane Library with keywords such as sexual risk-taking behavior, high-risk sex, unprotected sex and unsafe sex. The relevant papers published between 1995 and 2016 were extracted. After reviewing the abstract and full text of the articles, 45 papers were used to write this article. From an ecological theory approach, factors which influence high-risk sexual behaviors are divided into three categories - the microsystem, the mesosystem and the macrosystem. The microsystem includes factors such as age, gender, race, marital status, place of residence, religion, level of education, personality traits, psychological problems, childhood experiences, body image and coincidence of high-risk behaviors; the mesosystem includes factors such as family structure, peers and sex education; in the macrosystem, the impact of culture and traditions of the society, economic status and the media are presented. Given that high-risk sexual behaviors often have multiple causes, it seems that health policymakers must consider multi-dimensional interventions to influence high-risk sexual behaviors based on the ecological approach. © 2019 2019 Walter de Gruyter GmbH, Berlin/Boston

Exploring the relationship between health concerns and high-risk behaviours in Medical Sciences' students

Aim: The need to cope with life concerns may drive an individual to resort to high-risk behaviours. This study aimed to determine the relationship between health concerns and high-risk behaviours. Design: A cross-sectional study. Methods: We sampled 926 Medical Sciences' students from the North of Iran from September�December 2017 using the stratified sampling method. Results: The most and less common high-risk behaviour was physical inactivity (97.5) and high-risk sexual behaviour (15.7), respectively. In multivariate logistic regression analysis, participants' concerns about human sexuality (AOR: 1.39; CI: 1.22, 1.57), injury prevention and control (AOR: 1.12; CI: 1.01, 1.20), nutrition (AOR: 1.13; CI: 1.02, 1.26) and emotional health (AOR: 1.08; CI: 1.02, 1.15) increased the odds of risky behaviours. Among Medical Sciences' students, health concerns are linked with risky behaviours. The result of this study can be used to develop relevant interventions targeting mental health to reduce risky behaviour among youth. © 2020 The Authors. Nursing Open published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd