Study of prevalence and socio-demographic determinants of pterygium patients attending at a tertiary care teaching hospital of Western Maharashtra, India

Background: The pterygium is known to cause refractive errors including astigmatism, which can have negative impact on the vision. The present study was carried out to find out the prevalence and socio-demographic determinants of pterygium patients attending Pravara rural hospital, Loni, Maharashtra, India.Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in outpatient department of ophthalmology in Pravara rural hospital, Loni. A total of 1910 patients of various ocular morbidities were registered during the studied period in the department of ophthalmology, among these, 100 patients who had pterygium were reviewed. All 100 patients were examined by torch and slit lamp. Data were analysed statistically using percentage and proportions whenever necessary.Results: Out of the 100 pterygium patients, 48% were in the age group of >60 years, followed by 32% in the age group of 51-60 years. In relation to occupation, maximum 82% patients were farm labours followed by 11% were house workers. Majority (62%) having unilateral, while (38%) was having bilateral pterygium. All cases of pterygium were nasal.Conclusion: People who work outdoors are subjected to increase U.V. exposure. So people must be aware of this and they must take appropriate precautions like wearing protective glasses and caps etc.

A review of significant aspects contributing to curriculum development

Curriculum is an essentially signified foundation of an academic arena. The master key of the treasure curriculum is anchored in its development. The basic and progressive aspects are the prominent spectrums of curriculum in navigating the stakeholders. Empowerment of curriculum by augmenting its development has been a topic of ongoing discussion in the enrichment of the educational field. By reviewing selected past and present relevant articles, this review article is aimed to provoke and fortify insights for the due perfection, systematization, and standardization in the futuristic aspects towards curriculum development. This is a sincere effort to present the versatile role of the concept of curriculum development and validate its significant aspects by keeping the various stakeholders in mind. It is hoped that this article would help motivate elder and newer generations of curriculum developers, academicians and researchers for expounding the process, for recognizing the intrinsic and upcoming challenges in the field of curriculum development for recognizing needs to refresh, update technology and upgrade pedagogics, for standardizing curriculum at the global application and for instigating an urge to research various aspects of this topic to bring in the due change, advancement and standardization

Study of Pap smear and other feasible tests among self reported symptomatic married women in reproductive age group (15-49 yrs) regarding reproductive tract infections in a rural community of Maharashtra

Background: Reproductive tract infections (RTIs) represent a major public health problem in developing countries. Integrating RTIs/STIs management and early detection of cervical dysplasia in broader reproductive health services can improve women’s health. The objectives of the study were 1. To study the association of socio-demographic & reproductive factors among self-reported symptomatic women for reproductive tract infections. 2. To carry out clinical examination & feasible tests like PH, gram staining, VDRL for reproductive tract infections.  3. To study Pap smear among study subjects.Methods: A cross sectional study community based study was carried out in villages under ‘Parol’ Primary Health Centre of Thane district, Maharashtra, India. A total of 415 married women in reproductive age group were interviewed and examined. Pre-structured, pre-designed questionnaire was used. Clinical examination & feasible laboratory tests were done. Results were analyzed with the help of Microsoft Excel & SPSS 15.  Results: A total of 415 women were interviewed, of them 263(63.4%) had one or more symptoms of reproductive tract infections. On examination, 69(35%) had cervicitis and 30(15.2%) pelvic inflammatory disease, 39(19.8%) bacterial vaginosis and candidiasis in 61(31%). Cervical erosion was present in 147(74.6%) women. On Pap smear, 20(10.2%) women had ASCUS (Atypical squamous cells of undetermined significance). Only 2(1%) women found HIV positive. No woman was found VDRL reactive.Conclusion: Routine RTI/STI screening and periodic surveys to detect the infection patterns which will helps to control HIV infections in the community is needed in the remote tribal area as the current study shows high prevalence of reproductive tract infection.

Study on awareness and knowledge regarding Janani Suraksha Yojana (JSY) among ANC registered women in a primary health centre of tribal area of Thane District of Maharashtra

Background: In an attempt to make primary health care services available, especially, to the poorest and most vulnerable segments of rural & tribal society, JSY forms a crucial component of the NRHM. JSY is a safe motherhood intervention initiated to reduce maternal and neo-natal mortality and increasing institutional deliveries in them. Objective: 1) To assess awareness about Janani Suraksha Yojana (JSY) among ANC registered women. 2) To establish association of socio-demographic factors with awareness about Janani Suraksha Yojana (JSY).Methods: A cross sectional study was conducted in Primary Health Centre, Khardi of Thane district of Maharashtra during the period of Oct. 2010. A total of 110 ANC registered women were interviewed using pre-designed questionnaire. Results were analyzed by using SPSS version-15. Chi-square test was applied and p < 0.05 was considered as statistically significant. Results: More than half of the women (52.7%) were aware about this governmental scheme & only 17.24% of them were able to answer the correct name of the scheme. They obtained this knowledge mainly from the ANMs (58.6%), AWWs (22.4%) and ASHAs (17.2%). About 54.5% women had the knowledge about the components of JSY. Poor socioeconomic class, backward caste (SC/ST) & skilled/unskilled type of occupation were found to be significantly associated with the presence of knowledge about JSY. Conclusion: As the awareness and knowledge in our study group was less compared to other studies, there is a need to intensify the efforts to increase awareness and knowledge about JSY.

One Minute Preceptor Model – place or to replace

Introduction: Neher's 1992 One Minute Preceptor Model (OMP) offers a concise teaching approach based on five micro skills. Its acceptance led to research on efficacy, with a critical factor being the teacher's skill. In medical education, where small group teaching prevails, understanding factors influencing teaching effectiveness is crucial. Methods: Conducted at Dr. D Y Patil Medical College, the mixed-methods interventional study involved 32 Postgraduate Students and 4 Professors. A randomized controlled trial and qualitative interviews assessed the impact of OMP on teaching efficacy and gathered teachers' experiences. Results: Quantitative analysis revealed varied preferences among teachers for OMP and traditional methods, emphasizing the importance of teacher choice. Thematic analysis of qualitative interviews highlighted perceptions favouring OMP for efficiency and traditional methods for foundational teaching. Conclusion: An approach, to accommodate different teaching preferences, can enhance overall educational outcomes

Knowledge and attitude towards basics of communication skills amongst resident doctors

Background: The pillar of doctor patient relationship is the bond of mutual trust. This pillar is strengthened by effective communication between doctor and patient/relatives. It has been widely accepted that a doctor needs to have very good communication skills in addition to clinical knowledge and skills required for effective healthcare. Every doctor duly needs to demonstrate humanity, healthy behaviour, as well as sensible communication with patients which can build the sustainable ‘trust’ in the treatment offered by that doctor. However, the current curriculum of medical courses is enormously focused on providing competent medical knowledge but lacking the focus on inculcating communication skills.Methods: A cross sectional study was carried out amongst 377 resident doctors of first to third year, from randomly selected medical colleges of Maharashtra having postgraduate courses in clinical subjects and affiliated to Maharashtra University of Health Sciences, Nashik, Maharashtra, India during the period of February 2017 to January 2019. Data was entered in MS Excel sheet and analyzed using percentages and proportions wherever appropriate.Results: Highest study respondents were from General Medicine with 13% of total and having 17.4% males and 8% females among respective genders followed by General surgery and Pediatrics residents with 12.5% each specialty.Conclusions: The study has shown that there was varied knowledge about the communication skills among the resident doctors. The residents have shown fair attitudes and behaviours towards mindfulness and basic communication skills

Measurement and Analysis of Crowdsourced Vehicle Vibration Levels during Last Mile Delivery Segments for Parcel Shipments

Crowdsourced logistics has emerged as a delivery channel for many single-parcel packages. As a result, this logistics network has introduced personal passenger vehicles as a means to transport parcels during last mile delivery segments. To understand this network&rsquo;s vibration levels and cargo capacity restraints, four vehicle types (a sedan, sports sedan, compact SUV and full-size SUV) commonly used in crowdsourced logistics deliveries were selected for measurement and analysis. This study shows that the vibration levels were significantly higher in the vertical axis and that the overall vibration energy increased as vehicle speed increased, except in the sedan. The sedan and SUV vehicles showed power spectral density peak frequencies in the low-frequency range, occurring at approximately 2 Hz, matching previous studies using similar vehicles. The vibration levels were greatest in the sports sedan and lowest in the sedan. The recorded vibration events showed a right-skewed heavy-tailed distribution and were non-Gaussian

Extraction and Separation of Platinum (IV), and Palladium (II) with CYANEX 923 in Chloride Media— A Possible Recovery from Spent Autocatalysts

834-837Extraction and separation of Pt(IV) and Pd(II) was carried out with Cyanex 923 in chloride media. Pt (IV) was quantitatively extracted from 3.0- 8.0 M HCI in the presence of 0.01 M SnCl2 while Pd (II) from 4.0-5.0 M HCI with 5×10-3 M Cyanex 923 in toluene. Pt (IV) was then quantitatively stripped from the organic phase with 5.0 M HNO3 while Pd (II) was quantitatively stripped with 1:1 HCI + HCIO4 in single step and also with 7.0 M HCIO4 in two steps. Pt (IV) was also extracted without using SnCI2 as a labilising agent with 0.1 M Cyanex 923 in toluene at 2.0-3.0 M HCI. Separation of Pt (IV) and Pd (II) was observed in various ratios. The methods developed were applied to the recovery of these metal ions from a synthetic solution of similar in composition to that of leaching of spent autocatalysis in 6.0 M HCI