Development and Evaluation of an Electrode for the Capacitive Deionization Unit

Abstract: The existing conventional technologies like Reverse Osmosis, EDI(Electro Deionization

Knowledge and attitude towards computer usage among health care students in India -across sectional study

Background: As computers and internet usage is increasing rapidly in all fields more so with health care systems, an immediate attention on the computer knowledge and its application is needed for health professionals. Aim: To assess the knowledge of computer technology and their attitude towards its usage among health care students in an institution located in India. Materials & Method: A cross-sectional questionnaire based survey was conducted among dental, medical House surgeons (interns) and final year nursing students of Mamata Institutions in Khammam, Andhra Pradesh, India. A pretested closed ended questionnaire was prepared and was distributed. Results: A total of 260 subjects had participated in the study (female=170, male=90). About 42% of the subjects had their own computer or laptop; 84% of the students thought that a separate subject of computers should be added to the curriculum and 87% of the students thought that computers were necessary to manage patients′ information. Conclusions: There is a need to improve the health care students′ knowledge on computer education and application of this knowledge in to their clinical practice

Prevalence of Dental Fluorosis Among 6–12-Year-Old School Children of Mahabubnagar District, Telangana State, India − A Cross-Sectional Study

Introduction: Telangana state in southern India has many areas which have high–low fluoride levels in drinking water, and Mahabubnagar district is one among them, where people are affected with dental and skeletal fluorosis, with the majority belonging to low socio-economic status. Aims: To assess the prevalence of dental fluorosis in school going children of Mahabubnagar district and also to assess fluoride levels in drinking water from different areas of Mahabubnagar district. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted on 2000 children in the age group 6–12 years in different areas of Mahabubnagar district. Dental fluorosis status was assessed by using Modified Dean’s Fluorosis Index. Alizarin visual method was used to estimate fluoride levels in water. The data collected were subjected to statistical analysis. Results: Dental fluorosis in primary and permanent dentition was 15 and 70.3%, respectively. In the northern part of Mahabubnagar district, primary dentition was more affected by fluorosis whereas in southern part, the permanent dentition was more affected. The prevalence of dental fluorosis in primary dentition was more in 6–7-year-old children (35.5%), and in permanent dentition, it was more in 9–10-year-old children (70%). The fluoride level in drinking water was more in Kosghi, Kalwakurthy (2.0 ppm). Conclusion: Dental fluorosis was more in 10-year-old and less in 6-year-old children. It was more in eastern and northern zones of Mahabubnagar district and less in local villages of Mahabubnagar

“Making our job hospitable” – Assessment of job-crafting behavior among dental academic faculty in South India

Introduction: Employees are regularly offered opportunities to make their work more appealing and rewarding. These opportunities might be as simple as making fine changes to their daily tasks to boost happiness and to connect with more people at vocation. Hence, an attempt is made to assess job-crafting behavior among the dental academic faculty. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among dental academic faculty from five dental colleges. Job Crafting Questionnaire (JCQ) was used to assess the job-crafting behavior. Mean scores were calculated for different domains of JCQ. Gender differences were analyzed using Student's “t-” test and one-way ANOVA to test the difference between different academic positions of the faculty members. Results: A total of 228 dental faculty members with a mean age of 34.43 ± 6.13 years participated in the study. The mean value of job-crafting behavior was found to be highest among female faculty (60.07 ± 8.38) and professors (61.35 ± 8.30). Male faculty scored higher in task-crafting domain and female faculty scored higher in both cognitive- and relational-crafting domains. The professors scored highest in all the three domains of job-crafting behavior as compared to that of senior lecturers and readers. Conclusion: Job crafting is an effectual workplace intervention, where employees assume an active role in shaping their work experience to enhance their job satisfaction and well-being. The overall score of job-crafting behavior was found to be highest among both professors and female faculty members. Male faculty members scored higher in task-crafting domain. With regard to individual domains, the participants scored highest in cognitive crafting followed by task and relational crafting

Evaluation of preparedness for medical emergencies among dental practitioners in Khammam town: A cross-sectional study

Introduction: Medical emergencies can occur frequently in the dental setting. Effective management of an emergency situation in the dental office is ultimately the dentist responsibility. The assessment of preparedness of dental practitioners would help to bring about required changes in the teaching aspects of dental institutions, which would ultimately help dental graduates to improve knowledge regarding management of medical emergencies. This would also make dental offices available with required emergency drugs. Aim: To evaluate the preparedness for medical emergencies among the dental practitioners in Khammam town. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional questionnaire-based study with a sample of 301 was conducted among dental clinicians at Khammam to evaluate their knowledge regarding medical emergencies. The questionnaire consisted of nineteen questions. First nine questions are objective questions, requiring a simple yes or no reply. Next ten questions are multiple choice questions regarding Emergency Medical Services and basic life support. Chi-square test was used to analyze the data. A P < 0.05 is considered significant. Results: The results of this study showed that almost all the participants (94.02%) enquired about medical and drug history, but only 67.11% of them obtained a complete health history proforma of the patient. About 83.06% record vital signs, 74.09% of members report about attending workshops on emergency training and management, and 50.5% of members were either not sure or not in a position to handle the emergency condition. Conclusion: The results of this study reflect an alarming situation of the capability of dentists to deal with medical emergencies at dental offices and make available all the emergency drugs at their offices

Evaluation of Single Surface Atraumatic Restorative Treatment (ART) among 8-12 Year Old Rural School Children of India -A One Year Follow Up Study

Aim: To evaluate survival rate of single surface ART restorations over a period of one year among 8-12 year oldrural school children in India. Materials & Method: A community based interventional study was designed. A total of 147 subjects were included in the study. Baseline data was collected on a specially designed proforma. Treatment was performed following standard procedures for ART using specially designed hand instruments. Evaluations were done at three, six, nine and twelve months intervals. Chi-square was used to test the significance. Results: The mean age of study subjects (147) was 9.69 ΁ 1.3 years. About 84.4% of subjects expressed that they did not had pain I discomfort during treatment; 86.4% of the subjects were willing to undergo theART procedure if required again.Overall survival rate was 91.6% at the end of one year. When the survival rate was compared between permanent and deciduous dentition at the end of 12th month survival rate was high for permanent dentition (95.8%) compared to the deciduousdentition (89.5%). Conclusions: ART was accepted by majority of subjects. Survival rate of single surface ART restorations was extremely good and ART approach can be implemented in schools particularly in the rural areas where there is no adequate access to dental care. ART can be a very strong tool for preventive treatment in the control of dental caries in developing countries

Understanding “social reward”: A study on the teaching dental staff in states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana

Introduction: Social reward is a result of human interactions that motivates and gives happiness. In this study, an attempt was made to understand various domains of the social reward of dental staff. Aim: The aim of this study was to examine the individual differences in the value of social reward among dental staff working in teaching health-care institutions. Materials and Methods: A questionnaire-based study was conducted on dental staff working in teaching health-care institutions. Demographic data were collected. The social reward was assessed using Social Reward Questionnaire on a seven-point Likert scale. The mean value of each domain was calculated and compared based on the academic experience of the staff. The significance difference was tested using one-way ANOVA. Results: A total of 290 dental staff members of a mean age of 33.4 ± 6.2 years participated in the study. Those with academic experience of 11 years of experience had the highest mean value with regard to pro-social interaction. Conclusion: Understanding the individual differences in valuing social reward is useful to organizations in promoting a better work environment, contributes for pro-social behaviors among staff, helps in sustaining the worth, and contributes for positive human interactions

Knowledge and attitude of medical professionals towards emergency management of avulsed tooth in a teaching medical hospital, Khammam Town, South India

Introduction: Injury to both the primary and permanent dentitions and their supporting structures is one of the most common problems. Avulsion of permanent tooth is one of the serious dental injuries and a prompt and correct emergency management is very important for prognosis. Studies evaluating medical professionals′ knowledge about tooth avulsion and its management are rare. Aim: To assess the knowledge and attitude of medical professionals working in a teaching medical hospital in Khammam Town toward management of an avulsed tooth. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional questionnaire-based study was conducted with a sample of 192 medical professionals including teaching staff, postgraduates, and house surgeons. A standard self-administered questionnaire was used for data collection, which was done over a period of 1-month. Chi-square test was used for data analysis with a P < 0.05 considered to be statistically significant. Results: Among the study participants 64% were aware of the meaning of avulsed tooth. About 54% of respondents preferred saline as the best storage medium to store the tooth in case professional care is not possible immediately. There was varied opinion regarding the replantation time. In this study, 41% of the participants felt 45 min as the ideal time for replantation. Conclusion: Most of the participants showed a fair knowledge on the emergency management of an avulsed tooth and their dilemma pertaining to some aspects of this procedure that can be solved by providing required awareness and knowledge

Assessment of psychiatric morbidity among health-care students in a teaching hospital, Telangana state: A cross-sectional questionnaire-based study

Introduction: Professional education can be a stressful experience for health-care students and may impact negatively on emotional well-being and academic performance which leads to psychiatric morbidity. The aim of this study is to assess the prevalence of psychiatric morbidity among the professional health-care students. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among professional health-care students in a tertiary care teaching hospital of Telangana state. The information regarding demographic data, academic achievements, and positive and negative events in the recent past was collected using semi-structured pro forma, and the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ)-28 is used to assess the psychiatric morbidity. Descriptive analysis and Pearson's correlation analysis were done to analyze the data. Results: A total of 836 students participated in the study, and the overall mean GHQ total score in the study population was 26.8, which is above the cutoff (24) score. The prevalence of psychiatric morbidity among study population is about 58.7%. Academic achievement and negative events in the recent past had effect on psychological morbidity and showed high GHQ scores among study population which was found to be statistically significant. Conclusion: The poor academic performance and negative events had a strong impact on psychological morbidity of students. The higher level of psychological morbidity warrants need for intervention such as social and psychological support to improve the quality of life for the health-care students. Further, a creation of positive academic environment as a teamwork of faculty, administration, educational experts, and students helps to develop psychological healthy dental and medical professionals who can perform better in a coming future

Is smartphone a tool for learning purpose? - A survey among students of a dental college in Telangana state

Introduction: Smartphone and mobile internet service usage by students has increased in the recent years and therefore presents a significant potential as learning tools. Aim: The aim of this study is to assess the usage of smartphones for learning purposes among dental students. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional questionnaire-based study was conducted at a teaching health-care institution in Telangana among dental undergraduate students. Data were collected about their smartphones and connections, general use of smartphones, smartphones for learning purposes, and their attitude toward smartphones for learning purposes. Descriptive statistics were calculated. Results: Out of the 300 dental students, 259 students owned smartphones and 248 students had access to internet services. Most popular devices were Androids and iPhones. A total of 86% students used their smartphones to take photos and record their work. Majority (80%) of them used smartphones to obtain study material. Out of all the participants, 53% had apps related to dental education. Most of the students preferred their smartphones to library to access information and study materials. The attitude of the students was positive toward mobile learning, and majority of them expressed that smartphone usage for educational purposes should be encouraged by the college and staff. Conclusion: Majority of students use smartphones for educational purposes. It was observed that students prefer to access information from online resources to library. Therefore, this might present an opportunity for educators to design suitable teaching interventions and develop diverse learning approaches