A Study on Utilization and Satisfaction of ICDS Services in Aanganwadis of Urban Bhopal

Background: Though ICDS is the world’s largest community-based child nutrition and development program, even after more than 35 years of its implementation the dilemma still exists regarding the extent of utilization and quality of services provided through aanganwadis..Method: This was a cross-sectional study done in 40 aanganwadis of Bhopal city in a period of three months. Forty aanganwadis were selected from the urban area of Bhopal. Six registered beneficiaries from each of these 40 selected aanganwadis were interviewed.Results: Out of 240 beneficiaries, 35 (14.5) were pregnant women, 40 (16.67 ) were lactating females, 81 (33.75) were mothers of children aged greater than 0–3 years, 49 (20.42) were mothers of children aged 3–6 years, 32 (13.33) were adolescent girls (10–19 years) and 03 (01.25) were women of reproductive age. 166 (69.16%) were satisfied with the services, while the rest 74 (30.84%) were not satisfied with the services.Conclusions: Improvement in the quality of services is the need of the hour to keep the satisfaction and utilization level

Barriers to healthcare utilization among married women in Afghanistan: the role of asset ownership and women’s autonomy

Abstract Women face multiple socio-economic, cultural, contextual, and perceived barriers in health service utilization. Moreover, poor autonomy and financial constraints act as crucial factors to their healthcare accessibility. Therefore, the objective of the present study is to study the association between health care utilization barriers and women empowerment, including asset ownership among currently married women in Afghanistan. Data of 28,661 currently married women from Afghanistan demographic health survey (2015) was used to carry out this study. Barriers to access healthcare were computed based on problems related to permission, money, distance, and companionship, whereas women empowerment and asset ownership were computed as potential covariates along with other socio-economic risk factors. Bivariate and logistic analysis was carried out to study the association and odds of explanatory variables. Our results confirm the significant and strong association between the barriers to access healthcare and various explanatory variables. Women having any decision-making autonomy are less likely to face any odds [(AOR = 0.56, p < 0.001), CI: 0.51–0.61] among the currently married women than those who don’t have any decision-making authority. Similarly, women who justify their beating for some specific reasons face the greater difficulty of accessing health care [(AOR = 1.76, p < 0.001), CI: 1.61–1.93]. In terms of asset ownership, women having any asset ownership (land or household) are less likely to face any barriers in health services utilization given the lower odds [(AOR = 0.91, p < 0.001), CI: 0.90–0.98]. Accessing maternal health is a crucial policy challenge in Afghanistan. A substantial proportion of women face barriers related to approval, money, distance, and companionship while accessing the health services utilization in Afghanistan. Similarly, women empowerment and asset ownership are significantly associated with health service accessibility. This paper therefore suggests for some policy interventions to strengthen the healthcare needs of women and ensure healthcare accessibility by scaling down these potential barriers like poor autonomy, asset ownership and domestic violence

A Study to Assess the Prevalence of Polycystic Ovarian Disease among Girls Aged 15–21 Years from Selected Schools and Colleges in Bhopal City

Background: Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS) is the most common endocrine disorder among girls. It is one of the leading causes of female subfertility. It has a heterogeneous presentation which includes hyperandrogenism, hirsutism and ovulatory dysfunction. It is a disorder of peri-pubertal onset, so it is a disorder of significant health concern; this necessitates estimation of proportion of women affected by PCOS in the population. This study was conducted to find out the prevalence of PCOS amongst adolescentgirls in Bhopal city.Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted for the duration of 4 months from November 2016 to February 2017. 840 girls of age group 15–21 years were interviewed regarding PCOS using Rotterdam criteria in three schools and three colleges in Bhopal city. After screening for PCOS, all suspected girls were confirmed by USG. Data was compiled using MS Excel and analyzed using Epi info 7.Result: Out of 840 girls, 217 (25.5%) complained of irregular menses, out of 217 only 96 (44%) were approached for USG screening. PCOS was present in 77 (80.2%) girls out of 96 girls screened with USG.Also, PCOS was present in 43.2% girls with BMI >25 and 50.8% girls having waist-hip ratio more than 0.96.Conclusion: This study estimated prevalence of about 8.34% in the study population. Lack of awareness (health-seeking behavior) was prominent in the study population. Significant association was foundbetween PCOS and BMI, WAIST-HIP ratio. More education sessions should be held in schools and colleges about PCOS

Effect of Skipping Breakfast on Young Girls’ Menstruation

Introduction: Breakfast is often referred to as the most important meal of the day. Evidence suggests that breakfast contributes to wellbeing in a number of areas. First, it is a central component of nutritional wellbeing, contributing to total daily energy and nutrient intake. Nearly 15% of college girls rarely or never ate breakfast, and those who ate breakfast almost every day (and did not often eat between meals) reported slightly but significantly better physical health than skippers. Eating breakfast is important for the health and development of young women. From clinical experience, there is great evidence that the frequency of irregular menstruation and intensity of dysmenorrhea was increased in young women, who were currently skipping meals, suggesting that diet in adolescence has long-lasting adverse effects on reproductive function in young women. Menstrual disorders frequently affect the quality of life of adolescents and young adult women. Breakfast as a part of healthful diet and lifestyle can positively impact children’s and young adults’ health and wellbeing. Daily eating habits significantly influence menstrual function in young women. We conducted the study to explore the association of skipping breakfast on menstruation.Objectives • To find out the proportion of girls with menstrual irregularity in those skipping breakfast; • To find out effect of breakfast skipping on menstruation among girls of age group 17–22 years. Method and Material: A cross-sectional study was used. The studied sample consisted of 90 female students of a selected college of Bhopal city. Data were collected by using an interviewing questionnaire. Analysis of the findings was done using Epi Info 7 software. Results: Mean age of the study participants was 20+3.66 years. Out of 90 students, 82% were found to have been skipping breakfast for more than 3 days a week. The study also revealed that dysmenorrhea was more in girls who skipped breakfast than in those who had breakfast (P=0.0001). Conclusion: From the above finding, we can conclude that episodes of dysmenorrhea occurred more in female students who skipped the breakfast meal more than those who took breakfast regularly