Mental and Social Health Commons^™

Teachers’ And Parents’ Perspective As How The Social Environment Of Immediate Vicinity Can Affect The Academic Learning Of A Child 4-6 Years Age Group, Salma Amin Rattani, Deedar Shah

School of Nursing & Midwifery

In the process of human development environment plays a pivotal role. At the age of 4 -6 years, children's immediate vicinity expands from home to school and in his social environment parents and teachers play a vital role. Therefore, in this study which was conducted in Phander district Ghizer, Northern areas; of Pakistan, employing descriptive research design five parents and five school teachers were enrolled. Participants shared their definition and understanding about social environment and immediate vicinity and its effects on academic learning. This research is part of Advanced Diploma in Human Development: Early Child Development Programme, Aga Khan University. …

Gender Roles And Their Influence On Life Prospects For Women In Urban Karachi, Pakistan: A Qualitative Study, Tazeen S. Ali, Gunilla Krantz, Raisa Gul, Nargis Asad, Eva Johansson, Ingrid Mogren

School of Nursing & Midwifery

BACKGROUND: Pakistan is a patriarchal society where men are the primary authority figures and women are subordinate. This has serious implications on women's and men's life prospects.
OBJECTIVE: The aim was to explore current gender roles in urban Pakistan, how these are reproduced and maintained and influence men's and women's life circumstances.
DESIGN: Five focus group discussions were conducted, including 28 women representing employed, unemployed, educated and uneducated women from different socio-economic strata. Manifest and latent content analyses were applied.
FINDINGS: TWO MAJOR THEMES EMERGED DURING ANALYSIS: 'Reiteration of gender roles' and 'Agents of change'. The first theme included perceptions …

Advances In Information And Communication Technology (Ict): Issues, Challenges And Opportunities For Health Care Professionals, Waris Qidwai

Department of Family Medicine

No abstract provided.

A Silent Storm: Hepatitis C In Pakistan, Noureen Jiwani, Raisa B. Gul

School of Nursing & Midwifery

No abstract provided.

Medical Education: Value Based Teaching, Haider Naqvi, Ather Hussain

Department of Psychiatry

No abstract provided.

Depression And Its Associated Risk Factors In Medical And Surgical Post Graduate Trainees At A Teaching Hospital: A Cross Sectional Survey From A Developing Country, Aisha Yousuf, Sidra Ishaque, Waris Qidwai

Department of Family Medicine

Objectives: To determine the frequency of depression among post graduate medical trainees in a teaching hospital of Pakistan and to explore the associated factors contributing to depression in them. Methods: It's a cross-sectional study at the Aga Khan University Hospital, Karachi. It was done in June 2008 till August 2008. Zung Self-Rating Depression Scale was administered among 172 post graduate trainees. Self administered questionnaires were used to assess the associated demographic and work related risk factors. Adjusted odds ratios (OR) were calculated by logistic regression. Results: The survey response rate was 172(82.69%). Depression in the overall sample was 103(59.88%), of …

Respiratory Dyskinesia--An Under-Recognized Side-Effect Of Neuroleptic Medications, Mukesh Mohan Bhimani

Department of Psychiatry

Respiratory dyskinesia is an under-recognized side effect of neuroleptic administration. There are only few studies that have addressed the prevalence of respiratory dyskinesia in patients with tardive dyskinesia. Our case report highlights the need to regularly examine patients on antipsychotics for any evidence of dyskinetic movements including respiratory musculature. Since RD is underrecognized and misdiagnosed, early detection can improve long term prognosis as treatment options are few and usually of only limited effect. A 62-year-old Asian male, retired civil engineer, had more than 20 years history of depressive illness, developed antidepressant induced hypomania, and was given risperidone upto 1 mg …

Ngos And Government Partnership For Health Systems Strengthening: A Qualitative Study Presenting Viewpoints Of Government, Ngos And Donors In Pakistan, Iram Ejaz, Babar T. Shaikh, Narjis Rizvi

Community Health Sciences

Background: Health systems are expected to serve the population needs in an effective, efficient and equitable manner. Therefore, the importance of strengthening of public, private and community health systems has been emphasized time and again. In most of the developing countries, certain weaknesses and gaps in the government health systems have been hampering the achievement of improved health outcomes. Public sector in Pakistan has been deficient in the capacity to deliver equitable and quality health services and thus has been grossly underutilized.Methods: A qualitative study comprising in-depth interviews was conducted capturing the perceptions of the government functionaries, NGO representatives …

Evidence Based Treatment Of Schizophrenia: Do We Know Enough, Faheem Khan, Haider A Naqvi

Department of Psychiatry

No abstract provided.

The Constant Threat Of Terrorism: Stress Levels And Coping Strategies Amongst University Students Of Karachi, Ayesha Ejaz Ahmed, Komal Masood, Sohni Vicky Dean, Tanzila Shakir, Ahmed Abdul Hafeez Kardar, Usman Barlass, Syed Haider Imam, Mohammad Ghawar Khan Mohmand, Hussain Ibrahim, Imad Saeed Khan, Usman Akram, Farid Hasnain

Department of Psychiatry

OBJECTIVES: To assess the levels of stress in the face of terrorism and the adopted coping strategies, amongst the student population of universities in Karachi

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METHODS: A descriptive, cross sectional study was conducted on undergraduate students from four universities of Karachi. Self-administered questionnaires were filled out by 291 students. Pearson Chi-Square test was used to assess associations between stress levels and different variables at a level of significance of 0.05%

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RESULTS: A total of 65.8% of the students had mild stress levels, 91.5% of university students were exposed to terrorism through television, while only 26.5% students reported personal …

Intimate Partner Violence In Urban Pakistan: Prevalence, Frequency, And Risk Factors, Tazeen S. Ali, Nargis Asad, Ingrid Mogren, Gunilla Krantz

School of Nursing & Midwifery

Background: Intimate partner violence (IPV) is an important public health issue with severe adverse consequences. Population-based data on IPV from Muslim societies are scarce, and Pakistan is no exception. This study was conducted among women residing in urban Karachi, to estimate the prevalence and frequency of different forms of IPV and their associations with sociodemographic factors.
Methods: This cross-sectional community-based study was conducted using a structured questionnaire developed by the World Health Organisation for research on violence. Community midwives conducted face-to-face interviews with 759 married women aged 25-60 years.
Results: Self-reported past-year and lifetime prevalence of physical violence was 56.3 …

Discriminant Value Of Rome Iii Questionnaire In Dyspeptic Patients., Shahab Abid, Shaheryar Siddiqui, Wasim Jafri

Department of Medicine

Background/Aim: Rome III criteria has modified the description of functional dyspepsia (FD) and divided this into subgroups. However, the discriminative value of Rome III questionnaire-based diagnosis of FD is yet to be determined.

Objectives: To evaluate the Rome III questionnaire for the diagnosis of FD and whether it can discriminate between postprandial distress syndrome (PDS) and epigastric pain syndrome (EPS) in patients with dyspeptic symptoms.

Patients and Methods: Consecutive patients, who were not on proton pump inhibitors (PPI), were asked to participate. Patients who have previously established acid peptic disease or predominantly reflux symptoms or having alarm symptoms such as …

Causes Of Smoking In Pakistan: An Analysis Of Social Factors, Sobia Nizami, Zain A Sobani, Emmon Raza, Noor-Ul-Ain Baloch, Javaid Khan

Section of Pulmonary & Critical Care

OBJECTIVE: To determine the factors contributing to the initiation and propagation of smoking in visitors to a major tertiary health center in Karachi, Pakistan.

METHODS: Seven major contributing factors to the initiation and propagation of smoking were presented to consenting study participants (n=170) in a questionnaire. Participants were then requested to use their experience and opinion to rate each of the given factors on a scale of 1 to 5 regarding its importance as a causative factor in the initiation and propagation of smoking. Results were analyzed using SPSSv16.0.

RESULTS: Preliminary analysis revealed occupational stress relief as the most important …

Suicide Bombing: A Geopolitical Perspective, Haider Naqvi, Syed Faraz Kazim, Shafqat Huma

Department of Psychiatry

Suicide bombing is a very complex phenomenon. It has been a focus of research in recent times. However inherent biases of researchers muddle the picture: researchers from western countries focus the issue around political liberty and notion of democracy, while those from Islamic countries tend to take the afterlife-reward notion as an incentive for suicide bombing. However in order to understand this complex phenomenon it is important to consider the contextual factors. In this review we have attempted to highlight various geopolitical factors which contribute to increased incidence of suicide bombing in South East Asia.