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BACKGROUND: Excess use of the internet and gadgets for learning, gaming, and socialization has resulted in addictive behavior and nomophobia, especially among college-going students. Thus, this study was designed to find out the proportion and predictors of internet addiction and nomophobia among medical undergraduates. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This cross-sectional study conducted on 367 medical undergraduates of a teaching hospital was carried out using a standard tool: the Internet Addiction Test Short Form for screening internet addiction and the Nomophobia Questionnaire for nomophobia. Results were tabulated and multivariable binomial logistic regression analysis was performed to find out the predictors of internet addiction and nomophobia. RESULTS: A total of 116 (31.6%, 95% CI: 27%-36.5%) students were addicted to the internet and 247 (67.3%, 95% CI: 62.3%-71.9%) were screened to have moderate-to-severe nomophobia. The age of the student (adjusted odds ratio (AOR): 0.83 [0.69-0.99]), male gender (AOR: 2.24 [1.33-3.79]), screen time (AOR: 1.24 [1.14-1.34]), checking the phone first in the morning (AOR: 1.98 [1.107-3.54]), non-leisure time usage of phone (AOR: 2.07 [1.25-3.4]), and altered reading habit (AOR: 2.51 [1.26-5.01]) were independent predictors of internet addiction. Increased screen time (AOR: 1.103 [1.016-1.23]), checking the phone first in the morning after waking up (AOR: 1.68 [1.05-2.81]), altered academic performance (AOR: 1.99 [1.079-3.68]), and presence of internet addiction (AOR: 8.17 [3.56-18.76]) were independent predictors of moderate-to-severe nomophobia among medical students. CONCLUSION: One and two out of every three medical students were found to have internet addiction and moderate-to-severe nomophobia, respectively. Increased screen time, altered academic performance, and the presence of internet addiction were independent predictors of moderate-to-severe nomophobia.
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Background: Pictorial health warnings (PHW) are an effective strategy to deter or reduce tobacco use. This study was conducted to determine the level of awareness of PHWs on tobacco products and their correlates among adults attending the outpatient department (OPD) of a tertiary care facility in Eastern India. Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted over a period of 3 months among 307 patients aged 18 years to 65 years. A pre-tested semi-structured questionnaire was used for the collection of data and inferential statistics were performed using JAMOVI version 2.3.21. Results: About 84% (95% CI, 78.9-87.2) of the participants were aware of PHW on tobacco products, 82.4% (95% CI, 77.8-86.3) for smoked forms and 51.8% (95% CI, 46.2-57.3) for smokeless forms. More than half of the participants felt that the current PHW were ineffective. Male [AOR, 3.13; 95% CI, 1.33-7.37], being educated [AOR, 3.37; 95% CI, 1.29-8.76], employment [AOR, 5.65; 95% CI, 1.21-26.30] and ever-tobacco use [AOR, 3.23; 95% CI, 1.43-7.2] were found to be independent correlates of PHW awareness for smoked tobacco products, whereas as being male [AOR, 2.01; 95% CI, 1.02-3.95] and being young (18-30 years) [AOR, 2.51; 95% CI, 1.08-5.84] were found to be the independent predictors of PHW awareness for smokeless tobacco products (SLT). Conclusion: Four out of every five individuals were aware of pictorial health warnings (PHW) on tobacco products; however, it was much less for SLT compared to smoked tobacco products. Male, being educated, employment and ever-tobacco use were independent correlates of awareness for the smoked form of tobacco products, whereas being young (18-30 years) was an independent predictor of awareness for SLT.
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Introduction: Bihar has experienced high nutritional public health problem among children and women over the years. In this background, this study was planned to find the level of food insecurity and identify contributing factors in rural Bihar. Material and Methods: We conducted community-based cross-sectional study among 255 families residing in villages catered by RHTC, Naubatpur. A pretested semi-structured interview schedule and HFIAS were used. Result: A total of 27.8% of the 255 households were food insecure, of which 73.3% were severely food insecure. Kutcha houses, dispossession of agricultural land, and lower SES were found to be predictors. Conclusion: Around one in three families experienced food insecurity, and it was more among families residing in kutcha houses, without possession of agricultural land and belonging to lower socioeconomic status.
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Background The Indian government announced "Ayushman Bharat" for a New India 2022 during the 2018-19 parliament budget sessions, which includes the national health protection scheme presently known as "Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PMJAY)" to facilitate access to secondary and tertiary healthcare services. This study aimed to see how well healthcare workers (HCWs) understood the PMJAY and how prepared they were to administer it. Materials and methods With an anticipated sample size of 411, this hospital-based analytical, cross-sectional study was done among treating faculty, resident doctors, and nursing officers as study participants. Participants completed a self-administered, pre-tested, semi-structured questionnaire to determine their level of awareness and readiness to adopt PMJAY. SPSS Version 22 software (SPSS Inc., Chicago, IL, USA) was used to analyze the data. Results The overall mean (SD) awareness score and mean readiness score among HCWs were found to be 5.52 (1.82) and 18.49 (4.5), respectively. There was a significantly high awareness score among doctors compared to nursing officers. The relation between awareness score and readiness score showed a weak positive significant correlation (r=0.174, p=0.001). The linear regression model demonstrated an increase of 0.432 units in readiness for every unit increase in awareness score. Conclusion The doctor's mean awareness score was little over half of the maximum attainable score. Faculty members were more aware of the scheme than the residents and nursing officers. The readiness to implement PMJAY improves as the awareness grows. Frequent workshops on PMJAY for stakeholders are required for better readiness.
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Introduction: Slums are the most vulnerable settlements for COVID-19 infection due to overcrowding and unsanitary conditions. Thus, this study was undertaken to determine the level of seroprevalence for SARS-CoV-2 infection among slum dwellers. Material and Methods: A community-based cross-sectional seroepidemiological survey was conducted at several slums of Patna over four weeks, that is, January 20-February 20, 2021. A total of 650 participants were recruited in the study by applying a two-stage random sampling technique. Results: Seroprevalence for SARS-CoV-2-specific IgG antibody was found to be 31.5% (95% Confidence Interval (CI): 27.9-35.1). The seropositivity prevalence was found to be statistically higher among participants belonging to the age group of 18-30 years (41.1%), male gender (67.9%), high-risk occupation (70%), below poverty line (BPL) economic status (62.1%), and residing in a hut (51.2%) and kutcha house (42.4%). Further, 262 participants reported having COVID-like symptoms in the preceding 1 month of the survey, which was found to be significantly associated with the seropositivity status. Conclusion: The finding of the study reflects that a moderate seroprevalence level of COVID-19 infection was acquired in the slum settings of Bihar. Unchecked spread in these informal communities will pose a serious threat to the rest of the bigger sections of urban populations. This indirectly calls for early intervention in the form of preference in the roadmap of COVID-19 vaccination.