Nutrition education intervention improves medical students' dietary habits and their competency and self-efficacy in providing nutrition care: A pre, post and follow-up quasi-experimental study.

Objective: Most doctors and medical students report inadequate competencies in nutrition care. We evaluated the impact of a nutrition education intervention on medical students' lifestyle habits, dietary diversity, nutrition care knowledge, attitude toward nutrition care, and their level of self-efficacy in the provision of nutrition care. Methods: All 2nd-year medical students were enrolled into a 5 week, 24-h nutrition education intervention that involved both deductive and practical sessions. Pre-, post and 4 weeks follow-up assessments were conducted. Results: At post- and 4-weeks post-intervention the number of days participants consumed vegetables and engaged in moderate-to-vigorous physical activity significantly (p = 0.003 and 0.002) improved respectively from baseline. Mean nutrition care knowledge scores of participants increased by 3.27 points (95% Cl: 1.98-4.56, p < 0.001) from 19.49 at baseline through to 24.78 post- and 22.76 4 weeks follow-up. No significant [ X ( 2 ) 2 = 1.568, p = 0.457] change in mean attitude toward nutrition care score was recorded. Mean level of self-efficacy in the provision of nutrition care improved significantly by 1.73 (95% Cl: 1.17-2.28, p < 0.001) at post-intervention and 4 weeks follow-up compared to the baseline scores. Conclusion: The intervention improved the nutrition care knowledge, self-efficacy in the provision of nutrition care as well as medical students' own consumption of vegetables, dietary diversity and their engagement in moderate-to-vigorous physical activity. However, continuous implementation of nutrition education interventions is needed to sustain these outcomes and further improve the nutrition education experience of medical students.

Nutrition Knowledge is Associated With the Consumption of Iron Rich Foods: A Survey Among Pregnant Women From a Rural District in Northern Ghana.

INTRODUCTION: Iron deficiency anaemia is an international public health concern and pregnant women are at an increased risk. We investigated the consumption of iron rich foods and associated factors among pregnant women in a rural district from Ghana. METHODS: Following a cross-sectional design, dietary intake of iron rich foods was obtained from 252 pregnant women using a 24-hour recall food check list. Nutrition knowledge, attitudes and socio-demographic characteristics were also assessed. FINDINGS: Participants had a mean (SD) knowledge score of 54.66 (22.74)%. About 73% of the participants had heard about iron-deficiency anaemia. Only 16.3% of the participants knew foods that help the body to absorb and use iron while 9.1% knew beverages that decrease iron absorption. About 71% of the participants ate fish and/or seafood while 67.1% of them ate green leafy vegetables. Only 4.4% of the participants ate organ meat, and 29% took flesh meat. Only 22.4% of the study participants usually drank coffee or tea while 78.2% ate vitamin C-rich foods. With regards to attitudes, 88.5% of the participants perceived anaemia to be a serious disease. Nutrition knowledge was significantly associated with the consumption of iron rich foods (ß = .02; 95% CI = 0.01-0.02). CONCLUSION: Nutrition knowledge may be an important determinant of the consumption of iron rich foods among pregnant women making it necessary for healthcare providers to continue to provide nutrition education to pregnant women during routine antenatal care.

Why nutrition education is inadequate in the medical curriculum: a qualitative study of students' perspectives on barriers and strategies.

BACKGROUND: The provision of nutrition care by doctors is important in promoting healthy dietary habits, and such interventions can lead to reductions in disease morbidity, mortality, and medical costs. However, medical students and doctors report inadequate nutrition education and preparedness during their training at school. Previous studies investigating the inadequacy of nutrition education have not sufficiently evaluated the perspectives of students. In this study, students' perspectives on doctors' role in nutrition care, perceived barriers, and strategies to improve nutrition educational experiences are explored. METHODS: A total of 23 undergraduate clinical level medical students at the 5th to final year in the School of Medicine and Health Sciences of the University for Development Studies in Ghana were purposefully selected to participate in semi-structured individual interviews. Students expressed their opinions and experiences regarding the inadequacy of nutrition education in the curriculum. Each interview was audio-recorded and later transcribed verbatim. Using the constant comparison method, key themes were identified from the data and analysis was done simultaneously with data collection. RESULTS: Students opined that doctors have an important role to play in providing nutrition care to their patients. However, they felt their nutrition education was inadequate due to lack of priority for nutrition education, lack of faculty to provide nutrition education, poor application of nutrition science to clinical practice and poor collaboration with nutrition professionals. Students opined that their nutrition educational experiences will be improved if the following strategies were implemented: adoption of innovative teaching and learning strategies, early and comprehensive incorporation of nutrition as a theme throughout the curriculum, increasing awareness on the importance of nutrition education, reviewing and revision of the curriculum to incorporate nutrition, and involving nutrition/dietician specialists in medical education. CONCLUSION: Though students considered nutrition care as an important role for doctors they felt incapacitated by non-prioritisation of nutrition education, lack of faculty for teaching of nutrition education, poor application of nutrition science and poor collaboration with nutrition professionals. Incorporation of nutrition as a theme in medical education, improving collaboration, advocacy and creating enabling environments for nutrition education could address some of the barriers to nutrition education.

Reducing the breast cancer menace: the role of the male partner in Ghana.

BACKGROUND: Breast cancer continues to be the most common type of cancer afflicting many women worldwide. Presently, educational campaigns and research target only women as if men have no role in the management of this disease. The study examined the willingness of male partners to assist in early female breast cancer detection as well as their awareness and knowledge levels. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Using a semi-structured questionnaire, data was collected from 500 public servants within the Tamale Metropolis and analyzed in SPSS. RESULTS: The level of awareness of breast cancer was very high (98.8%) but there was a low level of knowledge of breast cancer among the male population. Marital status and religion had no effect on attitude, but increasing educational status significantly increased knowledge and positive attitude towards breast cancer examination (χ2=4.255, p=0.0391). The majority (92.0%) agreed that men can assist in early breast cancer detection and 96.2% were willing to be provided with breast examination skills. CONCLUSIONS: Although level of awareness on female breast cancers among the men was high, they generally lack knowledge of the disease. Majority of male partners want to assist in early breast cancer detection if provided with the necessary skills.

Medical students' achievement on the Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery/Chirurgery Final Part I and II licensing examination: a comparison of students in problem-based learning, community-based education and service, and conventional curricula in Ghana.

PURPOSE: Problem-based learning is an established method of teaching and learning in medical education. However, its impact on students' achievement on examinations is varied and inconsistent. We compared the levels of achievement on the Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery/Chirurgery (MB ChB) Part I and II licensing examination of students in problem-based learning, community-based education and service (PBL/COBES), and conventional curricula. METHODS: In 2014, we analyzed the MB ChB Final Part I and II licensing examination results of students in three classes (2004, 2005, and 2006) of the School of Medicine and Health Sciences, University for Development Studies, Tamale, Ghana. Ninety-three students in the 2004 and 2005 cohorts followed a conventional curriculum, and 82 students in the 2006 cohort followed a PBL/COBES curriculum. Using appropriate statistical tools, the analysis compared individual discipline scores and the proportions of students who received distinction/credit/pass grades among the classes. RESULTS: The PBL students had significantly higher mean and median scores than the conventional students in Obstetrics and Gynecology, Internal Medicine, Community Health and Family Medicine, Surgery, and Psychiatry, but not in Child Health and Pediatrics. Also, a significantly (P=0.0010) higher percentage, 95.1% (n=78), of the PBL students passed all the disciplines, compared to 79.6% (n=74) of the conventional students. CONCLUSION: The PBL students significantly performed better in all the disciplines except child health and pediatrics, where the conventional students scored higher. These findings demonstrate that the benefits of the PBL/COBES curriculum are tangible and should be fostered.