Anxiety and Depression Among Health Sciences Students in Home Quarantine During the COVID-19 Pandemic in Selected Provinces of Nepal.

Aim: This study aimed to assess anxiety and depression among health sciences students at home quarantine during the COVID-19 pandemic in selected provinces of Nepal. Methods: A web-based cross-sectional study was conducted among 409 health science students enrolled at graduate and post-graduate levels in selected universities and their affiliated colleges. Students from selected colleges were asked to fill out a survey, that was made available through email and social media outlets such as Facebook and Viber. The data were downloaded in Excel and imported to SPSS version 16 for analysis. Results : The prevalence of anxiety and depression was 15.7 and 10.7%, respectively. The study showed significant associations between (i) place of province and anxiety; (ii) sleep per day and depression; (iii) hours spent on the internet per day for education and depression; (iv) postponement of final exams and depression. There were no significant associations with the socio-demographic variables. Conclusion: Anxiety and depression in health science students showed correlation with the province, internet use for education, and postponement of exams. These correlations could be common among students in other fields as well. A large-scale study covering a wider geographical area and various fields of education is necessary to further evaluate the impact of COVID-19 on (health sciences) students. The integration of mental health programs both as an intervention and a curriculum level among students is critical to ensure the health of the students.

Factors Influencing Birth Preparedness in Rapti Municipality of Chitwan, Nepal.

INTRODUCTION: Birth preparedness is crucial for health quality of mother and newborn and acts as a strong contributor in mitigating maternal and newborn mortalities. Different factors are predicted to have an influence upon birth preparedness practice. This paper aims at exploring relationship between various factors and birth preparedness practice. METHODS: A cross-sectional study design was used to find out the relationship between various factors and birth preparedness practice. One hundred sixty-five women residing at ward number 1 of Rapti Municipality, Chitwan who delivered in the last twelve months were selected consecutively and interviewed using a semistructured questionnaire. The collected data were analyzed using descriptive and bivariate techniques. RESULTS: Three quarters (75.2%) of the respondents had better birth preparedness, institutional delivery was 63.0%, antenatal care (ANC) visit as per protocol was about 62.0%, and about 90% of the respondents had received counseling during ANC. Age, religion, family types, education, age at marriage, parity, number of children, knowledge on birth preparedness, knowledge on danger sign, place for ANC and delivery, and decision-makers were found to be statistically significant (P value < 0.05) with birth preparedness practice. CONCLUSION: Better knowledge on birth preparedness led to a better preparedness status. Age, religion, family type, education of women and partners, parity, and number of children were the factors that influence birth preparedness. Counseling during ANC played a significant role in birth preparedness.