The prevalence of risk factors associated with non-communicable diseases in Afghan refugees in southern Iran: a cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: Refugees are highly vulnerable to many health-related risks. Monitoring non-communicable diseases (NCDs) is of overriding importance in these populations. This study aimed to investigate the prevalence of risk factors for NCDs amongst Afghan refugees in a refugee camp located in southern Iran. METHODS: This cross-sectional sturdy was conducted in 2018. Risk factors such as inadequate nutrition, physical inactivity, tobacco smoking, obesity and overweight, hypertension (HTN), elevated fasting plasma glucose (FPG), and dyslipidaemia were assessed. Data were gathered with a modified WHO STEPS procedure. Prevalence and age-standardized prevalence and their 95% confidence intervals (CI) were estimated. RESULTS: The estimated prevalence were 94% for inadequate fruit/vegetable consumption, 18% for physical inactivity, 9% for tobacco smoking, 3% for FPG, 20% for HTN, 51% for central obesity, 24% for overweight, 19% for obesity, and 69% for dyslipidaemia. CONCLUSIONS: Except for inadequate fruit and vegetable intake and dyslipidaemia, the prevalence of other NCD risk factors was low among Afghan refugees in Iran. Raising awareness about healthy diet and its importance and the provision of more affordable fruit and vegetables are two effective measures toward improving the health of refugees in Iran.

An Operational Exercise for Disaster Assessment and Emergency Preparedness in South of Iran.

INTRODUCTION: Exercise is an important step in preparation and implementation of disaster risk programs. The aim of this research was the development and assessment of an operational exercise for disaster preparedness in southeast Iran. METHODS: A descriptive cross-sectional study was used to evaluate a 2-day exercise for a level 4 (L-4) scale mock disaster conducted in southeastern Iran in 2017. Seven medical sciences universities participated in the mock disaster exercise: Kerman, Rafsanjan, Bam, Jiroft, Zahedan, Zabol, and Iranshahr medical sciences universities. In total, 990 personnel participated. The disaster preparedness was assessed using a tool designed by the exercise planning team. RESULTS: The present research reveals that the universities of medical sciences in the southeastern hub of Iran are properly prepared for emergencies and disasters. This included the Disaster Medical Assistance Teams and the response operational comprehensive plan for emergencies and disasters. The research findings indicated a preparedness score of 79.8%. The mean arrival time at exercise area (Jiroft City) was 4 hours 35 minutes despite the wide area of Kerman and Sistan and Baluchistan provinces. Personnel safety and security, rapid assessment, communications, logistics, warnings, and news confirmation functions showed higher levels of preparedness. CONCLUSION: The Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations reported that organizations must perform the performance preparedness exercises on different levels and areas twice a year to be properly prepared for responding to emergencies and disasters. This study can be considered a suitable standard guide for health care organizations to execute exercises for the maintenance and promotion of their preparedness for properly responding to emergencies and disasters at L-4.

A Productive Proposed Search Syntax for Health Disaster Preparedness Research.

OBJECTIVE: To find a proper search strategy to do a systematic review related to preparedness for disasters. METHODS: MeSH and Emtree terms were searched to detect synonyms for two main search terms "disaster" and "preparedness". Expert opinion on the synonyms was examined applying a Google form. The adopted syntax was searched in PubMed and results were sifted. Hand searching in two top key journals was done and sensitivity was calculated. RESULTS: Out of 1120 articles, 122 were included. In PDM journal, 10 articles were included by hand searching, out of which 5 were not spotted in PubMed search with the proposed syntax. In DMPHP journal, 13 publications were included, with 5 not found in PubMed search. Because of human error in hand searching 2 articles were added. CONCLUSION: The proposed syntax in this study achieves a sensitivity of search of 0.6 in PubMed which could be quite applicable for researchers. Moreover, in case only MeSH or Emtree terms were applied in search strategy or where hand searching was not performed, there were a number of articles missed.

Risk Criteria in Hospital Site Selection: A Systematic Review.

INTRODUCTION: Hospitals should be safe and remain functional in emergencies and disasters as it is mentioned in the Sendai Framework. Proper selection of a hospital location has a direct effect on survival of affected population in disasters as well as cost and benefit of the hospital in non-emergency situation. Different studies applied different criteria for Hospital Site Selection (HSS). The present study through a systematic review aimed to find out a categorized criteria list that have been used for (HSS) in the literature. METHODS: In accordance with the PRISMA statement, "PubMed", "ScienceDirect", "Google Scholar", and "Scopus" were searched up to end of 2015. All English Articles that were published in peer-reviewed journals and had discussed site selection criteria for hospitals were included. Out of 41 articles, 15 met the inclusion criteria in which 39 general criteria for HSS were applied. These criteria were categorized in six main groups including cost, demand, environmental, administrative, disaster risk, and "other" concerns through a focus group discussion. RESULTS: Accordingly, the application percentage of cost, demand, environmental, administrative, disaster risk, and "other" concerns in the articles was 100, 93.3, 53.3, 33.3, 20.0, and 13.3 respectively. The least devoted attention was to disaster risk issues. DISCUSSION: Few researchers applied risk related criteria for HSS. Further consideration of "risk of hazards" and "burden of diseases" in comprehensive studies, is recommended for HSS to guide the decision makers for building more resilient hospitals. Keywords   Hospital, Site selection, Systematic review, Disaster risk.

Women's Challenges and Capabilities in Disasters: A Case Report of the Twin Earthquakes of Eastern Azerbaijan, Iran.

Introduction: The twin earthquakes of eastern Azerbaijan induced considerable devastations of many villages and cities. About 70% of all victims were women and children. The present case report was aimed at describing the lessons learnt from both capabilities and challenges of girls and women after the twin earthquakes of eastern Azerbaijan. Methods: A qualitative approach using in-depth unstructured interviews was used for this study. A total of 13 participants (two men and 11 women), affected by the quakes, were interviewed applying the purposeful sampling method. A manifest content analysis was performed for analyzing the transcribed interviews Case presentation: Two categories of women's capabilities and challenges and four subcategories of women's participation in community reconstruction, livelihood efforts, aggravated poverty and violence were extracted from the data which were gathered in the destroyed fields of eastern Azerbaijan. Lessons learnt: Women can play an important role in post-disaster recovery. Consequently, ignoring the challenges and capabilities of women may impede post-disaster development processes, which would adversely affect the whole community.

Tehran dust storm early warning system: corrective measures.

On June 2, 2014 a sandstorm hit Tehran, the capital city of Iran which killed 5 and injured 44 people. The early warning system did not operate properly and the alarm was not transferred to at risk population and the related organizations in time and in a right manner. Additionally, people who were exposed to the winds didn't know the appropriate safety measures. Focusing much more on establishing EWS to alert the risk prone population timely and public education for taking safety measures when exposed to the disastrous situation is recommended.