Obesity-Related Knowledge and Practice Among the Healthcare Professions Students in Saudi Arabia.

Objective: The objectives of this study are to identify the prevalence and the factors behind overweight and obesity among the healthcare profession's students. Methods: A well-structured and validated questionnaire was distributed to a heterogeneous purposive sample of the healthcare profession's students in Saudi Arabia. Results: About 21.0% and 15.5% were overweight and obese, respectively. The average knowledge score was 70.6% and increased with age and among obese participants. The average attitude score was 74.8% with no variation within age, body mass index (BMI), and gender. The average practice score was only 36.7%. There was a significant variation of the practice within the different age groups (P = 0.021). There was a significant association between the participant's knowledge and attitude, and practice. Conclusion: The average practice score was poor. Despite their good knowledge and positive attitude, the students are exposed to heavy junk food marketing, which encourages overconsumption by instilling positive emotional associations with the junk food. They are mostly physically inactive, anxious and sleep deprived, which can lead to poor eating habits. For this group, various strategies and motivators will likely be needed.

The Association of Body Mass Index with COVID-19 Complications and Survival Rate at a Tertiary Hospital.

A high body mass index (BMI) is a known risk factor for coronavirus infection in hospitalized patients. Our study examined the association between BMI and complications and the survival rate among COVID-19 patients. This retrospective analysis used data from a tertiary hospital in the Eastern Region of Saudi Arabia during two waves of the COVID-19 pandemic. The study included 600 participants, with the majority being between 41 and 60 years old (41.3%) and men comprising 63.5% of the sample. Approximately 42.5% of patients were obese, and 31.3% were overweight. The results showed that BMI was significantly linked to respiratory diseases (p = 0.013); end-stage renal disease (p = 0.021); and cardiovascular disease (p = 0.003) but not diabetes mellitus (p = 0.064). Death occurred in 10.8% of patients; 33.8% were admitted to the ICU; 13.8% needed mechanical ventilation; and 60.7% had lung infiltration. Obese patients with oxygen saturation levels below 93% were 2.45 times more likely to require mechanical ventilation than those in the normal-weight group. Overweight and obese patients were also more likely to require mechanical ventilation than normal-weight patients, with odds ratios of 3.66 and 2.81, respectively. The BMI categorized was not associated with survival rate in COVID-19-hospitalized patients using Kaplan-Meier survival plots (p = 0.061). However, the BMI categorized was associated with survival rate in COVID-19 ICU patients (p < 0.001). In addition, the overweight showed a statistically significant higher hazard ratio of 2.22 (p = 0.01) compared to normal-weight patients using a Cox regression model. A high BMI was identified as an independent risk factor for reduced oxygen saturation (<93%), the need for mechanical ventilation, lung infiltration, mortality, and longer ICU stays in COVID-19 patients.

Turnover-attachment motive of Saudi Arabia nursing workforce: A Cross-Sectional study.

AIM: This study aimed to explore the association of turnover-attachment motive with socio-demographic data among Saudi and foreign nurses in a hospital in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia. METHODS: A cross-sectional correlation study was conducted among n = 180 registered Saudi and foreign nurses working at a private tertiary hospital in the Eastern Province, Saudi Arabia. The turnover-attachment motive survey was used to evaluate the eight motivational forces. Data were analysed using JASP version 16 statistical software and Orange 3 version 3.26.0. The data were subjected to correlation analysis and multiple linear regression. RESULTS: Only 8% of participants were identified with a high intention to leave driven by alternative, behavioural, normative and constitutive forces. Younger healthcare workers tend to have higher intentions to quit the job; the 29-33 age group has a statistically significant negative effect, increasing intention to leave. It was found that those with 5-6 years of clinical experience at Dr. Sulaiman Al Habib Hospital, Al Khobar and no experience abroad had statistically significantly lower intention to leave. CONCLUSION: This study presented the factors influencing nursing staff to stay or leave work in a hospital in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia that can be a basis for reviewing existing policies and procedures to improve nurses' working conditions.

The Impact of Total Automaton on the Clinical Laboratory Workforce: A Case Study.

Background: There has been a significant concern that total automation can decrease the need for laboratory personnel at all levels. The objective of this study was to investigate the impact of total laboratory automation on the clinical laboratory workforce. Methods: A one-year data including the demographical features of laboratory workforce and technical productivity of laboratory tests were provided by two medical laboratory departments of similar profile and different equipment setup; one adopting a total automation system and the other utilizing discrete analysis system. The technical productivities of the two laboratories were compared and statistically tested. Results: A similar technical productivity per single laboratory worker was noted in the hematology section in each of the two sites with no significant difference (average odd radio = 0.9, p = 0.79). However, with total automation, the number of tests performed per single worker has increased to an average of 1.4 and 3.7 times with total automation in the clinical chemistry and serology sections, respectively (p ≤ 0.001). Conclusion: Total laboratory automation improves the productivity of the laboratory, leading to a decreased laboratory workforce. The laboratory workload has increased steadily therefore, the existing laboratory workforce, in the absence of automation, could not have been able to maintain the current volume of service. Adoption of automation reduces repetitive manual labor, thereby allowing the redefinition of the job roles of the laboratory workforce. TLA is ideal for laboratories that suffer from workforce shortages or managing high volume testing with less staff.

Factors related to COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy in Saudi Arabia.

Objectives: To assess the amount of vaccine hesitancy and its determinants in relation to various demographic, social, and personal characteristics among the Saudi population. Study design: Cross-sectional study. Methods: we utilized a structured questionnaire on a five point-Likert scale that included immunization process awareness, perception towards immunization and factors leading to vaccine refusal. Results: The study included 5965 participants characterized according to various demographical factors. The participant's knowledge, perception, and the factors affecting the decision of taking the vaccine were calculated. About 40.7% had enough information about COVID-19 vaccines and were willing to take it. The participant's perception towards COVID-19 vaccines is proportional to their knowledge and varied with the personal characteristics. Factors influencing vaccine use varied also with personal characteristics. Intent to be vaccinated was higher among older age groups, advanced education, retirees, and higher income persons (P < 0.001). Moreover, the influence of heterogeneity in personal perception towards COVID-19 vaccines has been discussed. Vaccine barriers scores were significantly higher among lower educational and income levels (P = 0.004). The leader's influence on vaccine decision was high (p < 0.001). The side effects of COVID-19 vaccine is the most important barrier to vaccine acceptance. Knowledge and perception score were consistently and significantly higher among the group who received their information from official websites, followed by those who had used both websites and social media (p < 0.001). Conclusion: Additional approaches will be needed to effectively meet the needs of the hesitant population, particularly the safety and efficacy concerns, the speed of vaccine development, and the distrust in government and health organizations.

E- Learning experience of the medical profession's college students during COVID-19 pandemic in Saudi Arabia.

BACKGROUND: Worldwide, most of educational institutions have moved to online electronic learning methods because of the COVID-19 pandemic. On March 8, 2020, the Saudi Ministry of Education announced remote learning for public and private schools and universities as a preventive and precautionary measure to curb the spread of the coronavirus. The objective of this study was to explore the e-learning experience of the students of the colleges of health sciences with regard to the technical preparedness, academic achievements, e-learning advantages and limitations. A well-structured and validated questionnaire on a five-point Likert scale and open-ended questions about their e-learning experience was distributed to a heterogeneous purposive sample of the health sciences students in Saudi Arabian universities. RESULTS: Of the 1288 respondents, of various demographical features a relatively higher proportion of 58.2 % agreed that they had enough information about the online learning. However, the proportion who reported receiving adequate guidance, technical support, and having satisfactory hardware and internet access to online learning were 48.1 %, 42, and 35.4 %, respectively. Of all participants, 40.8 % agreed that they had gained a good understanding of their courses learning outcomes. Only 30.0 % agreed that the quality of the online teaching was similar to traditional classes and 56.1 % agreed that the online learning is unsuitable for the medical sciences studies. E-learning advantages mentioned were the flexible accessibility of the learning materials, time, effort, and money saving, acquiring and improving technical and self-learning skills, health safety, interaction without shyness, and better academic accomplishment. On the other hand, disadvantages and difficulties included inadequate tools to facilitate online learning, poor internet connection, lack of technological skills by the educators and students. In addition, there was inadequate or lack of practical classes, lack of a unified clear policy for the conduct of online classes and exams and grade distribution, limited online exam time. CONCLUSIONS: The sudden shift to e-learning without prior preparedness has revealed some pitfalls that need to be adjusted. The initial findings were considered satisfactory for such a new experience for both learners and students. However, there is a great chance for improving and expanding the e-learning process.

Molecular determination of van genes among clinical isolates of enterococci at a hospital setting.

Vancomycin-resistant enterococci (VRE) poses a formidable challenge to public health due to its inherent resistance to multiple antibiotics coupled with the ability to transfer genetic determinants to dangerous pathogens like Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). The purpose of this study was to investigate the incidence of vancomycin resistance in enterococci among clinical isolates at a tertiary care military hospital in the eastern region of Saudi Arabia and to detect van genes using multiplex-PCR. Overall, 246 isolates of enterococci were collected from various clinical specimens. The isolates were identified, and antimicrobial susceptibility testing was done using the Vitek 2 system. Multiplex PCR was performed on the VRE isolates, thus identified to determine the van genes harbored. A total of 15 VRE were identified, of which 14 (93.3%) were Enterococcus faecium, and 1(6.7%) was Enterococcus casseliflavus with intrinsic vanC resistance. Of the 14 vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus faecium, 8 (57.1%) harbored vanB genes, while 6 (42.8%) harbored vanA genes. All the VRE were susceptible to linezolid and tigecycline. Our study detected a low prevalence (6.1%) of VRE among clinical isolates of enterococci and that the vanB gene predominates in such strains. Susceptibility profiles indicated that linezolid and tigecycline are still effective against these multidrug-resistant pathogens. Pus specimens yielded the highest percentage (53.3%) of isolates from which VRE was obtained, and this finding is novel among studies done in Saudi Arabia.

Community practice of using face masks for the prevention of COVID-19 in Saudi Arabia.

Community face masking is possibly of great value in reducing COVID-19 transmission, especially when universally adopted with high compliance. The aim of this study is to investigate the knowledge, common misconceptions, barriers, and the compliance of the community with the use of face masks for the prevention of COVID-19. A validated questionnaire was administered to the participants through a web link by using various social media. The collected data were statistically analyzed for significant differences according to demographic variables. The average knowledge of face masks and their role in preventing COVID-19 transmission was 95.64%, with no differences among most of the demographical factors. Older groups and females demonstrated a better attitude towards wearing face masks than other groups did (p<0.001). Another significant difference in the participant's attitude was noticed between the various educational levels, employment, and nationality (p<0.001). Of the total respondents, 88.2% encouraged wearing face masks. Misconceptions about wearing face masks were very low. The frequency of wearing face masks at public places, workplaces, or social gatherings was 87.2%, 80.5%, and 47.5% respectively. There was a significant variation in the compliance with wearing face masks between the various groups based on age, gender, nationality, and employment status (p<0.001). The inconvenience in wearing face masks was reported by 36.3%. Face irritation and ear pain were reported by 70.2% and 43.5%, respectively. The inconvenience of wearing face masks with eyeglasses was reported by 44.3% of those wearing eyeglasses. In general, the study demonstrated a good attitude among participants towards wearing face masks. Although the respondents in the study were aware of the benefits of wearing face masks, the barriers may have decreased their desire to do so. These barriers include difficulty in breathing, discomfort, face irritation, and ear pain.