Predicting the COVID-19 vaccine receive intention based on the theory of reasoned action in the south of Iran.

BACKGROUND: Vaccination against Covid 19 disease was based on rational practice theory. One of the most effective methods to control the COVID-19 pandemic is extensive vaccination coverage in the shortest time. The relevant beliefs and predictors of COVID-19 vaccine and the barriers to and facilitators of receiving COVID-19 vaccine should be identified. Individuals' intention to receive COVID-19 and the effective factors are of an utmost importance. This study aimed to predict intention to receive COVID-19 vaccine in the South of Iran. METHODS: This cross-sectional study was performed over a period of 2 months (May 2021 to July 2021) in 4 southern provinces in Iran. The study population of this study included people over 18 years of age who did not receive the COVID-19 vaccine. The online questionnaire was used to collect data. We recruited participants through a self-selection sampling method and posted the online survey link. The questionnaire had two parts: demographic information and Theory of Reasoned Action (TRA) questions. All statistical calculations and hypotheses tests were performed using SPSS21 and Amos21 software and the significance level was considered 0.05. RESULTS: A total number of 2556 people participated in this study with a mean age of 37.76 (10.7) of years (Age Range = 18-75). The findings showed that attitudes and subjective norms and the use of social media predict the intention to receive COVID-19 vaccine. SEM showed that attitude (ß = 0.596, P < 0.001), subjective norms (ß = 0.265, P < 0.001) were significant predictors of vaccination intention. In this study, 78% of people were willing to receive the vaccine when they were officially allowed to. CONCLUSION: According to the results of the study, it is suggested to strengthen positive attitudes and subjective norms about the importance of COVID-19 vaccination as well as using social media to inform the community in order increase the intention to vaccinate COVID-19 and increase vaccine coverage.

A study of factors related to patients' length of stay using data mining techniques in a general hospital in southern Iran.

PURPOSE: The length of stay (LOS) in hospitals is a widely used indicator for goals such as health care management, quality control, utilizing hospital services and resources, and determining the degree of efficiency. Various methods have been used to identify the factors influencing the LOS. This study adopts a comparative approach of data mining techniques for investigating effective factors and predict the length of stay in Shahid-Mohammadi Hospital, Bandar Abbas, Iran. METHODS: Using a dataset consists of 526 patient records of the Shahid-Mohammadi Hospital from March 2016 to March 2017, factors affecting the LOS were ranked using information gain and correlation indices. In addition, classification models for LOS prediction were created based on nine data mining classifiers applied with and without feature selection technique. Finally, the models were compared. RESULTS: The most important factors affecting LOS are the number of para-clinical services, counseling frequency, clinical ward, the specialty and the degree of the doctor, and the cause of hospitalization. In addition, regarding to the classifiers created based on the dataset, the best accuracy (83.91%) and sensitivity (80.36%) belongs to the Logistic Regression and Naïve Bayes respectively. In addition, the best AUC (0.896) belongs to the Random Forest and Generalized Linear classifiers. CONCLUSION: The results showed that most of the proposed models are suitable for classification of the length of stay, although the Logistic Regression might have a slightly better performance than others in term of accuracy, and this model can be used to determine the patients' Length of Stay. In general, continuous monitoring of the factors influencing each of the performance indicators based on proper and accurate models in hospitals is important for helping management decisions.

Factors affecting length of stay in Children Hospital in Southern Iran.

BACKGROUND: One of the effective indicators for determining the efficiency and optimal use of hospital resources is the length of stay (LOS). This study aimed to determine the patients' length of stay and the factors affecting the LOS in the Children's hospital. METHOD: A cross-sectional study was performed on Children Hospital medical record database including 350 records (April 2015 to Dec 2015). Records were selected by stratified random sampling with proportional allocation. Then the predetermined demographic and hospital variables were extracted through the study of patients' medical records. All statistical analysis were performed using SPSS software. RESULTS: The overall median of the LOS in the studied hospital was 3 days (IQR =3). The results showed that in this hospital the LOS has a significant relationship with the variables of time of admission, the place of residence, type of admission, and the degree of attending physician. Also, with the increasing number of visits, ultrasonography, counseling and laboratory test, LOS was increased. CONCLUSION: Improving processes related to diagnostic procedures, providing adequate staffing for specialized services in all hours of the day, preventing unnecessary and non-emergency admissions in the evening and night, will be effective in optimizing patient LOS.

Assessing quality of health services with the SERVQUAL model in Iran. A systematic review and meta-analysis.

PURPOSE: The five-dimension service quality (SERVQUAL) scale is one of the most common tools for evaluating gaps between clients' perceptions and expectations. This study aimed to assess the quality of health services in Iran through a meta-analysis of all Iranian studies which used the SERVQUAL tool. DATA SOURCES: A systematic literature review has been performed in Web of Science, PubMed, Scopus, Google Scholar, Iran Medex, Magiran and Scientific Information Database. STUDY SELECTION: All relevant English or Persian studies published between January 2009 and April 2016 were have been selected. Papers were considered if they regarded all five dimensions of the SERVQUAL tool for assessing the quality of health care services. DATA EXTRACTION: Two reviewer independently extracted mean and standard deviation of five dimensions and characteristics of studies. The quality of studies included in meta-analysis using STROBE checklist. RESULTS OF DATA SYNTHESIS: Of 315 studies initially identified, 12 were included in our meta-analysis. All analyses were performed in Stata MP v. 14. Patients' perceptions were lower than their expectations (gap = -1.64). Responsibility (-1.22) and reliability (-1.15) had the lowest gaps, and tangibility and empathy (-1.03) had the largest gaps. Except gender, other variables had no significant associations with gaps. Patients in the cities of Arak (-3.47) and Shiraz (-3.02) had the largest gaps. CONCLUSIONS: All dimensions of service quality were negative, which implies that the quality of health services in Iran has not been satisfying to patients and needs to be improved.

Constraining Factors of Research among faculty members at Hormozgan University of Medical Sciences.

INTRODUCTION: In recent decades, the major criteria for development in countries were defined mostly by research position. The first step in organizing the research subject in societies is gaining a correct perception of abilities, available facilities, and finding the strengths and weaknesses of research programs. This research was conducted to determine the constraining factors of research among faculty members. METHODS: In this cross-sectional study in 2013, the population was Hormozgan Medical Science faculty members, and samples were selected based on the Morgan table (138 individuals). A researcher-made questionnaire after determining validity and confirming reliability was distributed among them. The data were analyzed by SPSS using descriptive and inferential statistics, such as Pearson's product-moment correlation. RESULTS: Among organizational factors, lack of data presentation to researchers from organization sections with 81.2% was the most effective factor. The lack of facilitating national and international research exchange with 80.5% and the lack of research workshops based on needs with 77.9% were the next ones. Among the personal constraining factors, 64% of the faculty declared that having inadequate time for research due to the educational activities was the main factor. CONCLUSIONS: According to the faculty's comments, research activities encounter different constraining factors. It can be said that, by promoting a data registration system, collaborating on contract agreements and improving national and international research exchange, empowering members' research (need-based workshops), and decreasing the faculty's clinical and educational activities can overcome these constraints.

Service quality assessment of a referral hospital in southern Iran with SERVQUAL technique: patients' perspective.

BACKGROUND: Providing services to patients according to their expectations and needs is necessary for the success of an organization in order to remain in the competitive market. Recognizing these needs and expectations is an important step in offering high quality services. This study was designed to determine the service quality gap of the main hospital of Hormozgan province. METHODS: This cross sectional study was conducted in 2013 in Bandar Abbas ShahidMohammadi Hospital in the south of Iran. All 96 participants of this study were provided by SERVQUAL questionnaire. Data was analyzed by Wilcoxon and Kruskal-Wallis tests. RESULTS: Service quality gaps were seen in all five service quality dimensions and the overall quality of service. The mean of quality perception score and quality expectation score was 3.44 ± 0.693 and 4.736 ± 0.34, respectively. The highest perception was in assurance dimension and the highest expectation was in Responsiveness and assurance dimensions. Also, the lowest perception was in responsiveness dimension and the lowest expectation was about empathy. In this study, 56.1% of participants defined the quality of services as average. CONCLUSION: According to the results, this hospital was not able to meet patients' expectations completely. Therefore, action must be taken to decrease the gap between the perception and expectation of the patients.