Adaptation and application of the Parent Attitudes About Childhood Vaccines survey tool in the Vietnamese language: a cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: Parental vaccine hesitancy could lead to outbreaks of vaccine-preventable diseases. Although parental vaccine hesitancy exists in the Vietnamese community, no research has directly investigated this social phenomenon in Vietnam. Among the validated measures, the 15-item Parent Attitudes About Childhood Vaccines survey tool (PACV) was reliable for predicting vaccine-hesitant parents. However, the PACV was not available in Vietnamese. This study aimed to develop a Vietnamese version of the PACV and examine factors associated with parental vaccine hesitancy in Hue city, Vietnam. METHODS: This study was a cross-sectional study. The English PACV was translated into Vietnamese with content and face validation. Self-administered questionnaires were distributed to 400 parents at ten commune health centres in Hue city, Vietnam. The parents were asked to answer the questionnaire again after two weeks for the test-retest reliability. The Vietnamese PACV reliability was assessed using Cronbach's alpha and McDonald's omega, and the intra-class correlation (ICC) coefficients were used for the test-retest reliability. The construct validity was tested by the hypothesis that parental vaccine hesitancy would be related to the intention of getting the children vaccinated. Exploratory factor analysis was also undertaken to determine the construct validity. Bivariate and multivariable logistic regression were used to identify the factors associated with parental vaccine hesitancy. RESULTS: The Vietnamese PACV final version (PACV-Viet) contained 14 items. Three hundred and fifteen parents returned completed questionnaires, giving a response rate of 78.8%. The Cronbach's alpha and McDonald's omega were 0.72 and 0.70, respectively. Out of 315 parents, 84 responses were returned for test-retest reliability. All ICCs were good to excellent, ranging from 0.81 to 0.99. The PACV-Viet was confirmed to have construct validity. Using the PACV-Viet, 8.9% of the parents were found hesitant to childhood vaccination. Being unemployed and having seen the news about adverse events following immunisation were associated with parental vaccine hesitancy, with AOR = 3.2 (95% CI 1.3-8.0) and AOR = 4.5 (95% CI 1.2-16.7), respectively. CONCLUSIONS: The PACV-Viet is a valid and reliable tool. Community outreach is necessary to alleviate parents' concerns about childhood vaccination.

Impact of oral intervention on the oral and overall health of children living with HIV in Cambodia: a randomized controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: Maintaining oral health is essential for improving overall health of children living with HIV. Therefore, we evaluated the effectiveness of an oral health intervention for improving their oral and overall health. In addition, we examined their longitudinal association between changes in oral and overall health. METHODS: We conducted a 2-year randomized controlled trial involving children living with HIV in Cambodia. Children aged 3-15 years and their caregivers were randomly allocated either to the intervention (group A) or control (group B) arm. A second control arm (group C) included children without HIV. The group A children received oral health education sessions and practiced home-based daily care. RESULTS: In the baseline survey, 482 children participated (group A: n = 160, group B: n = 168, group C: n = 154), and 350 completed the endline survey. An interaction effect in teeth brushing duration was observed in children in group A relative to group B (AOR = 2.69, 95% CI: 1.37-5.31) and group C (AOR = 3.78, 95% CI: 1.70-8.40). Longitudinal associations were observed between changes in oral hygiene and overall health, as presented by alterations in dental caries in permanent teeth with viral load detection (adjusted odds ratio = 3.58, 95% CI: 1.10 - 11.73), in salivary flow quantity with the overall quality of life (ß = 0.07, 95% CI: < 0.01 - 0.13), as well as in dental caries, salivary pH, debris index with body mass index for age among group A children. CONCLUSIONS: Oral health intervention may improve oral care behaviors and potentially enhance overall health among children living with HIV in antiretroviral therapy in a resource-constrained setting. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ISRCTN 15177479.

Does benefits-of-breastfeeding language or risks-of-formula-feeding language promote more-positive attitudes toward breastfeeding among midwives and nurses?

BACKGROUND: Midwives and nurses are crucial in breastfeeding support. Few studies have explored appropriate language for nursing education on breastfeeding. We assessed the impact of the language used on breastfeeding attitudes among midwives and nurses. METHODS: A quasi-experimental study was conducted online in Japan among 174 midwives and nurses who had work experience in obstetrics or pediatrics. Participants were allocated to three groups to receive different text messages as the intervention (the benefit of breastfeeding for Group 1; the risk of formula feeding for Group 2; the importance of childcare for Group 3 as the comparison). The Japanese version of the Iowa Infant Feeding Attitude Scale (IIFAS-J) was used to assess breastfeeding attitudes before and after reading the texts. Also, participant reactions to the text were assessed by their responses to three statements. ANOVA, the chi-square test, and the t-test were used for outcome assessments. RESULTS: The post-test IIFAS-J score was significantly higher than the pre-test score only for Group 1 (p <  0.01). The percentage of participants who agreed with the content of the text was 70.7% in Group 1 and 48.3% in Group 2. The percentage of participants who reported discomfort with the text was 34.5% in Group 1 and 55.2% in Group 2. No significant difference among groups existed regarding interest in the text. In all three groups, participants who agreed with the text had a higher post-test IIFAS-J score than those who disagreed with the text (6.85 points higher, p <  0.01 in Group 1; 7.19 points higher, p <  0.01 in Group 2; 8.00 points higher, p <  0.02 in Group 3). Discomfort with the text and interest in the text were associated with a significantly higher post-test IIFAS-J score in Group 1 and Group 2 but not in Group 3. CONCLUSIONS: "Benefits of breastfeeding" language, which conveys the information in a positive manner, appears to be more appropriate than "risks of infant formula" language for creating a positive attitude toward breastfeeding in nursing education. TRIAL REGISTRATION: This study was registered in the University Hospital Medical Information Network Clinical Trials Registry (UMIN000023322). Registered 05/08/2016.

Association between the person-centered maternity care experience and mental health after delivery in urban and rural Dhading, Nepal: a cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: Person-centered maternity care is a component of quality care, which includes effective communication, respect, and dignity. Supportive care has a positive effect on mothers' perinatal experience. In contrast, negative childbirth experiences can cause psychological problems. However, the impact of person-centered maternity care experience on mothers' mental health after delivery remains unknown. Therefore, in this study, we examined the association between person-centered maternity care experience at healthcare facilities and maternal mental health after delivery among Nepali women. METHODS: We conducted a cross-sectional study in urban and rural areas in Dhading District, Nepal. Participants were women who gave birth at public healthcare facilities, and their baby's age was between 1 and 12 months. After purposively selecting the target areas, we recruited the women from July to August 2019 and interviewed them using questionnaires. We conducted multiple regression analyses to analyze the association between delivery care experience and depressive symptoms and the association between delivery care experience and mental well-being. RESULTS: In total, 595 women were included in the data analysis. The experience of better person-centered maternity care was associated with lower depressive symptom scores in urban (unstandardized coefficient [B]= - 0.09, p < 0.001) and rural areas (B= - 0.10, p < 0.001). Moreover, the experience of better person-centered maternity care was associated with higher mental well-being scores in both urban (B= 0.30, p < 0.001) and rural areas (B= 0.15, p = 0.017). CONCLUSIONS: Person-centered maternity care was associated with lower depressive symptom scores and higher mental well-being, regardless of the setting in Nepal. Person-centered maternity care during childbirth can potentially improve mental health after delivery. Maternity care should be improved with more attention to person-centered maternity care aspects.

Accommodation and disability-specific differences in nutritional status of children with disabilities in Kathmandu, Nepal: A cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: Worldwide, more than 150 million children < 18 years live with disabilities. These children are more vulnerable to malnutrition regardless of institutional care that they receive, such as daycare or residential care. In Nepal, little is known about the status of malnutrition and factors associated with malnutrition among children with disabilities. This study was conducted to investigate the factors associated with malnutrition based on the types of disability and accommodation. METHODS: This institution-based, cross-sectional study was conducted in 22 institutions in the Kathmandu Valley, Nepal. From these institutions, parents/guardians of all children with disabilities were recruited who were present there on the day of data collection. They were interviewed using a structured questionnaire. The questionnaire included questions on demographic characteristics, disability type and severity, accommodation place, feeding practices, and dietary patterns. The outcome variables, stunting, underweight, and obesity were measured using height-for-age, weight-for-age, and body mass index-for-age, respectively. A generalized linear model was used to investigate the factors associated with stunting and underweight, and multinomial logistic regression was used to identify the factors associated with overweight and obesity. RESULTS: Among the 345 children with disabilities, 45% were stunted, 33% were underweight, 19% were thin, and 12% were overweight. Children with physical disabilities (relative risk ratio = 1.88, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.26-2.81) were more likely to be stunted than those with sensory disabilities. Children with autism (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] = 5.56, 95% CI: 1.23-25.23) and intellectual disabilities (aOR = 5.84, 95% CI: 1.59-21.51) were more likely to be overweight and obese than those with sensory disabilities. No evidence was found regarding an association between accommodation type and malnutrition. CONCLUSION: Children with disabilities are vulnerable to malnutrition in several ways. Different types of disabilities are associated with different forms of malnutrition. Considering the types of disabilities, tailor-made approaches should be adopted to improve malnutrition status.

Japanese health and safety information for overseas visitors: a randomized controlled trial.

INTRODUCTION: International travel to Japan increased steadily until the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak. Although international travel was curtailed worldwide due to the pandemic, the number of overseas visitors to Japan should increase again after the restrictions are lifted. We assessed the effect of a five-minute digital game on the knowledge of health information and the level of satisfaction with educational health resources of overseas visitors to Japan. METHODS: We conducted a randomized controlled trial among 1062 previous and potential visitors to Japan utilizing an internet portal. We recruited previous and potential visitors to Japan from the internet portal sites of the UK, the US and Australia. We randomly allocated participants to two groups: an intervention group that played an animated game and a control group that viewed an online animation. All participants answered a self-administered questionnaire online from March 16 to 19, 2021. We assessed visitors' levels of health knowledge and satisfaction using the CSQ-8. We analyzed the data with a t test and the difference in differences test. Our RCT followed the SPIRIT guidelines. RESULTS: Of the 1062 previous and potential visitors recruited via the three countries' internet portals (354 from each country), some had visited Japan previously (174 in the intervention group, 220 in the control group), while some were potential visitors to Japan (357 in the intervention group, 311 in the control group). Some had gathered health and safety information about Japan prior to this study (180 in the intervention group, 211 in the control group). Both groups improved their health information levels after the intervention. The level of satisfaction with health information in Japan was significantly increased in the intervention group (average difference of 4.5 points) compared to that in the control group (average difference of 3.9 points) (p < 0.05). Both groups' mean CSQ-8 scores increased significantly after the intervention (p < 0.001): from 23 to 28 in the intervention group and from 23 to 24 in the control group. CONCLUSIONS: Our study introduced unique educational strategies using an online game to provide health and safety information to previous and potential visitors to Japan. The online game was a more effective way to increase satisfaction than the online animation about health information. This study was registered in the UMIN-CTR (University Hospital Medical Information Network Center Clinical Trials Registry) as Version 1, and the trial registration data are available as UMIN000042483, 17/11/2020. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Trials UMIN-CTR (University Hospital Medical Information Network Center Clinical Trials Registry), UMIN000042483 (Japanese health and safety information for overseas visitors: A randomized controlled trial), 17/11/2020.

Association of workload and practice of respectful maternity care among the healthcare providers, before and during the early phase of COVID-19 pandemic in South Western Nepal: a cross-sectional study.

INTRODUCTION: Respectful maternity care is an approach that involves respecting women's belief, choices, emotions, and dignity during the childbirth process. As the workload among maternity care workforce affects intrapartum quality care, respectful maternity care might have also been affected, particularly during the pandemic. Thus, this study was conducted to examine the association between workload among healthcare providers and their practice of respectful maternity care, before and during the early phase of pandemic. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted in South Western Nepal. A total of 267 healthcare providers from 78 birthing centers were included. Data collection was done through telephone interviews. The exposure variable was workload among the healthcare providers, and the outcome variable was respectful maternity care practice before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. Multilevel mixed-effect linear regression was used to examine the association. RESULTS: The median client-provider ratio before and during the pandemic was 21.7 and 13.0, respectively. The mean score of respectful maternity care practice was 44.5 (SD 3.8) before the pandemic, which was decreased to 43.6 (SD 4.5) during the pandemic. Client-provider ratio was negatively associated with respectful maternity care practice for both times; before (Coef. -5.16; 95% CI -8.41 to -1.91) and during (Coef. -7.47; 95% CI -12.72 to -2.23) the pandemic. CONCLUSIONS: While a higher client-provider was associated with a lower respectful maternity care practice score both before and during the COVID-19 pandemic, the coefficient was larger during the pandemic. Therefore, workload among the healthcare providers should be considered before the implementation of respectful maternity care, and more attention should be given during the pandemic.

Understanding competency of nursing students in the course of case-based learning in Cambodia: a convergent mixed method study.

BACKGROUND: In the last decade, nursing education has begun to reform to competency-based education worldwide, including in low-and middle-income countries. Case-Based Learning (CBL), an approach to delivering competency-based education, contributes to acquiring critical thinking competency, problem-solving, higher knowledge, professional value and attitude. However, it needs to be taught in a culturally appropriate manner. In Cambodia, CBL was initiated in a classroom and clinical practicum by faculty and preceptors who graduated from the upgrading course. This study examined the factors associated with the competency level of nursing students, explored the practice and perceptions of teaching-learning activities among students, faculty members and preceptors and assessed the coherence of qualitative and quantitative findings. METHODS: This was a convergent, mixed methods study. Data were collected from eight educational institutions for quantitative and qualitative studies and seven hospitals for qualitative studies. From June to September 2019, a cross-sectional survey of nursing students in the third year of the three-year programme (n = 719), eight focus group discussions (FGDs; n = 55) with 6-8 members and 15 FGDs with faculty (n = 38) and clinical preceptors (n = 37) with 4-7 members were conducted to elicit the teaching-learning experience and perceptions. Multiple linear regression was performed to investigate the factors associated with student competency. Moreover, the study conducted thematic content analysis on the qualitative data. The integrated analysis was presented as side-by-side joint displays. RESULTS: First, the quantitative and qualitative findings confirmed each other 's CBL learning experiences. Students had higher levels of nursing competencies if they had CBL experiences, both in the classroom and clinical practicum, both in a group manner. Next, the quantitative and qualitative findings complemented students' academic satisfaction with the teaching by faculty members and preceptors. Finally, the quantitative and qualitative findings were expanded to explain students' academic satisfaction with the programme. CONCLUSIONS: The finding of CBL experiences in a group and students' satisfaction with faculty members' and preceptors' teaching improved nursing students' competency development. Meanwhile, students' satisfaction with the design and delivery of the educational programme provides implications for policy level to narrow the theory and practice gaps in low- and middle-income countries.

The effectiveness of a behavioral science and design intervention for family savings on use of maternal health services and male involvement: study protocol for a randomized controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: Lack of financial preparedness for pregnancy can lead to adverse outcomes during childbirth. Behavioral science interventions have been shown to influence savings behavior. Financial savings interventions can be adapted for the purpose of encouraging individuals to save towards maternal healthcare costs. This article describes a protocol to assess the effectiveness of an intervention formulated with a behavioral science approach for encouraging use of maternal health services through increased financial savings for birth preparedness and maternal healthcare costs among pregnant women or their partners in Uganda. METHODS: A randomized controlled trial will be conducted to assess the effectiveness of the intervention among pregnant women or their partners in Uganda's central region, including the capital of Kampala. Seven hundred pregnant women (12-35 gestational weeks) or their partners will be recruited. All participants will receive access to a committed mobile money health savings account provided by a local organization that also offers savings targets and reminders for antenatal care appointments and health tips as part of a "Mamas Program" offered to expectant mothers. The time period in the intervention is from the day of enrollment until two weeks after the delivery date. The control group will receive the standard Mama Program offering. The intervention group will receive the standard Mama Program offering plus behavioral designs encouraging savings behavior through short-message service (SMS) text messages. The primary outcome is usage of maternal health services measured by level of birth preparedness and delivery at a health facility. Secondary outcomes include male involvement in maternal healthcare, measured by financial support, as well as total savings for healthcare, assessed using the validated amount of savings accrued in participants' clinicPesa accounts from the day of enrollment plus any withdrawals for healthcare expenditures during the intervention period. DISCUSSION: The study will contribute to a better understanding of the effectiveness of behavioral designs encouraging financial savings during pregnancy into committed mobile money health savings accounts. The study could contribute to demonstrating the effectiveness of savings on birth preparedness, usage of maternal health services, and male involvement in maternal healthcare. TRIAL REGISTRATION: UMIN-CTR Clinical Trial, UMIN000046472. Registered on 19 January 2022. https://center6.umin.ac.jp/cgi-open-bin/icdr_e/ctr_view.cgi?recptno=R000053008.

Evaluation of a package of continuum of care interventions for improved maternal, newborn, and child health outcomes and service coverage in Ghana: A cluster-randomized trial.

BACKGROUND: In low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), the continuum of care (CoC) for maternal, newborn, and child health (MNCH) is not always complete. This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of an integrated package of CoC interventions on the CoC completion, morbidity, and mortality outcomes of woman-child pairs in Ghana. METHODS AND FINDINGS: This cluster-randomized controlled trial (ISRCTN: 90618993) was conducted at 3 Health and Demographic Surveillance System (HDSS) sites in Ghana. The primary outcome was CoC completion by a woman-child pair, defined as receiving antenatal care (ANC) 4 times or more, delivery assistance from a skilled birth attendant (SBA), and postnatal care (PNC) 3 times or more. Other outcomes were the morbidity and mortality of women and children. Women received a package of interventions and routine services at health facilities (October 2014 to December 2015). The package comprised providing a CoC card for women, CoC orientation for health workers, and offering women with 24-hour stay at a health facility or a home visit within 48 hours after delivery. In the control arm, women received routine services only. Eligibility criteria were as follows: women who gave birth or had a stillbirth from September 1, 2012 to September 30, 2014 (before the trial period), from October 1, 2014 to December 31, 2015 (during the trial period), or from January 1, 2016 to December 31, 2016 (after the trial period). Health service and morbidity outcomes were assessed before and during the trial periods through face-to-face interviews. Mortality was assessed using demographic surveillance data for the 3 periods above. Mixed-effects logistic regression models were used to evaluate the effectiveness as difference in differences (DiD). For health service and morbidity outcomes, 2,970 woman-child pairs were assessed: 1,480 from the baseline survey and 1,490 from the follow-up survey. Additionally, 33,819 cases were assessed for perinatal mortality, 33,322 for neonatal mortality, and 39,205 for maternal mortality. The intervention arm had higher proportions of completed CoC (410/870 [47.1%]) than the control arm (246/620 [39.7%]; adjusted odds ratio [AOR] for DiD = 1.77; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.08 to 2.92; p = 0.024). Maternal complications that required hospitalization during pregnancy were lower in the intervention (95/870 [10.9%]) than in the control arm (83/620 [13.4%]) (AOR for DiD = 0.49; 95% CI: 0.29 to 0.83; p = 0.008). Maternal mortality was 8/6,163 live births (intervention arm) and 4/4,068 live births during the trial period (AOR for DiD = 1.60; 95% CI: 0.40 to 6.34; p = 0.507) and 1/4,626 (intervention arm) and 9/3,937 (control arm) after the trial period (AOR for DiD = 0.11; 95% CI: 0.11 to 1.00; p = 0.050). Perinatal and neonatal mortality was not significantly reduced. As this study was conducted in a real-world setting, possible limitations included differences in the type and scale of health facilities and the size of subdistricts, contamination for intervention effectiveness due to the geographic proximity of the arms, and insufficient number of cases for the mortality assessment. CONCLUSIONS: This study found that an integrated package of CoC interventions increased CoC completion and decreased maternal complications requiring hospitalization during pregnancy and maternal mortality after the trial period. It did not find evidence of reduced perinatal and neonatal mortality. TRIAL REGISTRATION: The study protocol was registered in the International Standard Randomised Controlled Trial Number Registry (90618993).

Nurse-Led Mobile Phone Voice Call Reminder and On-Time Antiretroviral Pills Pick-Up in Nepal: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

This study investigates the efficacy of a nurse-led mobile phone voice call reminder intervention in improving on-time antiretroviral (ARV) pills collection in Nepal. Between October and December 2017, 468 HIV-positive individuals were recruited randomly and assigned to either nurse-led mobile phone voice call reminder (intervention) group or voice call with health promotion message (control) group, 234 were allocated to each group. We assessed on-time pills pick-up at baseline and six-month follow-up and analyzed it by intention-to-treat method. In the intervention group, participants improved their on-time ARV pills pick-up from 60% (141/234) at baseline to 71% (151/234) at the six-month follow-up. After adjusting for covariates, those in the intervention group were significantly more likely to pick-up their pills on-time than those in the control group (intervention × time; adjusted odds ratio 2.02, 95% CI 1.15-3.55). Nurse-led mobile phone voice call reminder is efficacious to improve on-time ARV collection.

Japanese health and safety information for overseas visitors: protocol for a randomized controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: Before the COVID-19 pandemic occurred in January 2020, the number of overseas visitors to Japan had increased threefold over the last decade. To minimize the risk of health problems, visitors should be able to access information on the health care systems of the places they visit. Most short-term overseas visitors are young adults. Although they are not very likely to get sick from noncommunicable diseases, they are at high risk for injury and often experience stomach ailments, fever, or nausea when travelling. The objective of this study is to evaluate culturally and linguistically appropriate health information on preventive health behaviours and the health care system in Japan. We will examine the level of satisfaction of overseas visitors to Japan with health care-related educational materials using a five-minute digital game named Sa-Chan Japan. METHODS: Our study is a randomized controlled trial (RCT). We will assess both satisfaction and motivation before, during, and after the interventions and examine the changes over time. The intervention group will comprise overseas visitors who will view and answer questions in an animation named Sa-Chan Japan. The control group will comprise overseas visitors who will watch an English digital animation named Mari Info Japan. We will recruit 1002 participants through the Macromill Internet portal. We will contact overseas visitors who have either visited or wish to visit Japan from the United Kingdom, United States, and Australia. The participants will fill out a self-administered questionnaire online in the first quarter of 2021. We will determine the participants' levels of satisfaction with the CSQ-8 (8-item Client Satisfaction Questionnaire). We will analyse the median score of the overseas visitors with both the Wilcoxon rank-sum and the Wilcoxon signed-rank tests. Our protocol of randomized controlled trials follows the SPIRIT guidelines. DISCUSSION: Our research will utilize unique digital education strategies in a game that promotes health and safety among overseas visitors to Japan. We believe the results of this study will be useful in overcoming the current challenges regarding pretravel health requirements for overseas visitors worldwide. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Version 1 of this trial was registered in the UMIN-CTR (University Hospital Medical Information Network Center Clinical Trials Registry), and the trial registration data are available on UMIN000042483 , November 17, 2020.

Depressed mood, suicidal behaviors, and health risk behaviors among youths in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands: the 2017 CNMI Youth Risk Behavior Survey.

BACKGROUND: The current study investigated the prevalence of depressed mood, suicide ideation, suicide plan, and suicide attempt and their associations with health risk behaviors among high school adolescents in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI). METHODS: This is a cross-sectional study analyzing self-reported data from the 2017 CNMI Youth Risk Behavior Survey (n = 1943). Modified Poisson regression models were used to identify the associations between 17 health risk behavior variables, including violence-related behaviors, substance use behaviors, sexual behaviors, and early risk-taking behaviors, and four variables related to depressed mood and suicidal behaviors. RESULTS: 40.7% adolescents reported being depressed, 25.0% reported suicide ideation, 22.8% reported formulating a suicide plan, and 13.6% attempted suicide. Female adolescents were more likely to report depressed mood and all included suicidal behaviors (p < 0.001). Being in a physical fight and forced sexual intercourse were associated with depressed mood, suicide ideation, suicide plan, and suicide attempt for both female and male adolescents. Use of "soft drugs" such as current smoking was associated with depressed mood (ARR = 2.33, 95% CI = 1.56-3.45, p < 0.001), suicide ideation (ARR = 1.23, 95% CI = 1.08-1.43, p < 0.001), suicide plan (ARR = 1.19; 95% CI = 1.05-1.35; p < 0.001), and suicide attempt (ARR = 1.18; 95% CI = 1.06-1.30; p < 0.001) for females, whereas use of "hard drugs" such as heroin was associated with depressed mood (ARR = 2.27, 95% CI = 1.37-3.85, p < 0.01), suicide ideation (ARR = 1.30, 95% CI = 1.01-1.67, p < 0.05), suicide plan (ARR = 1.82; 95% CI = 1.22-2.70; p < 0.01), and suicide attempt (ARR = 2.78; 95% CI = 1.47-5.26; p < 0.01) for male adolescents. CONCLUSION: The prevalence of depressed mood, suicide ideation, suicide plan, and suicide attempt among CNMI adolescents was high, especially in female adolescents. While there were gender differences, many of the health risk behaviors were associated with depressed mood and suicidal behaviors. As sociodemographic factors are difficult to change, modifiable factors should be targeted to improve the mental health of adolescents.

Seeking connection: a mixed methods study of mental well-being and community volunteerism among international migrants in Japan.

BACKGROUND: International migration is a stressful process for which non-Western nations are a growing destination. However, little attention has been paid to the psychological well-being of international residents or their local integration in such settings. Prosocial behavior, like volunteering in one's local community, has been demonstrated to improve mental health in native populations. Volunteerism may be a mental health promotion strategy applicable to non-native migrants as well. In order to assess such a hypothesis, this study investigated the mental well-being of international migrants living in Tokyo, Japan, who did or did not participate in formal volunteering. METHODS: This convergent mixed-methods study assessed mental well-being with the Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Well-being Scale (WEMWBS) and qualitative follow-up interviews. Migrants who contributed their time to structured volunteering roles (formal volunteers, n = 150) were recruited from local non-profit organizations. Migrants who did not formally volunteer (n = 150) were recruited from social media sites. In parallel, a nested participant sample from both groups (n = 20) were interviewed about their satisfaction with life in Tokyo. RESULTS: After adjusting for sociodemographic characteristics, volunteering was not associated with higher mental well-being score (p = 0.215), but instead, not feeling isolated (p = 0.008), feeling connected to Japan (p = 0.001) and employment satisfaction (p < 0.001) were significantly associated with mental well-being. Follow-up interviews similarly demonstrated that migrants participated in various social activities to promote personal well-being and deeper social connections with Japanese, regardless of volunteering status. CONCLUSIONS: Volunteering status itself was not significantly associated with mental well-being score among international migrants in Japan after adjusting for potential confounding variables. Beyond volunteering, having deeper social connections with the Japanese community is a key to promoting migrant mental well-being.

Perceived social support, coping, and stigma on the quality of life of people living with HIV in Nepal: a moderated mediation analysis.

Perceived social support, coping strategy, and internalized stigma have been linked with the quality of life (QOL) among people living with HIV (PLHIV). However, little is known about how these psychosocial factors interact with each other and affect QOL. This study incorporated a moderated mediation model to investigate whether coping strategy mediates the relationship between perceived social support and QOL, and to examine whether this mediating effect varies with the level of internalized stigma among PLHIV. A cross-sectional study was conducted among 599 PLHIV in Nepal. The multidimensional scale of perceived social support, World Health Organization Quality of Life-BREF, Brief COPE, and AIDS-related stigma scales were used to measure perceived social support, QOL, coping strategy, and internalized stigma, respectively. Data were analyzed using structural equation modeling, and moderated mediation analysis was conducted with multi-group approach. The relationship between perceived social support and QOL was significantly and partially mediated by problem-focused coping strategy. Internalized stigma significantly moderated the mediating effect of coping strategies on the association between perceived social support and QOL. For high internalized stigma group (total stigma score > 2), the effects of perceived social support on QOL were indirect (ß = 1.48; 61.0% of total effects) through the mediating effect of coping strategy, especially problem-focused coping one. For low internalized stigma group (total stigma score ≤ 2), problem-focused coping strategy did not significantly affect the QOL, and most of the effects of perceived social support were direct (ß = 1.24; 99.2% of total effects). Internalized stigma was found to moderate the mediating effect of problem-focused coping on the relationship between perceived social support and QOL. Enhancing the problem-focused coping and social support may be helpful to improve QOL among PLHIV reporting high stigma.

Education and indoor smoking among parents who smoke: the mediating role of perceived social norms of smoking.

BACKGROUND: Parents with less formal education are more likely to smoke indoors, causing socioeconomic disparity in children's exposure to second-hand smoke. However, little is known about the roles of social factors in the socioeconomic gradients of indoor smoking. We tested the potential mediating role of perceived smoking norms on the associations between education and indoor smoking among parents who smoke. METHODS: In this cross-sectional study, 822 smoking fathers and 823 smoking mothers, who lived with young children and were members of a Japanese online survey panel, participated. Structural equation modelling tested the mediating effects of perceived descriptive and subjective norms on the association between education and indoor smoking. RESULTS: Perceived pro-smoking norms, which were more prevalent among less-educated parents, mediated the association between education and indoor smoking. Household smoking status and worksite smoking ban also mediated this association via perceived norms, but only for fathers. Perceived descriptive norms explained 28.5% of the association for fathers and 37.6% for mothers; the corresponding percentages for perceived subjective norms were 9.8% and 26.6%, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Perceived smoking norms, household smoking status, and a worksite smoking ban could be vital targets of a strategy aimed at reducing the socioeconomic disparity in parental home smoking behaviours.

Predicting health-related quality of life in people living with HIV in Nepal: mental health disorders and substance use determinants.

HIV-positive people often experience mental health disorders and engage in substance use. Such conditions tend to impair their health-related quality of life (QOL). Evidence, however, is limited about the influence of mental health disorders and substance use on QOL by gender. Also, little is known about the influences of anxiety and high levels of stress on QOL. We recruited 682 HIV-positive people in Nepal and measured their depression, anxiety, stress levels, substance use, and QOL. Multiple linear regressions assessed the association of mental health disorders and substance use with QOL. Presence of depressive symptoms was negatively associated with all domains of QOL including the physical (men: ß = -0.68, p = 0.037; women: ß = -1.37, p < 0.001) and the psychological (men: ß = -1.08, p < 0.001; women: ß = -1.13, p < 0.001). Those who experienced anxiety had lower scores in the physical (ß = -0.89, p = 0.027) and psychological (ß = -1.75, p = 0.018) QOL domains among men and in the spiritual QOL domain (ß = -0.061, p = 0.043) among women. High stress levels were associated with lower scores across all QOL domains including the physical (men: ß = -0.16, p < 0.001; women: ß = -0.14, p < 0.001) and the psychological (men: ß = -0.09, p < 0.001; women: ß = -0.10, p < 0.001). Substance-using men were more likely to have lower scores in physical (ß = -0.70, p = 0.039) and psychological (ß = -0.073, p = 0.002) domains. Among women, meanwhile, substance use was negatively associated with the psychological domain only (ß = -0.77, p = 0.005). In conclusion, mental health disorders and substance use had negative associations with QOL. Attention should be given to addressing the mental health care needs of HIV-positive people to improve their QOL.

Improving feeding and growth of HIV-positive children through nutrition training of frontline health workers in Tanga, Tanzania.

BACKGROUND: Nutrition training can boost competence of health workers to improve children's feeding practices. In this way, child undernutrition can be ameliorated in general populations. However, evidence is lacking on efficacy of such interventions among Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV)-positive children. We aimed to examine the efficacy of a nutrition training intervention to improve midlevel providers' (MLPs) nutrition knowledge and feeding practices and the nutrition statuses of HIV-positive children in Tanga, Tanzania. METHODS: This cluster-randomized controlled trial was conducted in 16 out of 32 care and treatment centers (CTCs) in Tanga. Eight CTCs were assigned to the intervention arm and a total of 16 MLPs received nutrition training and provided nutrition counseling and care to caregivers of HIV-positive children. A total of 776 pairs of HIV-positive children and their caregivers were recruited, of whom 397 were in the intervention arm. Data were analyzed using instrumental variable random effects regression with panel data to examine the efficacy of the intervention on nutrition status through feeding practices. RESULTS: Mean nutrition knowledge scores were higher post-training compared to pre-training among MLPs (37.1 vs. 23.5, p < 0.001). A mean increment weight gain of 300 g was also observed at follow-up compared to baseline among children of the intervention arm. Feeding frequency and dietary diversity improved following the intervention and a 6 months follow-up (p < 0.001). An increase in each unit of feeding frequency and dietary diversity were associated with a 0.15-unit and a 0.16-unit respectively decrease in the child underweight (p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Nutrition training improved nutrition knowledge among MLPs caring for HIV-positive children attending CTCs in Tanga, Tanzania. Caregivers' feeding practices also improved, which in turn led to a modest weight gain among HIV-positive children. To sustain weight gain, efforts should be made to also improve households' food security and caregivers' education in addition to inservice nutrition trainings. The protocol was registered on 15/02/2013, before the recruitment at ISRCTN trial registry with the trial registration number: ISRCTN65346364.

The effectiveness of a nationwide universal coverage campaign of insecticide-treated bed nets on childhood malaria in Malawi.

BACKGROUND: Although the universal coverage campaign of insecticide-treated mosquito bed nets (ITNs) has been associated with improved malaria outcomes, recent reports indicate that the campaign is losing its sparkle in some countries. In Malawi, the universal coverage campaign was implemented in 2012, but its impacts are yet to be ascertained. Thus, this study examined the effects of the campaign on malaria morbidity among children in Malawi. METHODS: This is a repeated cross-sectional study. The study used nationally-representative malaria indicator survey (MIS) data collected in 2012 and 2014. In total, the analysis included 4193 children between the ages of 6 and 59 months (2171 from 2012 MIS and 2022 from 2014 MIS). ITNs coverage and malaria morbidity before (2012 = pre-test/control) and after (2014 = post-test/treated) the universal coverage campaign of ITNs were compared. The treated and control samples were matched on measured relevant covariates using propensity scores. RESULTS: The mean number of ITNs per household improved significantly from 1.1 (SD 1.0) in 2012 to 1.4 (SD 1.1) in 2014 (p < 0.001). Nonetheless, the prevalence of malaria among children increased considerably from 27.7 % (2012) to 32.0 % (2014) (p = 0.002). The risk of malaria was also significantly higher in 2014 compared to 2012 (RR = 1.14; 95 % CI 1.01-1.29). Besides, the use of bed nets was not significantly associated with malaria morbidity in 2014 (RR = 0.92; 95 % CI 0.76-1.12), but it was in 2012 (RR = 0.83; 95 % CI 0.70-1.00). CONCLUSIONS: The universal coverage campaign of ITNs was not associated with a reduced burden of malaria among children in Malawi. This was likely due to increased insecticide resistance, inconsistent use of bed nets and under-utilization of other methods of malaria control. This calls for a multifaceted approach in the fight against malaria instead of simple dependence on ITNs. In particular, local or community level malaria interventions should go hand in hand with the universal coverage campaign.

Motivation and incentive preferences of community health officers in Ghana: an economic behavioral experiment approach.

BACKGROUND: Health worker shortage in rural areas is one of the biggest problems of the health sector in Ghana and many developing countries. This may be due to fewer incentives and support systems available to attract and retain health workers at the rural level. This study explored the willingness of community health officers (CHOs) to accept and hold rural and community job postings in Ghana. METHODS: A discrete choice experiment was used to estimate the motivation and incentive preferences of CHOs in Ghana. All CHOs working in three Health and Demographic Surveillance System sites in Ghana, 200 in total, were interviewed between December 2012 and January 2013. Respondents were asked to choose from choice sets of job preferences. Four mixed logit models were used for the estimation. The first model considered (a) only the main effect. The other models included interaction terms for (b) gender, (c) number of children under 5 in the household, and (d) years worked at the same community. Moreover, a choice probability simulation was performed. RESULTS: Mixed logit analyses of the data project a shorter time frame before study leave as the most important motivation for most CHOs (ß 2.03; 95 % CI 1.69 to 2.36). This is also confirmed by the largest simulated choice probability (29.1 %). The interaction effect of the number of children was significant for education allowance for children (ß 0.58; 95 % CI 0.24 to 0.93), salary increase (ß 0.35; 95 % CI 0.03 to 0.67), and housing provision (ß 0.16; 95 % CI -0.02 to 0.60). Male CHOs had a high affinity for early opportunity to go on study leave (ß 0.78; 95 % CI -0.06 to 1.62). CHOs who had worked at the same place for a long time greatly valued salary increase (ß 0.28; 95 % CI 0.09 to 0.47). CONCLUSIONS: To reduce health worker shortage in rural settings, policymakers could provide "needs-specific" motivational packages. They should include career development opportunities such as shorter period of work before study leave and financial policy in the form of salary increase to recruit and retain them.