Promotion of non-smoking: the role of primary health care physicians

Cigarette smoking is universally acknowledged to be a health hazard. We are of the opinion that primary health care [PHC] physicians can potentially play a key role in the promotion of non-smoking campaigns. The aim of this study was to determine the role of male PHC physicians in the promotion of a non-smoking campaign among the citizens of Riyadh. About half of the male PHC physicians from Riyadh were selected at random, and were requested to fill an anonymous self-administered questionnaire. The content of the questionnaire was validated by three experts and the reliability was excellent, with a Cronbach's alpha of 0.85. The result of the study showed that about 63% of the physicians had never smoked, 20% had stopped smoking, and 17% were still smoking an average of 18 +/- 10 cigarettes per day. About 30% of the physicians achieved satisfactory scores, while 7% were reported to play no role in counseling against smoking. During the anti-smoking activity, only 10% of physicians reported making use of religious reasons against smoking. Arab-speaking physicians were shown to be less active than non-Arabs in counseling [P<0.0001], and on-the-job training was found to be associated with better counseling practices [P<0.0221]. Our conclusion is that the reported activity of physicians in the promotion of non-smoking was far from exemplary, and so was their own smoking profile. There is, therefore, an urgent need to put more emphasis on the promotion of non-smoking among both physicians and patients alike

Maternity care and nutrition in a rural area of bangladesh: a household surgery

Determine knowledge, attitude and practice of mothers about maternity care and nutrition during pregnancy and lactation and knowledge and practice of traditional birth attendants about obstetric care. Research Design and Cross-sectional household survey. All households in which there was a child 12 months of age or below in three villages were included. Seventy-six mothers and twelve traditional birth attendants were interviewed using standard questionnaires. Setting: Palongkhali Union, a rural area in Cox's Bazar District, Bangladesh. The majority of mothers [92.1%] did not visit a health worker during their last pregnancy. Mothers had false beliefs about food, such as fish and eggs during pregnancy and lactation. Although traditional birth attendants attended the majority of deliveries [77.6%], their knowledge and training about maternity care were inadequate. Mothers of Palongkhali Union had poor knowledge and false beliefs about food and nutrition during pregnancy and lactation. Health care and services for pregnant mothers were inadequate. Knowledge and attitudes of traditional birth attendants about maternity care were poor. Improvement of maternal and child health services and appropriate training of traditional birth attendants are needed