[ effect of cacao on occupational burnout]

Introduction: Burnout is one of the most important problems employees encounter and by which many health problems arise to be dealt with by the employees and the owners in the industry. Amongst many different ways of dealing with this problem, herbal therapy seems to be a promising solution. The present study intended to investigate the effect of cocoa [Co] on burnout in employees who work in industrial environments

Methods: A clinical trial study performed to see whether or not Co has an effect on burnout. A number of 66 employees, aged between 20 and 60, who had worked for at least 1 year in the technical wards of Iran Chemical Industry Investment Company, took part in the study. The participants randomly assigned to two groups of control [n=33] and intervention [n=33]. The data collected via Geldard [1989] Burnout Inventory before and after the treatment. T-test and test-re test conducted to analyze the collected data

Results: The results of statistical tests showed that after intervention the score of occupation burnout in intervention group has been better and a significant difference was found between the two groups [p=0.04] in favor of the intervention group

Conclusion: The results of the study revealed that cocoa has a positive effect on burnout in employees in this study and it cause to improve the level of activity about them. Further studies in this field are suggested

[ psychiatric team's experiences with team working in the psychiatric wards]

Members of the psychiatric team have significant role in the treatment and care providing process for patients with psychiatric disorders. In order to improve the care system in psychiatric wards, it is essential to have a deep understanding of the team members' experiences with team working. This study was conducted to accesses the psychiatric team's experiences of team working in psychiatric settings. Convenient sampling, a purposeful sample was selected consisting of 10 persons working as personnels of psychiatric wards of four university hospitals in Isfahan in 2007. Data was gathered through in-depth interviews. Data was analysed using the seven-step method defined by Colaizzi. Findings were summarized as three core concepts [namely: "communication, "power" and "conflict"] as well as 5 sub concepts [that are: "cooperating", "self awareness", "hop", "competence" and "multiple role"]. The findings can contribute to future plans for improving psychiatric care in hospitals

[Different domains of quality of life [QOL] in schizophrenic patients]

Schizophrenia is a chronic psychiatric disorder which results in severe impairments in job, education and family relationships. We compared different domains of Quality Of Life [QOL] in schizophrenic patients with those in healthy persons. In a descriptive analytic study, a total number of 160 participants, including 80 schizophrenic patients [case group] and 80 healthy persons [control group] were studied. They were 15 to 45 years old. In order to get them matched regarding the psycho-socio-cultural status, we selected the control group participants from the patients' family members. We also matched the two groups for age, marital status and educational level. Patients' were in the remission phase and 2 years or more had passed from the onset of their psychiatric disorder. We applied Hawthorne and Richardson QOL questionnaire for assessing QOL. Data were analyzed using T student test by SPSS-software. Each group contained 48 men and 32 women. A number of 39 participants were married and the others were single, divorced or widowed. Mean age of the patient group [38.2 +/- 4.3 years] was not significantly different from the control one [40.5 +/- 3.1 years]. Mean score of QOL was 33.9 +/- 4.75 in the case group and 54.6 +/- 1.12 in the control one, which indicates a significant difference. The case and the control groups' scores for different domains of QOL were respectively as follows: [the domain of] disease [4.5 +/- 15 vs. 10.8 +/- 0.98], independent life [8.10 +/- 1.14 vs. 10.9 +/- 0.83], social relations [6.4 +/- 1.97 vs. 11 +/- 0.77], bodily sensations [8.7 +/- 1.49 vs. 10.90 +/- 0.70], and psychiatric rehabilitation [6.2 +/- 1.89 vs. 11 +/- 0.9]. The mean score of each domain showed a significant difference between the two groups. Schizophrenic patients were found to have a lower QOL than healthy individuals. This was true in all of the QOL domains. The patients' lowest score was in the disease domain and their highest score was in the bodily sensation domain. This can be considered in determining priorities for pharmaceutical, psycho-logical and social interventions

study of the severity of some occupational stresses in nurses

Occupational stress is one of the most important occupational hazards in modern life which could lead to decrease in productivity, work absence, workforce transfer and high costs for the personnel. American National Association for Occupational Safety has placed nursing at the top of the list of the first forty high-stress jobs. There are various factors known as stressors in nursing. The current study was carried out to evaluate the severity of some of them. This is a descriptive, correlative study. 170 nurses in various wards of Isfahan University of Medical Sciences hospitals who met the inclusion criteria took part in the study. The data was gathered using standardized Toft- Anderson questionnaire and then was analyzed using SPSS soft ware with Spearman correlation test, mean and frequency distribution. Findings demonstrate that most of the nurses [73.47%] experienced stress at the medium level. In addition, a positive statistical correlation was found between the overall and fractional stress scores. Conflicts with physicians have the greatest relationship with the overall severity of occupational stress in nurses. Among the demographic parameters, only marital status and work hours had significant statistical correlation with the severity of stress. [p< 0.001] Regarding the findings of the study, it is recommended to employ appropriate methods in preventing and handling occupational stresses at the personal and organizational level

[Nurses' experiences regarding working in the psychiatric wards and its physical outcomes]

The nurses have a significant role in the treatment and care of the patients with mental and psychiatric disorders. They encounter complications and various phenomena of the psychiatric settings such as physical strain. It is essential to have a deep understanding about nurses' attitudes, perceptions, emotions and beliefs about physical results in the psychiatric ward. This study was conducted to access nurses' experiences regarding physical outcome of working in psychiatric settings as an important step in improving psychatric nursing practice in the psychiatric wards. This is a qualtivative study with phenomenology method. Participants of this research were selected through proposal sampling. They were nurses who were employed in psychiatric wards of 4 hospitals in Isfahan, Iran. The hospitals included: Farabi, Al Zahra, Noor and Shahid Modarres. The participants' aged between 25-50 years [M=35]. 35/2 percent were male [N=6] and 64/7 percent were female [N=11]. Data were gathered in spring in 2005 by in depth interviews. Every interview was recorded in a tape. Each interview lasted for 20 to 90 minutes [M=49]. Data analysis was done by Cloaizzi method. Study results were summerized in 2 core concepts: physical strain and workload and 4 subconcepts: physical injury, fatigue, environment management and care provision. Inadequate experience and knowledge in the psychiatric team causes inevitable physical strain. Haring an insight toward nurses' experiences reveals nurses' needs and can help them to have a better picture of themselves. Thus this is an important step in improving psychiatric nursing practice. Having a deep understanding from nurses' experiences about physical outcomes of psychiatrc wards, has a significant and fundamental influence on quality of care given to the patients with psychiatric and method disorders. It helps not only nurses, but also all psychiatric team to decrease physical strain. This study hopes to help all people participating in proviiding care for the patients with mental and psychiatric disorders, inviting them to improve practice and to evaluate this process. Improvement of professional competence is fulfilled through decreasing the physical starin in the psychiatric wards

[Effect of students' work on their educational output]

University students are among the most talent members of a society who make the future. Nowadays, university students as man power and spritual resources of a nation in addition to studying, have to work part time or fullime due to different reasons. Recent researches show that part time or full time work can bring about better results among the students. Meanwhile, some may make an educational drop. This study has been carried out firstly, to assess the role of part time and full time work on students' average and secondly to investigated other possible factors. This is a descriptive analytic cross sectional study in which the whole research population was chosen as the subjects. The main group included 200 male and female students from 7 schools of Isfahan Medical University all having the including criteria. There were another 200 students as controls not working selected from the same school. The average before students' work was considered as the basic average and the present simester average of the students as the present average. The subjects were classified with their average rank in three groups of 12-14. 99, 15-16. 99 and over 17 in study and control group. The findings showed that mean average differences in study and control groups had no significant difference and part time and full time students' work played no role in students' educational out put. Students' are responsible for providing public health in different groups of medical sciences as a part of health and treatment ministry. Since based on this research, students' work played no role in their educational out put except for the students with average >/= 17, the programs for students' counseling and reinforcing their motivation toward promotion of education quality are highly suggested.

[Effects of cognitive behavioral counseling on body Image alternations in women undergone mastectomy]

Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women throughout the world and for most women mastectomy result in the loss of a body part that is viewed as essential for maintaining feminity, attractiveness and self-esteem. In order to prevent impaired body image, one should accept the changes of her body shape. To determine the effect of counseling on mean of body image score in women undergone mastectomy. In this quasi-experimental designed study, 72 women undergone mastectomy referring to an oncology and radioactive center in Isfahan were randomly selected by convenient sampling and studied. The experimental group [n = 32] participated in 6 sessions of counseling. Data were collected using questionnaire and statistical analysis was performed by the paired and independent t test using spss software. The results indicated a significantly different between mean of body image score before and after counseling in experimental group[P < 0 /001]. Also a significantly different was seen in mean of body image score after counseling in experimental and control group[P < 0 /001]

Investigation of some occupational stressors among nurses

Nowadays, occupational stress is one of the most important occupational risk factors that can cause a decrease in production and bring about work absence, human resources shift, job dissatisfaction and high health costs among the staff. American National Occupational Safety Association has reported nursing as the first among other 40 stressful occupations. There are numerous occupational stressors in nursing occupation. The present study has targeted at defining the severity of nursing stressors among nurses. This is a descriptive correlational study. The sampling was conducted as random stratified method on 170 nurses working in different wards of medical university hospitals, being well qualified to enter the study. Toft-Anderson questionnaire was used to collect the data. The data were analyzed through SPSS regarding frequency distribution, mean and spearman coefficient test. The findings showed that most of the nurses [47-73%] experience moderate stress. In addition, there was a positive statistical association between the scores of each item with total occupational stress. The item of having interaction with physicians had the highest association with total nursing occupational stress. There was a significant association between demographic characteristics, marital status and working hours and occupational stressors [P<0.001]. Regarding the findings of the research, manipulating appropriate preventive methods in both sides of the staff and the organization is suggested to diminish nursing occupational stress

[ effect of group therapy on depression and anxiety levels of the patients with MI]

Introduction: Since about 65% of the patients with MI experience psychological and mental disorders such as depression and anxiety that set back their return to work period, lower their quality of life and enhance their risk of death, treatment of these reactions can speed their recovery and make their life span longer. This study has tried to define and compare mean depression and anxiety scores in patients before, after and a month after intervention in both groups of study and control

Methods: This is a clinical experiment on 22 patients with MI hospitalized in CCUs of Medical university hospital for the first time, being discharged and randomly selected as study and control groups. The data were collected by Beck depression scale and kattle anxiety scale. In order to access the results, pair-test, ANOVA with reobservations and T- student test were used in SPSS software

Results: The findings showed that depression and anxiety levels in patients with MI significantly decreased after group therapy sessions and a month after that compared with before intervention. There was a significant difference in study group

Discussion: Regarding the continuous effect of group therapy on depression and anxiety levels of the patients, manipulating this method seems essential in all stages of prevention and treatment of the patients with MI

[Mother's attitude concerning parenting style and primary school students' growth and development]

Introduction: Children are the most valuable assets and the most vulnerable age groups in societies and the provision of their wellbeing and optimal growth are constructive and fruitful investments in economical, social and cultural welfare of society. The existence of a child is not only based on achieving a desired physical growth but also on his adjustment with the environment and development capabilities. Then consideration of several aspects of growth and its multifactor predictors is important. This study is based on effects of emotive environment and the way that the child is treated on his physical and mental growth

Material and Methods: This study is a descriptive retrospective correlation one on 204 first grade students randomly clustered. The instrument for data collection was questionnaire and standard tools for weight and height assessment. Questionnaires consisted of demographic characteristics and Bury Parental Authoritative questionnaires as well as Raven IQ test according to child's assessment. Data were analyzed by descriptive and inferential statistical tests such as stepwise multiple regression, Pearson coefficient correlation and ANOVA test

Results: Results showed that maternal attitude to parenting style is related to child's cognitive development. We found a reversal negative correlation between Authoritarian maternal Attitude and child's IQ. There was no relationship between this variable and child's physical growth

Discussion: Findings of present study suggest that in order to achieve successful growth, we have to consider multisystemic methods that cover several aspects of growth and also consider emotional factors such as parenting style according to successful cognitive development. We can use these results for maternal consultation education and child growth assessment

Training families to better manage schizophrenics' behaviour

The influential role of family in the outcome of chronic schizophrenia is well documented. Because families have become the primary caretakers, this study was designed to train parents of chronic schizophrenics to better manage their offspring. The sample comprised 40 parents whose offspring were admitted to a psychiatric ward from April to June 1996. A self-developed index [Patient Management Skills] was used to measure changes in the parents' expertise in handling their children before and after a 1-month training programme. After training, more parents had the necessary skills to manage the verbal and non-verbal behaviours of their children. Our results bear out the importance of the family's supportive role in producing a better outcome for schizophrenic patients