Quality of health education posters in primary health care centers in Al-Khobar town, eastern province

Health Education [HE] is vital to each of the seven other central elements of Public Health Care [PHC] HE must be carefully planned and implemented. A crucial part of HE is planning, production and placement of effective HE posters. Assess the quality of health education posters in Al-Khobar PHC centers. A cross-sectional study of a sample of 138 HE posters in three PHC centers in Al-Khobar was conducted. The quality of posters in relation to set criteria was measured using a data sheet and scoring system developed by the investigator. The health education subjects displayed were among the common health problems in Saudi Arabia in 134 [97.1%] of the posters. More than one-third [34.8%] had been displayed for more than one year. in 74[53.6%] of the posters, the source of scientific information was unknown. The assessment showed that 109 [79%] posters were of optimal quality. The study showed that the health education posters in PHC center in Al-Khobar were relatively satisfactory, though they did not fulfill some of the required criteria. Health education posters should be included in the assessment of health education programs in primary health care centers

Evaluation of antenatal referrals from health centres to the maternity and children's hospital in Dammam city, Saudi Arabia

To evaluate antenatal referral rates from Primary Health Care [PHC] centres to the Maternity and Children's Hospital in Dammam and factors affecting it. Methodology: Four randomly Selected Primary Health Care Centres in Dammam city. A sample of 135 pregnant women referred to the hospital [cases] and 135 pregnant women not referred [controls] were randomly selected. A double phase sampling scheme was adopted. Questionnaires regarding the characteristics of the general practitioners [GPs] were distributed to those GPs caring for antenatal patients in the 4 health centres. There was a variation in the referral rates of the five general practitioners from 11.5 to 21.2 per 100 antenatal consultation. It was found that certain characteristics of the GPs had an important influence on the referral rates. High risk factors in pregnancy were present in some of the controls but they were not referred. Conclusion and Recommendations: There is a variation in the referral rates between the GPs. There is a need to monitor and improve the quality of the antenatal care and the referral process. Better training of the GPs and implementing shared obstetric care is recommended