[ prevalency of attempted suicide in Golestan province, north of Iran during 2003-07]

Suicide is one of the important causes of death worldwide particularly among 44-15 years. The aim of this study was to survey the prevalency of attempted suicide in Golestan province, North of Iran during 2003-07. This descriptive study conducted on 4977 suicide attempted subjects in Golestan province, North of Iran during 2003-07. Data were gathered through a filed questioners. Data was analyzed by SPSS-18 and Chi-Square test. Mean +/- SD of the subjects was 22.91 +/- 7.59 years. The female to male ratio was 1.62. 55.6% of subjects were single. The subjects resided in urban and rural area were 62% and 37.8%, respectively. 61.4% and 27.1% of subjects have finished and un-finished high-school studies. 2% and 0.9% from those attempted suicide were died and referred to specific centers, respectively for further medical follow-up. There was a positive correlation between suicide single status and low educated subjects with P=0.036 and P=0.001 respectively. The findings indicated that the prevalency of suicide were higher among single, female and those with lower education

Prevalence of stress among Iranian medical students: a questionnaire survey

A cross-sectional study measured the frequency of self-reported stress symptoms among a weighted random sample of medical students in Isfahan, Islamic Republic of Iran. The data were gathered using the Kessler IQ-item psychological distress scale. The overall prevalence of stress among 222 students was 61.3% and there were no statistically significant differences in stress levels between students in the pre-clinical and clinical phases or different years of study. Married students had significantly lower scores than single students but there were no differences between the sexes. Students who chose to study medicine had lower stress scores than those who were influenced by family or had no choice about the subject. Students with mild to moderate stress were significantly more likely to suffer physical problems [OR = 4.42]. Interventions are needed to tackle stress and improve Iranian medical students' physical and psychological well-being

[ viewpoints of paramedics employed in Golestan province towards continuing education programs]

Retraining is an important way for professional development of health staff and keeping them up to date, and evaluation is one of the essential principles for enhancing the efficiency of these trainings. The aim of this study was to determine the viewpoints of paramedics employed in Golestan province towards continuing education programs. In this descriptive study, 274 samples were selected out of 1016 paramedics employed in clinics of the province, through systematic random sampling. The data gathering tool was a questionnaire. Data was analyzed by SPSS software using descriptive statistics, Chi[2], and independent T-test. Among the participants, 26.2%, 41.8%, 25.5% and 6.5% had very weak, weak, average, and desirable viewpoint towards the courses, respectively. As the motivation for participating in the courses, 55.5% mentioned achieving points for job promotion opportunities, 21.2% resorting and reviewing former information, 13.8% exchanging information and experiences with other colleagues, and 9.5% mentioned seeking solutions for their professional problems. Thirty one percent reported lack of equity and fairness in participating in the programs on behalf of their direct administrator and 33.9% stated that the planning for participation in these courses was not favorable. Participants had a weak or very weak viewpoint toward programs and regarded their motivation for participation in these programs as achieving points for job promotion. It is necessary for administrators to plan for changing the staffs viewpoint toward participation in continuing education programs