Sources of stress among first-year medical students

Background: The extremely demanding environment of medical education puts medical students under tremendous pressure. During the initial years of training, causes of stress are mainly related to academic and emotional factors, while in later years patient care and physical factors are more remarkable. Objectives: The current study was conducted with an aim to find out the major sources of stress among 1st year medical students. Materials and Methods: This questionnaire-based cross-sectional study was conducted among 1st year students of Sher-i-Kashmir Institute of Medical Sciences Medical College, Srinagar for a period of 3 months. Medical student stressor questionnaire which has good psychometric properties was used to evaluate the major stressors. The questionnaire has 40 items representing the six stressor domains, each based on a common underlying theme. Results: Academic related stressors were identified as a source of stress by nearly two-thirds of the students (63.95%) followed by teaching and learning related stressors (43.02%) and inter/intra-personal related stressors (32.55%). Conclusion: Our study found a high prevalence of stress among 1st year medical students and academic related stressors were identified as the major contributors of overall stress.

Knowledge, attitude, and practice of mothers regarding nutrition of under-five children: A cross-sectional study in rural settings

Background: Nutrition of the under-five children is of greatest importance because the foundation of our lifetime health, strength, intelligence, and vitality is laid during this period. Our country faces the burden of diseases in which nutritional deficiencies are the most common. The prevalence of underweight children in India is among the highest in the world. Knowledge of mothers has an important role in the maintenance of nutritional status of the children. For this mother has to be made more aware about feeding practices of children and other health-care practices. Objective: This study was undertaken with an aim to evaluate knowledge, attitude, and practices (KAP) of mothers regarding nutrition of under-five children and prevention of malnutrition. Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional community-based study was conducted among 300 mothers with under-five children. A structured questionnaire based on KAP survey guidelines, previous studies, but relevant to local context was developed. The KAP questionnaire comprised three parts which assessed the KAP regarding nutrition of under-five children and prevention of malnutrition. Results: A total of 300 mothers were enrolled in the study. Majority of mothers had fair to good KAP regarding nutrition of under-five children and prevention of malnutrition. Conclusion: Adequate knowledge of mothers regarding dietary patterns of under-five children will enhance the attitude and practice to prevent malnutrition.