REVISIONS IN TEACHER EDUCATION PROGRAMME: ISSUES AND PROSPECTS

In a landmark directive towards ensuring quality teacher education, the National Council of Teacher Education has made sweeping changes from this academic session. It has increased the duration of B.Ed. programme from one year to two years with major changes in curriculum. However, the revision in the norms regarding duration of the course and curriculum is the result of extensive and exclusive debates and discussions. It has emerged as an idea that has been expressed at various forums over the years. Now that the execution phase has begun, the idea is to be analysed in terms of its actual feasibility. It is to be seen whether the prolonged course duration proves into historical transformation in the system of education or turns to be rather 'a not so preferable profession' in the era of professionalism and human capital. However, it is even more pertinent to understand why such changes were felt needed and what strategies have been evolved to implement the revisions effectively. So far the studies have established that the existing training programme does not provide adequate opportunities to the student teachers to develop competency because of the anomalies and defects in the system of implementation of the programme and curriculum of the programme

Systematic implementation of World Health Organization rehabilitation competency framework in rehabilitation: conceptual framework, approaches and application / 中国康复理论与实践

@#Objective To systematically analyze the World Health Organization Rehabilitation Competency Framework (RCF) theoretical framework, methodology and its application in the field of rehabilitation.Methods We systematically analyzed RCF conceptual framework and key characteristics, and discussed how to apply the RCF in the fields of human resource planning, education program and curriculum system, and vocational competency standards and certification criteria for rehabilitation human resources.Results The RCF encompasses five domains, naming practice, professionalism, learning and development, management and leadership, and research. Rehabilitation professionals' performance is the result of the interaction of their core values and beliefs, competencies, activities, knowledge, and skills. The RCF can be used to plan rehabilitation human resources, establish competency-based rehabilitation education programs and curriculum systems, and develop competency certification standards and licensure accreditation standards.Conclusion This study analyzed background, content and implementation framework of RCF, and systematically discussed the theories and methods related to how to use the RCF to construct national rehabilitation human resources development plans, develop rehabilitation education programs and curriculum systems based on the RCF, and establish certification and assessment standards for rehabilitation human resources.

Reproductive health education: a qualitative study of health seeking behaviour of in-school female adolescents

Introduction: adolescents in developing countries are often vulnerable to sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) and unplanned pregnancies. It is estimated that about 13 million adolescent girls have unplanned births each year in developing countries. This study examined the scope of the School Health Education Programme (SHEP) and health-seeking behaviours of female adolescents in Junior High School (JHS). Methods: this qualitative research used the narrative approach. Group discussions were conducted among 100 female adolescents aged 12-19 years. Interviews were conducted among five community health workers in five health centres that provide reproductive health services. The in-depth interviews and group discussions were documented, transcribed and analyzed using NVivo 11, whilst thematic analysis was used in analyzing data. Results: the mean age of adolescents was 15.5 years, with 74% reporting having knowledge of STDs. It was observed that the SHEP offers various information on health issues such as menstrual hygiene, STDs, personal hygiene, contraceptives, personal development and unsafe abortion practices. Adolescent reproductive health services were also available in the health centres but patronage was low as a result of perceived negative attitude of health workers and trust. Knowledge on issues of reproductive health is insufficient among JHS female adolescents, with many of them relying on the media and peers for reproductive health support. Conclusion: in this study, female adolescents are generally involved in risky sexual behaviour due to their low level of knowledge on reproductive issues and their unwillingness to patronize available reproductive health services because of the health system and cultural barriers.

Doctors’ knowledge and attitudes on pain assessment and management in Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah

@#Introduction: Doctors play an important role to assess and manage pain. Failing to do so properly, pain will affect the quality of life and increase the length of hospital stay for patients. In Queen Elizabeth Hospital (QEH), Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, pain assessment and management programs have been conducted on a regular basis. However, there has been no studies to assess the effectiveness of these programs. Methodology: This is a cross-sectional study to assess the knowledge and attitude on pain assessment and management among medical officers at QEH. A universal sampling technique was used, to represent medical officers from major clinical departments. The Knowledge and Attitudes Survey Regarding Pain (KASRP) questionnaire was used for this study. Results: A total of 278 questionnaires were distributed to medical officers. The study sample consisted of 125 females (44.9%), and 153 males (55.1%). The age group of the participants ranged from 25 to 41 years old. A 116 respondents scored less than 60% on the knowledge of pain (41.7%). These findings show there was a deficit in their knowledge and attitude about pain. There was also a difference of scores between genders, where the male doctors performed better than the female doctors. There was a difference between scores among doctors from different departments. The highest mean score was from the department of Anaesthesia (80.2%). There was also a difference regarding pain knowledge based on the years of working as a doctor, where the highest passing rate was from doctors working for more than five years. Conclusion: This study demonstrated that there is a lack of knowledge and attitude on pain assessment and management among QEH medical officers who responded to this study. This will support the plan on a more aggressive and continuous education programme to improve pain assessment and management among doctors in QEH.

Impact Of Health Education Program On Knowledge Of Students Towards Drug Abuse In Selected Colleges Of Belagavi.

Background:India is the second most populous and substance producer in the world. WHO statistics (2000) show that India is high up in the list of danger countries because of population growth and high birth rate. The extent of worldwide psychoactive substance abuse is estimated at 2 billion alcohol users, 1.3 billion smokers and 185 million illicit drug users. In an initial estimate of factors responsible for the global burden of diseases, tobacco, alcohol and illicit drugs together contributed 12.4% of all deaths world wide in the year 2000. Objectives of the study: 1. To assess the knowledge of PU College students on drug abuse before and after administration of health education programme. 2. To find the association between the selected demographic variables and pre test knowledge scores towards drug abuse. Methods: Adescriptive evaluatory approach was used for this study. The study was carried out in one Pre-University Colleges of Belagavi District of Karnataka. The sample comprised of 100 students who were undergoing their Pre-University course in Science as there subject. Sample was selected by using multistage disproportionate stratified random sampling technique. Data was collected by administering a structured knowledge questionnaire before and after the health education programme. Data were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics. Results: The results of this study showed that college students in general were having some knowledge about drug abuse and its adverse effects before the education programme. Mean knowledge score was (19.45).There was marked gain in knowledge after the health education programme (22.06). A relationship between knowledge scores and selected variables were noticed. The statistical significance was at 0.05 level. Interpretation and Conclusion: The findings of this study support the need for conducting educational programme to increase the knowledge of college students on drug abuse and its related problems. Educating the youth and providing them with correct information can help them to avoid bad habits and develop as healthy citizens. This study proved that college students had average knowledge on drug abuse and its effects before the health education programme and their knowledge increased to a remarkable extent after the health education programme. The findings of this study show that the health education programme was effective in terms of gaining knowledge and it should become part of their curriculum.

Improving awareness, knowledge and attitude of epilepsy using an Interactive Animated Epilepsy Education Programme (IAEEP) among Malaysian teachers and students

@#Background: Improving awareness, knowledge and attittude (AKA) of teachers and students about epilepsy is an important step to reduce the stigma experienced by children with epilepsy. To date there are no studies evaluating effectiveness of an information technology based epilepsy education programme in improving AKA among teachers and students. Method: Cross-sectional study was to assess the baseline AKA of epilepsy among Malaysian teachers and secondary school students, and to examine effectiveness improving their AKA using the Interactive Animated Epilepsy Education Programme (IAEEP). AKA of teachers and students were assessed pre- and post-implementation of IAEEP. Results: Total of 54 teachers and 67 secondary students participated in this study. The baseline AKA on epilepsy among Malaysian teachers was low in the awareness domain, moderate in the knowledge domain, and positive in the attitude domain. The baseline AKA on epilepsy among students was very low in the awareness domain, low in the knowledge domain, and indifferent in the attitude domain. The AKA scores in all domains of teachers and students improved significantly after introduction of IAEEP (P<0.001). Post-IAEEP the AKA of teachers was moderate in the awareness domain, high in the knowledge domain, and very positive in the attitude domain; the AKA of students was low in the awareness domain, very high in the knowledge domain, and very positive in the attitude domain Conclusion: Our findings highlight a need for epilepsy educational programmes to be implemented in Malaysian schools. The IAEEP is an effective educational programme to improve the AKA particularly in the knowledge domain among teachers and students

Structured Education Programme on Patient Controlled Analgesia (PCA) for Orthopaedic Patients

Patient-controlled analgesia (PCA) via an infusion pump enables patient to administer their own analgesia. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of an educational programme in managing post-operative pain and satisfaction on PCA following orthopedic surgery. A pre-test and post-test interventional study design with implementation of patient education programme on PCA was provided to 54 respondents. The control group received conventional PCA briefing from the Acute Pain Service protocol. Pain intensity was measured at 2 hrs, 6 hrs and 24 hrs following surgery and pre-test and post-test of the Revised American Pain Society Patient Outcome Questionnaire (APS-POQ-R) was administered. There was difference in respondents’ level of pain score among the study respondents’ medians for control group at 2 hrs, 6 hrs and 24 hrs following surgery and they were 7.00 (IQR=3.00), 5.00 (IQR=2.00) and 3.00 (IQR=2.00); intervention group at 2 hrs, 6 hrs and 24 hrs following surgery were 6.00 (IQR=2.00), 3.00 (IQR=1.00) and 1.00 (IQR=1.00) respectively. There were significant differences in median of pain score between intervention and control group at 2 (U=142.0, p<0.05), 6 (U=150.50, p<0.05) and 24 (U=120.00, p<0.05) hrs following surgery. There were statistically significant differences (p<0.05) in the median of patient’s pain severity at all pain levels i.e. least pain, worst pain, and severe pain between intervention and control group (least pain, U=219.50, p<0.05; worst pain, U=117.0, p<0.05; severe pain, U=49.0, p<0.05). In conclusion, patients who received pre-operative structured education programme showed improvement in managing post-operative pain and satisfaction on PCA after orthopedic surgery.