Phase wise evaluation of teachers by the students in Mymensingh Medical College, Bangladesh.

Students' evaluations of teachers are used to ensure quality in medical education and as a tool for faculty development. Teacher evaluation is also one of the performance measurements of the Annual Performance Agreement (APA). The objective of this research was to evaluate teachers of four phases of MBBS program by the students of corresponding phase. This cross sectional descriptive type of observational study was conducted in Mymensingh Medical College (MMC), Bangladesh during the period of January 2023 to March 2023. A total of 40 purposively selected teachers engaged in either lecture, tutorial or clinical bedside classes were evaluated by 469 randomly selected students using a self-response evaluation form provided by Centre for Medical Education (CME) which contains 16 statements of 5 points: 1=Never, 2=Once in a while, 3=Sometimes, 4=Most of the time and 5=Almost always. Data were analyzed in SPSS, version 22.0. Ten (10) teachers from each phase were included in the study. Among the students 169(36.0%) were from phase I followed by each 100(21.3%) from phase II, III and IV. Out of 80, total mean score of phase I was 64.11±9.187. Total mean score of phase II was 72.08±7.520 and that of phase III was 72.19±6.510. Highest total mean score (76.95±5.032) was found in phase IV. Overall mean score of teachers of MMC irrespective of phase was 70.27±9.017. Mean scores of teachers in individual statement of phase I, II, III and IV were 4.02±0.847, 4.49±0.706, 4.51±0.614 and 4.81±0.482 respectively. Mean scores in individual statement of every phase were between "Most of the time (4)" and "Almost always (5)" indicating positive performance of evaluated teachers. All of the 40 teachers had a median score of more than 4 in the explicit issues indicating that most of the students agreed that the teachers taught their core subjects well. They had a median score of more than 4 in the implicit issues too which indicated that the students felt that all of the teachers gave importance to the core values. Moreover, 21(52.5%) teachers had a median score of 5 in both explicit and implicit issues indicating highly positive performance of those evaluated teachers. Teachers of Mymensingh Medical College performed admirably across all phases. This type of feedback evaluation should be applied throughout every institute as it will help faculty members enhance their abilities and academic performance, leading to overall faculty development. As a result, quality of medical education will be ensured.

The Relationship Between Sedentary Behavior, Back Pain, and Psychosocial Correlates Among University Employees.

Objectives: This study aims to investigate the relationship between levels of sedentary behavior, physical activity, and back pain and their psychosocial correlates among university employees. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted on both academic and non-academic professional staff at Qatar University. The data collection instrument was a combination of the International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ), the Global Physical Activity Questionnaire (GPAQ) and the Acute Low Back Pain Screening Questionnaire (ALBPSQ). Results: A total of 479 individuals (57% females) participated in the cross-sectional study. Two hundred and ninety three (61.2%) reported to have experienced back pain. The covariates adjusted odds ratios (aORs) showed that vigorous physical activity was a protective variable for those who experienced lower back pain [aOR = 0.84, 95%CI (0.56-0.98)], both lower and upper back pain [aOR = 0.61, 95% CI (0.33-0.87)] and either lower or upper back pain [aOR = 0.76, 95%CI (0.51-0.85)], respectively. Back pain was significantly higher in females than males (aORs: 1.37-2.21). Similarly, sedentary behavior (too much sitting) was significantly associated with those who experienced either LBP or UBP [aOR = 1.74, 95% CI (1.19, 2.57)]. All back pain categories were found to be significantly associated with those who reported a depressed mood. Conclusions: These findings suggest that sedentary employees are exposed to increasing occupational hazards such as back pain and mental health issues. Strategies should aim to reduce sitting time with planned and feasible physical activity interventions to be incorporated into the workplace health promotion policy to help prevent back pain, back injuries, and mental health complications.