Third-hand smoke perception and awareness among medical students: a survey study.

Third-hand smoke (THS) is tobacco smoke impurities that adhere to indoor materials such as clothing, dust, and surfaces and are released into the air. It is a major public health concern that, if unaddressed, could cause future harm. The aim of this study was to assess medical students' knowledge of THS and to increase awareness. In March and April 2023, students enrolled in the medical programs at the School of Medicine for the 2022-2023 academic year were contacted using an online Google survey method and asked to complete the survey questions. The survey included questions on participants' sociodemographic characteristics and the Beliefs about Third-Hand Smoke Scale (BATHS-T). The median age of the 351 students who voluntarily participated in the study was 20.0 (IQR = 2.0) years, 55.3% were female and 16% were smokers. The mean score of the answers given by the participants to the scale questions asking their level of knowledge about third-hand smoke was 35.3 ± 5.9. The least known question was "cigarette smoke particles can stay in a room for weeks". The most frequently answered question was "breathing the air in a room where people smoked yesterday can damage the health of babies and children". Scale scores were significantly higher for participants who did not have smokers living in their home, who did not allow smoking in their home, and who reported having information about passive smoking. Medical students had sufficient knowledge and awareness of third-hand smoke. Third-hand smoke should be included in training to increase knowledge and awareness of medical students as part of preventive medicine practice.

'Defensive medicine among different surgical disciplines: A descriptive cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: The term defensive medicine refers to medical behaviors that avoid physician liability without providing increased benefits to the patient. High rates of defensive medicine ranging from 54% to 98% have been reported in different countries. AIM: This study aimed to evaluate the defensive medicine knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors of physicians working in the surgical departments of a Turkish university hospital. METHODS: All 220 physicians working at the Atatürk University Hospital were invited to participate in this cross-sectional study. Responses from 190 participants were analyzed. Data were collected by face-to-face interview using six demographic questions and the Defensive Medicine Behavior Scale. RESULTS: The frequency of application of at least one positive or negative aspect of defensive medicine was 94.2% (n = 179). The highest Defensive Medicine Behavior Scale scores were among participants from the pediatric surgery department (median: 43.0, IQR: 4.0). Factors affecting Defensive Medicine Behavior Scale scores were academic title, specialty, and a history of lawsuits because of malpractice. A history of medical malpractice litigation was encountered among 24.7% of participants (n = 47). CONCLUSION: This study determined high rates of defensive medicine among physicians. Defensive medicine can harm patients, physicians, and also the healthcare system. Efforts should be made to keep health worker anxiety and risk perception in balance in order to prevent defensive medicine.

Delivery preferences of pregnant women: Do not underestimate the effect of friends and relatives.

INTRODUCTION: The mode of delivery is of vital importance to the health of both mother and child. We aimed to determine the preferences of pregnant women for the mode of delivery and the associated factors concerning their choices. METHODS: In this descriptive study, a sample size of 418 individuals are needed to calculate an expected prevalence of 45% with an error of margin of 5%, a confidence interval of 95% and considering potential non-respondents of 10%. Sixteen subjects refused to take part in the study, 402 pregnant women presenting to hospitals in Erzurum city center during December 2016 and January 2017 consisted the study group. Distribution percentages were calculated based on the numbers of births in the hospitals. A questionnaire incluiding questions about sociodemographic characteristics, factors that may affect women's delivery preferences, delivery preferences, and the reasons for those preferences was used to collect the data. Data were analyzed on the SPSS 22.0 statistical software. The Chi-Square, Student t-tests and binary logistic regression analysis were used. p < 0.05 was regarded as statistically significant. RESULTS: The proportion of cesarean delivery preferences was 69(17.2%). Women's preferences for normal vaginal delivery (NVD) or CS deliveries were significantly affected by the previous type of delivery (p < 0.001), type of pregnancy (natural vs. assisted) (p = 0.021) and problems in CS delivery among friends and relatives (p = 0.009). No statistically significant correlation was observed between delivery preferences and women's age, monthly family income, employment status, age at marriage, duration of the marriage, previous miscarriage, age at first delivery, and possession of information concerning types of delivery (p > 0.05). Multivariate analysis proved cesarean section experience, the presence of cesarean-related problems among relatives and educational status as independent affecting factors. CONCLUSION: This investigation demonstrated women in Erzurum prefer substantially vaginal delivery. Family and relatives are essential for decision making, which suggests considering peer education as a method of information delivery.

Fertility Preferences of Women in a Province Center.

OBJECTIVE: Fertility preferences and status are important parameters involved in reproductive health. The aim of the present study was to define some characteristics of the fertility preferences of women aged 15-49 years in our region. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This cross-sectional study was conducted between 2013 and 2015. The study population consisted of 627 married women aged 15-49 years living in a city center. A questionnaire about socio-demographic characteristics, pregnancy and birth traits, and fertility preferences was applied. Chi-square, Mann-Whitney U, and Spearman correlation tests were analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 20.00 (IBM, SPSS Corp.; Armonk, NY, USA) software for statistical analyses. A p<0.05 was considered statistically significant. RESULTS: The mean age of the women participating in the survey was 33.03±7.1 years. Median age at marriage was 20 years, mean age at first pregnancy was 21 years, and mean number of pregnancies was 3.07 years, with 14.6% having had more than five pregnancies and 34.6% having experienced previous miscarriages. The mean number of live births was 2.2, and 21.5% of women had waited 24 months between pregnancies. Additionally, 77.7% reported using family planning of any kind, with 62.1% using the modern method. Women's ages at first marriage varied significantly depending on education (p<0.001) and working status (p<0.001), whereas ages at first pregnancy varied significantly depending on educational status (p<0.001). The total number of pregnancies varied significantly depending on level of education, working status, and family income (p<0.001). Times between two pregnancies among women with histories of more than two pregnancies differed significantly depending on educational status (p<0.05). CONCLUSION: The most important factors in women's fertility preferences are education, work, and income. Increasing women's educational levels can lead to safe and healthy pregnancies and births.

Sexism, attitudes, and behaviors towards violence against women in medical emergency services workers in Erzurum, Turkey.

BACKGROUND: In Turkey, almost every 4 out of 10 married women have been subjected to physical abuse by their spouses. Although studies on the prevalence of domestic violence in Turkey abound, little has been published about first responders' attitudes and behaviors towards violence against women and on sexism. OBJECTIVE: Our study examined the attitudes and behaviors of Erzurum City medical emergency services workers towards violence against women, and their relationship with sexist attitudes. METHODS: A cross-sectional survey was conducted among 370 medical emergency service personnel using a self-administered questionnaire of 35 items, which included two scales utilizing a three-point Likert format; 15 questions measured attitudes and behaviors towards violence against women (VAW) and 12 items measured sexist attitudes. RESULTS: The mean age of participants was 29.6 ± 8.0 years with a sex distribution of (47.6%) women and 194 (52.4%) men. Less than half of the participants (48.5%; n = 173) felt competent in recognizing and managing VAW; moreover, when faced with such cases, 18.5% (n = 67) said they would try to reconcile the victim with the perpetrator. Male participants had higher mean scores both on VAW (20.7 ± 5.2 vs. 16.9 ± 2.8; t = 7.927; p < 0.001) and on sexist attitudes (24.3 ± 5.3 vs. 18.6 ± 4.3; t = 1.714; p < 0.001). Age (B = 0.067; 95% CI: 0.014-0.119; p = 0.013) and sexism scores (B = 0.487; 95% CI: 0.407-0.566; p < 0.001) were revealed as independent significant predictors of the VAW attitude scores. CONCLUSIONS: Educational and public health measures must be instituted to change attitudes and behaviors towards violence against women; measures must focus not only on violence but also on sexism. Health care professionals need to reflect on their own gender biases in clinical practice and prevent gender discrimination.

Use of Family Planning Methods and Influencing Factors Among Women in Erzurum.

BACKGROUND Our study aimed to determine the prevalence of family planning methods, socio-demographic characteristics and the relationship between pregnancy histories and usage of family planning methods among women aged 15-49 years old living in the Erzurum provincial center. MATERIAL AND METHODS This is a descriptive, cross-sectional study. From the total 106 669 women aged 15-49 years old living in the Erzurum provincial center, a sample of 627 individuals was selected. A questionnaire consisting of items inquiring into women's socio-demographic characteristics, birth and pregnancy history, and the use of family planning methods was administered using face-to-face interviews. Statistical analysis was performed using the SPSS 20.00 software. Descriptive statistics were expressed as mean, median, n, percentage, and standard deviation. The chi square, chi square trend, Mann-Whitney U tests, and logistic regression analysis were used for data analysis. RESULTS The mean age of the women in the study was 33.03 years (SD=7.1 years). The mean total number of pregnancies was 3.07 (SD=1.7). Of the women in the study, 77.7% (n=487) used some kind of FP, with 48.2% (n=302) using modern methods and 29.5% (n=185) using traditional techniques. The most commonly used modern methods were intra-uterine devices (IUDs) and condoms, and the most common traditional method used was withdrawal. The use of modern methods was higher among women working outside of the house. It was positively associated with higher education and income and negatively associated with the total number of pregnancies. CONCLUSIONS Appropriate use of family planning services rises in line with improvements in women's education, prosperity, and employment status.

Willingness to Receive the Influenza A(H1N1) Vaccine and its Determinants among University Students during the 2009 Outbreak in Turkey.

OBJECTIVE: The study aimed to determine the willingness to receive the Influenza A(H1N1) vaccine and its determinants in a large group of university students. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This is a self-administered questionnairre based cross-sectional study. Students being educated at health and non-health faculties were invited to participate in this attitude survey. RESULTS: A total of 974 students were included in the study, of whom 51.3% (n=500) were in health related faculties. The rate of willingness to receive the Influenza A(H1N1) vaccine was 11.9 and 7.5% for health and non-health groups, respectively (p<0.05). For the health group, having been vaccined with seasonal influenza was a significant determinant of being willingness to receive the Influenza A(H1N1) vaccine (O.R [95% C.I.]), (O.R: 2.9 [1.5-5.6]) and to believe that the Influenza A(H1N1) vaccine prevents swine flu (O.R: 1.7 [1.09-2.8]). For the non-health group, the only determinant was to believe that Influenza A(H1N1) vaccine prevents from swine flu (O.R: 19.1 [5.7-64.1]) which found to be affected by confusing news in media. CONCLUSION: The public health professionals who will organize the efforts to improve the acceptability of Influenza A vaccines during influenza outbreaks should try to increase the vaccination rates of seasonal influenza. Information provided by the media should be organized in order not to cause fear and confusion, which was shown to decrease willingness and belief in the Influenza A(H1N1) vaccine.