Internationalization of medical education in Iran: A way towards implementation of the plans of development and innovation in medical education.

INTRODUCTION: Academic institutions are the most important organizations for implementation of internationalization policies and practices for integrating an international, intercultural and global dimension in higher education system. Also, a globally increasing demand for higher education has been seen in the past two decades so that the number of students enrolled in higher education institutions in the worldwide nation-states has increased dramatically. The National Plan of International Development of Medical Education was designed with the aim of identifying available potentials in all the universities of medical sciences, encouraging the development of international standards of medical education, and planning for the utilization of the existing capacity in Islamic republic of Iran. METHODS: Authors have tried to review the several aspects of international activities in higher education in the world and describe national experiences and main policies in globalization of medical education in Iran within implementation of the National Plan for Development and Innovation in Medical Education. RESULTS: The findings of some global experiences provide the policy makers with clear directions in order to develop internationalization of higher education. CONCLUSION: The Program for International Development of Medical Education was designed by the Deputy of Education in the Ministry of Health and the effective implementation of this Program was so important for promotion of Iranian medical education. But there were some challenges in this regard; addressing them through inter-sectoral collaboration is one of the most important strategies for the development of internationalization of education in the field of medical sciences.

A Comparative Study on Dietary Style and Physical Activity of Women With and Without Gestational Diabetes.

Gestational diabetes increases the risks for mother and fetus during pregnancy. As a principle of caring for diabetes, recommending patients to lose weight through more physical activities and a restrictive diet has a long history. The present study was carried out aiming at determining and comparing dietary style and physical activity in women with gestational diabetes and healthy pregnant women. This descriptive-comparative study was carried out simultaneously on 200 pregnant women (with gestational diabetes and healthy). Tools for data collection were questionnaires of dietary style and physical activity during pregnancy. After obtaining research informed consent from samples, sampling was done by multi-stage convenience random sampling. Data was analyzed using SPSS 21. The results of the study revealed that the demographic and obstetric variables were identical. The mean scores for the dietary style of case and control groups were 65.05 and 74.12, P<0.001 respectively. The mean scores for physical activity (inactive cases) in the two groups were 5.64 and 4.70, P<0.223, the mean scores for light activity in the two groups were 9.07 and 10.75 (P<0.059), and the mean scores for moderate activity in the two groups were 4.62 and 5.69, (P<0.042) respectively. Lower status of nutrition and physical activity of women with gestational diabetes comparing to non-diabetic pregnant women suggests a need providing sufficient and accurate information on appropriate dietary and physical activities during pregnancy.

Comparison of lifestyles of women with gestational diabetes and healthy pregnant women.

BACKGROUND: Gestational diabetes is the most common medical condition in pregnancy and can be a predisposing factor in incidence of type II diabetes in future. Incorrect lifestyles can predispose people to various diseases, including diabetes, which is a serious health risk. Therefore, this study was conducted to compare lifestyles of women with gestational diabetes and healthy pregnant women attending the health centers affiliated to Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences (SBMU) in 2013. METHODS: A comparative-descriptive study was conducted on 100 pregnant women with definite diagnosis of gestational diabetes and 100 healthy pregnant women attending the health centers affiliated to SBMU. Data were collected by a researcher-made questionnaire about lifestyle during pregnancy. Informed consents were obtained, and sampling was performed using convenient multi-stage random sampling method. Data were analyzed using SPSS-18 software. RESULTS: Demographic and obstetrics variables were not significantly different in the two groups. However, two groups were significantly different regarding their lifestyles as the mean scores of pregnancy diet were 65.05 in the diabetic group and 74.12 in the healthy group (P<0.001), and the mean moderate physical activity scores in the two groups were 4.62 and 5.69, respectively (P=0.042), the mean pregnancy self-care scores were 71.9 and 81.87, respectively (P<0.001), the mean perceived social support in the two groups were 65.75 and 73.88, respectively (P<0.001), and the mean scores of perceived stress were 51.57 and 60.27, respectively (P<0.001). CONCLUSION: Women's lifestyles were different in some areas. This study further reveals the importance of women's diet, self-care, moderate physical activity, and perceived social support during pregnancy. Incidence of gestational diabetes can be prevented through increased awareness and education of pregnant women about having appropriate lifestyles during pregnancy and any intervention that would lead to improved lifestyle.