RESUMO
BACKGROUND: Aging of population is a worldwide phenomenon of the 21st century, which leads to many socioeconomic consequences including their health status. Hence, this study tries to assess the self-reported health status (SRHS) of elderly widows (60+ years) and its principal determinants. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 360 elderly widows from Puducherry district, 260 urban and 130 from rural areas. The sociodemographic information and the self-rated health status of elderly widows were collected with semi-structured interview schedule. Data were analyzed adopting descriptive statistics and multivariate analysis making use IBM-SPSS software 22 version. RESULTS: Thirty-seven percent each of the elderly widows felt to be in "fair" and "good" health status, respectively, whereas 26% of them stated to be living with "poor" health status. Results of multinomial regression analysis showed that multinomial regression analysis showed that the odds of "poor" and "fair" SRHS (as against "good" SRHS) of elderly widows are conspicuously higher among those who are suffering from 2 or more chronic morbidities, whereas such odds are significantly lower among those who have 2 or more sons, educated up to middle school level and above, and who have higher functional ability. Urban residence, middle-old ages (66-76), and moderate monthly family income (Rs. 3001-9000) have also exhibited some net effects on the "poor" and/or "fair" SRHS of elderly widows. CONCLUSION: Chronic morbidity, having son(s), education, economic status, functional ability, and urban residence are found to be the major determinants of the SRHS among elderly widows.
RESUMO
BACKGROUND: A multipurpose health worker (MPHW) is the key functionary and the first contact person in a subcenter. This study explores the workload of MPHWs in the multifarious domains of their activities and also assesses their time utilization pattern. METHODS: A time and motion study was conducted among 19 auxiliary nurse midwives (ANMs) and 10 HWs male (M) from six selected primary health centers of Puducherry. Participants self-reported their daily activities on a time measurement sheet for 6 days in a week. Data were entered in EpiData software and analyzed using Excel. Calculations are based on a total of 646 and 340 person-hours of observation by ANMs and HWs (M), respectively. RESULTS: Time utilization pattern revealed that ANMs spent half of their time on maternal and child health activities. HWs (M) utilized 45% of their time for vector control programs and 11% for other programs. Documentation constituted nearly 16% and 10% time spent by ANMs and HWs (M), respectively. Other activities that constituted multipurpose workers' time utilization include traveling (8-10%), patient education (5-10%) and personal activities (6-12% ). The proportion of time spent in community activities was around 54% by HWs (M) and 32% by ANMs. Observations on self-reporting were comparable with that of participant observations. CONCLUSIONS: This study reflects the workload in different domains of MPHWs' activities and the "multipurpose" nature of their work, relevance of their job responsibilities in the context of national programs, and changing profile of their job.
