scholarly journals Assessment of The Burden of, and Women’s Experience With Screening For, Maternal Perinatal Depression in Kuwait

Author(s):  
Rand Alenezi ◽  
Madhawi Alduosari ◽  
Aseel M. Alotaibi ◽  
Danah Alrasheedi ◽  
Lolwah Alenezi ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Perinatal depression can have a devastating impact upon the health and lives of the mothers and their children. Although guidelines are in place to properly screen women for perinatal depression in high income countries, there still is a possibility that some women may be missed. Identifying women with or at high risk of perinatal depression is even more important during COVID-19 pandemic. This study was aimed to measure prevalence and associated factors of perinatal depression, and to understand the women’s experience of screening for perinatal depression in Kuwait. Methods Women who​ ​had recently attended antenatal and postnatal clinics in Kuwait during COVID-19 pandemic were approached through snowball sampling with the help of physicians in Kuwait in a cross-sectional online survey. They answered an online self-administered questionnaire consisting of Edinburgh postnatal depression scale, sociodemographic characteristics, and items about their experience of screening during antenatal and postnatal checkup. Out of the 158 women who answered this questionnaire, 75.3% were in their third trimester of pregnancy and the rest were in the postpartum period. Results Perinatal depression was possible in 31 (19.6%) highly possible in 23 (14.6%), and probable in 52 (32.9%) women in our study, indicating an alarming prevalence of the condition in the sampled population. A large proportion of the sample (66.5%) said that they were not aware of a screening process for perinatal depression, whereas only 5.7% said that they were screened for it. In the sample, 65.1% who were not screened for perinatal depression had perinatal depression (P<0.05). The mean scores for variables representing family support and help were higher among the normal women than with perinatal depression (P<0.001). Similarly, women with perinatal depression had scores towards disagreement when they were asked if they could easily talk about their problems and thoughts with their friends (P<0.01). Conclusions Maternal perinatal depression was high in Kuwaiti women who were either in their third trimester or had just given birth to a baby. The lack of awareness about the screening process and extremely low levels of screening for perinatal depression indicates the need to improve these women’s access to adequate screening services during and after pregnancy.

Author(s):  
Inger Schou-Bredal ◽  
Laila Skogstad ◽  
Tine K. Grimholt ◽  
Tore Bonsaksen ◽  
Øivind Ekeberg ◽  
...  

Although concern affects one’s welfare or happiness, few studies to date have focused on peoples’ concerns during the initial COVID-19 lockdown. The aim of the study was to explore concerns in the Norwegian populations according to gender and age, and identify which concerns were most prominent during the lockdown. A population-based cross-sectional online survey using snowball-sampling strategies was conducted, to which 4527 adults (≥18 years) responded. Questions related to concerns had response alternatives yes or no. In addition, they were asked which concern was most prominent. Nearly all the 4527 respondents (92%) reported that they were concerned: 60.9% were generally concerned about the pandemic, 83.9% were concerned about family and friends, 21.8% had financial concerns, and 25.3% expected financial loss. More women were concerned about family and friends than males, (85.2% vs. 76.2%, p < 0.001), whereas more men expected financial loss (30.4% vs. 24.4%y, p = 0.001). Younger adults (<50 years) had more financial concerns than older adults (25.9% vs. 10.5%, p < 0.001). Being concerned about family and friends was the most prominent concern and was associated with; lower age (OR 0.79), female gender (OR 1.59), and being next of kin (2.42). The most prominent concern for adults 70 years or older was being infected by COVID-19. In conclusion, women and younger individuals were most concerned. While adults under 70 years of age were most concerned about family and friends and adults 70 years or older were most concerned about being infected by COVID-19.


2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (SPL3) ◽  
pp. 840-842
Author(s):  
Praneeksha Ravichandran ◽  
Dhanraj Ganapathy ◽  
Keerthi Sasanka

Iodised salt is table salt mixed with minute amounts of the element iodine. The ingestion of iodine prevents iodine deficiency. Worldwide, iodine deficiency affects about two billion people and is the leading preventable cause of intellectual and development disabilities. To create awareness among dental students on the iodizied salt and its treatment effect on iodine deficiency. The questionnaire was based on the observational cross-sectional type of study comprising 100 dental students from the Saveetha Dental College. A self-administered questionnaire was given to the students. It was designed to collect data on the use of iodized salt among dental students through an online survey mode containing a set of 10 questions about the use of iodized salt and is a yes or no type. The results were evaluated based on the answers given by the participants. 84% of the dental students use iodised salt, which is more than half but still, the rest of them did not use iodized salt. 26% of dental students have an iodine deficiency. 83% of the students use iodized salt for cooking. 61 % of the students think that iodised salt is healthy. 32%students have answered that sea salt and 7% Himalayan salt is healthy. 65% of the dental students were aware of average salt consumption per day. Majority of the dental students were aware of iodized salt and its treatment effect on iodine deficiency. However, more needs to create on its adverse effects and its role in dietary intake of iodine.


PLoS ONE ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (9) ◽  
pp. e0257065
Author(s):  
Rachel Vanderkruik ◽  
Edwin Raffi ◽  
Marlene P. Freeman ◽  
Rebecca Wales ◽  
Lee Cohen

Women may experience new-onset or worsening depressive disorders during pregnancy and the postpartum. If untreated, there may be detrimental consequences to the health and wellbeing of the woman and to her baby. There is a need for improved tools and approaches that can be easily and broadly implemented to effectively detect depression during the perinatal period. Early identification of depression during pregnancy is an important first step towards connecting women to treatment and preventing continued depression into the postpartum or beyond. This report provides preliminary findings from a pilot study of a digital screening app for perinatal depression expiring potential for app reach, engagement, and user demographics and mental health symptoms. With mainly passive recruitment efforts, we collected cross-sectional mental health data on over 700 women during the perinatal period, including women across over 30 countries. We report on mean depression scores among women during pregnancy and the postpartum as well as on constructs that are commonly comorbid with depression, including anxiety, sleep dysregulation, and perceived stress. Over half of the women during pregnancy and over 70% of women in the postpartum had a depression score indicative of clinical depression. Future research directions for this work and potential for public health impact are discussed, including longitudinal data collection and analyses of symptomology over time and embedding evidence-based digital therapeutics into the app as a means to increase access to mental health services.


Author(s):  
Sonali Sain ◽  
Indira Dey

Introduction: World Health Organisation (WHO) declared 2019 Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) infection as a pandemic. Government of India imposed a nationwide lockdown to break the chain of transmission in the community to halt the pandemic. The unprecedented measure led to severe emotional distress among the general population, especially women. Aim: To assess the burden of anxiety disorder perceived by women during the COVID-19 pandemic and their precipitating factors. Materials and Methods: An observational cross-sectional study was conducted among the women residing in West Bengal for more than six months and has access to electronic media, internet services, and/or with an account in any social media. The online survey was conducted via electronic communication and the snowball sampling method was used to recruit 980 study participants. An electronic version of a semi-structured questionnaire was developed with a consent form attached to it and the link of the questionnaire was sent through e-mails, WhatsApp, and other social media to the contacts of the researcher. A self-administered questionnaire obtained information regarding socio-demographic features, personal history, past history of chronic morbidity, family history, and anxiety disorder by Generalised Anxiety Disorder-7 item (GAD-7) scale. Chi-square test and multiple logistic regression were used as a test of significance. The data was compiled, analysed, and presented. Results: Around 203 (20.7%) adult women were suffering from reasonable anxiety. Socio-demographic factors like residence, religion, education, and profession were more significantly associated but age, family type, and marital status were not significantly associated. Addiction, chronic morbidity, and experience of recurrent non-specific signs and symptoms had a significant association with reasonable anxiety. The regression model explained that working women had less chance and those with recurrent non-specific symptoms had more chance to suffer from reasonable anxiety. Conclusion: The study assessed the burden of anxiety disorder faced by women during the pandemic. It has provided further insight into the risk factors associated with it and a person’s vulnerability to anxiety disorder. Thus, it helped in developing targeted intervention strategies for the vulnerable segment of the population.


2020 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Edris Kakemam ◽  
Djavad Ghoddoosi-Nejad ◽  
Zahra Chegini ◽  
Khalil Momeni ◽  
Hamid Salehiniya ◽  
...  

Background: Emerged in December 2019, coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is one of the largest pandemics ever. During the early phase, little was known about public knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) relating to coronavirus disease. This study was designed to determine KAP of Iranians toward COVID-19.Methods: A cross-sectional online survey was carried out in Iran from February 25 to April 25 using a self-administered questionnaire on 1,480 people. COVID-19-related KAP questions were adapted from other internationally validated questionnaires specific for infectious diseases.Results: All participants were aware of COVID-19. When asked unprompted, 80% of respondents could correctly cite fever, difficulty in breathing, and cough as signs/symptoms of COVID-19. Most of our sample population knew that staying at home and isolated (95.3%) as well as constant handwashing and using disinfectants (92.5%) could prevent COVID-19. However, there were also widespread misconceptions such as the belief that COVID-19 can be transmitted by wild animals (58%) and by air (48.3%). Unprompted, self-reported actions taken to avoid COVID-19 infection included handwashing with soap and water (95.4%), avoiding crowded places (93%), cleansing hands with other disinfectants (80.), and covering mouth and nose when coughing or sneezing (76.1%). The Internet and social media (94.5%) were the main coronavirus information sources. However, the most trusted information sources on coronavirus were health and medical professionals (79.3%). The majority of participants (77.0%) wanted more information about coronavirus to be available.Conclusion: Our findings suggest that people's knowledge and attitude toward COVID-19 at the time of its outbreak was at a high level.


2015 ◽  
Vol 37 (1) ◽  
pp. 66-82 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiang Yi ◽  
Barbara Ribbens ◽  
Linna Fu ◽  
Weibo Cheng

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to compare and understand how age, gender and culture affect individual career and work-related attitudes in Chinese and American samples. Design/methodology/approach – Online and printed questionnaires were administered to employees and managers in China, whereas in the USA, faculty, staff and students at a Midwestern university responded to an online survey. Snowball sampling technique was used to collect data. Independent sample t-tests were conducted to test the hypothesis. Findings – The study showed different work values and attitudes in the workplace between Chinese and the US samples, and indicated the specifics influences that national culture has on them. Culture affects generational changes; generational differences in the US sample are bigger than in Chinese sample; work values differ across generations and cultures; traditional gender role differences persist more strongly across generations in Chinese sample than in the US sample. Research limitations/implications – Generalizability issues; cross-sectional data. Practical implications – US-based multi-national corporations need to understand these differences and better manage their diverse employees operating in China. Originality/value – This study compared generation, culture and gender differences simultaneously; parallel groups at similar life stages were used by basing the boundaries of each generation on the distinct cultural events of each nation. This approach is more consistent with generation definitions than by using influential specific events of each country, respectively. Useful to managers, it will provide guidance for understanding work values and attitudes across gender and generations in the USA and China. Most benefit will occur for US based multinational companies that have Chinese operations, and manage employees with cultural, gender and generational differences.


Author(s):  
Kok Pim Kua ◽  
Shaun Lee

Background The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has resulted in profound health challenges across the globe. Pharmacists’ readiness to cope with the pandemic is critical in supporting and sustaining the healthcare workforce to meet the challenges. Objective This study aims to examine community pharmacists’ views on their work environment, policies, and preparedness for safe retail patronage to prevent the transmission of COVID-19 and assess the variables influencing coping strategies during the pandemic. Setting An online survey of pharmacists practicing in community pharmacy setting in Malaysia. Method A questionnaire-based, cross-sectional study was conducted in Malaysia to evaluate coping strategies of community pharmacists and pharmaceutical services provided during COVID-19 pandemic. Between May 1 and July 31, 2020, the questionnaire was distributed to pharmacists working in community setting nationwide utilizing a snowball sampling method. Main outcome measure Community pharmacists’ perceptions on safety, resilience, organizational support, and pharmaceutical services offered during COVID-19 pandemic. Results A total of 217 pharmacists participated in the study. The vast majority of community pharmacists reported a positive outlook and were able to balance working with self-care during this period. Most reported to have access to personal protective equipment such as gloves and hand sanitizers. A large proportion of community pharmacies also installed physical barriers in doorways or in front of the counter, put markings on the ground to section areas to ensure physical distancing, and controlled the number of customers who could access the pharmacy during this period. Innovations reported to be implemented included teleconsultations and providing curb-side or drive-through delivery and pickup services. Conclusion The findings suggest the frontline and essential roles of community pharmacists in delivering pandemic responses, creating the opportunity to determine areas where community pharmacy services can be incorporated to strengthen the public health system and improve patient health outcomes.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Noura Baniyas ◽  
Mohamud Sheek-Hussein ◽  
Nouf Al Kaabi ◽  
Maitha Al Shamsi ◽  
Maitha Al Neyadi ◽  
...  

AbstractCOVID-19 pandemic is the largest unprecedented viral pandemic of the 21st century. We aimed to study the COVID-19 knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) among medical and health sciences students in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). We performed a cross-sectional study between 2nd June and 19th August 2020. The survey was developed using online Survey Monkey. The link was distributed via UAE University to all students and via WhatsApp© groups. The self-administered questionnaire was conducted in English and comprised of two parts: socio-demographic characteristics and KAP towards COVID-19. A total of 712 responses to the questionnaire were collected. 90% (n=695) were under-graduate, while 10% (n=81) were post-graduate students. Majority (87%, n=647) stated that they obtained COVID-19 information from multiple reliable sources. They were highly knowledgeable about COVID-19 pandemic but 76% (n=539) did not recognize its routes of transmission. 63% (n=431) were worried of getting COVID-19, while 92% (n=633)) were worried that a family member could get infected with the virus. 97% (n=655) took precautions when accepting home deliveries, 94% (n=637) had been washing their hands more frequently, and 95% (n=643) had been wearing face masks. In conclusion, participants showed high levels of knowledge and awareness about COVID-19. They were worried about getting infected themselves or their family members, and had good practices against COVID-19.


2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (4) ◽  
pp. 2063-2072
Author(s):  
Kayalvizhi Kumaravel ◽  
Praveen Kumar Ratavaru Sathyam ◽  
Rejili Grace Joy Manickaraj ◽  
Poonguzhali Sivagananam ◽  
Divya Ravikumar ◽  
...  

Background: COVID-19, the unprecedented deadly pandemic has turned the world topsy-turvy. It has affected all the people like poor and rich, young and old, educated and uneducated, male and female with detrimental consequences. People who are in quarantine and/or lockdown are likely to develop a wide range of symptoms like psychological stress, irritability, anxiety, depression etc. Hence, this study was undertaken to assess the psychological effects of COVID-19 lockdown among adult population residing in Chennai, India. This study is a cross sectional descriptive study carried out in Chennai, India. A structured questionnaire was developed containing 25 questions related to the emotional disturbance, depression, self-concept, physical problems, cognitive changes and role performance and 7 questions related to the demographics. An online survey was conducted using a structured questionnaire using a non-probability snowball sampling technique. A total of 579 responses were received. The findings of the present study revealed that, among 579 respondents, more than half of the respondents 320(56.3%)were under severe psychological stress, 192(33.2%) respondents that is one third of the people had moderate psychological stress and remaining were having mild psychological stress. The study also revealed that there was a statistically significant association of psychological problems associated with demographic variables. Our Study revealed that people living in Chennai had severe psychological problem due to theCOVID-19 lockdown. This highlights the importance and immediate need for the development special intervention programmes for the people with psychological problems due to the COVID-19 lockdown.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rita Judith Ames-Guerrero ◽  
Ayme Barreda Parra ◽  
Julio Cesar Huamani Cahua ◽  
Jane Banaszak Holl

BACKGROUND: The Coronavirus disease has quickly spread to all corners across Latin-American countries. Its exponential capacity has overwhelmed even the most resilient health systems (1). The already significant impact of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) on the global scale is worsened by psychological responses that may aggravate the health crisis. OBJECTIVE: This study is aimed at collecting demographic information, prevalence of psychological morbidities and associated coping styles during the COVID-19 pandemic on Peruvian population. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted through online survey using snowball sampling techniques after the state of emergency was declared in Perú. The General Health Questionnaire (GHQ -28) identify somatic symptom, anxiety/ insomnia, social misfunctioning and depression prevalence and the Coping Strategy Questionnaire (COPE-28) maps strategies addressing recent stress. RESULTS: We collected data from 434 self-selected participants within 18-68 years old (ME =33.87), by analysing the socio-economic information in which the majority of the respondents were women (61.3%), aged between 18 and 28 (41.7%), from well-educated groups (&gt;=85.0 %), Peruvian (94.2%), working citizen (57.4%) and single (71.20 %). Nearly 40.8% rated psychological problems, expressing fear of being infected by coronavirus (71.43%). Regression analysis shows that female gender is associated to higher somatic (p&lt;0.001*, C.I: -2.75 to -.99) and anxiety/insomnia symptoms (p=0.00*, C.I: -2.98 to 0.84). Depression and social dysfunction are experienced at any age. Educational status is protective against developing psychological disorders (p&lt;0.05). While active responses (Acceptance and Social support) are scarcely used by individuals with psychological problems; Passive strategies are commonly reported (Denial, Self-Distraction, Self-Blame, Disconnection, and Emotional discharge).CONCLUSION: These findings provide a better understanding of psychological disorders resulting from the current pandemic in Peruvian population. This evidence informs the need to strengthen mental health programs, especially in less privileged groups after the Covid-19 pandemic.


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