Health Education and Health Promotion

Abstract Aims: Mass media are among the most important tools for enhancing health information and health promotion in any country. Among the different types of mass media, news agencies are the primary source of health information. The present study examines health coverage in news agencies and implements and evaluates an intervention to improve health promotion news coverage.
Methods: The explanatory sequential mixed-method study includes five phases, including quantitative content analysis of news agencies, semi-structured interviews, intervention, and evaluation of the intervention, and synthesis of the recommendations. Four news agencies utilizing the purposeful sampling method would be selected and divided into two cases and two control groups. Primary outcomes: awareness-raising and enhancing the knowledge, attitude, and performance of health journalists and improving the communication between the media and the health sectors. Secondary outcomes: increasing the quality and quantity of public health (health protection, prevention, education, and promotion) related news agencies coverage. In the Fifth phase, utilizing the results of the four phases, a practical recommendation will be proposed for creating health-promoting media.
Perspective: This result would provide a more holistic approach to understanding the current situation, generating more effective and comprehensive strategies to utilize the potential of news agencies for health promotion and creating health-promoting news agencies.

Abstract Aim: Addiction to smoking is considered a primary challenge in human communities and has afflicted both the educated and uneducated population. Its prevalence among the educated people involved in the healthcare system of the country is of a particular significance as it negatively influences the entire system. The present research aims to investigate how smoking is correlated with the students’ general health in Bandar Abbas University of Medical Sciences.
Methods: The present cross-sectional research was conducted on 600 students affiliated with Bandar Abbas University of Medical Sciences selected through a proportionate sampling method in 2016. The data collection instrument was a standardized trip-artite questionnaire comprised of demographic information, smoking status and general health items. SPSS (ver. 16) was used to analyze the data using descriptive statistics (mean, standard deviation, frequency and percentage) as well as Chi-squared test and Spearman’s correlation test. The level of significance was set at p˂.05.
Findings: The mean age of the participants was 21.14±2.33 years, 51.5% of the participants aged ≤20 years while 48.5% were above 20 years of age. Statistically significant correlations were estimated between age, place of residence, sex and smoking (p˂0.001). However, no statistically significant correlation was found between the field of study and smoking (p=0.44). The same was true for marital status and smoking (p=0.318). Smoking and general health showed to be significantly correlated (p˂0.001).
Conclusion: Consideration of non-native students’ problems, providing for their welfare and convenience, the authorities’ supervision of non-dormitory residents, and adding anti-smoking content to the educational materials and formal teaching can all contribute to the reduction of smoking in this susceptible population.

Abstract Aim: Smoking is one of the most important causes of respiratory, cardiovascular and cancers diseases. This study examined the smoking-related knowledge, attitudes and practices of dormitory students of Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences in Tehran. The specific aim is to determine the correlation between the main variables' affect on smoking habits, knowledge and attitudes.
Methods: In this cross-sectional study conducted with descriptive and analytical approach, 340 students were selected through random cluster sampling. The participating students completed an interview measuring demographic characteristics and smoking-related knowledge, attitude and practice. Data were analyzed using Chi-square and Pearson's tests in SPSS (ver. 21).
Findings: The mean and SD of the participants was 22.93±4.05 years. Accordingly, 23% (n=78) of the subjects were current smokers and 17.1% (n=58) had experienced smoking. The knowledge of 1.8% (n=6) of the subjects was weak about smoking's health effects, 9.97% (n=332) had average and 0.3% (n=1) had good knowledge. Attitude of 8.6% (n=29) of the participants about smoking was poor, 29.5% (n=100) average and 61.9% (n=210) good. Relationship between knowledge and attitude about the harms of smoking (r=0.35, p<0.001), between knowledge and smoking (r=0.2, p<0.001), and between attitude and smoking (r=0.45, p<0.001) was significant.
Conclusion: There was a moderate level of knowledge and attitude about smoking hazards among the participants. Also the prevalence of smoking was relatively high. With regard to the statistically significant relationship between knowledge and attitude with smoking, declared health educational programs may enrich current knowledge, and promote the attitudes related to smoking risk and effects on the students' health.