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Background: One of the most common causes of death worldwide is cardiopulmonary arrest. Firefighters are among the first responders at the scenes of accidents and can, therefore, play a key part in performing basic cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) for victims who need it. The present study was conducted to compare the effects of simulation training against workshops on the CPR knowledge and skills of firefighters in the south of Iran. Methods: This experimental (Interventional) study was conducted on 60 firefighters of south of Fars province, Iran. The study was undertaken from March to July 2023. Through random allocation, the participants were divided into two groups: simulation-based training (30 members) and traditional workshop training (30 members). The participants' CPR knowledge and practical skills were measured before, immediately after, and three months after intervention. Results: The findings of the study revealed a statistically significant difference between the pretest and posttest CPR knowledge and skill mean scores of the simulation groups as compared to the workshop group (p < 0.001). As measured three months after the intervention, the firefighters' knowledge and skill mean scores were still significantly different from their pretest mean scores (p < 0.001); however, they had declined, which can be attributed to the fact that the study population did not frequently exercise CPR. Conclusion: Based on the findings of the study, even though both methods of education were effective on enhancing the firefighters' CPR knowledge and skill, simulation training had a far greater impact than training in workshops. In view of the decline in the participants' knowledge and skill scores over time, it is recommended that short simulation training courses on CPR should be repeated on a regular basis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Body image studies confirm a higher level of dissatisfaction among women compared to men, and some evidence shows that ethnicity may have a role in the level of body image fear. Methods: In this cross-sectional study, the data of 372 Fars and Turkmen women visiting health care centers in Gonbad, Iran, were collected via convenience sampling and analyzed by SPSS v. 17. The instruments were a demographic checklist and Littleton's Body Image Concern Inventory. Results: The level of fear of body image between Fars (M = 2.022, SD = 0.685) and Turkmen (M = 2.1408, SD = 0.661) ethnicities was not statistically different (P-value = 0.09) based on the t test. Furthermore, age, education level, and internet usage were significantly related to the variable of fear of body image. Conclusion: The role of ethnicity in the fear of body image is not statistically significant and needs further research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: One of the most crucial and essential methods for the prevention and management of respiratory infections is for healthcare professionals to take precautions for their own safety. Using Protection Motivation Theory (PMT), the current study looked into effective elements influencing the staff at Kazeroon's Valiasr Hospital's preventive actions against respiratory diseases. Methods: One hundred ninety‐two male and 108 female employees of the Valiasr Hospital in Kazeroon, Iran, participated in this cross‐sectional study, in May 2022. Census data were used as the sample technique. A questionnaire based on the PMT and a questionnaire collecting demographic data served as the data collection method. The study's content validity was confirmed by 10 health education experts, and its reliability was assessed using internal consistency techniques, resulting in a Cronbach's alpha coefficient of 0.87.The statistical program SPSS 24 was used to examine the data using the independent t test, logistic regression, and Pearson correlation. Results: The average age was 34.11 ± 8.91 for men and 32.77 ± 6.09 for women. The majority of participants were married (73.3%), had university education (76.7%), and earned a monthly income between 10 and 15 million Tomans (75%). Notably, 97.7% of participants had received the COVID‐19 vaccine, and 77.7% had undergone training related to respiratory infections. The most common preventive practices included avoiding touching the eyes, noses, or mouths, wearing appropriate protective gear, and maintaining a safe distance of 1–2 m from others. Analysis of PMT constructs showed that participants had a generally positive perception toward preventive behaviors. Perceived vulnerability (P = 0.02), perceived cost (P = 0.03), and motivation (P = 0.001) were the three analyzed components that had the greatest impact on respiratory infection preventative behavior. Logistic regression revealed that perceived susceptibility, cost, and motivation significantly predicted the prevention of respiratory infections, with a predictive power of 45%. These findings highlight the importance of understanding the factors influencing preventive behaviors among hospital staff, from respiratory infections like COVID‐19. Conclusion: According to the findings, the personnel at Kazeroon's Valiasr Hospital wore gloves, goggles, and other appropriate personal protective equipment. The individuals' decision to wear personal protection equipment was also impacted by perceived susceptibility, cost, and motivation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Vaccination is one of the most effective ways to manage infectious disease epidemics such as Covid-19. However, the low rates of vaccination in populations at risk including people using illicit substances, hinders the effectiveness of preventive vaccines in reducing transmission. The aim of this study was to investigate the rate of Covid-19 vaccination and its related factors among people who use substances in Tehran, Iran. Methods: Between July and December 2022, 386 people who use substances aged ≥ 18 years old were recruited by convenience street-based sampling in Tehran. The outcome variable in this study was self-reported completion of at least two doses of the Covid-19 vaccine. Logistic regression was used to investigate the factors related to Covid-19 vaccination. Data were analyzed using SPSS software version 20 at the 0.05 level of significance. As a measure of risk, 95% Confidence interval (CI) was used. The level of significance was considered at 0.05. Results: Almost three-quarters (n = 286) of the participants reported receiving at least two doses of the Covid-19 vaccine (95% CI, 70.2–79.3). Those participants with high school diplomas were 1.17 times more likely than less educated participants to report having had 2 vaccinations (OR of 1.17, CI 95%: 1.03–1.81). Participants with a higher mean score of having a positive attitude towards Covid-19 vaccination were more likely to have received a vaccination (OR of 1.12, CI 95%: 1.08–1.17). Ethnicity was also an influential variable, people with non-Fars ethnicity were less likely to be vaccinated than those of Fars ethnicity (OR of 0.33, CI 95%: 0.13–0.81). People with higher-than-average monthly income were more likely to report vaccination than those with low monthly incomes (OR of 1.27, CI 95%: 1.09–1.8). Also, participants reporting less access to vaccination centers had a lower chance of reporting having been vaccinated than those who reported high access to vaccination centers (OR of.17, CI 95%:.08-.36). Conclusions: Covid-19 vaccine uptake was found to be relatively high among people using illicit substances in this study. Higher levels of education, Fars ethnicity, higher income levels, having a positive attitude towards vaccination and access to vaccination centers were the most important predictors of Covid-19 vaccination in this study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite a sharp increase in the use of the waterpipe (WP) has been noted recently in Iran, no information is available for the smoking behavior and topography parameters. The present study is intended to obtain the inhalation and smoking topography parameters for the Iranian WP smokers. The smoking data collected from 122 smoking sessions, including 192 WP smokers in the Iranian Fars province have been used to perform smoking topography assessments. The influence of demographic and smoking parameters on puffing data is obtained. Results have indicated that gender and tobacco type strongly affect puff volume and duration. Women smokers inhale smaller volume of smoke than men and puff duration is significantly increased for regular smokers than occasional smokers. However, the results of the present study have not revealed a major effect of age, residence and setting on the puffing behavior. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fars province, as one of the most susceptible ecotourism regions of Iran, has paid attention to the establishment of ecotourism residences with the priority of rural women through ecotourism entrepreneurial training in recent years. In this regard, the present study investigates the effective factors on entrepreneurial behavior with Fars rural women ecotourism approach in Iran. The participants of the study were 431 of rural women in Fars and 205 were decided by Cochran formula. It is inferred from the results that step-by-step procedure of changing norms towards the acceptance of rural women entrepreneurs as well as the acceptance of ecotourism culture through the establishment of local and regional institutions and organizations in a context of family support with strong bonds of commitment, solidarity, environmental and infrastructural foundations will lead to a strong desire to constitute ecotourism residence by rural women. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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BACKGROUND: Although the main risk factors of acute coronary syndrome (ACS) have been previously identified, there is not yet strong and consistent evidence about the ethnical differences of these risk factors. The aim of this study was to identify and compare the distribution of risk factors of ACS among two ethnic groups in northern Iran. METHODS: This cross-sectional study was done on a total of 250 patients (100 Fars and 150 Turkmen ethnics) with ACS admitted in coronary care units (CCU) of medical centers in Gonbad-e Kavus, a city in the Northeast of Iran. The demographic characteristics, clinical parameters and anthropometric indices of patients in two ethnic groups were recorded. In addition, Beacke’s questionnaire and Cohen's scale were used to evaluate and compare the patients’ level of physical activity and perceived stress, respectively. RESULTS: The mean age of the patients was 60.9±11.9 years and they were mostly males (54.8%) and married (84.8%). Findings showed that the prevalence of myocardial infarction in Fars patients was significantly higher than Turkmens (24% versus 15.3%; P=0.04). In addition, there was a significant difference in terms of the history of using opium (P=0.07) and opium sap (P=0.03)‚ socioeconomic status (P=0.009)‚ the place of residence (P=0.001) and type of health insurance services (P=0.001) between two groups. However, the clinical parameters and anthropometric indices and the level of physical activity and perceived stress were not significantly different between two groups (P>0.05). CONCLUSION: This study showed a significant difference in the prevalence and risk factor of ACS in patients with different ethnicity in northern Iran. This finding points to the importance of paying attention to the ethnicity-based difference in ACS prevalence and risk factors, especially in patients who are at high to intermediate risk for ACS, such as Turkmens. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Cervical cancer is considered treatable as long as it is detected early and managed effectively. Pap smear test is a screening tool that plays an important role in the early detection, prevention and can prevent any early cervical cell changes from becoming cancer. This study aims to survey the effect of educational programs based on beliefs, subjective norms, and perceived behavior control on doing the pap-smear test in a sample of Iranian women.Materials and Methods: This experimental interventional study was performed on 300 women admitted to Fasa City, Fars Province, Iran health centers in 2018-2019. A questionnaire consisting of demographic information, knowledge, Health Belief Model, and Theory of Planned Behavior constructs were used to measure on doing of Pap smear test in women before and after 6 months' educational intervention.Results: The results revealed that 6 months after the intervention, 108 women (72%) in the experimental group and only 9 women (6%) in the control group received the Pap smear test.Conclusions: The current research results revealed that education based on the combination of the health Belief model and theory of planned behavior might be promoting participation and an increasing rate of receiving Pap smear tests in women. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hygiene has always been one of the most important concern of human beings. The negligence of this crucial issue is regarded as the source of many diseases affecting the society. In Iran, during the Pahlavi epoch, with the establishment of medical institutions, attempts were made to pay attention to sanitary problems, and issues related to women were no exception. During this period, associations were formed to defend women’s rights, including women’s health issues. One of the most important governmental organizations during the era of Pahlavi II was the Women’s Organization of Iran, which focused on women’s educational, health and legal affairs and established various branches throughout the country, one of which was the Fars Women’s Organization. This study, by employing a descriptive-analytical method, was carried out based on the available documents and library resources to examine the activities of the Fars Women’s Organization in the field of health during the years 1966-1979. Research findings suggest that the Fars Women’s Organization tried to improve the conditions of women by forming commissions and designing programs in the field of women’s health and hygiene. However, owing to the lack of due attention given by the government to the issues related to women and the shortage of funding, the activities of Women’s organization and its commissions failed to go beyond sending some annual reports to the headquarter and hence its activities were confined to some superficial issues, most of which were left unfinished. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Metabolic syndrome (MetS) prevalence has augmented globally during recent decades. Over the past years, the consumption of ultra‐processed foods (UPFs) has grown significantly worldwide. So, the present research investigated the association between UPFs and MetS in an Iranian sample. This cross‐sectional research was conducted on people (n = 8841) in the Fasa cohort study, Fars province, Iran. The participants' dietary consumption over a year, UPF consumption, and MetS diagnosis were evaluated through a 125‐item modified food frequency questionnaire, the NOVA food group classification, and the Adult Treatment Panel III of the National Cholesterol Education Program, respectively. The association between the quartiles (Q) of UPF intake and the odds of MetS was estimated using the backward LR method of multivariate analysis. In the multivariate model, after adjusting potential confounders, the association between UPF intake and the odds of MetS was significant (Q4: odds ratio (OR = 3.27; 95% confidence interval (CI): 2.76–3.89). Also, the odds of increasing triglycerides (TG), blood pressure, and fasting blood sugar (FBS) and decreasing high‐density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL‐C) were significantly higher in the last quartile compared to the first quartile of UPFs (TG: OR = 1.71; 95% CI: 1.49–1.97, blood pressure: OR = 1.53; 95% CI: 1.30–1.79, FBS: OR = 1.30; 95% CI: 1.10–1.54, and HDL‐C: OR = 1.22; 95% CI: 1.08–1.39). The current research found a relationship between UPF intake and MetS and its components, indicating a diet‐containing UPFs can be related to the occurrence of noncommunicable diseases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]