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The coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic is a global outbreak of coronavirus and has significantly changed the dynamics and framework of healthcare delivery system. Acknowledging the fact that the clinical manifestations of both influenza and COVID-19 are quite similar and both are respiratory pathogens, it will be ideal to use the Global Influenza Surveillance and Response System (GISRS) for monitoring the community-level transmission in any nation. During the initial stages of pandemic itself, with the intention to strengthen the surveillance activities, it was recommended that all the nations should use the existing surveillance networks in the nation and employ them for the surveillance of COVID-19 cases. In conclusion, the GISRS continues to play an important role in the COVID-19 pandemic response since its onset. As a matter of fact, this system is an efficient, cost-effective, and sustainable platform for nations to continue their battle against the pandemic., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts of interest., (Copyright: © 2024 Journal of Pharmacy and Bioallied Sciences.)

In the field of medical education, crowdsourcing is the practice of obtaining views and inputs from a heterogeneous group of people using preferably digital platforms, with an aim to contribute to medical learning, creation of contents, and problem-solving and strengthen assessments. Considering the fact that medical knowledge continues to change with each day, this approach facilitates the process of continuous updation of the educational content based on recent developments. Regardless of the scope, application, and merits that can be attributed to crowdsourcing in medical education, there are some potential concerns that must be taken into account for optimizing the benefits. In summary, crowdsourcing has immense scope in medical education to create an inclusive and updated learning environment for medical students and healthcare professionals. The inputs generated through collective minds are expected to enrich the learning experience, and thus, we must look forward to exploring it for better utility., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts of interest., (Copyright: © 2024 Journal of Pharmacy and Bioallied Sciences.)

Medical education is complex in nature, acknowledging the fact that the knowledge base is extremely vast and dynamic, and the number of skills that students must acquire during their period of training is also huge. The introduction of serious games in medical education delivery is actually a response to the ever-changing needs of medical education. In fact, the use of serious games in medical education has transformed the learning process and is an eye-catching illustration of a combination of technology and curriculum to strengthen the overall process of attainment of learning outcomes. Owing to the presence of the game factor, students remain motivated and highly engaged. Although medical educators engage themselves in the process of planning and implementation of such games, they are bound to face some challenges. To address these challenges, we must adopt a multipronged approach, including providing required infrastructure, strengthening faculty development programs, and measures to integrate these games into the existing curriculum. In conclusion, serious games are an effective and engaging addition to the teaching-learning methodologies in medical education. Acknowledging the merits of the same, there is an immense need to identify the potential challenges and then work strategically to overcome them and facilitate learning among medical students., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts of interest., (Copyright: © 2024 Journal of Pharmacy and Bioallied Sciences.)

The inclusion of cartoons in medical education can facilitate the learning process among medical students. This can be attributed to the active engagement, joyful learning experience, and encouragement of critical thinking among medical students. A number of factors must be given due attention to ensure that cartoons can facilitate the learning process among medical students. Thus, there is an immense need to identify the potential challenges that can impact the planning and implementation process and adopt a comprehensive approach to overcome them and thereby facilitate learning., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts of interest., (Copyright: © 2024 Journal of Pharmacy and Bioallied Sciences.)

The delivery of medical education is a complex process, considering the vast nature of the syllabus, and multiple competencies are needed to be attained by medical students. Escape rooms are an innovative approach to delivering medical education and provide an enriching learning experience for students. These rooms are designed to replicate clinical scenarios, and they provide a platform for students to apply their theoretical knowledge to clinical practice. The employment of escape rooms in medical education has been linked with multiple merits for the students and helps them to attain multiple competencies. The participants in escape rooms are generally from different disciplines, and as mentioned above, it gives a chance to students from varied disciplines to acknowledge the role of each specialty and understand the need that for successful healthcare delivery, all professionals have to work as a team. In other words, these room offers a wonderful opportunity for students to come out of discipline-level segregation and work together to ensure the delivery of comprehensive healthcare services. In conclusion, escape rooms have the potential to deliver experiential and contextual learning for students from different disciplines. As healthcare delivery is a multidisciplinary approach, there is an immense need to explore the possibility of running escape rooms along with students from other disciplines and together move forward across the complexities of clinical practice., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts of interest., (Copyright: © 2024 Journal of Pharmacy and Bioallied Sciences.)

Theater of the oppressed has been regarded as a dynamic tool to bring about social change and empowerment of the audience. This theatrical exposure to medical students plays a significant role in the delivery of comprehensive training to medical students, which is not only restricted to clinical knowledge but extends to cultural and interpersonal skills to ensure the delivery of comprehensive patient care. In conclusion, the theater of the oppressed has the potential to prepare empathetic and compassionate medical practitioners. To augment the quality of healthcare delivery, this kind of exposure can help medical students in bridging the gap between theory and clinical practice., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts of interest., (Copyright: © 2024 Journal of Pharmacy and Bioallied Sciences.)

In the field of medical education, geographic information system (GIS) can contribute in several ways to strengthen the process of delivery of education. As medical institutions plan to integrate GIS in the delivery of medical education, there can be some challenges that must be given due attention to optimize the benefits. In conclusion, the integration of GIS in medical education can expose medical students to enriching learning experiences. Acknowledging the importance and merits of GIS, there is an immense need to explore the possibility and introduce it in medical education to benefit medical students and widen their perspective on health care., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts of interest., (Copyright: © 2024 Journal of Pharmacy and Bioallied Sciences.)

Background: In the domain of healthcare delivery, self medication (SM) is a widely prevalent form of health seeking behavior., Objectives: The current study has been planned with the objectives to estimate the prevalence of SM practices among medical students, and to assess the knowledge pertaining to SM among the study population., Methods: A cross sectional descriptive study will be conducted among a representative population of medical students in a rural medical college for a period of two months among 205 students. The data collection tool will be a pilot tested semi-structured questionnaire and will be used after obtaining written informed consent. The statistical analysis will be done using SPSS version 16., Results: Results will be presented using descriptive (frequency, percentages, mean, and standard deviation) and inferential (chi-square test) statistics., Conclusion: Considering the rising and alarming trends of antimicrobial resistance, it is our duty that we estimate the prevalence of SM among medical students and accordingly create awareness about not encouraging indiscriminate use of over the counter drugs., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts of interest., (Copyright: © 2024 Journal of Pharmacy and Bioallied Sciences.)

In the field of medical education, moral case deliberations refer to a structured process, wherein health professionals together discuss and analyze moral issues or ethical dilemmas encountered in their clinical practice. The purpose of the current review is to explore the merits of moral case deliberations, identify the components, enumerate the strategies that can be used for implementation, and enlist the potential challenges and the remedial measures to overcome them. Moral case deliberations can be implemented in medical education in several ways that can be seamlessly integrated into the existing medical curriculum without stretching the overall duration of the training period. The path to successfully implement moral case deliberations in a medical school has its own share of challenges, and we must be aware of them to adopt countermeasures to overcome them. In conclusion, moral case deliberations play a vital role in augmenting ethical competence and establishing a culture of reflective practice among medical students. As medical students are bound to encounter multiple ethical dilemmas in their future clinical practice, it is our responsibility to incrementally expose them to such cases as a part of their undergraduate training to eventually prepare them for effective healthcare delivery., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts of interest., (Copyright: © 2024 Journal of Pharmacy and Bioallied Sciences.)

Road safety has been acknowledged as a public health concern of global significance owing to its direct association with human lives and their well-being. Road safety is a much broader concept than measures that are aimed to just prevent accidents, but it extends to improving the quality of life of members of the community, safeguarding environmental health, and improving the economy of the nation. With the passage of time, several technologies in road safety have surfaced, and their collective employment can aid in the establishment of a smart, safe, and efficient transportation system in nations. In fact, these technologies will account for a significant reduction in the number of accidents, better management of traffic, and improved road safety. In conclusion, ensuring road safety can save lives, promote responsible behavior, and create secure transportation system. There is an immense need to create awareness, engage the community, and embrace technology to minimize the possibility of road accidents and ensure safe journeys for all., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts of interest., (Copyright: © 2024 Journal of Pharmacy and Bioallied Sciences.)

Background: Participatory rural appraisal (PRA) methods have been acknowledged as important tools to involve members of the community in the process of identification of their problems, the factors contributing to the development of these problems, and ways by which these problems can be resolved., Materials and Methods: A quasi-experimental study will be conducted in two stages among first professional phase medical students. In the first stage, these students will be trained on PRA methods by the trained teachers, while in the second stage, these students will implement PRA methods in the local community. The entire training process and its different components will be evaluated using validated study tools (semi-structured questionnaire), which will be administered using Google Forms. The statistical analysis will be performed using frequency and percentages, and a paired t -test will be used to compare the change in knowledge before and after training., Conclusion: In conclusion, first professional phase medical students must be trained in PRA methods and subsequently supervised to monitor their change in behavior. However, as the success of the entire program will depend on the quality of training imparted to medical students, the training program must be evaluated from the perspective of students, community, and teachers., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts of interest., (Copyright: © 2024 Journal of Pharmacy and Bioallied Sciences.)

Noncommunicable diseases are universal and are being reported across the world, with many diseases being gradually reported in early age groups. Physical activity has been encouraged and advocated by all medical practitioners to prevent, arrest, and delay the onset and development of complications associated with noncommunicable diseases. The concept of "Ten Thousand Steps" in a day is predominantly a goal that people aim to attain either by walking or indulging themselves in some form of moderate physical activity. Since the inception of this concept, many health and fitness experts and public health agencies have recommended the same to achieve and maintain good health. Though there are numerous health-related benefits, people might encounter a wide range of challenges preventing them from attaining the goals consistently. In conclusion, the target of meeting ten thousand steps a day is much more than mere four-digit numbers, as a wide range of benefits have been attributed to the same. Although there are some challenges, the presence of technology and devices can help people continue with their active lifestyle, with fun and active engagement., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts of interest., (Copyright: © 2024 Journal of Pharmacy and Bioallied Sciences.)

The emergence of shared decision-making (SDM) in the field of medical education represents a significant shift in the way how health care is being taught to medical students and practiced by healthcare professionals. The purpose of the current review is to explore the merits of SDM to students and patients, identify the prevailing challenges in its successful implementation, and suggest appropriate solutions to overcome them. An extensive search of all materials related to the topic was performed on the PubMed search engine, and a total of 20 articles were selected. The process of implementation of SDM in medical education can turn out to be extremely challenging due to a wide range of factors. In conclusion, training medical students in the domain of SDM is crucial to cultivate the skills and attitudes that are indispensable for future healthcare professionals. The need of the hour is to identify the prevailing challenges and address them by adopting a multifaceted approach., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts of interest., (Copyright: © 2024 Journal of Pharmacy and Bioallied Sciences.)

In the field of delivery of medical education, social accountability envisages the responsibility of medical and healthcare institutions to meet the health-related needs of the communities in the catchment areas. The medical colleges that have integrated social accountability in their curriculum work with a goal to produce not only knowledgeable and skilled medical graduates but also those who are committed to the well-being of the entire community. The process of implementation of social accountability in medical education can have its own share of challenges. There is an immense need to plan and implement potential solutions for each of the identified challenges to ensure maximum benefit to the students, teachers, and community at large. In conclusion, social accountability in medical education has been associated with multiple benefits to all the involved stakeholders. This calls for the need to identify the challenges that can play their part in the successful implementation in medical schools and employment of appropriate measures to overcome them and move thereby bringing about a decline in health disparity., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts of interest., (Copyright: © 2024 Journal of Pharmacy and Bioallied Sciences.)

Social accountability has been acknowledged as an important facet of medical education delivery as it envisages that healthcare professionals have the responsibility to be accountable for health-related community needs. The purpose of the current review is to identify the factors that determine the success of social accountability in medical education and explore different ways in which technology can aid in the implementation of social accountability initiatives in medical institutions. The successful implementation of socially accountable medical education depends on a broad gamut of factors, which can be associated with different stakeholders, including the role of technology in facilitating the implementation of the same. Owing to the fact that technology has reached every aspect of human life, it is our responsibility to explore its scope in promoting the attainment of competencies pertaining to social accountability among medical students. In conclusion, social accountability in medical education has multiple benefits and has emerged as the need of the hour. The integration of technology into socially accountable medical education plays a defining role in improving the effectiveness of educational activities, facilitating better community and student engagement, and eventually contributing to the production of socially responsible healthcare professionals., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts of interest., (Copyright: © 2024 Journal of Pharmacy and Bioallied Sciences.)

A teacher in a medical college is like a compass who has the responsibility and the power to guide budding medical students in their educational journey to become effective and efficient members of the healthcare team. The purpose of the current review is to justify the significance of curriculum evaluation, explore the role of teacher in the capacity of curriculum evaluator, enlist various methods and tools to perform curriculum evaluation, and identify the challenges and suggest potential solutions to overcome them. An extensive search of all materials related to the topic was carried out on the PubMed and Google Scholar search engines and a total of 16 articles were selected based upon their suitability with the current review objectives and analyzed. Keywords used in the search include curriculum evaluation in the title alone only (viz. curriculum [ti] AND medical [ti]; curriculum evaluation [ti] AND methods [ti]; curriculum evaluation [ti] AND approaches [ti]; curriculum evaluation [ti]). A number of strategies can be employed to perform the evaluation of the medical curriculum, ranging from obtaining feedback from medical students at the end of each professional phase to assessing content, teaching methods, assessment, and attainment of learning outcomes. The process of evaluation of medical curriculum by teachers is a complex and challenging one and needs careful planning and execution of different aspects. These identified challenges clearly provide evidence that teachers have to be given the necessary training, resources, and institutional support to enable them to conduct effective medical curriculum evaluation. In conclusion, teachers in their capacity as curriculum evaluators remain the most important stakeholder in ensuring continuous improvement in the quality of education delivered to students. Owing to their in-depth awareness of classroom dynamics, the learning process, and the awareness about unique needs of students, their involvement in curriculum evaluation can ensure alignment between the delivered curriculum and the needs of the society., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts of interest., (Copyright: © 2024 Journal of Pharmacy and Bioallied Sciences.)

Social media have become an integral part of human life, because the manner in which we communicate, share information, and network with the external world is changing significantly. The purpose of the current review is to explore the role of social media in transforming medical education, identify the merits and the potential concerns, and propose effective strategies to overcome the identified challenges. Social media have significant potential in strengthening the delivery of medical education and meeting the scenarios emerging out of changing dynamics. The most important aspect of social media is that they have global reach and wide accessibility, and promotes active engagement of students. Similar to any other teaching-learning method, even the use of social media has its own limitations-cum-concerns. We must come out with potential solutions to each one of these problems so that overall acceptance and utilization of social media applications can be optimized. In conclusion, social media in medical education have immense potential to revolutionize learning and provide a platform for collaborative learning and networking. The need of the hour is to do systematic planning, train stakeholders, and establish guidelines for promoting effective engagement while using social media, and thereby keeping pace with the rapidly evolving healthcare landscape., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts of interest., (Copyright: © 2024 Journal of Pharmacy and Bioallied Sciences.)

In the field of healthcare delivery, shared decision making (SDM) refers to a collaborative process, wherein both patients and the healthcare professionals mutually work to make informed and consensus decisions with reference to the kind of medical care that will be administered to patients. The purpose of the current review is to explore SDM in health care, ascertain the role of medical education, and identify the ways to train and assess undergraduate medical students in competencies pertaining to SDM. An extensive search of all materials related to the topic was carried out on the PubMed and Google Scholar search engines and a total of 29 articles were selected based on their suitability with the current review objectives and analyzed. Keywords used in the search include learning resources in the title alone only (viz. shared decision making [ti] AND patient [ti]; shared decision making [ti] AND medical education [ti]; shared decision making [ti] AND assessment [ti]; shared decision making [ti] AND self-assessment [ti]; shared decision making [ti]; shared decision making [ti]). In the domain of medical education, the promotion of SDM essentially will require a multipronged approach to enable its integration into the medical curriculum. However, we must remember that mere teaching-learning methods would not improve it unless they are supplemented with assessment methods, otherwise, we will fail to deliver sustained results. In conclusion, SDM in medical education and healthcare industry represents a transformative shift from the traditional paradigm to a patient-centered approach that empowers both patients and healthcare providers, including budding medical students. The need of the hour is to advocate and encourage structured integration of SDM in the medical curriculum and support the same with periodic assessments., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts of interest., (Copyright: © 2024 Journal of Pharmacy and Bioallied Sciences.)

Exposure to the local community is crucial and pivotal to deliver contextual learning to medical students and thereby aid in the process of attaining subject-specific competencies. In the field of medical education, community health immersion refers to a set of systematic and immersive educational experiences for medical students to expose them to sociocultural and health-related attributes of the general population. Community health immersion has been linked with multiple merits that are crucial in the making of a competent medical graduate, who is well equipped to deliver patient-centered care. Even though there are multiple benefits to community health immersion nevertheless, its implementation in the community might vary based on institutional support and local community-related factors. There is an immense need to overcome these challenges to ensure optimal benefit, and this will essentially require the adoption of a multipronged approach with the help of all the concerned stakeholders., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts of interest., (Copyright: © 2024 Journal of Pharmacy and Bioallied Sciences.)

The conventional mode of medical education is delivered using didactic lectures, wherein teachers disseminate the desired information to a large number of students in a structured manner. The purpose of the current review is to explore the scope and need of escape rooms in medical education and identify the potential considerations to be acknowledged while designing an escape room in a medical college for training undergraduate medical students. Escape rooms in principle refer to the learning environments that are interactive and immersive, in the sense that students who are part of these rooms are posed with a puzzle or a challenge or a task that must be solved by them within a defined period of timeframe to eventually escape from the room, which is the ultimate goal of such sessions. The success of escape rooms is determined depending by the way it has been designed, in terms of their ability to engage the involved participants and promote collaboration. In conclusion, the employment of escape rooms in medical education is an innovative teaching-learning method to overcome the limitations of conventional strategies. Acknowledging the merits of escape rooms in the development of critical thinking and teamwork skills, it is the need of the hour that every medical institution must explore the possibility and introduce it within their settings to ensure experiential and long-term learning among medical students., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts of interest., (Copyright: © 2024 Journal of Pharmacy and Bioallied Sciences.)

Value-based medical education is essential for the provision of quality-assured patient-centered healthcare services. The purpose of the current review is to explore the need for the adoption of a value-based approach in medical curriculum, identify the merits, devise a stepwise plan for the implementation of a value-based curriculum, and identify the potential concerns and the strategies to overcome them. The implementation of a value-based approach in medical curricula requires a systematic and stepwise approach to ensure the attainment of maximum benefits. However, this implementation can be accompanied by multiple challenges, and we will require the active involvement of medical educators and college administrators to overcome them. The delivery of value-based medical education is expected to prepare the future cohort of healthcare professionals to deliver patient-centered care. This calls for the need to adopt a multipronged approach to ensure that this value-driven teaching is integrated into the existing model of delivery of medical education, as it will significantly improve patient outcomes and well-being., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts of interest., (Copyright: © 2024 Journal of Pharmacy and Bioallied Sciences.)

In the field of medical education, mentoring is a form of dynamic relationship that is crucial to facilitating the learning process among medical students and helping them in their professional development. The utility of a portfolio in mentoring is not a mere collection of work samples, rather it is a dynamic tool to ensure the professional and personal growth of medical students, with the help of reflective insights. Portfolio can be used to set goals and track the progress of students over a period of time. Even though mentoring through portfolio has been linked with multiple benefits, there are multiple challenges that must be taken into consideration to enhance the overall utility. In conclusion, mentoring carried out through a portfolio has immense potential to facilitate learning and encourage professional growth. However, considering the presence of multiple challenges, there is an immense need to establish a structured framework for portfolio mentoring and support the same with training and technical support., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts of interest., (Copyright: © 2024 Journal of Pharmacy and Bioallied Sciences.)

Medical educators have adopted a number of teaching-learning methodologies to make their sessions interactive considering the need for active engagement of students to strengthen the process of learning. One among them is the use of serious games, wherein digital applications are used to enable the attainment of the intended learning objectives. A wide range of serious games can be designed to target different areas in healthcare training, which cumulatively provide a holistic and engaging approach for students to acquire knowledge and develop skills. Owing to the extensive areas and domains in medical education wherein we can use serious games, the benefits attributed to them are immense. The successful introduction of serious games into the medical curriculum depends on several factors and we must adopt a systematic approach to optimize the benefits. In conclusion, the introduction of serious games into medical education can benefit medical students by helping them master multiple skills required for successful clinical practice. Acknowledging the changing landscapes in medical education, there is an immense need that teachers and administrators to explore the possibility of integrating these games into medical schools., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts of interest., (Copyright: © 2024 Journal of Pharmacy and Bioallied Sciences.)

In the field of health care, cultural competency refers to the ability of healthcare professionals to acknowledge, respect, and accordingly respond to the varied needs, beliefs, values, and practices followed by persons and the communities they serve. The purpose of the current review is to explore the role of cultural factors and trauma experience, and identify the strategies that can be employed to train and assess medical students in cultural competency pertaining to trauma patients. An extensive search of all materials related to the topic was carried out on the PubMed and Google Scholar search engines and a total of 21 articles were selected based on their suitability with the current review objectives. Cultural factors play a defining role in determining the experiences of trauma patients, and how these patients and family members perceive, cope, and recover from such traumatic events. To meet the diverse needs of the community, the medical curriculum has to be flexible and must include the component of cultural competency. Like any other domain, medical educators must plan for the assessment of cultural competencies while delivering trauma education, as it will provide insights into the readiness of the students to deliver culturally sensitive and effective care to trauma patients. In conclusion, the inclusion of cultural competency training within trauma care in the medical curriculum carries immense utility as it can help healthcare professionals to effectively communicate and respond to the varied needs of trauma patients, regardless of their cultural backgrounds. This calls for the adoption of a combination of teaching-learning methods and assessment methods by medical educators so that medical students can be empowered to deliver culturally sensitive medical care to trauma patients., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts of interest., (Copyright: © 2024 Journal of Pharmacy and Bioallied Sciences.)

Online case-based learning (CBL) is a pedagogical approach that employs the use of digital platforms and virtual environments to discuss clinical cases with undergraduate medical students. The purpose of the current review is to explore the scope and merits of online case-based learning, development of a plan for designing and implementing online CBL sessions in a medical college for undergraduate medical students. This happens to be an innovative approach as students get an opportunity to discuss and analyze clinical cases by practically applying their theoretical knowledge to clinical practice. Like any teaching-learning method, the effectiveness of online CBL sessions also depends on the efforts taken by educators in the planning stage. As these sessions will be conducted online, the most important consideration is to ensure that students have access to the required technology. As we all know, assessment drives learning, there is a definite need to supplement teaching-learning activities in online CBL sessions with suitable formative assessments. In conclusion, online CBL is an effective pedagogical approach to promote discussion on interesting clinical cases using flexible online platforms. Considering the merits of the method and the fact that technology has become an integral part of medical education delivery, every medical institute must explore its infrastructure to systematically introduce online CBL within the medical curriculum., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts of interest., (Copyright: © 2024 Journal of Pharmacy and Bioallied Sciences.)

Competing Interests: There are no conflicts of interest.

Competing Interests: Nothing to declare.

Background: Professionalism has been recognized as an important competency of a doctor by various regulatory bodies., Objectives: The purpose of the study was to explore the perceptions of medical undergraduate students and to assess their attitude on professionalism., Materials and Methods: It was a qualitative study in which four focus group discussions were conducted, one for each year of course., Results: A total of seven themes emerged after the qualitative analysis of the data, namely qualities of a good doctor, need of teaching professionalism, ways of learning professionalism by medical students, ways of teaching professionalism, assessment of professionalism, factors promoting professionalism, and factors hindering professionalism. The students perceived that a good doctor should be committed to excellence, responsive and accountable to patients, profession and community, selfless, healthy, good communicator, ethical and law abiding, practice integrity, and social justice. The students preferred to learn professionalism by role modeling by faculties and case-based scenario discussions., Conclusion: Medical undergraduate students should be briefed about the need and importance of professionalism through small-group discussions involving narratives, case scenarios, and role modeling by faculty. Professionalism of both students and faculties should be assessed and appropriate action taken., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts of interest., (Copyright: © 2020 Indian Journal of Community Medicine.)

Background: Tobacco consumption is a public health problem in Tamil Nadu., Objectives: The current study was done to estimate the prevalence of tobacco consumption among rural women and to identify the sociodemographic characteristics with high prevalence of tobacco consumption., Materials and Methods: It was a community-based cross-sectional descriptive study conducted among women ≥18 years of age. Mixed methods were employed to obtain the comprehensive picture about the substance use among women. Multistage random sampling method was used to interview 210 women using a semi-structured and pretested schedule. This was followed by key informant interviews, in which nine women were interviewed. Frequency distributions and Chi-square test were employed to study the association. In addition, manual content analysis was done to identify the reasons for the initiation of tobacco consumption and the measures to curb the practice., Results: The prevalence of tobacco consumption among the women was estimated as 15.2%. Women in the lower socioeconomic status group showed a higher prevalence of tobacco consumption than the middle and high socioeconomic status group. All 32 (100%) women were consuming tobacco products in the smokeless forms. Further, 28 (87.5%) women were not willing to quit tobacco consumption., Conclusion: The prevalence of tobacco consumption among the women was estimated to be above expectation of the national figures. Lower socioeconomic class and poor educational status were found to be major determinants for tobacco consumption among rural women., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts of interest., (Copyright: © 2020 Indian Journal of Community Medicine.)

Competing Interests: There are no conflicts of interest.

Background: The healthcare needs of the general population are on the rise and to meet these demands, the healthcare professionals, especially doctors have to acquire a large number of skills. In the Indian settings, as of now, conventional system of education is being followed in medical colleges and this is despite the fact that it has many flaws associated with it., Aims and Objectives: The objective of the article is to explore the utility and the need of Competency Based Medical Education (CBME) in Indian settings., Materials and Methods: It is a brief review of pertaining to the transition of delivery of medical education in India and is well-supported by the studies from different nations., Results: CBME is a thoughtful approach to develop physicians in their future practice and encourages better accountability and flexibility. However, if so many things are good with CBME, then the question arises why it has not been implemented yet across all the medical colleges in India? This is because of the various challenges which have been identified in the planning and implementation phase of the program., Conclusion: In conclusion, CBME remains the ultimate solution for the problems persisting in the conventional system of medical education. However, a systemic plan and better involvement of the stakeholders in the preparedness phase will significantly enhance the chances of the success of the program., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts of interest.

Competing Interests: Nothing to declare.

Competing Interests: There are no conflicts of interest.

Competing Interests: There are no conflicts of interest.

Competing Interests: There are no conflicts of interest.

The aim of the current review is to assess the magnitude of the breast cancer, and to explore the contribution of different dietary constituents in both the causation and the prevention of the disease. An exhaustive search for all materials related to the topic was made in different search engines, including PubMed, World Health Organization Web site, and Google scholar, for a duration of 30 days (June 2014). Relevant documents, systematic reviews, technical publication series, research articles, books, and guidelines focusing on the association of dietary factors and breast cancer, published in 1998-2014 were included in the review. Overall, 56 articles were selected based on the suitability with the current review objectives and analyzed. Although specific foods and nutrients have been attributed to the causation of breast cancer, the association of the same with overall diet is still inconsistent and unexplored. As the etiology of breast cancer is multifactorial and because contribution of each factor in the development of the disease is still unclear, early detection of the disease remains the crucial factor in breast cancer control. To conclude, a definite direct or inverse association has been observed in the development of breast cancer with the dietary nutrients, and thus there is an urgent need to develop cost-effective and readily available approach for the early detection and treatment of breast cancer, especially among women from low-resource settings.

In the modern era, most of the researchers want to share their work on a global platform so that they not only receive the due recognition but even their findings can be utilized by other professionals working in the same arena. In order to achieve this, the most common approach is to publish the research findings in an appropriate journal. However, the indicators which eventually determine the overall quality of a journal are variable and there is a great need that the contributors should understand the meaning and scope of each of these indicators. In conclusion, in order to establish the journal's quality, the researchers should obtain the information about the various indices from the journals' website or editorial board and then only submit their research work for publishing.