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Background/aim: Cancer has become an important public health challenge all around the world. Though the demographic and clinical features of cancer patients are well documented in Turkey, the establishment of social support networks has been somewhat neglected. The aim of the study was to assess cancer patients' perceived social support and quality of life characteristics. Materials and methods: The Multidimensional Perceived Social Support Scale, European Organization of Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire, and Turkish version of the EUROHIS measurements were obtained from the study group. Associations between the scores and sociodemographic variables of the patients were evaluated. Determination of the best predictors that affect social support perception scores was performed by multiple linear regression analysis. Results: A total of 364 patients (217 females, 147 males) were analyzed. Regarding the mean scores of perceived social support, statistically significant differences were found between education, perceived economic status, and ECOG groups (P < 0.001). Conclusion: The best predictors that have an effect on perceived social support need to be studied in depth with further research.

Background/aim: The aims of this study were to evaluate measles incidence and the effect of elimination strategy interventions on the disease from 1960 to 2014 in Turkey. The administration of measles vaccine started in the rural regions in 1970; it was carried out as a campaign along with the National Vaccine Campaign in 1985, and it has been employed as combined measles, mumps, and rubella under the scope of the Measles Elimination Program (MEP) since 2006 in Turkey. While a dramatic decrease in the reporting of measles was observed between 2000 and 2010, the number of the cases has increased since 2011. Materials and methods: The time series of measles incidence was evaluated for possible structural changes with regression models using dummy variables, autocorrelated with error terms. Results: The incidence of measles showed a statistically significant decline between 1985 and 1988 (P = 0.0072) and between 2005 and 2011 (P < 0.0001). However, a statistically significant increase in incidence was noted after 2013 (P = 0.0008). Conclusion: Over the last 54 years, the pattern of measles cases demonstrated a significant decline in incidence. However, the increase in incidence in 2013 should be carefully analyzed and interpreted in terms of the MEP.

Bodur, Said (Balikesir Author), Violence in the workplace is an increasing occupational health concern worldwide. Health care workers are at high risk of assault. To develop, monitor, and manage prevention policies, baseline data should be available. This cross-sectional study was designed to determine the current extent of workplace violence nationwide in Turkey. The study population of 12.944 health care workers was a stratified sample of all health care workers (612,639) in the country. A probabilistic sampling was made on the basis of the “multistage stratified random cluster sampling method.” This study was conducted by a structured questionnaire in a face-to-face interview. The questionnaire items were adapted and translated into Turkish based on questionnaires of International Labor Organization, International Council of Nurses, World Health Organization, and Public Services International. The percentage of health care workers who experienced workplace violence in Turkey in the previous 12 months was 44.7%. The types of violence included physical 6.8%, verbal 43.2%, mobbing (bullying) 2.4%, and sexual harassment 1%. Multivariate analysis showed that level of health care system, type of institution, gender, occupation, age, working hours, and shift work were independent risk factors for experiencing workplace violence (p

Objectives: Unintentional injuries are one of the leading causes of death, hospitalization and disability across the world. Detailed work on child injury in low-income and middle-income countries began more recently and is now indicating priorities for prevention. This study aims to draw attention to the subject with the assessment of the injuries sustained by the study group. Methodology: Data of the descriptive study was collected at the Emergency Department’s trauma section of a Training and Research Hospital, located in Ankara during the period of October-November 2010. Children visiting the hospital due to an injury under the age of 18 were included to the study group by assent of the child and consent of the parents. Results: Of the study group 75.3% were boys, 35.31% were 11-15 year of age. The most frequent cause of the injuries were falls among boys (48.3%), girls (50.0%) and, 11-15 years of age (32.8%). Most injured organs (63.6%) were extremities and most frequent damage caused by the injury was fracture (29.5%). Almost half of the injuries (44.0%) occurred in and around the school. Conclusion: Development and implementation of systematic surveillance is necessary to identify the epidemiologic characteristics of childhood injuries at national level. Definition of the risk factors and protective factors is a priority of countries to prevent such injuries.

Affecting 106 countries, malaria is a major global burden. Though intensive antimalaria efforts in Turkey have been successful in bringing down the number of cases, historically malaria was a serious public health concern.This paper reviews the prevalence rates of malaria in Turkey over the last 85 years (1925-2010). The time series of malaria prevalence was evaluated for possible structural changes by using Chow breakpoint tests and regression models using dummy variables, with autocorrelated errors and generalized autoregressive conditional heteroscedasticity models to assess the impact of volatility in prevalence.Seventy-eight cases of malaria were diagnosed in Turkey in 2010. Malaria prevalence rates in the country show a statistically significant volatility, which underlines the fragility of efforts to control the disease.It is necessary to analyse the national malaria control programme to evaluate to what extent its programmatic capacity, financial resources, and political commitment are sufficient to avoid eroding the gains that have already been made and, ultimately, eradicate malaria. It is essential that there should be no lessening in the long-standing efforts to reduce malaria.

This study aimed to determine the prevalence of and factors contributing to musculoskeletal system complaints (MSC) in office workers of a vehicle production factory and absenteeism due to these complaints. A total of 86.2% (n = 333) of the workers completed the survey. Of the workers, 73 (21.9%) were women, and 260 (78.1%) were men, and the mean age was 36.9 ± 8.75 years. The majority of the personnel had more than one symptom with a prevalence of 80.8%. The most frequently observed discomfort was tension and pain in the back muscles (58.6%) and in the neck muscles (58.3%), followed by low back pain (41%) and shoulder pain (30.3%). Pain in the shoulders, neck, and the back and pain and numbness in the fingers were statistically significantly more prevalent in employees who spent more than 5 hours per day performing desk work. Furthermore, all of the complaints, excluding pain in the elbows and knees, were statistically significantly more common in the women. When each complaint and the effects of contributing risk factors were analyzed by logistic regression analysis, pain in the shoulders, neck, and back; pain that spread to the arms; and pain in the fingers were correlated with longer work hours and the female gender (p < 0.05). The number of employees who had used sick leave within the past year due to MSCs was 11.7%. In conclusion, duration of work hours, frequency of breaks, and gender were determined as the most important risk factors in computer users regarding MSCs. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Summary Turkey is among the ten countries constituting almost half of the global traffic accident deaths. As regard to their frequencies, health and economic outcomes, traffic accidents must have a priority in public health agenda. From the epidemiological perspective, within the vehicle, person and the environment components; person (driver, occupant, pedestrian) (99.12 %) is the most responsible component for the traffic accidents. According to the accident statistics, drivers have the biggest defect share with a 95 % ratio. Main components of the driver defect are; speed, alcohol and substance use, sleep and fatigue, not using safety belt, child car seat and helmet. Related legislation has been developed in Turkey but is not applied as it should be.The United Nations has developed a Global Plan for the Decade of Action for Road Safety 2011-2020 to decrease the traffic accidents and burden of disease all over the world and especially in the low and middle-income countries. The objective of this article is to draw attention to the problem of road safety and traffic accidents in Turkey.

A survey in the year 2007 among medical students of Ankara University Medical School to assess the smoking rates showed that 25.1 % of them were smoking. Moreover, the smoking rate was 35 % at sixth grade students and 60 % of the smokers specified that they started smoking at medical school. This report provides a successful approach to decrease smoking among medical students by measures against starting smoking. An “Antismoking Group” composed of voluntary academic staff, nurses, students, psychologists, and a social worker of the medical school was established to engage in lowering the smoking rate and eliminating it eventually among our students. Several methods including regular monthly meetings, annual “Smoking or Health” symposiums, and lectures to first, second, and third grade students to increase their awareness related to harms of smoking and their role in the fight against smoking were carried out. Our surveys in the years 2009 (641 students) and 2012 (975 students) showed that total smoking rates dropped to 15.0 and 11.0 %, respectively (p < 0.0002). Moreover, the smoking rate for the sixth grade students dropped from 35.0 % in 2007 to 21.8 and 8.8 % in the years 2009 and 2012, respectively (p < 0.0002). In 2012, the smoking rates of first year and sixth year students were 7.8 and 9.0 %, respectively. These close rates of smoking at the first and last years of medical school training and the significant drop in smoking rates in 5 years confirm that our group pursued a realistic and successful strategy against smoking.

WOS: 000313614900003 PubMed: 23298420 The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence of symptoms of work-related musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) and to determine the risk factors among ammunition factory workers in Turkey. This cross-sectional study was performed on 955 ammunition factory workers. Potential risk factors were investigated with a questionnaire and multivariate logistic regression analysis was performed. During the previous year, 39.3% of ammunition workers experienced symptoms of work-related MSDs. Logistic regression analysis showed smoking (odds ratio [OR] = 1.372), chronic diseases (OR = 1.795), body mass index (BMI; overweight) (OR = 1.631), working year (OR = 1.509), cold temperature (OR = 1.838), and work load (OR = 2.210) were significant independent risk factors for the development of symptoms of MSDs. It was found that both work-related conditions and personal and environmental factors are important for the development of occupational MSDs.

WOS: 000265321200007, PubMed ID: 19328549, Objectives: The University of Iowa Child Protection Program collaborated with Turkish professionals to develop a training program on child abuse and neglect during 2002-2006 with the goals of increasing professional awareness and number of multidisciplinary teams (MDT), regional collaborations, and assessed cases. This paper summarizes the 5-year outcome. Methods: A team of instructors evaluated needs and held training activities in Turkey annually, and provided consultation when needed. Descriptive analysis was done via Excel and SPSS software. Results: Eighteen training activities were held with 3,570 attendees. Over the study period, the number of MDTs increased from 4 to 14. The MDTs got involved in organizing training activities in their institutions and communities. The number of medical curriculum lectures taught by MDTs to medical students/residents, conferences organized by the MDTs, and lectures to non-medical professional audiences increased significantly (R-2 = 91.4%, 83.8%, and 69.2%, respectively). The number of abuse cases assessed by the MDTs increased by five times compared to pre-training period. Conclusions: A culturally competent training program had a positive impact on professional attitudes and behaviors toward recognition and management of child abuse and neglect in Turkey. The need to partner with policy makers to revise current law in favor of a greater human services orientation became clear. Practice implications: Pioneers in developing countries may benefit from collaborating with culturally competent instructors from countries with more developed child protection systems to develop training programs so that professional development can improve recognition and management of child abuse and neglect. Published by Elsevier Ltd.