Journal of Human, Environment, and Health Promotion

60-64

Authors: Tohid Soltani, Ali Assadi *, Foad Kazemi, Mohammad Reza Mehrasbi

Background: The elimination of methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE) from water resources remains a main environmental concern. In the present study, photo-assissted process for removal of MTBE was examined in the solutions containing C-N-TiO2 nanoparticles under UV irradiation in the batch mode. Methods: The effects of operational factors such as pH, initial catalyst concentration, and initial MTBE concentration on MTBE removal was investigated. Results: The optimum degradation condition for MTBE was obtained at pH 7, catalyst load of 100 mg/L, air flow rate = 0.1 L/min and C0 = 5 mg/L with 73 percent degradation of MTBE at 60 min. In addition, Analytical profiles on MTBE removal were based on the first-order kinetics model. However, the removal rate decreased by increasing initial concentration of MTBE. Conclusion: The findings showed that UV/C-N-TiO2 system is an efficient method for MTBE degradation from aqueous solution.

70-75

Authors: Queen Ozioma Lawrence * , Chinenye Okosa

Background: This study was conducted to investigate the prevalence and risk factors of Trichomonas vaginalis infections among prison inmates in Umuahia, Abia State. Methods: Approximately 350 inmates aged 18 to 61 participated in the study. A total number of 70 high vaginal swabs of female participants and 350 urine samples from both male and females were examined using direct wet mount methods. Questionnaire was used to obtain socio-demographic and behavioral factors of the participants. Results: The results showed that, the overall prevalence of T. vaginalis infections was 43.4%. .The result of Chi-square analysis showed a significant difference (P < 0.05) in the prevalence of T. vaginalis infection among the men (33.6%) and women (82.8%). Furthermore, the prevalence of T. vaginalis was 11.0% and 22.8%, respectively, in individuals between 31-40 years. No infection was noted among men between 18-20 years of age. Moreover, examination of urine and vaginal swabs combinations revealed high infection in women. Questionnaire analysis indicated no significant relationship between multiple sexual partners and unprotected sex with T. vaginalis infection (P> 0.05). It was also found that, inmates showed symptoms, such as light burning after urination and itching/rashes at the private part while some infected cases were asymptomatic. Conclusion: The findings highlight the need for adequate and improved health care for prison inmates as well as their examination and treatment before release.

83-89

Authors: Simona Rodat *

Background: The internet has become one of the most common informative media for health-related issues. Regarding older people, more research is needed to collect in-depth data on Internet use for health information. The present study aimed to provide an overview on health-related internet use by seniors in Germany. Methods: This descriptive-analytical qualitative study was conducted on 10 German seniors aged 65-83 years. In order to obtain the required information, in-depth semi-structured interview was carried out between March-June 2017. The target population were recruited using snowball sampling strategy. The transcribed interviews were analysed using qualitative content analysis. Results: The findings of the study revealed that seniors’ activity on the Internet include a variety of medical interests. Most of the interviewees access specific medical websites directly, without using search engines. Although about half of the respondents seemed to become online health information overload, most of them made claims about the ability to evaluate its reliability. Conclusions: For most of the interviewees the health-related information on the Internet provides a basis of knowledge. Despite the fact that the seniors consider online information useful to make health-related decisions, most of them prefer to consult at least one doctor, still adhering to the physician-centred care model.

96-100

Authors: Fahimeh Doostnigjeh , Seyed Javad Ghazi Mirsaeid * , Nahid Ramezanghorbani , Soroush Eshghi , Mehrnaz Hajiabedin Rangraz

Background: Staff awareness of fire safety immensely minimize the damage of the disaster. The purpose of this study was to determine the level of awareness and preparedness of fire emergency among the libraries staff of Tehran Universities of Medical Sciences in 2019. Methods: In this survey study, the statistical population of the study consisted of 138 staff working in the libraries of Tehran Universities of Medical Sciences. A researcher-made questionnaire with closed questions was used to collect the required data. Using Cronbach's alpha formula, the reliability of the questionnaire was estimated to be 0.82. The validity of the questionnaire was also confirmed by the statistical experts. SPSS (version 23) was used to analyze the collected data. Results: Results obtained from the analyses of the questionnaire showed that majority of the respondents were moderately aware of fire safety rules in libraries (3.1). In addition, the analysis of variance (P = 0.41) revealed no statistically significant difference among the libraries staff in terms of awareness and preparedness level towards fire. Conclusion: Lack of library staff training in fire safety rules, make them ill-prepared during the disaster. Therefore, in order to make the staff alert, disaster preparedness planning is highly needed which requires more attention of the relevant officials.