Filiz Abacıgil

The opinions of adults about the ban on cigarette sales to minors

BackgroundSelling of tobacco products to minors has been banned since 1996 by the tobacco control law in Turkey. However, it is also important for the public to support practices that prevent the access of tobacco products to minors. In addition, every individual has the responsibility of carrying out society based programs that restrict access to tobacco products especially to children and the youths. Social sensitivity is considered an important factor in the prevention of tobacco use. This study aims to learn about the opinions and attitudes of adults with regards to minors access to tobacco products.MethodsThe study was a descriptive study conducted in nine city centers in Turkey. The total number of participants reached was 3241. The questionnaire was developed by the research team and consisted of 22 questions concerning knowledge and behaviors of adults on restriction of tobacco sales to minors and their observations with regards tobacco sales to minors. Data was collected through face to face interview. Pearson chi-square test was used for the bivariate analysis whereas logistic regression was investigate the relationship between “the participant’s response against tobacco sales to minors” and the following explanatory variables; “age”, “educational status”, “income level”, “working status”, “minors access to cigarettes”, “smoking ratio in high school” and “sales of tobacco to minors”.ResultsMore than half of the participants (60.5%) belonged to the age group 25–44 years, 61.3% graduated from high school or university. Most of the participants were smoker (39.2%) or ex-smoker (19.1%), and 41.7% of the participants was non-smoker. A greater proportion of the participants (76.2%) believed that smoking prevalence was greater than 40% among high school students. One in four (27.8%) adults did not know that tobacco control law bans sell of tobacco products to minors in Turkey. More than half of the participants (57.1%) ever witnessed tobacco sales to minors and 63.6% of them did not act when confronted with the event. Almost all (96.8%) of the respondents thought that access of minors to tobacco products was not difficult. The results of logistic regression of participant’s response against tobacco sales to minor and related factors for current smokers showed that respondents who believed smoking ratio in high school was 4–5 adolescent out of 10 (aOR: 1.59; 95% CI: 1.09–2.34) were more likely to give a warning or informing the police or other people as compared to respondents whose perception on the smoking ratio among high school students was 6–7 adolescents out of 10. The results of logistic regression of non-smokers’ response against tobacco sales to minor were who are from higher educational level, higher economic status, working status and who believed smoking ratio in high school was 4–5 adolescent out of 10 and 2–3 adolescent out of 10 were more likely to give a warning or informing the police or other people as compared to the others.ConclusionsAlthough laws prohibiting the sale of tobacco products to the under age group is very important with regards to accessibility of minors to tobacco products, most of the study participants believed that minors can still easily access tobacco products, and more than half of the participants did not act when confronted with the event. The education, information and monitoring program most especially as it concerns salesman, should be reviewed and strengthened to obey the rules on sales of tobacco products to minors. Education program should be carried out to increase the knowledge and awareness of the community for sale of tobacco to minors. Social sensitivity is important for the prevention of tobacco use and every individual have a responsibility in carrying out this society based program, most especially as it related to prevention of tobacco usage among children and youths.

General Health Status, Music Performance Anxiety, and Coping Methods of Musicians Working in Turkish State Symphony Orchestras: A Cross-Sectional Study

AIMS This study assessed the general health, music performance anxiety (MPA), and coping methods of musicians working in six state orchestras in Turkey. METHODS All musicians working in the state symphony orchestras (n=384) were invited to participate in the study. In face-to-face interviews, the authors administered a questionnaire, which consisted of five sections: sociodemographic information, history of musical performance, health status, general health questionnaire-12 (GHQ-12), and MPA scale. Mann-Whitney U-test, Students t-test, and Spearmans correlation test were used to analyze the questionnaire data. RESULTS The 220 musicians who participated included 121 (55%) males and 99 (45%) females, with a mean age of 42.4±11.3 yrs. For musculoskeletal symptoms, 87.6% reported at least one symptom with the most common being pain. For general health status, the GHQ-12 showed 64% of musicians were at low risk, 18.7% at moderate risk, and 17.3% at high risk in terms of mental health. The prevalence of MPA before or during performance was 81.8%, and 60% of musicians stated that performance anxiety negatively affected their performances. CONCLUSIONS Results indicate that musicians working in Turkish state symphony orchestras encounter numerous health problems (tinnitus, hearing loss, musculoskeletal symptoms, etc.) due to their profession. No specific health support is provided, especially education and health service provision.

Social and Psychiatric Results of Migration among Women in a Western City in Turkey

Meandros Med Dent J Ad dress for Cor res pon den ce/Ya zış ma Ad re si: Ferhat Yıldız MD, Adnan Menderes University Faculty of Medicine, Department of Public Health, Aydın, Turkey Phone: +90 532 482 50 15 E-mail: ferhat.yildiz@adu.edu.tr Received/Geliş Ta rihi : 07.07.2017 Accepted/Ka bul Ta ri hi : 22.12.2017 Anah tar Ke li me ler Göç, sığınmacılar, kadın sağlığı, akıl sağlığı

Validity and reliability of the Turkish version of the European Health Literacy Survey Questionnaire

Health literacy is a public health priority which refers to individuals knowledge, motivation and competence to access, understand, appraise and apply health information to prevent disease and promote health in daily life. This study aimed to adapt European Health Literacy Survey Questionnaire (HLS-EU-Q47) into Turkish and to investigate its psychometric properties. The questionnaire was translated into Turkish by using both group translation and expert opinion methods. Forward translation-back translation method was used for language validity and the final Turkish version (HLS-TR) was formed. HLS-EU-Q47 and Health Awareness Scale (HAS) were administered to 505 respondents. The scale reliability was examined using Crohnbachs alpha coefficient and the construct validity was assessed by principal axis factoring procedure. The convergent validity was obtained by Pearson correlation coefficients between HLS-TR and HAS scores and discriminant validity was examined comparing the scores of participants who were stratified according to ages, educational status, gender, general health status and social status. Cronbachs alpha coefficient for the whole scale was 0.95. Principal axis factoring extracted nine factors which eigenvalues were >1 and explained 50.01% of total variance. Factor matrix displayed that all items gave greater load in factor 1, showing that health literacy measured with one factor. Positive and significant correlation was found between HLS-TR and HAS. Significant relations were found between HLS-TR scores and selected determinants of health. This study revealed that the HLS-TR was a valid and reliable measuring instrument with appropriate psychometric characteristics.

ORAL HEALTH STATUS AND ORAL HEALTH RELATED QUALITY OF LİFE AMONG ADOLESCENT WORKERS

Background and aim Oral health status and oral health related quality of life (OHRQoL) of working adolescents has been very little reported in literature. Therefore, this study aimed to determine oral health status and OHRQoL in a group of adolescent workers. Methods This cross-sectional study was conducted in an apprentice training center in western Turkey between December 2016 and January 2017. The study group population was 585, and the sample size was 514 students between 14 and 18 years old. The Decayed, Missing, and Filled Teeth (DMFT) Index, the Turkish version of the Oral Health Impact Profile-14 (OHIP-14), and a form requesting the socio-demographic information of the students were used as data collection tools. Permissions were obtained from the relevant school, parents, students, and ethical committee. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, the Student’s t-test, and the Pearson correlation coefficient. Results The results showed significant relationships between the tooth brushing frequency, dental visit frequency, dental trauma history, smoking, and the OHIP-14 subdomains (p < 0.05). Conclusion Poor oral health and a lack of good oral health attitudes may have negative impact on the oral health related quality of life (OHRQoL) of working adolescents. Dental health education programs in collaboration with schools and dental health services may be beneficial for promoting oral health and improving the OHRQoL of working adolescents.

Knowledge of Hepatitis B Virus Infection and Infection Control Practices Among Faculty of Dentistry Workers, in Aydın -

INTRODUCTION AND AIM: Hepatitis B infection which is a life-threatening infection, is a major global health problem. Occupational exposure may be an important route of transmission. The aim of this study was to evaluate Knowledge of Hepatitis B Virus Infection and infection control practices among Faculty of Dentistry Staff, in Aydin province. MATERIAL METHODS: In this cross-sectional study, hepatitis B vaccination status of the participants; knowledge levels, history of work accidents, general infection control practices were questioned. Knowledge levels were assessed with 63 propositions, each correct answer calculated as 1 point to calculate total knowledge score and then subgroup scores such as general information, information level scores for transmission routes, prevention approaches and risk groups, were calculated. RESULTS: 54.4 % of participants told that they had received education about HBV infection, 67.5% told they had been vaccinated with Hepatitis B vaccine. 46.3% of those who stated that they had been vaccinated told that they checked antibody levels after vaccination. 27.8 % of participants stated that they had periodic inspection checks and 18.8 % stated that they had an occupational accident in terms of infection risk in the previous year. The mean total knowledge score over 63 propositions was 42.3±13.3. Total knowledge score were found lower in participants who were younger or dental students, who did not receive education about general infection control precautions and hepatitis B infection, who did not vaccinated with HBV, who did not have a history of contact with HBV-infected patients, who did not had an occupational accident in the previous year and who had less than a year of occupational experience. CONCLUSION: In conclusion oral and dental health workers’ knowledge about hepatitis B infection and infection control practices were not at desired level. It is important to give educational activities regarding causes of infections and standard infection control precautions as earlier as possible in order to prevent horizontal transmission between patients and health workers.