Health and Development Journal
Volume:10 Issue: 2, Spring 2021

The quality of life and quality of work-life are among the most remarkable determinants affecting the performance of employees and nurses particularly in health service organizations. These factors can interact with each other. This study aimed to determine the relation between the quality of life and the quality of work-life among nurses.
This descriptive-analytic study was conducted using a cross-sectional design in two neuropsychiatric hospitals in Shiraz in 2019. The research population included nurses working in these hospitals. The participants were 123 nurses who were selected via random sampling. The data in this study were collected through Walton’s Quality of Work-Life Questionnaire and the World Health Organization Quality-of-Life Scale (WHOQOL-BREF). The collected data were analyzed using independent samples t-test, Pearson correlation coefficient, and multivariate linear regression analysis in SPSS23 software.
The mean of quality of life was 89.22 ± 16.55 (out of 120) and the mean of the quality of work-life was 100.71 ± 24.05 (out of 170). There was a positive and significant correlation between the nurses’ quality of life and their quality of work-life (P<0.001). Physical health (P<0.001), living environment (P= 0.007), and social relationships (P=0.02) were identified as predictors of the quality of work-life. The results of the study also showed a significant relation between the quality of life and marital status (P=0.03).
There was a positive and significant correlation between the nurses’ quality of life and their quality of work-life, suggesting that strengthening or weakening one factor will be accompanied by improving or weakening the other. Accordingly, it is recommended that hospital officials take action to improve the quality of staff’s work-life and consequently their personal life.

Maternal obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) might lead to behavioral problems in children. Given the higher prevalence of eating and sleeping problems in children, the present study investigated the relation between maternal obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) with children’s eating problems and sleep disorders. This descriptive cross-sectional study was performed on 77 mothers with children aged 6 to 36 months in selected clinics in Kerman in fall 2018. The participants were selected using convenience sampling. The data were collected by the completion of three questionnaires: Morell’s Infant Sleep Questionnaire, the Maudsley Obsessive-Compulsive Inventory (MOCI), and the Child Eating Behavior Inventory (ORI-CEBI). The collected data were analyzed using SPSS software (version 20) through independent samples t-test and Pearson correlation. The mean of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) for mothers who reported sleep problems in their children was significantly higher than the OCD mean score for the mothers whose children did not have sleep disorders (P=0.01). Besides, the OCD mean score for the mothers of children with sleep problems diagnosed according to Richman’s criteria was higher than the OCD mean score for the mothers who did not report any sleep disorders in their children, but there was no significant difference between the two groups (P=0.09). The mean of the child’s eating problems was correlated with the mother’s mean OCD score (r=0.2), but this correlation was not statistically significant (P=0.20). The child’s eating problems had a positive significant relation with the child’s sleep problems. The mother’s perceptions, repetitive negative thoughts, and obsession about her child’s sleeping can probably increase the mother’s active palliative methods and consequently worsen the child’s sleep and eating problems. Therefore, preventive and therapeutic interventions need to be taken for mothers with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD).

Dentistry has been recognized as one of the most stressful occupations. Job stress and burnout are more common in dentists than in other people engaging in other occupations. This study aimed to investigate the relation between burnout and personality traits in dentists working in the southern cities of Kerman Province. This cross-sectional study was conducted on 42 dentists working in the southern cities of Kerman Province. The participants were selected through the census method. The data were collected via a demographic information questionnaire, the 22-item Maslach Burnout Inventory to measure emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and lack of personal accomplishment, and the 60-item NEO Personality Inventory (NEO-FFI) to assess neuroticism, extraversion, openness, agreeableness, and conscientiousness. The collected data were analyzed with SPSS software (version 21) using independent samples t-test, ANOVA, and linear regression analysis at a significance level of 0.05. The participants’ mean age, years of graduation, and years of working as a dentist were 41.05±9.45, 12.19±8.07, and 12.64±8.26 years, respectively. It was also shown that 90.5% of the dentists suffered from severe emotional exhaustion, 92.9% had severe depersonalization, and 28.6% had severe lack of personal accomplishment. Furthermore, the highest and lowest scores were related to conscientiousness and neuroticism as two personality traits. Burnout had a significant correlation with all subscales of personality traits except extraversion. The dentists working in the southern cities of Kerman Province reported high levels of burnout. Therefore, it is essential to prevent and treat burnout and its possible consequences among dentists.

The workforce is considered one of the most important factors of economic growth and development, and thus ensuring their health is very important. The learning process means saving labor costs and increasing productivity through experience. The experience of countries around the world has shown that with increasing scale, the average cost decreases due to economies of scale and learning, and this facilitates access to health services for people in the community at lower costs.
The methodology used in the present study was developed based on econometrics. To this end, a model was developed and estimated based on the theoretical literature and previous studies. Then, using inferential statistical techniques and the data from 187 countries extracted from the World Bank database, two concepts of economies of scale and learning were quantified.
The results indicated that, firstly, economies of scale have been achieved in the health sectors of the counties in question, but have not yet been completely exhausted while the learning process has been realized at a rate of 0.46. Second, in developed countries, the production coefficient is close to one and insignificant, indicating that all economies of scale have been exhausted. Besides, the learning coefficient is above the global average. Third, in developing countries, a negative and significant production coefficient and the average scale indicates a lack of complete exhaustion of economies of scale. Moreover, in these countries, the realized economies of learning outweigh the economies of scale.
Learning and economies of scale rates in developed and developing countries are different from each other, indicating the efficiency of both components of the cost advantage in reducing costs.

Health-promoting hospitals (HPH) do not only play the traditional role of diagnosis and treatment but also focus on preventive and health-promoting activities. The present study aimed to explore the challenges of establishing the health-promoting hospitals approach.

The present study was conducted using a qualitative design in 2018. The data in this study were collected using 16 semi-structured interviews conducted with health managers and experts in Kerman, Iran. The interviewees were selected through purposive snowball sampling. The interviews were first transcribed and analyzed using Braun and Clarke's 6-step thematic analysis framework. MAXQDA 10 software was used for data analysis.

The challenges of establishing health-promoting hospital standards were divided into 4 themes including legal and structural challenges, financial resources, human resources, and cultural challenges. The most recurring subthemes were the lack of general plans and policies and the lack of financial resources.

Challenges of establishing the HPH approach can be summarized in various areas related to the organization and policies, staff, and society. Therefore, is necessary to change the traditional approach to treatment-oriented policies at all levels. Besides, it is essential to focus on the empowerment and participation of all people involved in health-promoting policies and activities such as managers and officials, employees, and members of the community.

Good patient-physician relationship is a factor that can enhance the efficiency of medical services. This study aimed to investigate the patient-physician relationship in specialized outpatient clinics affiliated with Ahvaz University of Medical Sciences.
This descriptive-analytical cross-sectional study was performed on 275 patients who visited specialized outpatient clinics of Ahvaz University of Medical Sciences in 2019. The data in this study were collected using the Patient-Doctor Relationship Questionnaire (PDRQ-9). Data were analyzed using SPSS22 software with the Pearson correlation coefficient and independent samples t-test.
The patients’ satisfaction with their relationship with the physician was reported to be moderate (33.92±6.80 out of 45). The highest score (4.13±0.83 out of 5) was related to the item “I trust my doctor” and the lowest score (2.84±1.16 out of 5) was related to the item “I find my doctor easily accessible”. There was a significant and negative relation between the patients’ satisfaction with the relationship with the physician and wait time and a significant and positive relation with the duration of the visit. The mean visit and the mean wait time were 13.7±11.1 and 90±57.8 minutes, respectively. Besides, the patients’ satisfaction with communication with physicians had a significant relation with the type of clinic (P = 0.032).
To improve the patient-physician relationship, it is essential to take some management measures to reduce patients’ wait time, comply with standard visit time, improve environmental conditions, and empower physicians to enhance communication skills.

Women’s health is considered as one of the indicators of efficiency and success of the health system of countries, and promoting the health of this group requires the provision of quality services. Accordingly, the present study aimed to investigate the quality of health services provided to women after the implementation of the health care plan in 2018.

In this descriptive-analytical cross-sectional study, 400 women visiting comprehensive health care centers affiliated with Mashhad University of Medical Sciences were selected as the participants using multi-stage cluster sampling. The data in this study were collected using the SERVQUAL questionnaire and analyzed with SPSS 20.

The mean scores of the clients’ expectations and perceptions were 4.97±0.87 and 3.41±0.42 and the mean score of the service quality gap was 1.55±0.44. The highest mean quality gap score was related to reliability (1.73±0.53) and the lowest mean quality gap score was related to the tangible and physical dimension (1.48±0.54) followed by the service assurance dimension (1.48±0.53).

This study showed that despite the implementation of the Health Transformation Plan, the quality of services in the studied centers was still lower than the service recipients’ expectations. Thus, given the importance of providing health services during the COVID-19 pandemic for its prevention, health care center managers need to be aware of clients’ expectations, identify problems leading to their dissatisfaction, and use quality management strategies to improve the quality of services and promote women’s health.

Given the debilitating nature of heart failure, all aspects of life including quality of life should be considered in the care of patients with this problem. This study aimed to assess the quality of life and related demographic characteristics in elderly patients with heart failure.

The participants in this cross-sectional study were 135 elderly people aged 60 years and older with heart failure admitted to teaching hospitals of Guilan University of Medical Sciences in 2018. The patients were selected using convenience sampling. The data in this study were collected using a demographic information questionnaire and the Minnesota Living with Heart Failure Questionnaire (MLHFQ). The collected data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and inferential statistics including independent samples t-test, Pearson correlation, and ANOVA at a significance level of less than 0.05 (P<0.05).

The results showed that the mean of the total quality of life in the elderly was 61.5±15.62 from 126; and the mean scores for the physical, psychological, and socio-economic subscales of quality of life were 27.7±9.58, 12.2±2.80, and 21.5±5.65, respectively. Most of the elderly reported average quality of life and socioeconomic status, and high physical, and psychological health. It was also found that the patients’ quality of life had a significant relation with income (p<0.038), the number of admissions due to heart failure and non-heart diseases (p<0.001), and chronic diseases (p<0.001).

The majority of patients under study reported a moderate quality of life. Adopting preventive policies, identifying high-risk patients, and planning for therapeutic and nursing interventions will improve the quality of life for this group of patients.