Journal of Health Management and Informatics
Volume:2 Issue: 1, Jan 2015

More than seventeen millions people die due to cardiovascular diseases which account for one third of death worldwide. Half of 60% of all mortality caused by acquired diseases throughout the world is due to heart disorders and this ratio will augment to 73% by 2020. It is known that individual lifestyle has a great influence on the well-being of cardiovascular system. Seven of the top ten etiologies leading to death are related to the pattern of lifestyle. This study explored various lifestyle-related factors affecting ischemic conditions. This study was performed as a case control investigation on 65 subjects along with 65 controls who were all admitted at Sevome Shaaban hospital in Damavand town of Iran. All data) demographic and life-style variables) were gathered, using three different types of questionnaire obtained from each person. p< 0.05 was considered as significant. Age, marriage status, smoking, physical activities, diet and mental health condition were shown to have a significant effect on ischemia (P <0.001). Insufficient physical activities, fatty and low fiber food as well as impaired psychology conditions were among the risk factors that contributed to Ischemic heart disease. Insufficient physical activities, fatty and low fiber food as well as impaired psychology conditions were among the risk factors that contribute to ischemic heart disease.

New organization’s success depends on the efficient use of human resources In this study, we aimed to estimate the staffing needs in hospitals of Shiraz University of Medical Sciences (SUMS) according to model proposed by the Ministry of Health and Medical Education in 2012. This is a cross-sectional definitive study conducted in three general and six specialized SUMS hospitals. The research tool used was a checklist that determines the number of nurses, paraclinic and service employees and finally the decrease and increase of human resources in the departments of the hospitals regarding Iranian Ministry of Health (MOH) issues. The data were collected and analyzed using SPSS software to determine the differences between the current situation in accordance to MOH issues. Results showed that of the nine teaching hospitals of SUMS in 2012, Namazi hospital had 288 redundant staff and Khalili hospital had a shortage of manpower in 8 places. We observeda deficiency in human resources in all the studied hospitals. Also, the distribution of human resources among most of the hospital departments was not conform with MOH issues. Various models have been proposed for estimating human resources of hospitals. Because of better ergometer and time to estimate the correct manpower, the model introduced by the Department of Health is suitable for planning to increase the efficiency and effectiveness of the hospitals.

Recognition and implementation of knowledge management have an important effect on improving the quality of hospital activities. According to the direct relationship with the society’s health, health and treatment departments need knowledgeable and skillful staff. Thus, this research investigated different dimensions of the knowledge management processes in teaching hospitals of Shiraz University of Medical Sciences in 2014. This cross-sectional analytical study was performed on 103 top and middle-ranked managers of Shiraz University of Medical Sciences hospitals. The instrument was a valid and reliable questionnaire containing six knowledge management dimensions. Data were analyzed in SPSS software version 16, using the one-sample t-test and ANOVA. The results of the study showed that among the processes of knowledge management dimensions, “acquisition and knowledge creation”(mean=3.2) and “strategy and policy of knowledge” (mean=3.13) had the highest ranks and “assessment and feedback of knowledge” (mean=2.86) and “knowledge sharing” (mean=2.61) were at the lowest levels. The comparison between these six dimensions demonstrated that there were significant relationships among “strategy and policy of knowledge” and “acquisition and knowledge creation” (p=0.047),“strategy and policy of knowledge” and “organizing and documenting of knowledge” (p=0.206), “organizing and documenting of knowledge” and “knowledge sharing” (p=0.259), “organizing and documenting of knowledge” and “use and reuse of knowledge” (p=0.325), “use and reuse of knowledge”, and “knowledge sharing” (p=0.100). According to the results, the conditions of “strategy and policy of knowledge” and “acquisition and knowledge creation” dimensions are at the average level and other dimensions of knowledge management processes are poor in teaching hospitals of Shiraz University of Medical Sciences. Considering the importance of knowledge management in improving the performance of the hospitals and achieving the organizational goals, applying all dimensions of knowledge management especially “knowledge sharing” and “assessment and feedback of knowledge” is vital.

Patient safety improvement requires ongoing culture. This cultural change is the most important challenge that managers are faced with in creation of a safe system. This study aims to show the results of initiatives to improvement in patient safety culture in Fateme Al-zahra hospital. In the quasi-experimental research, patient safety culture was measured using the Persian questionnaire on adaptation of the hospital survey on patient safety culture in 12 dimensions. The research was conducted before (January 2010) and after (September 2012) the improvement initiatives. In this study, all units were determined and no sampling method was used. Reliability of the questionnaire was tested by Alpha Chronbakh (0.83). Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics indices and Independent T-Test by SPSS Software (version 18). 350 questionnaires were distributed in each phaseand overall response rate was 58 and 56 percent, respectively. According to Independent T-test, Management expectations and actions, Organizational learning, Management support, Feedback and communication about error, Communication openness, Overall Perceptions of Safety, Non-punitive Response to Error, Frequency of Event Reporting, and Patient safety culture showed significant differences (P-value<0.05). Teamwork within hospital units, Teamwork across units, Hospital handoffs and transitions, and Staffing did not reveal any significant differences (P-value>0.05). The mean score of Patient safety culture was 2.27 (from 5) and it was increased to 2.46 after initiatives that showed a significant difference (P-value<0.05). Although, improvement in patient safety culture needs teamwork and continuous attempts, the study showed that initiatives implemented in the case hospital had been effective in some dimensions. However, Teamwork within hospital units, Teamwork across units, Hospital handoffs and transitions, and Staffing dimensions were recognized for further intervention. Hospital could improve the patient safety culture with planning and measures in these dimensions.

Due to the vital role of nurses and the effects of scientific advances on nursing care, providing high quality nursing services is not possible without participating in the in-service training programs and becoming familiar with the new techniques. This study aimed to determine the motivational factors influencing the participation in the in-service training courses among nurses working in the teaching hospitals affiliated to Shiraz University of Medical Sciences in 2013. This was an applied, cross-sectional and descriptive-analytical study. A sample of 216 nurses working in the teaching hospitals affiliated to Shiraz University of Medical Sciences was selected using stratified sampling proportional to size and simple random sampling methods. The required data were collected using a questionnaire determining the motivational factors influencing the nurses’ participation in the in-service training courses, including personal factors, organizational factors, and those related to the profession and the training courses planning. SPSS 18.0 and some statistical tests including ANOVA, Independent-Samples T-Test, as well as Pearson Correlation Coefficient were used to analyze the collected data. The results showed that the mean score of nurses’ motivation for participating in the in-service training programs was 3.41±0.5. Also, the highest and lowest means of motivational factors affecting the studied nurses’ participation in the in-service courses were associated with the factors related to the profession (3.75 ± 0.71), and those related to the training courses planning (3.20 ± 0.59), respectively. In addition, there were significant associations between the personal factors (p=0.037) and factors related to the profession (p=0.047) and the studied nurses’ positions, between the organizational factors and their employment status (p=0.007), and between the factors related to the training courses planning and the nurses’ service unit (p=0.014). Furthermore, there was a significant and negative correlation between their nursing job experience and organizational factors (r= -0.21, P= 0.004). According to the results and in order to increase the studied nurses’ motivation for participating in the in-service training courses, the following suggestions can be offered: making a proper educational needs assessment, paying careful attention to the nurses’ educational needs, determining the suitable time and place for providing training courses, and encouraging the nurses’ participating in the in-service training courses, etc.

Fire is one of the most dangerous phenomena in the world which yields main damages, healthy and economical, and is thus a major threat to hospitals. Since, most of the residents in hospitals are the individuals who cannot rescue themselves in such situations, fire in hospitals is more hazardous than any other public place; hence, it can endanger several sophisticated medical equipment. Therefore, security against fire plays a very vital role in hospitals and has to be taken into account by authorities. Among the personnel, hospital manager and the security guard supervisor are much more responsible. One of their responsibilities includes planning fire security scheme in hospitals to reduce the death rate caused by fire so that there is less threat to the building of hospital admits content. Due to the significance of this issue in hospitals, it seems necessary for the personnel to be aware of security measures against fire. Therefore, a study was carried out in Isfahan University of Medical Sciences teaching hospitals on all managers, their awareness about this issue was measured through a questionnaire. The results indicated that of a total of 60, the obtained average was (37.63+7.36) in the medium level. Also, most of the managers believed that proper and updated training by skillful trainers regarding hospital security measures and its application can be truly effective on their productivity. Thus, it is concluded that practical training the mentioned target group (hospital personnel especially clerks and the managers) about the security plans can be effective in the control of fire and security measures, resulting in reduction of accidents and human and economic loss in the future.