Health In Cyprus Research Articles

Relationship between eating disorders and pain levels before and after implantation with personality type

Background In this study, it was aimed to examine the relationship between eating disorders and pain levels before and after implantation in dental patients. Methods A pre-implant and post-implant questionnaire was applied to 223 patients who applied to Cyprus Health and Social Sciences University and underwent implant application. Personal information form, Rezz Eating Disorders Scale and Five Factor Personality Types Scale were applied to the patients in the survey application. Results Extroversion and neuroticism personality type levels of patients were significantly higher after implant (p<0.05). Pain, eating disorder and other personality type differences between before and after implant were statistically insignificant (p>0.05). Before implant, pain level was positively correlated with eating disorder (r=0.190; p<0.01) and negatively correlated with self-control (r=-0.169; p<0.01). Eating disorder level was positively correlated with pain (r=0.190; p<0.01); negatively correlated with extroversion (r=-0.187; p<0.01) and self-control (r=-0.178; p<0.01). After implant, pain level was negatively correlated with neuroticism (r=-0.140; p<0.05) and openness to experience (r=-0.136; p<0.05). Eating disorder level was negatively correlated with extroversion (r=-0.237; p<0.01), self-control (r=-0.151; p<0.05) and neuroticism (r=-0.187; p<0.01). Extroversion personality type level had significant and negative effect on eating disorder after implant at multivariate level (B=-0.43; p<0.01). Conclusions After the implant, psychological support can be given to improve the extrovert personality structures in order to reduce the eating disorder levels of the patients and to prevent the possibility of eating disorders.

Farklı Akademik Dönemlerdeki Diş Hekimlığı Öğrencilerin Öğrenme Koşulları İle İlgili Tercihleri

Dentistry is a professional field which effective teaching is very important and dentistry students differ in their culture, experience, personality and learning preferences. In these circumstances, students' preferences should be considered more and educators should try to improve conditions to meet students' learning needs. To investigate the preferences of dental students about lecture components, exams, attendance, and professional development a survey has been sent to 190 students at the Faculty of Dentistry, Cyprus Health, and Social Sciences University via the Classroom application as of May 2020. Results were evaluated in five categories; demographic components, lecture components, exams, attendance, and professional development. The respondent rate was 66.8%. Majority of the respondents preferred 40-minutes morning lectures and multiple-choice exam and thought the attendance should not be compulsory. Most students agreed that having lectures delivered through PowerPoint presentations and informing students in advance regarding the course topics make the lectures more efficient and thought practical course is necessary to consolidate knowledge after the theoretical course. Some of them agreed that homework is useful for supporting the course. Changes and improvements in teaching methods and channels are now more necessary than ever, and the results of our research can shed light on these changes.

One of the World’s Worst Invasive Alien Species Wasmannia auropunctata (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) Detected in Cyprus

Native to the Neotropics, Wasmannia auropunctata (Roger, 1863) has been unintentionally introduced around the world, heavily impacting native ant biodiversity, societies, and economies as well as human and animal health due to its potentially dangerous stings. Herein we report on the first record of W. auropunctata in Cyprus. Specimens were collected from plant nurseries and tourist facilities in Paphos and Limassol district. Wasmannia auropunctata is believed to spread via the horticultural pathway to locations with sufficient humidity. Further research is necessary to determine the distribution and assess possible negative impacts of W. auropunctata to native biodiversity, society, the economy and human health in Cyprus.

Spatiotemporal variations of ozone exposure and its risks to vegetation and human health in Cyprus: an analysis across a gradient of altitudes

Ground-level ozone (O3) affects vegetation and threatens environmental health when levels exceed critical values, above which adverse effects are expected. Cyprus is expected to be a hotspot for O3 concentrations due to its unique position in the eastern Mediterranean, receiving air masses from Europe, African, and Asian continents, and experiencing a warm Mediterranean climate. In Cyprus, the spatiotemporal features of O3 are poorly understood and the potential risks for forest health have not been explored. We evaluated O3 and nitrogen oxides (NO and NO2) at four regional background stations at different altitudes over 2014−2016. O3 risks to vegetation and human health were estimated by calculating accumulated O3 exposure over a threshold of 40 nmol mol−1 (AOT40) and cumulative exposure to mixing ratios above 35 nmol mol−1 (SOMO35) indices. The data reveal that mean O3 concentrations follow a seasonal pattern, with higher levels in spring (51.8 nmol mol−1) and summer (53.2 nmol mol−1) and lower levels in autumn (46.9 nmol mol−1) and winter (43.3 nmol mol−1). The highest mean O3 exposure (59.5 nmol mol−1) in summer occurred at the high elevation station Mt. Troodos (1819 m a.s.l.). Increasing (decreasing) altitudinal gradients were found for O3 (NOx), driven by summer–winter differences. The diurnal patterns of O3 showed little variation. Only at the lowest altitude O3 displayed a typical O3 diurnal pattern, with hourly differences smaller than 15 nmol mol−1. Accumulated O3 exposures at all stations and in all years exceeded the European Union’s limits for the protection of vegetation, with average values of 3-month (limit: 3000 nmol mol−1 h) and 6-month (limit: 5000 nmol mol−1 h) AOT40 for crops and forests of 16,564 and 31,836 nmol mol−1 h, respectively. O3 exposures were considerably high for human health, with an average SOMO35 value of 7270 nmol mol−1 days across stations and years. The results indicate that O3 is a major environmental and public health issue in Cyprus, and policies must be adopted to mitigate O3 precursor emissions at local and regional scales.

There is value in taking the time to teach history of dentistry and ethics in dentistry curriculum

Abstract Objectives The teaching and assessment of soft skills such as ethical behaviour remains a challenge to dental schools. This paper aims to attempt to help the description and retrospective evaluation of a history of dentistry and medical ethics course in the dentistry curriculum of Cyprus Health and Social Sciences University. Methods The study included students (n=78) of the Faculty of Dental Sciences of Cyprus Health and Social Sciences University. History of dentistry and medical ethics are taught each for 1 h, total 2 h per week in the curriculum (theoretical/cases). Students’ academic performance was evaluated with mid-term and final exams. Participants were assessed according to their level of success and failure. Results Participants of the study were 51.3% (n=40) male and 48.7% (n=38) female students. The success rate of the midterm exam was 78.34%, while the success rate of the final was 76.32%. Mid-term exam success was not statistically significantly different than final exam (p>0.215). Conclusions The success of our students in the history of dentistry and ethics course are promising clues for us to propose that there is value in taking the time to teach the course in dental curriculum.

112Neighbourhood environment and health-related quality of life, Limassol, Cyprus

Abstract Background The extent and magnitude of socio-geographical inequalities in health in Cyprus is not clear as neither “place” nor “health inequalities” feature on the public health agenda. Methods In the context of a wider Neighbourhood Environment and Health programme, the magnitude of inequality in health-related quality of life (HRQoL) among Limassol citizens was explored in a door-to-door SF-36 survey of residents aged 45-64 (N = 450, 50:50 gender quota) across 45 randomly selected neighbourhoods stratified by socio-economic disadvantage and profiled using a culturally-adapted Systematic Social Observation neighbourhood audit tool. Results The social gradient was steeper for physical than mental component scores of HRQoL irrespective of the indicator of social position. Education and income captured the gradient better in women, and occupational-based social class in men, with large effect (0.7-1 SD) on the SF-36 scale at opposite ends of the continuum. Lower HRQoL and more adverse health behaviours observed in disadvantaged neighborhoods according to census area-level measures and neighbourhood audit profiles, with generally larger differences in women. Conclusions This study profiled the variability in the urban neighbourhood environment,and documented the magnitude of social gradient in health and health-related quality of life in a representative sample of late working-life population in Cyprus. Key messages Social gradient in health behaviours and quality of life in late working-life Cypriot population. Gradient apparent in both men and women across individual and neighborhood measures of social position.

Integrating PET/CT unit into the NHS of a small sized EU state: A financial cost efficiency study

Abstract Background According to the Ministry of Health in Cyprus, since 2009, every year more than 3.000 new incidents with neoplasm are diagnosed. The National Health System (NHS) of Cyprus aims to offer adequate health services, comparing them with European Union standards. However, it is lacking a Positron Emission Tomography-Computed Tomography (PET/CT) unit. The present study aims to examine whether an investment by the Cyprus NHS of a PET/CT unit can be financially sustainable. Methods A financial analysis of the operating revenues and expenses of a departmental PET/CT with F18-FDG was performed taking into consideration all related parameters. A detailed estimation of the unit's operation expenses (PET/CT unit supply, overheads, salaries, etc.) and incomes was produced for a 15-year period. This initial scenario was not financially viable and therefore two alternatives are also examined. Results After performing a detailed analysis and projection for the evaluation of the feasibility study in the initial scenario, the overall outcome is estimated negative deriving to a €2,2 million losses in the cumulative results by 2035. The second scenario concluded that the required number of incidents to reach a neutral cash flow after a 15-year period should increase from 8.971 to 23.430. The third scenario reached the conclusion that a parallel investment to the purchase of the PET/CT unit by installing a cyclotron unit in the Cypriot NHS provides cumulative results positive of €1,7 million for the PET/CT, in the same period, that can finance the largest part of the €2,5 million required for the installation of the cyclotron unit. Conclusions Our findings show that an investment of a sole PET/CT unit is not a financially viable. Alternative possibilities such as usage of a PET/CT operated by the private sector or supporting patients to travel to another country are within the economic terms recommended. Key messages From a financial viewpoint, the scenario of investing in a PET/CT unit by the Cyprus NHS is not viable. Examining alternative options for patients in need of a PET/CT unit, where the initial investment cost for the state is not financially viable.

Geleneksel Öğrenme Modelinin Biyokimya Dersindeki Akademik Başarı ve Kalıcılığın Üzerine Etkisi

Objectives: In this study, the effect of the traditional teaching model in biochemistry on academic success and permanence was examined. Materials and Methods: The current analytical work was carried out at the Faculty of Dentistry of the University of Cyprus Health and Social Sciences. In this analytical study, the permanence of what the students learned in the biochemistry course was evaluated and the same exam questions were asked three years later. Descriptive statistical analyzes were done. Results: A significant difference was found between the average of the knowledge score obtained during the course and the score obtained three years later (p=0.010). It has been observed that the traditional learning model is not effective on permanence. Conclusion: We thought that a student-centered education model should be applied rather than the traditional learning model in order to increase academic success and permanence. Keywords: Biochemistry education, Learning success and permanence

The System of The Provision of Oral Healthcare in the Republic of Cyprus and the Effect of the Economic Crisis.

To investigate recent developments in the provision of oral healthcare in Cyprus and the population's oral health, with special reference to the impact of the recent economic crisis. cross-sectional study. Data from oral health surveys in Cyprus over the last 30 years were reviewed and analysed together with policy documents. Information regarding oral health behaviour, dental visits and the consequences of the economic crisis on the latter was also obtained with the help of self-completed questionnaires by patients and dentists. Although the overall level of oral health in Cyprus can be considered satisfactory, there were statistically significant variations between districts and different socioeconomic and ethnic groups. Beyond these variations, it seemed that the three-year economic crisis (2013-2016) had negatively affected the behaviour of the population in seeking dental care, reducing the frequency of visits to the dentist, and avoiding costly dental work, especially among those from the lower socioeconomic strata. This change in citizens' behaviour led to a statistically significant decrease in dentists' income in the private sector. The economic crisis brought about new difficulties and challenges for both the public and the private sectors of oral healthcare, and into the implementation of a new National Health System.

The Use of Social Media in Healthcare: Knowledge Transfer in the Cyprus Health Care System

The Use of Social Media in Healthcare: Knowledge Transfer in the Cyprus Health Care System

Geleneksel Öğrenme Modelinin Biyokimya Dersindeki Akademik Başarı ve Kalıcılığın Üzerine Etkisi

Abstract Objectives: In this study, the effect of the traditional teaching model in biochemistry on academic success and permanence was examined. Materials and Methods: The current analytical work was carried out at the Faculty of Dentistry of the University of Cyprus Health and Social Sciences. In this analytical study, the permanence of what the students learned in the biochemistry course was evaluated and the same exam questions were asked three years later. Descriptive statistical analyzes were done. Results: A significant difference was found between the average of the knowledge score obtained during the course and the score obtained three years later (p=0.010). It has been observed that the traditional learning model is not effective on permanence. Conclusion: We thought that a student-centered education model should be applied rather than the traditional learning model in order to increase academic success and permanence. Keywords: Biochemistry education, Learning success and permanenc

Statistical reasoning for developing an attitude scale for health tourism stakeholders in North Cyprus context

In this study, an "Attitude Scale for Health Tourism Education" was aimed to be developed in order to be used to determine the attitudes of stakeholders towards health tourism education and other relevant issues in North Cyprus health tourism context. The attitude scale was processed through validity and reliability tests in order to ensure the highest possible efficiency. The inadequate literature on health tourism education and the lack of an attitude scale related to the issue give the impression that the education factor in health tourism is so far ignored. In this respect, the Attitude Scale for Health Tourism Education, can be used to identify the attitudes of stakeholders taking part in the health tourism sector in North Cyprus and other relevant issues. The scale was also designed to be used in studies that could lay the groundwork for a training model which can be developed for the health tourism sector in North Cyprus. It is also believed that this work will contribute to the application of original scientific studies in areas such as the health tourism, psychology, sociology, business administration and engineering which will necessarily be engaged in developing a program for health tourism education with an interdisciplinary approach.

Cyprus Health Education Curriculum from “victim blaming to empowerment”

Purpose – Health promotion can fall into a victim blaming approach and put social pressure on particular students who could be marginalized due to their personal, economical, cultural, social or ethnic characteristics, for example, students who are obese, drug users or HIV carriers. The purpose of this paper is to present and discuss ways in which the design of the newly reformed Cyprus Health Education Curriculum (CHEC) attempted to protect learners from victim blaming. Design/methodology/approach – The paper describes and reflects on the learning objectives, teaching methods and teaching activities of the CHEC. Findings – The paper gives specific examples of how the design of the CHEC attempts to ensure that the curriculum does not promote victim blaming. It describes learning objectives, content, suggested teaching methods and activities from three thematic areas of the curriculum which are particularly susceptible to victim blaming: “food and health”, “emotional health” and “family planning, sexual and reproductive health”. It discusses how the design of the CHEC attempts to encourage educators to address the underlying social and environmental determinants of health and thus avoid stigmatization. Practical implications – The paper can be useful for curriculum designers and school educators. It describes how the design of a health education curriculum and health education lessons can refrain from burdening the individual with total personal responsibility for health behaviour and lifestyle. Social implications – Understanding and implementing the basic learning themes and objectives of the CHEC has social and community implications. It promotes collective responsibility, emphasizing a non-blaming and community approach. The design of the CHEC challenges the idea of free choice, acknowledges the social determinants of health and promotes students’ empowerment as active members of society. Originality/value – The originality of this paper lies in the description and reflection of the design of the first health education curriculum in Cyprus, which attempts to secure learners from victim blaming in its implementation. The aspects of the design of the CHEC described in this paper may be applicable to other European countries.

Evaluating school-community health in Cyprus

This article presents results from the Cypriot experience of participation in a pan European health promotion project called 'Shape Up'. Implemented between September 2007 and June 2008, the aims of the overall programme reflect the primary concern of health promotion to facilitate healthy choices by creating the necessary conditions for their enactment. We describe the processes used in Shape Up before reporting findings from the evaluation undertaken by the University of Hull, UK. Findings from the Cypriot case studies demonstrate schools' potential to work in health promoting ways by enabling school communities to create environments conducive to health, where individuals are better able to take care of their health rather than simply implementing healthy activities at school. Participants in Shape Up Cyprus increased their access to healthier foods and opportunities to be active during and after school. Apart from visible environmental changes, participants were equipped with skills and critical knowledge to be healthier and more active citizens. They investigated the wider determinants of health and options for health improvement in specific contexts. They identified what needed changing within and around the school, developing visions of how changes could be enacted. They transferred visions into actions by writing letters, undertaking research, developing networks and accessing advice and financial support. We conclude that increasing awareness of the impact of structural factors upon health and the acquisition of skills in community action were central to Shape Up's success in Cyprus, and are therefore relevant for school-based health promotion.

Iron in the Soul: Displacement, Livelihood and Health in Cyprus. Studies in Forced Migration (review)

Reviewed by: Iron in the Soul: Displacement, Livelihood and Health in Cyprus. Studies in Forced Migration Roland S. Moore Peter Loizos. Iron in the Soul: Displacement, Livelihood and Health in Cyprus. Studies in Forced Migration, Volume 23. New York/Oxford: Berghahn Books. 2008. Pp. xii + 210. 22 illustrations, 2 maps. Paperback $29.95/Cloth $90.00. A substantial and growing body of international literature addresses the consequences of involuntary migration, including the adoption of refugee identities, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, and somatization of the distress that [End Page 363] typically accompanies the wrenching aftermath of displacement. As one of the latest in a series of studies of forced migration published by Berghahn Books, Iron in the Soul: Displacement, Livelihood and Health in Cyprus attempts to test the hypothesis raised by earlier refugee researchers (including Elizabeth Colson, to whom the volume is dedicated) that premature death and a constellation of health problems are associated with the stresses of forced migration. Ostensibly, Iron in the Soul is a book about the long-term physical and mental health repercussions of Greek Cypriot villagers' displacement due to expulsion from their community, Argaki, in the Turkish occupied lands of Cyprus. However, Peter Loizos's answer to that fundamental research question takes the form of an ethnographically grounded analysis that draws from numerous disciplines, including political science, public health, demography and history. The thematically organized chapters reflect his holistic approach, including a portrait of increasingly tense ethnic relations in the years preceding the crisis that evicted the villagers from their home, diachronic economic analyses, recountings of global, island and community politics and how they influenced the events before, during, and after the villagers's flight from Argaki. Particularly poignant are villagers's narrations of their comparatively recent visits to their natal homes after the barriers to visitation were suddenly lifted in 2003. The result of this interdisciplinary tour is a wide-ranging and engaging depiction of experiencing and responding to the pain of exile. Loizos makes the case that the severity of the blow was ameliorated to a great extent through the villagers's ability to achieve key goals, including ensuring children's marriages and other family-oriented pursuits. To do so required creativity and resilience and reliance upon support from kin. Echoing a number of anthropological studies on ritual healing in Greece, Loizos identified engagement with the Orthodox church as an additional way in which some but by no means all of the villagers made sense of their sacrifices and suffering. With respect to dealing with illness, some of which was exacerbated by the stresses of exile, refugees's priority access to quality healthcare services also appeared to play an important role. Nevertheless, Loizos neither sugarcoats the agonies experienced along the way, nor glorifies the survival and gradual normalization of the refugees's new transplanted lives. Loizos does not tie his wide-ranging analysis to any one theoretical point of view. However, his assessment of comparatively good health outcomes stemming in part from economic and social successes of the refugees from Argaki once they were resettled is entirely consistent with the increasingly popular social determinants of health approach. The social determinants of health perspective, pioneered by such theoreticians as Engels, include wealth/poverty and social capital as key variables connecting socioeconomic status to health outcomes (Marmot and Wilkinson, 2006). Although he notes that he did not conduct research continuously over the past forty years with the study population, Loizos is uniquely qualified to write about them, because his original ethnographic research dates to 1968, well before the villagers were forced from their land in 1974. Moreover, because his father came from the town, he relied upon ties of close kinship as well as the [End Page 364] usual relationships built through long-term fieldwork. Perspectives of the Turkish Cypriots from the same village are conveyed through the assistance of a Turkish Cypriot sociologist colleague who shared his interview data with Loizos. A parallel study of Turkish Cypriots uprooted from the Southern part of the island would add yet more texture to the present volume, but Loizos suggests that such a comparative study would be better taken up by another researcher. One of the most...

Health care service quality: A comparison of public and private hospitals

The aim of this paper is threefold: to test the dimensionality of the SERVQUAL instrument in the Northern Cyprus health care industry, to assess the service quality provided in public and private hospitals in Northern Cyprus and to identify the service quality dimensions that play important role on patient satisfaction. Data were collected in two phases from the same sample, which consisted of 806 systematically selected people above the age of eighteen. Factor analysis revealed a three factor solution, namely; reliability-confidence, empathy and tangibles. This result does not support the five factor model of the original SERVQUAL. Gap analysis showed that private hospitals have smaller gaps than public hospitals in all three service quality dimensions. Finally, logistic regression findings indicated that while all three dimensions are somewhat influential on patient satisfaction, in public hospitals tangibles dimension seems to exert no significant influence on satisfaction. Findings are important both for public and private hospital managers and for policy makers. Key words: Health care, service quality, SERVQUAL, hospitals, logistic regression.

Iron in the Soul: Displacement, Livelihood and Health in Cyprus. By Peter Loizos.

Iron in the Soul: Displacement, Livelihood and Health in Cyprus. By Peter Loizos.

Review Essay: Some Recent Publications on the Anthropology of Greece and Cyprus

Iron in the Soul: Displacement, Livelihood and Health in Cyprus (Studies in Forced Migration, volume 23). Peter Loizos. Blood and Oranges: European Markets and Immigrant Labor in Rural Greece (Dislocations, volume 2). Christopher M. Lawrence. The Nomads of Mykonos: Performing Liminalities in a ‘Queer’ Space. (New Directions in Anthropology, volume 29). Pola Bousiou.

Iron in the soul: displacement, livelihood and health in Cyprus – By Peter Loizos

Iron in the soul: displacement, livelihood and health in Cyprus – By Peter Loizos

Iron in the Soul: Displacement, Livelihood and Health in Cyprus by Peter Loizos

Iron in the Soul: Displacement, Livelihood and Health in Cyprus by Peter Loizos