Digestive Surgical Emergencies at Analankininina Toamasina Madagascar University Hospital during the Covid-19 Pandemic

During the period of total containment during the Covid-19 pandemic; our department became the sole treatment center for all surgical emergencies. The influx of many patients made the task very difficult for the surgeon. This is a 3-month descriptive prospective study in the visceral surgery department at the Analankininina Toamasina University Hospital Center. Of the 81 patients hospitalized during the study, 32 patients were admitted for digestive surgery emergency, i.e. 39.50%. The mean age was 34.87 years with a sex ratio of 1.66, predominantly male. Abdominal pain occupied 43.75% of the reason for consultation, the most frequent pathologies were acute intestinal obstruction (18.75%) and acute appendicitis (18.75%). An exploratory laparotomy is performed on 40.62% of patients. Many patients were operated on for proctologic emergency (18.75%). The average length of hospitalization is 4.18 days. The visceral emergencies are present despite the presence of the Covid-19 pandemic and the activities of the health personnel are uninterrupted.

An Investigation of Attitudes, Competencies, and Performance in Research Activities of University Teachers

This blend of descriptive and causal comparative or ex-post facto study in the domain of quantitative approach was aimed to describe and investigate the cause and effect relationships two independent variables, research attitudes and research competencies, with a third dependent variable, performance of university teachers in research. Faculty of public sector general universities of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in Pakistan was the population of the study. Stratified random sampling was used to select a sample of 240 teachers from six randomly selected universities. An attitude scale based on five-point Likert technique was developed. Its items were classified into six domains—research orientation, rewards influence research, personal interest, mission of university, research use, and research anxiety. Similarly, a competency scale, with seven factors, knowledge and ability associated with research, awareness of different research types, ability to plan professional-quality research, ability to conduct research analysis, research reporting, proposal writing, and ability to implement aspects of quality research, was formulated. To measure performance an inventory with five performance indicators—publications, dissertation supervised, projects developed, research grants, and paper presented—was framed. Validity was ensured by peer and expert review; and reliability coefficients were 0.76 and 0.73 for attitude and competency scales respectively. Statistical analyses were done by employing averages, percentages, mean ratings, chi-square (χ2), Pearson values, F test, covariance, and regression statistics. Teachers exhibited positive attitudes towards research, and incentives played crucial role in enhancing interest in scholarly activities. Research anxiety did not hamper intellectual activities though significant per cent considered research stressful. Faculty showed efficacy and mastery over different research competencies such as knowledge and ability associated with research in the areas of personal and professional responsibility, awareness of different research types, and to plan professional-quality research. Senior faculty on the average displayed better performance, perhaps in line with longevity of their service and experience. Performance in publications and dissertation supervision was comparatively better as compare to project development, winning over research grants, and paper presentation. Research attitudes and research competencies displayed positive correlation with performance.