The issue of mental health literacy has been widely studied in developed countries, with few studies conducted in Arab countries. In this study we aimed to investigate mental health literacy and attitudes towards psychiatric patients among students of Jazan University, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. A cross-sectional study was conducted among undergraduate students using a validated Arabic-version questionnaire. A total of 557 students were recruited from different Jazan university colleges. The majority of students (90.3%) have intermediate mental health literacy. Regarding the etiology of mental illness, students agreed that genetic inheritance (45.8%), poor quality of life (65%) and social relationship weakness (73.1%) are the main causes of mental illness. The majority thought that mentally ill people are not capable of true friendships (52.5%) and that anyone can suffer from a mental illness (49.4%). Students' attitudes towards psychiatric patients were mixed, with 68.7% reporting that they could maintain a friendship with a mentally ill person and that people with mental illness should have the same rights as anyone else (82.5%). Mental health literacy among university students was intermediate. There is an urgent need for health educational programs to change the attitudes of students regarding this important health issue.

The issue of mental health literacy has been widely studied in developed countries, with few studies conducted in Arab countries. In this study we aimed to investigate mental health literacy and attitudes towards psychiatric patients among students of Jazan University, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. A crosssectional study was conducted among undergraduate students using a validated Arabicversion questionnaire. A total of 557 students were recruited from different Jazan university colleges. The majority of students (90.3%) have intermediate mental health literacy. Regarding the etiology of mental illness, students agreed that genetic inheritance (45.8%), poor quality of life (65%) and social relationship weakness (73.1%) are the main causes of mental illness. The majority thought that mentally ill people are not capable of true friendships (52.5%) and that anyone can suffer from a mental illness (49.4%). Students’ attitudes towards psychiatric patients were mixed, with 68.7% reporting that they could maintain a friendship with a mentally ill person and that people with mental illness should have the same rights as anyone else (82.5%). Mental health literacy among university students was intermediate. There is an urgent need for health educational programs to change the attitudes of students regarding this important health issue.

Tobacco smoking has a significant role in health deterioration worldwide; it can lead to many dangerous diseases. Tobacco smoking among medical students is common worldwide, but the prevalence and determinants vary from one community to another. Data from medical students in Saudi Arabia is limited. This study was conducted to estimate the prevalence and determinants of smoking among medical students at the College of Medicine, Jazan University, Saudi Arabia. A cross-sectional study using a self-administered electronic survey was conducted to estimate tobacco smoking’s prevalence and characteristics among medical students at Jazan University. The survey includes information on the gender, academic year, academic performance, type of tobacco smoking, and age of onset of the participants’ tobacco smoking. Other data, like the prevalence of passive smoking and social factors, were considered, too. The sample size was 354, 51.7% males and 48.3% females, students with a response rate of 38.02%. The prevalence of smoking among medical students was 12.4%, while passive smoking prevalence was 39.9% of all medical students. The research shows that 18.6% of male and 5.9% of female medical students were active smokers. Regarding the type of tobacco, we found that 47% of male smokers used waterpipe, while the percentage among female smokers using waterpipe reached 77.8%. The age of onset of smoking for 34.9% of the smokers was between 18 and 21 years old. The prevalence of smoking is inversely proportional to the GPA. Additionally, 71.1% of the smokers did not have a smoker friend, and only 13.3% of the smokers were motivated to quit. University age is critical for smoking habits, and the smoking cessation rate was low. More campaigns should be done in universities to increase smoking cessation awareness, and smoking cessation clinics should be activated at universities.

Objective Saudi Arabia has succeeded in having one of the lowest rates of COVID-19 worldwide due to the government’s initiatives in taking swift action to control both the spread and severity of the virus. However, Covid-19 can serve as a test case of the expected response of the new healthcare system under Vision 2030. This study used data from the thirteen present administrative regions of KSA to simulate the variations in ICU admission as a quality indicator in the five business units proposed by a new Model of Care. Methods We determined the rates of ICU admission for patients with confirmed SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) from March to mid-July 2020. The final sample included 1743 inpatients with moderate to severe COVID-19. Patient characteristics, including demographics, pre-existing chronic conditions, and COVID-19 complications, were collected. Business units (BUs) were compared with respect to the relative odds of ICU admission by using multiple logistic regression. Results After keeping patient and clinical characteristics constant, clear BU differences were observed in the relative odds of ICU admission of COVID-19 patients. Inpatient admission to ICU in our total sample was almost 50%. Compared to the Central BU, the Northern and Western BUs showed significantly higher odds of ICU admission while the Eastern & Southern BUs had significantly lower odds. Conclusion ICU use for COVID-19 patients differed significantly in KSA healthcare BUs, consistent with variations in care for other non-COVID-19-related conditions. These differences cannot be explained by patient or clinical characteristics, suggesting quality-of-care differences. We believe that privatization and the shift to fewer administrative BUs will help lessen or eliminate altogether the present variations in healthcare service provision.

Background Diabetes mellitus (DM) is a growing health problem. Care programs should involve the patients to upgrade their diabetes condition and health-related quality of life (HRQoL). Objective The present study aimed to assess the effects of a psychoeducational intervention program on an indicator of glycemic control and HRQoL among type 2 diabetic patients. Methods In this quasi-experimental (pre- and postinterventional) study, 99 outpatients with type 2 diabetes were selected randomly from those attending primary health care centers in Jazan, Saudi Arabia, in 2016. Hemoglobin A1c levels (HbA1c) were measured by the colorimetric method, and HRQoL was assessed by the Arabic version of the RAND 36-Item Health Survey 1.0 (RAND-36). The psychoeducational program was conducted on the participants for 4 weeks, and preprogram findings were compared with the postprogram findings after a 5-month follow-up. Results After the intervention, there was a statistically significant reduction in the mean value of HbA1c from 9.8 to 7.7 (P < 0.001), and there was significant improvement in the mean scores of the following HRQoL scales: role limitations due to emotional problems, energy/fatigue, emotional well-being, and general health (P < 0.01). In addition, the impact of the program on HRQoL was better among males and among patients who were older than forty years than among women and patients who were forty years old or younger. Conclusion The application of such psychoeducational intervention programs can be helpful in the improvement of HbA1c levels and HRQoL for patients with DM.