The purpose of this study is to assess the magnitude of intimate partner violence (IPV) and associated factors among women in Nepal. The secondary data from the Nepal Demographic and Health Survey (NDHS) 2016 was used. This study was confined to the respondents selected for the domestic violence module. The association between experience of IPV ‘ever’ and ‘in the past year’ with selected factors were examined by using Chi-square test, followed by multivariate logistic regression. Complex sample analysis procedure was adopted to adjust for multi-stage sampling design, cluster weight, and sample weight. The result revealed that 26.3% of ever-married women experienced any form of IPV at some point in their lives, while only 13.7% has experienced any form of IPV in the past year. The factors associated with both ‘lifetime’ and ‘past year’ experience of IPV includes women witnessing parental violence during their childhood, the husband being drunk frequently, women being afraid of their husband most of the times, and women whose husbands shows marital control behavior. Women’s experiencing IPV was associated more with husband related factors than with women’s empowerment indicators. Reducing IPV requires a commitment to changing the norms that promote the husband’s behavior of controlling his wives and beating her.

This study aims to identify the relationship of women’s autonomy and intimate partner violence (IPV) with maternal healthcare service utilization among married women of reproductive age in Nepal. This study used data from the 2016 Nepal Demographic and Health Survey (NDHS), which is a nationally representative sample survey. The association between outcome variables with selected factors were examined by using the Chi-square test (χ²), followed by multiple logistic regression. The sample was adjusted for multi-stage sampling design, cluster weight, and sample weight. Of the total sample, 68.4% reported attending sufficient Antenatal care (ANC) visits throughout their pregnancy, while 59.9% reported having a health facility delivery. The factors associated with both, sufficient ANC visits and institutional delivery includes ethnicity, place of residence, household wealth status, and the number of living children. Women who have access to media, and who have intended pregnancy were more likely to have sufficient ANC visits. Exposure to some forms of violence was found to be the barrier for maternal health service utilization. Attending ANC visits enables mothers to make the decision regarding skilled attendance or health facility delivery. Preventing any forms of violence need to be considered as a vital element in interventions aimed at increasing maternal health service utilization.

Objectives: To estimate the prevalence of anxiety and depression and identify the associated factors among people with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) visiting diabetes clinics of Pokhara Metropolitan, Nepal. Design: Cross-sectional study. Setting: Three diabetes clinics in Pokhara Metropolitan, Nepal, from May to July 2021. Participants: 283 people with T2DM visiting selected diabetes centres of Pokhara Metropolitan. Outcome measures: Anxiety and depression were the outcome measures. Face-to-face interviews were conducted using a structured questionnaire comprising information related to participants’ sociodemographic profile and several factors along with Hospital Anxiety and Depression-Anxiety subscale and Patient Health Questionnaire-9 to assess the levels of anxiety and depression, respectively. Pearson’s Χ ² tests and binary logistic regression were performed to examine association between dependent and independent variables at 5% level of significance. Results: The prevalence of anxiety and depression was 31.4% (95% CI 26.2% to 37.5%) and 36.4% (95% CI 30.8% to 42.0%), respectively. Anxiety was found to be associated with a lower level of perceived social support (adjusted OR (AOR) 2.442, 95% CI 1.020 to 5.845), multiple complications (AOR 2.758, 95% CI 1.015 to 7.334) and comorbidities (AOR 2.110, 95% CI 1.004 to 4.436), severe COVID-19 fear (AOR 2.343, 95% CI 1.123 to 4.887) and sleep dissatisfaction (AOR 1.912, 95% CI 1.073 to 3.047). Economical dependency (AOR 1.890, 95% CI 1.026 to 3.482), no insurance (AOR 2.973, 95% CI 1.134 to 7.093), lower perceived social support (AOR 2.883, 95% CI 1.158 to 7.181), multiple complications (AOR 2.308, 95% CI 1.585 to 6.422) and comorbidities (AOR 2.575, 95% CI 1.180 to 5.617), severe COVID-19 fear (AOR 2.117, 95% CI 1.009 to 4.573), alcohol use (AOR 2.401, 95% CI 1.199 to 4.806) and sleep dissatisfaction (AOR 1.995, 95% CI 1.093 to 3.644) were found to be associated with depression. Conclusion: This study showed high prevalence levels of anxiety and depression among people with T2DM. Strengthening social support and focusing on people with diabetes suffering from comorbidity and complications could help to reduce their risk of mental health problems.

Introduction: Musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) are injuries or pain in the human musculoskeletal system which could lead to temporary or permanent impairments. The nature of nursing jobs makes nurses vulnerable to MSDs. This study aimed to assess the prevalence and potential risk factors associated with MSDs among nurses. Methods: In between March to June 2021, a cross-sectional study was conducted among 165 nurses using self-administered questionnaires. A standardized Nordic Questionnaire was used to measure MSDs. Pearson’s chi-square test and binary logistic regression at a 5% level of significance were performed to identify factors associated with upper extremities and spinal musculoskeletal disorders (UMSD) and lower extremities musculoskeletal disorders (LMSD). Variables associated with UMSD and LMSD in bivariate analysis were subjected to multiple logistic regression. Results: The prevalence of UMSD and LMSD experienced by nurses was 86.1% (95% CI: 79.4%-90.9%) and 66.1% (95% CI: 58.9%-74.3%), respectively. Among several factors, working in same position for long periods (AOR: 4.16, 95% CI: 1.2-13.4), not receiving training in injury prevention programs (AOR: 3.15, 95% CI: 1.0-9.2), not enough rest breaks during the day (AOR: 4.65, 95% CI: 1.3-15.9) and moderate to higher job stress (AOR: 3.62, 95% CI: 1.2-10.8) were found to be significantly associated with UMSD. Not having enough rest breaks during the day (AOR: 2.19, 95% CI: 1.0-4.7) was significantly associated with LMSD. Conclusion: Higher prevalence of MSDs among nurses is a serious concern that threatens individual health as well as the overall healthcare system. Sensitization and capacity enhancement programs on the issue could prevent MSDs among nurses.

Gender-based violence (GBV) is a major global public health challenge in the 21^st century that poses a serious impact on women’s health and well-being. Therefore, this study aimed to assess the prevalence and factors associated with GBV among secondary school female students in the Sarlahi district of Nepal. Using a cross-sectional study, we collected data from 225 secondary-level female students in the Sarlahi district of Nepal. Data was collected by using a semi-structured, self-administered questionnaire. Probability proportionate and simple random sampling techniques were used for sampling. The association was explored by using a chi-square test and binary logistic regression. The two-tailed significance level for all analyses was set at p<0.05. The overall prevalence of GBV among the students during their lifetime was 45.33 of which physical violence was 16.89%, sexual violence was 30.22% and psychological violence was 39.56%. The prevalence of experiencing physical violence from family members was 97.36%, followed by emotional violence (41.57%). Further, the prevalence of sexual violence from non-family members was 91.17%. Type of family had a significant association with lifetime experience of GBV (p = 0.003). Gender based discrimination in the family had a significant association with lifetime (p = 0.001) as well as last 12 months (p = 0.001) GBV experience. Experience of witnessing physical violence as a child within the last 12 months was associated with GBV (p = 0.03). Different forms of GBV such as physical, sexual, and emotional acts of violence among female students were highly prevalent. However, their knowledge and awareness of confronting this issue were limited. This warrants the urgent need to establish preventive and responsive control measures within schools and communities to address GBV effectively.

Adolescent sexual and reproductive health is getting due attention in developing countries because investing among adolescents can bring multiple benefits. This study aims to assess the availability and utilization of sexual and reproductive services (SRHS), and explore different factors affecting the utilization of SRHS by adolescents of Godawari Municipality. A cross-sectional, mixed-method study was conducted using Anderson’s model of health service utilization in three government secondary schools and three local health institutions in Godawari Municipality. A self-administered questionnaire was used with adolescents aged 15–19 (n = 416), and conducted Key Informants Interview (KII) and observation were conducted in health institutions. Quantitative data was analyzed in Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 16, and thematic analysis was done for qualitative data. The mean age of the respondents was 17.31 ± 0.99 years. Nearly one-third of them (30.63%) had not heard about Adolescent Friendly Health Services. Knowledge of ASRH and AFHS (AOR = 2.814, 95% C.I = 1.129-7.013) and conversation with parents (AOR = 2.069, 95% C.I = 1.094-3.912) and availability of ASRH (AOR = 2.801, 95% C.I = 0.810-9.687) had a significant relationship with utilization of health services. The adolescents’ perceived feeling of the need for ASRH services is significantly associated with the utilization of ASRH services (p < .001). Only 13.22% of them had ever used ASRH services, and the reasons for not using services were the lack of realization of the need for services (60.39%), while 14.55% of them felt that privacy was not maintained at all. The KII found the number of adolescents visiting Health Facility (HF) was very low, and those visiting for SRH-related services were rare. The observation showed none of the HF met the adolescent friendly criteria set by the government even when they were once certified. Knowledge of respondents and their parents, as well as availability of the services, had a significant role in the utilization of ASRH services by the adolescents. Awareness about the importance of health care services among adolescents and the availability of services is essential.