Suchergebnisse

Background: The need to promote breastfeeding is unquestionable for the health and development of infants. The aim of this study was to investigate prevalence, duration and promotion of breastfeeding status in Iran with respect to the Baby Friendly Hospital, government actions and activities by the Breastfeeding Promotion Society including comparison with European countries. Methods: This retrospective study is based on data from 63,071 infants less than 24 months of age in all the 30 urban and rural provinces of Iran. The data of breastfeeding rates were collected in 20052006 by trained health workers in the Integrated Monitoring Evaluation System in the Family Health Office of the Ministry of Health to evaluate its subordinate offices. A translated version of a questionnaire, used to assess the current breastfeeding situation in Europe, was used. Results: At a national level, 90% and 57% of infants were breastfed at one and two-years of age, respectively. Exclusive breastfeeding rates at 4 and 6 months of age at national level averaged 56.8% and 27.7%. Exclusive breastfeeding rates at 4 and 6 months of age in rural areas were 58% and 29%, and in urban areas 56% and 27%, respectively. The policy questionnaire showed that out of the 566 hospitals across the country 466 hospitals were accredited as Baby Friendly Hospitals, covering more than 80% of the births in 2006. A national board set standards and certified pre-service education at the Ministry of Health. Iran officially adopted the WHO International Code of Marketing of Breast Milk Substitutes in 1991. The legislation for working mothers met the International Labour Organization standards that cover women with formal employment. The Ministry of Health and Breastfeeding Promotion Society were responsible for producing booklets, pamphlets, breastfeeding journal, CD, workshops and websites. Monitoring of breastfeeding rates was performed every four years and funded by the Ministry of Health within the budgets assigned to the health care system. Conclusion: In comparison to many European Union countries, Iran showed a favorable situation in terms of breastfeeding rates and promotion of breastfeeding. Iran still needs to increase the rate of exclusive breastfeeding during the first six months

Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to answer the question of how scientific excellency can be achieved. The origin of scientific excellency in Iran, national and international experiences concerning the subject has been investigated to review the literature. The authors also designed a process and then a model to test the course. Guilan University of Medical Sciences was selected as a case study for the research.


Design/methodology/approach
The approach used in this paper is from Future Studies, with emphasis on the "Participatory Learning and Action" method. It means that different stakeholders, including the strategic council members, managers, faculty members, students, alumni and non-academic staff, have been involved in different parts of the process.


Findings
After semantic analysis of scientific excellency in the theoretical field; the examination of national and international experiences in universities; the analysis of higher-level documents of the Ministry of Health and Medical Education as well as strategic documents of the university; the determination of the strengths and weaknesses of the Guilan University of Medical Sciences in online survey; the completion of the scientific excellency canvas in the expert panel and finally obtaining other stakeholders, a conceptual model was designed for achieving scientific excellency.


Practical implications
The study of the actions, policies and trends of pioneering universities indicates that it is important to consider issues such as the internationalization of education and research and the modification of university structures. To achieve a superior national and international status, the university must specifically enhance a range of different aspects, from intangible aspects, such as motivation of employees to tangible aspects, such as human resources, structure and facilities.


Originality/value
Scientific excellency is going to be one of main streams between universities to attract top students and researchers from all over the world. There has been little academic attempt on scientific excellency. In this research, first the authors examined the concept of scientific excellency, criteria and measurement in higher education, then based on that case study and participatory action learning method, a conceptual framework to achieve scientific excellency in Iran's higher education system was proposed.