Health Impacts of Floods

2010 ◽  
Vol 25 (3) ◽  
pp. 265-272 ◽  
Author(s):  
Weiwei Du ◽  
Gerard Joseph FitzGerald ◽  
Michele Clark ◽  
Xiang-Yu Hou
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Conceptual Framework ◽  
Health Workers ◽  
Poor Mental Health ◽  
Health Impacts ◽  
Extensive Literature ◽  
Number Of Factors ◽  
Underlying Causes ◽  
The Impact

AbstractIntroduction:Floods are the most common hazard to cause disasters and have led to extensive morbidity and mortality throughout the world. The impact of floods on the human community is related directly to the location and topography of the area, as well as human demographics and characteristics of the built environment.Objectives:The aim of this study is to identify the health impacts of disasters and the underlying causes of health impacts associated with floods. A conceptual framework is developed that may assist with the development of a rational and comprehensive approach to prevention, mitigation, and management.Methods:This study involved an extensive literature review that located >500 references, which were analyzed to identify common themes, findings, and expert views. The findings then were distilled into common themes.Results:The health impacts of floods are wide ranging, and depend on a number of factors. However, the health impacts of a particular flood are specific to the particular context. The immediate health impacts of floods include drowning, injuries, hypothermia, and animal bites. Health risks also are associated with the evacuation of patients, loss of health workers, and loss of health infrastructure including essential drugs and supplies. In the medium-term, infected wounds, complications of injury, poisoning, poor mental health, communicable diseases, and starvation are indirect effects of flooding. In the long-term, chronic disease, disability, poor mental health, and poverty-related diseases including malnutrition are the potential legacy.Conclusions:This article proposes a structured approach to the classification of the health impacts of floods and a conceptual framework that demonstrates the relationships between floods and the direct and indirect health consequences.

COVID-19 and the mental health of professionals in the health sector in the UAE: An analytical study

Avicenna ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 2021 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Chokri Kooli
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Health Workers ◽  
Research Question ◽  
Health Sector ◽  
Poor Mental Health ◽  
Psychological Services ◽  
Physical And Mental Health ◽  
Online Questionnaire ◽  
Preventive Actions ◽  
The Impact

As the Covid-19 pandemic persists, the public health interventions reported that many individuals during this pandemic situation experience different circumstances that lead to their poor mental health performance, such as isolation stress, anxiety, depression, anger, confusion, and unemployment. The aim of this study is to examine the existing literature in a comprehensive manner and to explore the impact of COVID-19 on the mental health of UAE health workers. This study also examined the psychological factors that influence workers’ mental health due to the pandemic of COVID-19. An online questionnaire was administered to answer the research question. The results proved that the pandemic has affected both physical and mental health of UAE health workers. Consequently, the adoption of preventive actions at the governmental, organizational, and individual levels is highly recommended. In this research, the implementation of effective communication and the application of adequate psychological services have been suggested. To this end, the role of policy makers to be involved in placing governmental initiatives that prevent the spread of the virus and protect the mental health of workers has been highlighted.

scholarly journals A Scoping Review of the Relationship between Running and Mental Health

2020 ◽  
Vol 17 (21) ◽  
pp. 8059
Author(s):  
Freya Oswald ◽  
Jennifer Campbell ◽  
Chloë Williamson ◽  
Justin Richards ◽  
Paul Kelly
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Quantitative Study ◽  
Scoping Review ◽  
Poor Mental Health ◽  
Health Impacts ◽  
Extensive Literature ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Exercise Addiction ◽  
Ovid Medline ◽  
The Relationship

Poor mental health contributes significantly to global morbidity. The evidence regarding physical benefits of running are well-established. However, the mental health impacts of running remain unclear. An overview of the relationship between running and mental health has not been published in the last 30 years. The purpose of this study was to review the literature on the relationship between running and mental health. Our scoping review used combinations of running terms (e.g., Run* and Jog*) and mental health terms (general and condition specific). Databases used were Ovid(Medline), Ovid(Embase), ProQuest and SportDiscus. Quantitative study types reporting on the relationships between running and mental health were included. Database searches identified 16,401 studies; 273 full-texts were analysed with 116 studies included. Overall, studies suggest that running bouts of variable lengths and intensities, and running interventions can improve mood and mental health and that the type of running can lead to differential effects. However, lack of controls and diversity in participant demographics are limitations that need to be addressed. Cross-sectional evidence shows not only a range of associations with mental health but also some associations with adverse mental health (such as exercise addiction). This review identified extensive literature on the relationship between running and mental health.

scholarly journals Postpartum mood among universally screened high and low socioeconomic status patients during COVID-19 social restrictions in New York City.

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael E. Silverman ◽  
Laudy Burgos ◽  
Zoe I. Rodriguez ◽  
Omara Afzal ◽  
Alyssa Kalishman ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Socioeconomic Status ◽  
Low Socioeconomic Status ◽  
Urban Poverty ◽  
Maternal Mental Health ◽  
Depression Scale ◽  
Poor Mental Health ◽  
Postpartum Women ◽  
The Impact

Abstract Introduction: The mental health effects of the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and the Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic on postpartum women is of increasing concern among mental health practitioners. To date only a handful of studies have explored the impact of the pandemic during pregnancy and none have attempted explore the impact of pandemic related social restrictions on postpartum mood.Methods: Postpartum patients appearing to the Mount Sinai Health System for their postpartum appointment between January 2, 2020 and June 30, 2020, corresponding to before and during pandemic imposed social restrictions, were screened for mood symptomatology using the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS). Each patient’s socioeconomic status (SES; high/low) was determined by their location of clinical service.Results: 516 postpartum patients were screened. While no differences in EPDS scores were observed by SES prior to social restrictions (t(262)=0.23, p=.82), a significant change in mood symptomatology was observed following COVID-19 restrictions (t(288)=2.32, p<.02), with patients living in lower SES reporting significantly less depression symptomatology (t(321)=4.07, p<.01). There was no change in symptomatology among patients of higher SES (t(191)=0.59, p=0.56).Discussion: Postpartum depression, the most common complication of childbearing, is a prevalent, cross-cultural disorder with significant morbidity. The observed differences in postpartum mood between patients of different SES in the context of temporarily imposed COVID-19 related social restrictions present a unique opportunity to better understand the specific health and social support needs of postpartum patients living in urban poverty. Given that maternal mental illness has negative long-term developmental implications for the offspring, and that poor mental health reinforces the poverty cycle, future policy specifically directed towards supporting urban postpartum women living in low-SES by ameliorating some of the early maternal mental health burdens associated with balancing employment-family-childcare demands may assist in interrupting this cycle while simultaneously improving the long-term outcomes of their offspring.

scholarly journals Queensland Family Cohort: a study protocol

BMJ Open ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (6) ◽  
pp. e044463
Author(s):  
Danielle Borg ◽  
Kym Rae ◽  
Corrine Fiveash ◽  
Johanna Schagen ◽  
Janelle James-McAlpine ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Family Environment ◽  
Biological Samples ◽  
Local Governments ◽  
Financial Stability ◽  
Federal State ◽  
Physical And Mental Health ◽  
Future Health ◽  
The Impact

IntroductionThe perinatal–postnatal family environment is associated with childhood outcomes including impacts on physical and mental health and educational attainment. Family longitudinal cohort studies collect in-depth data that can capture the influence of an era on family lifestyle, mental health, chronic disease, education and financial stability to enable identification of gaps in society and provide the evidence for changes in government in policy and practice.Methods and analysisThe Queensland Family Cohort (QFC) is a prospective, observational, longitudinal study that will recruit 12 500 pregnant families across the state of Queensland (QLD), Australia and intends to follow-up families and children for three decades. To identify the immediate and future health requirements of the QLD population; pregnant participants and their partners will be enrolled by 24 weeks of gestation and followed up at 24, 28 and 36 weeks of gestation, during delivery, on-ward, 6 weeks postpartum and then every 12 months where questionnaires, biological samples and physical measures will be collected from parents and children. To examine the impact of environmental exposures on families, data related to environmental pollution, household pollution and employment exposures will be linked to pregnancy and health outcomes. Where feasible, data linkage of state and federal government databases will be used to follow the participants long term. Biological samples will be stored long term for future discoveries of biomarkers of health and disease.Ethics and disseminationEthical approval has been obtained from the Mater Research Ethics (HREC/16/MHS/113). Findings will be reported to (1) QFC participating families; (2) funding bodies, institutes and hospitals supporting the QFC; (3) federal, state and local governments to inform policy; (4) presented at local, national and international conferences and (5) disseminated by peer-review publications.

scholarly journals Health risk assessment and countermeasure analysis of the elderly population exposed to PM2.5 microenvironment

Work ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 1-11
Author(s):  
Yan Xu ◽  
Wantian Cui
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Health Risk ◽  
Elderly Population ◽  
Mental Health Problems ◽  
Negative Impact ◽  
The Elderly ◽  
Exposure Concentration ◽  
Physical Diseases ◽  
The Impact

BACKGROUND: China’s atmospheric PM2.5 pollution is serious, and PM2.5 exerts a negative impact on the human respiratory system, cardiovascular, and mental health, and even more serious health risk for the elderly with weak immunity. OBJECTIVE: This work aims to analyse the impacts of PM2.5 microenvironment exposure on the health of the elderly and provide corresponding countermeasures. METHODS: The survey subjects are 118 retired elderly people in the community. PM2.5 exposure concentrations are monitored in summer (June 10 ∼ July 10, 2019) and winter (November 25 ∼ December 25, 2019). RESULTS: The exposure concentration in winter is higher than that in summer, with statistical difference (P <  0.05). Under the impact of PM2.5 microenvironment exposure, smoking in the elderly can increase the concentration of PM2.5, and long-term exposure to PM2.5 in the elderly can cause mental health problems. CONCLUSION: Long-term exposure of the elderly to the PM2.5 microenvironment leads to physical diseases and even psychological problems, which requires attention.

Parental alienation: the impact on men’s mental health

2015 ◽  
Vol 29 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Leo Sher
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Separation Anxiety ◽  
Self Esteem ◽  
Long Term Effects ◽  
Parental Alienation ◽  
Adult Men ◽  
Self Confidence ◽  
High Conflict ◽  
The Impact

Abstract Parental alienation is defined as a mental state in which a child, usually one whose parents are engaged in a high-conflict separation or divorce, allies himself strongly with one parent (the preferred parent) and rejects a relationship with the other parent (the alienated parent) without legitimate justification. Parental alienation may affect men’s mental health: a) parental alienation negatively influences mental health of male children and adolescents who are victims of parental alienation. Alienated children/adolescents display guilt, sadness, and depressed mood; low self-esteem and lack of self-confidence; distress and frustration; lack of impulse control, substance abuse and delinquent behavior; separation anxiety, fears and phobias; hypochondria and increased tendency to develop psychosomatic illness; suicidal ideation and suicide attempt; sleep and eating disorders; educational problems; enuresis and encopresis; b) parental alienation negatively affects the mental health of adult men who were victims of parental alienation when they were children and/or adolescents. Long-term effects of parental alienation include low self-esteem, depression, drug/alcohol abuse, lack of trust, alienation from own children, divorce, problems with identity and not having a sense of belonging or roots, choosing not to have children to avoid being rejected by them, low achievement, anger and bitterness over the time lost with the alienated parent; c) parental alienation negatively influences mental health of men who are alienated from their children. Fathers who have lost some or all contact with their children for months or years following separation or divorce may be depressed and suicidal.

scholarly journals Aging, Health, and Quality of Life for Older People Living With HIV in Sub-Saharan Africa: A Review and Proposed Conceptual Framework

2017 ◽  
Vol 31 (1) ◽  
pp. 109-138 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark J. Siedner
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Conceptual Framework ◽  
Care Delivery ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
People Living With Hiv ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
Living With Hiv ◽  
The Impact

Objective: The number of people living with HIV (PLWH) over 50 years old in sub-Saharan Africa is predicted to triple in the coming decades, to 6-10 million. Yet, there is a paucity of data on the determinants of health and quality of life for older PLWH in the region. Methods: A review was undertaken to describe the impact of HIV infection on aging for PLWH in sub-Saharan Africa. Results: We (a) summarize the pathophysiology and epidemiology of aging with HIV in resource-rich settings, and (b) describe how these relationships might differ in sub-Saharan Africa, (c) propose a conceptual framework to describe determinants of quality of life for older PLWH, and (d) suggest priority research areas needed to ensure long-term gains in quality of life for PLWH in the region. Conclusions: Differences in traditional, lifestyle, and envirnomental risk factors, as well as unique features of HIV epidemiology and care delivery appear to substantially alter the contribution of HIV to aging in sub-Saharan Africa. Meanwhile, unique preferences and conceptualizations of quality of life will require novel measurement and intervention tools. An expanded research and public health infrastructure is needed to ensure that gains made in HIV prevention and treamtent are translated into long-term benefits in this region.

scholarly journals Using Record Linkage to Examine the Impact of Poor Mental Health on Breast Screening Uptake

2018 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Emma Ross ◽  
Dermot O'Reilly
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Breast Screening ◽  
Census Data ◽  
Breast Cancer Mortality ◽  
Poor Mental Health ◽  
Breast Screening Programme ◽  
Screening Uptake ◽  
National Breast ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Prescribing Information

BackgroundThe UK National Breast Screening Programme is estimated to reduce breast cancer mortality by 20%. To maximise the benefits of the programme, we first need to understand the underlying factors contributing to variations in screening uptake. One potentially significant factor which may contribute to these gradients in screening uptake is poor mental health. ObjectivesThe objectives of this study were to examine the impact of poor mental health on breast screening uptake, and whether this explained any of the previously observed socio-demographic gradients in screening uptake. MethodsBreast screening records were obtained from the National Breast Screening System (NBSS) and were subsequently linked to 2011 Census data within the Northern Ireland Longitudinal Study (NILS). The NILS encompasses 28\% of Census data. This was then linked to psychotropic prescribing information from the Enhanced Prescribing Database (EPD), to produce a de-identified research dataset containing 57,328 women. FindingsWomen with self-reported poor mental health were over 20% less likely to attend screening compared to their counterparts who didn't have poor mental health. Using psychotropic prescribing information as a proxy for the presence of mental illness yielded similar results, with those taking anxiolytics, antipsychotics or hypnotics in the three months before screening invitation significantly less likely to attend than those who were not. ConclusionWomen with poor mental health were significantly less likely to attend breast screening. However, poor mental health did not explain any of the previously determined socio-demographic gradients in screening uptake.

scholarly journals In their own words: Understanding Australians’ priority concerns regarding mental health in the context of COVID-19

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marlee Bower ◽  
Amarina Donohoe-Bales ◽  
Scarlett Smout ◽  
Andre Quan Ho Nguyen ◽  
Julia Boyle ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Lived Experience ◽  
Financial Stability ◽  
Community Sample ◽  
Poor Mental Health ◽  
Community Members ◽  
Good Mental Health ◽  
Australian Community ◽  
Seeking Help ◽  
The Impact

The COVID-19 pandemic, as well as the recent bushfires and flash floods, have resulted in significant and unprecedented mental health impacts in Australia. Despite the known impacts, there is a paucity of research directly asking Australian community members about their mental health experiences and what they perceive to be the most important mental health issues in the context of the pandemic. This study utilises qualitative data from Alone Together, a longitudinal mixed-methods study investigating the effects of COVID-19 on mental health in an Australian community sample (N = 2,056). Of the 1,350 participants who completed the first follow-up survey, a total of 1,037 participants, who ranged in sex (69.9% female), age (M = 40-49 years), state/territory of residence, and socioeconomic status, shared responses to two open-ended questions regarding the most important issues for mental health in Australia and the impact of COVID-19 on their individual mental health. Responses were analysed using thematic analysis. Participants described COVID-19 as primarily impacting their mental health through the disruption it posed to their social world and financial stability. A key concern for participants who reported having poor mental health was the existence of multiple competing barriers to accessing good mental health care. According to participant responses, the pandemic had pressurized an already over-burdened mental health service system, leaving many without timely, appropriate support. Further absent or stigmatising rhetoric around mental health, at both a political and community level, also prevented participants from seeking help. Insights gained from the present research provide opportunities for policymakers and health practitioners to draw on the expertise of Australians’ lived experience and address priority issues through targeted policy planning. This could ultimately support a more responsive, integrated and effective mental health system, during and beyond the COVID-19 pandemic.

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