scholarly journals Comparative Study of Heavy Metals in Soil and Selected Medicinal Plants

2013 ◽  
Vol 2013 ◽  
pp. 1-5 ◽  
Author(s):  
Afzal Shah ◽  
Abdul Niaz ◽  
Nazeef Ullah ◽  
Ali Rehman ◽  
Muhammad Akhlaq ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Heavy Metals ◽  
Health Care ◽  
Medicinal Plants ◽  
Health Care Professionals ◽  
Concentration Level ◽  
Peganum Harmala ◽  
The Public ◽  
Flame Atomic Absorption ◽  
Flame Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometer ◽  
Capparis Spinosa

Essential and nonessential heavy metals like iron (Fe), nickel (Ni), manganese (Mn), zinc (Zn), copper (Cu), cadmium (Cd), chromium (Cr), and lead (Pb) were analyzed in four selected medicinal plants such asCapparis spinosa, Peganum harmala, Rhazya stricta,andTamarix articulataby flame atomic absorption spectrophotometer (FAAS). These medicinal plants are extensively used as traditional medicine for treatment of various ailments by local physicians in the area from where these plants were collected. The concentration level of heavy metals in the selected plants was found in the decreasing order as Fe > Zn > Mn > Cu > Ni > Cr > Cd > Pb. The results revealed that the selected medicinal plants accumulate these elements at different concentrations. Monitoring such medicinal plants for heavy metals concentration is of great importance for physicians, health planners, health care professionals, and policymakers in protecting the public from the adverse effects of these heavy metals.

A Dutchman in London: reflections of a hospital chief executive from the Netherlands in the NHS

BMJ Leader ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. leader-2021-000509
Author(s):  
Marcel Levi
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
The Netherlands ◽  
Health Care Professionals ◽  
Chief Executive ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
British Society ◽  
The Public ◽  
Interesting Insight ◽  
Clinical Point ◽  
High Level

BackgroundThe NHS is a fascinating health care system and is enjoying a lot of support from all layers of British society. However, it is clear that the system has excellent features but also areas that can be improved.Story of selfA number of years as a chief executive in one of London’s largest hospital has brought me a wealth of impressions, experiences, and understanding about working in the NHS. Contrasting those to my previous experience as chief executive in Amsterdam (The Netherlands) provides an interesting insight.ObservationsVery strong features of the NHS are the high level of health care professionals, the focus on quality and safety, and involvement of patients and the public. However, the NHS can significantly improve by addressing the lack of clinical professionals in the lead, curtailing ever increasing bureaucracy, and reducing its peculiar preference for outsourcing even the most crucial activities to private parties. The frequent inability to swiftly and successfully complete goal-directed negotiations as well as the large but from a clinical point of view irrelevant private sector are areas of sustained bewilderment. Lastly, the drive for innovation and transformation as well as the level of biomedical research in the NHS and supported by the British universities is fascinating and outstanding.

scholarly journals Differences in Perceptions of Health Information Between the Public and Health Care Professionals: Nonprobability Sampling Questionnaire Survey (Preprint)

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anat Gesser-Edelsburg ◽  
Nour Abed Elhadi Shahbari ◽  
Ricky Cohen ◽  
Adva Mir Halavi ◽  
Rana Hijazi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Social Networks ◽  
New Media ◽  
Health Information ◽  
Health Care Professionals ◽  
Questionnaire Survey ◽  
General Public ◽  
The Public ◽  
Search For Information

BACKGROUND In the new media age, the public searches for information both online and offline. Many studies have examined how the public reads and understands this information but very few investigate how people assess the quality of journalistic articles as opposed to information generated by health professionals. OBJECTIVE The aim of this study was to examine how public health care workers (HCWs) and the general public seek, read, and understand health information and to investigate the criteria by which they assess the quality of journalistic articles. METHODS A Web-based nonprobability sampling questionnaire survey was distributed to Israeli HCWs and members of the public via 3 social media outlets: Facebook, WhatsApp, and Instagram. A total of 979 respondents participated in the online survey via the Qualtrics XM platform. RESULTS The findings indicate that HCWs find academic articles more reliable than do members of the general public (44.4% and 28.4%, respectively, P<.001). Within each group, we found disparities between the places where people search for information and the sources they consider reliable. HCWs consider academic articles to be the most reliable, yet these are not their main information sources. In addition, HCWs often use social networks to search for information (18.2%, P<.001), despite considering them very unreliable (only 2.2% found them reliable, P<.001). The same paradoxes were found among the general public, where 37.5% (P<.001) seek information via social networks yet only 8.4% (P<.001) find them reliable. Out of 6 quality criteria, 4 were important both to HCWs and to the general public. CONCLUSIONS In the new media age where information is accessible to all, the quality of articles about health is of critical importance. It is important that the criteria examined in this research become the norm in health writing for all stakeholders who write about health, whether they are professional journalists or citizen journalists writing in the new media.

Appropriate Technology in Primary Health Care: Evolution and Meaning of WHO's Concept

1989 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 103-109 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Cohen
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Health Care Professionals ◽  
Appropriate Technology ◽  
World Health ◽  
Health Maintenance ◽  
The Public ◽  
Primary Health ◽  
Careful Scrutiny ◽  
The World ◽  
Definition Of

This article examines the meaning of appropriate technology in the World Health Organization's comprehensive definition of primary care. The author concludes that broad-ranging aspects of health maintenance, such as public health, personal lifestyles, and scientific research, as well as traditional diagnostic and therapeutic practices, need to be subjected to clear and careful scrutiny. It is vital that the results of these technology assessment studies be disseminated as widely as possible to both health care professionals and the public.

scholarly journals The Dimensions of Tokenism in Patient and Family Engagement: A Concept Analysis of the Literature

2020 ◽  
Vol 7 (6) ◽  
pp. 1610-1620
Author(s):  
Umair Majid
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Health Care Professionals ◽  
International Association ◽  
Concept Analysis ◽  
Service Planning ◽  
Decision Makers ◽  
Power Relationships ◽  
Health Service Planning ◽  
The Public ◽  
Professional Goals

Patient engagement (PE) has become embedded in discussions about health service planning and quality improvement, and the goal has been to find ways to observe the potential beneficial outcomes associated with PE. Patients and health care professionals use various terms to depict PE, for example, partnership and collaboration. Similarly, tokenism is consistently used to describe PE that has gone wrong. There is a lack of clarity, however, on the meanings and implications of tokenism on PE activities. The objective of this concept analysis was to examine the peer-reviewed and gray literature that has discussed tokenism to identify how we currently understand and use the concept. This review discusses 4 dimensions of tokenism: unequal power, limited impact, ulterior motives, and opposite of meaningful PE. These dimensions explicate the different components, meanings, and implications of tokenism in PE practice. The findings of this review emphasize how tokenism is primarily perceived as negative by supporters of PE, but this attribution depends on patients’ preferences for engagement. In addition, this review compares the dimensions of tokenism with the levels of engagement in the International Association of the Public Participation spectrum. This review suggests that there are 2 gradations of tokenism; while tokenism represents unequal power relationships in favor of health care professionals, this may lead to either limited or no meaningful change or change that is primarily aligned with the personal and professional goals of clinicians, managers, and decision-makers.

Spatial Distribution and Sources of Heavy Metal Pollution of Surface Dust in Taiyuan, China

2015 ◽  
Vol 737 ◽  
pp. 503-507
Author(s):  
Yong Zhang ◽  
Jing Xia Chen ◽  
Jun Qiu Zhang ◽  
Ying Te Wang
Keyword(s):  
Heavy Metals ◽  
Industrial Area ◽  
Shanxi Province ◽  
Surface Dust ◽  
Flame Atomic Absorption ◽  
Flame Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometer ◽  
Development Area ◽  
High Concentrations ◽  
Functional Areas ◽  
Different Levels

The concentrations of heavy metals (Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb and Mn) were determined using flame atomic absorption spectrophotometer after digested with four acids. The samples were collected from seven kinds of different functional areas in Taiyuan, China. The concentration of the heavy metals were found in Taiyuan is higher than the soil background values in Shanxi Province, which appeared different levels of accumulation. High concentrations of Cr, Ni, Mn were found in the samples from industrial area and Cu was noted from economic development area. The correlational analysis and principle component analysis showed that the heavy metals of surface dust in Taiyuan were mainly influenced by industrial activities.

scholarly journals Bioaccumulation of Some Heavy Metals in Ayre Fish (Sperata Aor Hamilton, 1822), Sediment and Water of Dhaleshwari River in Dry Season

2012 ◽  
Vol 40 (1) ◽  
pp. 147-153 ◽  
Author(s):  
Abu Tweb Abu Ahmed ◽  
Suman Mandal ◽  
Didarul Alam Chowdhury ◽  
Abu Rayhan M Tareq ◽  
M Mizanur Rahman
Keyword(s):  
Heavy Metals ◽  
Nitric Acid ◽  
Atomic Absorption ◽  
Water Samples ◽  
Dry Weight ◽  
Acid Digestion ◽  
Fish Organs ◽  
Flame Atomic Absorption ◽  
Flame Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometer ◽  
Nitric Acid Digestion

The present study was carried out to determine the level of bioaccumulation of some heavy metals in a freshwater fish Ayre (Sperata aor Hamilton, 1822) collected from Rajfulbaria (23°48?56.36? N and 90°14?54.04? E) of  Dhaleshwari river. Four heavy metals, namely chromium (Cr), copper (Cu), lead (Pb), and cadmium (Cd) were selected for this study. Metal concentrations were   determined by Flame Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometer after nitric acid  digestion of samples. The concentrations of accumulated heavy metals in fish were  also compared with the concentrations of metals in the sediments and waters of  that river. The level of bioaccumulations in different organs of S. aor were determined separately and compared among them. Average bioaccumulation levels  in S. aor were Cr: 1.458 mg/kg, Cu: 31.500 mg/kg, Pb: 18.776 mg/kg and Cd:  0.487 mg/kg of dry weight. The levels of heavy metals in sediments were Cr: 27.393 mg/kg, Cu: 37.450 mg/kg, Pb: 15.797 mg/kg and Cd: 2.083 mg/kg, and in water were Cr: 0.130 ppm, Cu: 0.000 ppm, Pb: 0.201 ppm and Cd: 0.001 ppm.The bioaccumulation of these four heavy metals in fish organs, sediment and  water samples were also compared with FAO approved standard levels and other  related studies, and found that the levels of bioaccumulation in the Dhaleshwari river exceeded all the standard levels. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3329/bjz.v40i1.12904 Bangladesh J. Zool. 40(1):147-153, 2012

scholarly journals Non-carcinogenic and Carcinogenic Risk Assessment of Heavy Metals Exposure to Indoor Dust in Kathmandu, Nepal

2021 ◽  
Vol 42 (1) ◽  
pp. 16-28
Author(s):  
Sulakshya Bhandari ◽  
Sudarshana Shakya ◽  
Bijaya Adhikari ◽  
Mahesh Shrestha ◽  
Bindra Devi Shakya ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Heavy Metals ◽  
Land Use ◽  
Hazard Quotient ◽  
Heavy Traffic ◽  
Hazard Index ◽  
Carcinogenic Risk ◽  
Indoor Dust ◽  
Metal Exposure ◽  
Flame Atomic Absorption ◽  
Flame Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometer

The present study was carried out to assess the contamination of heavy metals in indoor household dust of Kathmandu, Nepal, and its adverse effect on the indoor environment and human health. The concentrations of four heavy metals (Cd, Cr, Ni, and Pb) in a total of ninety-three (N = 93) indoor dust samples collected from four different types of land use zones viz., commercial, heavy traffic, residential, and control (undisturbed) of Kathmandu were determined by the flame atomic absorption spectrophotometer (FAAS). The mean concentrations of Cd, Cr, Ni, and Pb in indoor dust samples over the study zones were 0.89, 158.1, 113.3, and 65.3 mg kg−1, respectively. The land use zones showed the various degree of metal contamination in indoor dust ranging from moderate to considerable level. PLI showed a high pollution load in the monitored locations, indicating an alarming condition and the urgent need for immediate remedial actions. Hazard quotient (HQ) values indicated ingestion as the major pathway of indoor dust heavy metal exposure to children while the inhalation pathway remained dominant in adults. Hazard index (HI) values showed no probable non-carcinogenic risk of the heavy metals present in the indoor dust of Kathmandu. For carcinogenic health risk, TLCR values were found within the acceptable safe limit indicating no cancer risk for both the receptor groups.

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