Understanding of palliative care among members of the public.

2019 ◽  
Vol 37 (31_suppl) ◽  
pp. 71-71
Author(s):  
Joanne Liu Wong ◽  
Christopher Blake ◽  
Nadia Swami ◽  
Ashley Pope ◽  
Breffni Hannon ◽  
...  

71 Background: The World Health Organization (WHO) defines palliative care (PC) as an approach that improves the quality of life of patients and their families facing life-threatening illness. However, the public may be unaware of this definition. We assessed the Canadian public’s knowledge and attitudes toward PC before and after being provided the WHO definition. Methods: We engaged a health research firm to distribute a cross-sectional survey to members of the Canadian public. Eligible participants were >18 years of age, could comprehend English or French, and were currently residing in Canada. We assessed participants’ knowledge of and attitudes towards PC before and after reading the WHO definition of PC. Results were analyzed using the Wilcoxon Signed-Rank test. Results: Of 1518 participants (52% female), 45% (676/1518) stated they knew what PC was and could explain it, 32% (488/1518) knew about PC but could not explain it, 13% (198/1518) had heard of PC but did not know what it was, and 10% (156/1518) had never heard of PC. Of those who had heard of PC, 58% (784/1362) agreed PC is the last resort when other treatments have failed, 64% (877/1362) agreed PC means being close to death, and 67% (914/1362) believed PC meant being at “the stage that you can no longer take care of yourself”. Before reading the WHO definition, 56% (774/1362) agreed/strongly agreed that referral to PC would make them feel afraid; after reading the definition, this percentage was reduced to 41%, and degree of fearfulness was reduced in 46% (p<0.0001). Fifty-nine percent (898/1518) stated they did not know, prior to reading the WHO definition, that PC could be involved early in the course of illness, and 45% did not know PC could be provided together with other treatments aimed at prolonging life. Eighty-nine percent (1344/1518) felt the PC definition helped them to better understand what PC is, and 91% believed that Canadians should be made aware PC can be included early in the course of a patient’s illness. Conclusions: More than half of respondents had limited knowledge of PC and believed it was synonymous with end-of-life care. Provision of the WHO definition improved understanding and allayed fears of PC. Public educational initiatives may improve understanding and increase acceptance of PC.

2020 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sammina Mahmood ◽  
Tariq Hussain ◽  
Faiq Mahmood ◽  
Mehmood Ahmad ◽  
Arfa Majeed ◽  
...  

The World Health Organization has acknowledged coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) disease as a pandemic. Efforts are being made all over the world to raise awareness to prevent the spread of the disease. The goal of this study was to assess the attitude, perception, and knowledge of Pakistani people toward COVID-19 disease. We conducted a cross-sectional survey in which a questionnaire of 17 questions was transformed online on Google forms and was sent to random individuals online. A total of 1,000 questionnaires from individuals throughout Pakistan were evaluated. The results revealed that 42.9% of the participants knew about COVID-19 through social media, the largest source of information. Most of the participants (48.3%) started working from home amid the lockdown; 39.9% of the participants reported that they wash their hands every hour, and 56.9% participants are using a surgical mask. About thermal scanners, 30.5% of the people answered they may be effective, and 46.0% of the people think COVID-19 is a bioweapon; 59% of the participants think everyone is susceptible, whereas 83.9% of the people recognize fever as a primary symptom; 65.2% of the people are practicing social distancing, whereas 85.1% of the people think social gatherings causes spread of the disease. In general, participants had a good knowledge about the disease and a positive attitude toward protective measures. The effective measures are being taken by the government and the public; still, there remains a need for further awareness campaigns and knowledge of safe interventions to combat the spread of disease.


Author(s):  
I Ketut Widana

The working practice of the engineering students is part of the learning process that is irreducible and indispensable. The composition of  lecturing between theoretical and practical one is 40% to 60%. With this condition, the students spend more time at the laboratory. Generally, the students perform in the laboratory work by standing position. The design of research is observational cross-sectional. The method applied is observation, interview and measuring. The subjects of research are practicing students amounting to 21 students. Referring to the analysis of statistical test or Wilcoxon signed ranks test, the difference of effect of work position is significant, namely p < 0.05 towards musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) before and after working. The quantity of the average complaint after working is score 44.62 ± 9.47. The result of Wilcoxon signed rank test shows that there is significant different effects of standing work position, namely p < 0.05 towards fatigue generally before and after working. The degree of the working pulse is on the average of 110.78  ± 17.80 bpm (beats per minutes) which can be categorized into the medium workload. Using paired t-test, the result is p < 0.05.


2019 ◽  
Vol 26 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
John Edjophe Arute ◽  
Valentine Uche Odili

Background: The world health organization (WHO) estimates that every 45 seconds an African child dies of malaria while several others lay ill. Also, studies have shown that home-based management of malaria could improve prompt access to antimalarial medications for African children. Objective: This study aimed at assessing the home based management practices among care givers of children below five years in Delta State. Methods: This study was a descriptive cross-sectional survey used to assess the home based management practices of malaria in children under age five. 459 consenting Caregivers of children under five (6 to 59 months) were purposively selected from different churches during Sundays and Wednesdays midweek services through balloting from two communities in Central and North Senatorial Districts of Delta State (Oghara and Obiaruku). Prior to the commencement of the study, the caregivers were thoroughly counselled on the objectives of the study, and a pretested structured interviewer administered questionnaire was used for administration in English, Urhobo and Ukwuani languages. Results: The study revealed that 86.93% respondents have good knowledge of malaria, and 60% commenced treatment within 24hrs. It also showed that 58.4% preferred anti-malarial combination therapies with arthemether-lumefantrine combination accounting for 34.0% drug options. Drug sources for home based malaria management were mainly from Pharmacy 40.5%, Drug sellers such as chemist 55.1% while information sources on choice of therapy and dosage were mainly from chemist 32.7%; health personnel 25.7%; neighbours 7.5% and self-based on previous experience 36.6%. Conclusion: The study revealed very good knowledge of malaria and good management practices as well as good treatment seeking behaviours amongst the caregivers.


Author(s):  
E. K. Mgbe ◽  
C. G. Mgbe ◽  
S. N. Ezeofor ◽  
J. F. Etiki

Background: The world is experiencing a global corona virus (COVID-19) pandemic. As of 9th June 2020, over 7 million confirmed cases of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) and more than 400,000 deaths had been reported in more than 30 countries of the world according to World Health Organization. Aim: We aimed to assess the knowledge, attitudes, and vulnerability perception of Enugu state residents during the coronavirus outbreak in order to facilitate better health care outcomes. Methodology: A prospective Web-based cross-sectional survey was designed for this study which was conducted in March 2020 among Enugu state residents. The obtained data were coded, validated, and analyzed using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences SPSS software, version 24. Descriptive analysis was applied to calculate the frequencies and proportions and Chi-Square Test was also used. A preliminary phase was conducted to assess the validity and reliability of the questionnaire before its use.  Results: The study showed that significant number (99.6%) of the respondents had heard about Covid-19 and the most stated source of knowledge was social media (57.6%), followed by Newspaper and television shows (50.2%) while the least was from General Practitioner (GP) (8.9%). There was over 75% agreement with, and practice, of all known covid precautionary measures and less than 35% responses for wrong claims and practices about covid -19. Conclusion: The overall knowledge, attitude, and perception are high in Enugu state population although few still has background combined superstitious believes. Social media and internet are the highest used facility for acquisition of knowledge and information in Enugu, Nigeria.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter chew

Abstract Background: The World Health Organization (WHO) said the situation in India was a "devastating reminder" of what the coronavirus could do. India shifts from mass vaccine exporter to importer, worrying the world. Every country needs to vaccinate its citizens faster, vaccination can reduce viral load. This results in vaccination that can reduce transmission, preventing serious illness and death'. Therefore, Countries with higher levels of vaccination can prevent them from becoming "Second India".Preprint study, Vaccination Education App (1). [Peter Chew, 2021] shows that most people do not take the covid-19 vaccine because they question the safety and effectiveness of the vaccine. Therefore, it is important to create a simple formula for calculate the efficiency of the covid-19 vaccine. The purpose of creating this calculation formula is to allow the public to calculate the efficiency of the covid-19 vaccine by themselves, so that they can understand the effectiveness of the vaccine and decide to take the vaccine. This helps to get a high response to COVID vaccinationMethods: Use the Data publish at The New England JOURNAL of MEDICINE, Safety and Efficacy of the BNT162b2 mRNA Covid-19 Vaccine [Fernando P. Polack et all , 2020]. Calculate of Pfizer BioNTech’s COVID-19 vaccine efficiency by using normal formular and Peter Chew Formular , show that the same result are obtain, which is 95.0599 %. In addition, By using public news information, the public can use the Peter Chew formula to easily calculate Covid-19 vaccine efficacy. This is to ensure public can do the calculation themselves. A calculation of relative risk is also provided to provide more information to persuade the public to take the vaccine.Results: The efficiency of Pfizer BioNTech's COVID-19 vaccine for Malaysian medical worker calculated by using the Peter Chew formula is 95.0599 %. In addition, the calculation of Peter Chew's formula also shows that before the vaccination, about 12 medical staff were infected every day, but after the full vaccination, only about one medical worker was infected every two days. The calculation of relative risk can also make it easier for the public to know that people who are not vaccinated with Pfizer BioNTech's COVID-19 vaccine are 22 times more likely to be infected than people who are fully vaccinated. The above results can convince those who easily question the effectiveness of vaccination.Conclusions: Peter Chew Formular easy to calculate, and the data required for the Peter Chew Formular calculation easy to obtain from public news. This is to ensure that the public can calculate the efficacy of the vaccine by themselves. The information on the calculation can let public compare the average target group get infected every day before and after fully vaccination is also an advantage to let public know the effectiveness of vaccination. One of the advantage of Peter Chew formulator is that we can assume a high target population of vaccination with k = 100, such as the medical worker group When k = 100, the Peter Chew formular calculation becomes very simple. The Proof of Peter Chew Formular must also be shown.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jean C J Liu ◽  
Eddie M W Tong

BACKGROUND In a global pandemic, digital technology offers innovative methods to disseminate public health messages. As an example, the messenger app WhatsApp was adopted by both the World Health Organization and government agencies to provide updates on the coronavirus disease (COVID-19). During a time when rumors and excessive news threaten psychological well-being, these services allow for rapid transmission of information and may boost resilience. OBJECTIVE In this study, we sought to accomplish the following: (1) assess well-being during the pandemic; (2) replicate prior findings linking exposure to COVID-19 news with psychological distress; and (3) examine whether subscription to an official WhatsApp channel can mitigate this risk. METHODS Across 8 weeks of the COVID-19 outbreak (March 7 to April 21, 2020), we conducted a survey of 1145 adults in Singapore. As the primary outcome measure, participants completed the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale (DASS-21). As predictor variables, participants also answered questions pertaining to the following: (1) their exposure to COVID-19 news; (2) their use of the Singapore government’s WhatsApp channel; and (3) their demographics. RESULTS Within the sample, 7.9% of participants had severe or extremely severe symptoms on at least one DASS-21 subscale. Depression scores were associated with increased time spent receiving COVID-19 updates, whereas use of the official WhatsApp channel emerged as a protective factor (<i>b</i>=–0.07, <i>t</i>[863]=–2.04, <i>P</i>=.04). Similarly, increased anxiety scores were associated with increased exposure to both updates and rumors, but this risk was mitigated by trust in the government’s WhatsApp messages (<i>b</i>=–0.05, <i>t</i>[863]=–2.13, <i>P</i>=.03). Finally, although stress symptoms increased with the amount of time spent receiving updates, these symptoms were not significantly related to WhatsApp use. CONCLUSIONS Our findings suggest that messenger apps may be an effective medium for disseminating pandemic-related information, allowing official agencies to reach a broad sector of the population rapidly. In turn, this use may promote public well-being amid an “infodemic.” CLINICALTRIAL ClinicalTrials.gov NCT04305574; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT04305574


2019 ◽  
Vol 42 (3) ◽  
pp. 588-593
Author(s):  
S Menzies ◽  
S Daly ◽  
R O’Connor ◽  
A Kelly ◽  
M Fitzgerald ◽  
...  

Abstract Background There is little information on the effectiveness of introducing age restriction legislation alone to reduce the rate of sunbed usage by teenagers. Prior to the Public Health (Sunbed) Act of 2014 prohibiting the use of sunbeds in under 18-year-olds in Ireland we reported the rate of sunbed use at 7.5%. Objectives The aim of the study was to compare the rate of sunbed usage among Irish teenagers before and after the introduction of banning legislation to determine if it had the desired effect of reducing its rate of use. Methods In a cross-sectional survey, students from the same schools as in our previous study completed an anonymous, written questionnaire pertaining to sunbed usage. Results In total, 783 questionnaires, from 13 schools across Ireland, were completed. The rate of sunbed use in the current study was 7.2%, compared to 7.5% in the pre-ban study, (P = 0.76). A higher rate of sunbed use was observed in Dublin schools and female public students. Conclusion Our study suggests that legislation alone is ineffective at reducing sunbed usage in a teenage population. A multifaceted approach is required that includes enforcement of the legislation together with targeted public education and awareness campaigns using all aspects of the media.


Author(s):  
Krizzia Lambojon ◽  
Jie Chang ◽  
Amna Saeed ◽  
Khezar Hayat ◽  
Pengchao Li ◽  
...  

Background: Developing countries, such as the Philippines, started implementing policies to improve access to medicines, which is a vital step toward universal healthcare coverage. This study aimed to evaluate the prices, availability and affordability of prescribed medicines for diabetes, hypercholesterolemia and hypertension with the exemption of 12% value-added tax in the Philippines. Methods: The prices and availability of 50 medicines were collected in August 2019 from 36 public and 42 private medicine outlets in six regions of the Philippines, following a modified methodology developed by the World Health Organization and Health Action International. Availability is reported as the percentage of outlets in which the surveyed medicine was found at the time of visit. Medicine prices are expressed as median unit prices (MUPs) in Philippine Peso. Affordability is calculated based on the number of days’ wages required for the lowest-paid unskilled government worker to purchase a monthly treatment. Results: The mean availability of surveyed medicines was low in both public and private sectors, with 1.3% for originator brands (OBs) and 25.0% for lowest-priced generics (LPGs) in public outlets, and 34.7% and 35.4% in private outlets, respectively. The MUP of medicines were higher in private outlets, and OBs have higher unit price compared to the generic equivalents. Treatments with OBs were unaffordable, except for gliclazide, but the affordability of most LPGs is generally good. Conclusion: Access to medicines in both sectors was affected by low availability. High prices of OBs influenced the affordability of medicines even with tax exemption. A review of policies and regulations should be initiated for a better access to medicines in the Philippines.


2017 ◽  
Vol 50 (2) ◽  
pp. 193-211
Author(s):  
Kudzaishe Mangombe ◽  
Ishumael Kalule-Sabiti

SummaryMedical male circumcision has been recommended by the World Health Organization as part of a comprehensive approach to HIV prevention. Zimbabwe is one of the fourteen sub-Saharan countries that embarked on the Medical Male Circumcision (MMC) programme. However, the country has not yet met male circumcision targets. This paper examines the predictors of male circumcision in Zimbabwe. A cross-sectional survey was conducted on 784 men aged 15–35 years in Harare, Zimbabwe. Negative log-log logistic regression analysis was used to determine the predictors of male circumcision. The main predictors of circumcision were age, employment status, ever tested for HIV, approval of HIV testing prior to circumcision, knowledge about male circumcision and attitudes towards male circumcision. By and large, participants had good knowledge about male circumcision and viewed HIV prevention with a reasonably positive attitude. The identification of these predictors can be used to scale up the demand for male circumcision in Zimbabwe.


2004 ◽  
Vol 9 (4) ◽  
pp. 180-180
Author(s):  
Dwight E Moulin

In the developed world, approximately one in three individuals will be diagnosed with cancer and one-half of those will die of progressive disease (1). At least 75% of patients with cancer develop pain before death. It is therefore not surprising that pain is one of the most feared consequences of cancer for both patients and families (2). The good news is that cancer pain can be controlled with relatively simple means in more than 80% of cases based on guidelines from the World Health Organization (3). Mild pain can be treated with acetaminophen or nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (Step 1 of the analgesic ladder). Moderate pain requires the addition of a 'minor' opioid such as codeine (Step 2), and severe pain mandates the use of a major opioid analgesic such as morphine (Step 3). In this issue of Pain Research & Management, Gallagher et al (pages 188-194) highlight some of the barriers to adequate cancer pain management based on a cross-sectional survey of British Columbian physicians. The survey response rate of 69% attests to the validity of their findings.


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