Dismal performance in response to coronavirus: the problem no one wants to discuss – the NHS

2020 ◽  
Vol 81 (8) ◽  
pp. 1-3
Author(s):  
Anthony Bleetman
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Scientific Advice ◽  
Health Crisis ◽  
Public Health Crisis ◽  
Death Toll ◽  
The World ◽  
The Usa ◽  
The Uk

The UK death toll from COVID-19 is currently the fourth worst in the world behind the USA, Brazil and Mexico. Possible reasons include delays in lockdown, the provision of scientific advice to government and the decisions that government made based on the information they were given. When we review our performance and plan for the next public health crisis, we need to be brave enough to dare to challenge the NHS and its advisors.

scholarly journals Lessons earned and lessons learned: What should be done next to counter the COVID-19 infodemic?

European View ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 19 (2) ◽  
pp. 154-163
Author(s):  
Nad’a Kovalčíková ◽  
Ariane Tabatabai
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Lessons Learned ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Health Crisis ◽  
The Public ◽  
Public Health Crisis ◽  
Societal Challenges ◽  
The World ◽  
Information Manipulation ◽  
Novel Coronavirus

As governments and citizens around the world have struggled with the novel coronavirus, the information space has turned into a battleground. Authoritarian countries, including Russia, China and Iran, have spread disinformation on the causes of and responses to the pandemic. The over-abundance of information, also referred to as an ‘infodemic’, including manipulated information, has been both a cause and a result of the exacerbation of the public health crisis. It is further undermining trust in democratic institutions, the independent press, and facts and data, and exacerbating the rising tensions driven by economic, political and societal challenges. This article discusses the challenges democracies have faced and the measures they have adopted to counter information manipulation that impedes public health efforts. It draws seven lessons learned from the information war and offers a set of recommendations on tackling future infodemics related to public health.

scholarly journals Coronavirus Pandemic: a major public health crisis for the developed and developing world

2021 ◽  
Vol 15 (03) ◽  
pp. 366-369
Author(s):  
Rooh Ullah ◽  
Muhammad Suleman Rana ◽  
Mehmood Qadir ◽  
Muhammad Usman ◽  
Niaz Ahmed
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome ◽  
Viral Infection ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Global Public Health ◽  
Health Crisis ◽  
Public Health Crisis ◽  
The World ◽  
Novel Coronavirus ◽  
Day By Day

Pandemic of novel Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infections in China is now become global public health crisis. At present 87.64% of the world is infected by this deadly illness. The risk from this epidemic depends on the nature of the virus, including how well it transmits from person to person, and the complications resulting from this current illness. The novel coronavirus has killed thousands of people in China and other countries as well; its rate of mortality is increasing day by day. There is an urgent need to control the virus by developing vaccine or any other antiviral drugs to save the world from this deadly viral infection.

scholarly journals Rethinking Europe: the Lithuanian Perspective

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 113-119
Author(s):  
Violeta Motulaitė
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
European Union ◽  
Lisbon Treaty ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Health Crisis ◽  
Public Health Crisis ◽  
European Unity ◽  
The World ◽  
The Future ◽  
The Eu

The initiative of the Conference on the Future of Europe (CFE) stems out of the necessity to re-evaluate the European Union project after the Brexit, the wave of populism and nationalism and the changing geopolitical environment in the world, as well as to reflect upon the European unity ten years after the entry into force of the Lisbon Treaty. As mentioned in this Franco – German initiative, it was meant to address all issues at stake and guide the future of Europe with a view to turning the EU more united and sovereign. It should have focused on policies and it should have identified the main reforms to be implemented as a matter of priority in each block of policies, setting out the types of changes to be made. The current public health crisis has redefined the problems and priorities of the EU. Some issues have become less topical, some have remained relevant and some have emerged as high priorities only now.

Recognizing a Public Health Crisis

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-22
Author(s):  
Gordon Braxton
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Sexual Violence ◽  
Health Concern ◽  
Public Health Concern ◽  
Health Crisis ◽  
Public Health Crisis ◽  
Attitudes And Behaviors ◽  
The World ◽  
Key Concepts ◽  
Violent Men

There is an epidemic of violence in America, but boys are trained to sit on the sidelines. This chapter introduces the reader to key definitions, such as sexual violence, as well as key concepts, such as consent and rape culture. It provides the scope of the identified violence and situates sexual violence as a public health concern. The chapter further explains why boys and men should care about this violence even though they are trained to ignore it. Boys, after all, know survivors and are survivors themselves in many cases. Boys are also positioned to reach other boys who possess problematic attitudes and behaviors. All violent men were once boys learning the ways of the world. Taken altogether, this chapter inspires readers to hold overdue conversations with boys about how they can help.

A Study of Drugs and Substance Abuse among Adolescents of Slum Dwellers

2016 ◽  
Vol 3 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Dr. Mridula Sharma ◽  
Moni Chaudhary
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Substance Abuse ◽  
Substance Use ◽  
Substance Abusers ◽  
Slum Area ◽  
Health Crisis ◽  
Targeted Interventions ◽  
Public Health Crisis ◽  
Slum Dwellers ◽  
The World

Drugs and substance abuse and dependence has become a worldwide public health crisis. The abuse of drug is an international problem, which affects almost every country in the world, both developed and developing. The present study was carried out with the objective: To study the prevalence and patterns of drugs and substance abuse among adolescents, living in slum of Meerut. A survey was conducted on slum area of Nauchandi compound, Meerut District. Sample was collected from 110 boys of 12 to 16 years old. The survey was based on drug addiction habits. Results shows that 46.36 % adolescents of the slum area used substance like Gutkha, Tobacco, Smoking, Alcohol, Afeem, Ganja, Thinner and Marijuana. 54.91% admitted to using one time, 23.53% admitted rarely, 15.68% admitted occasionally and 5.88%   admitted that they have craving for drugs, so use frequently. The most common substances used were Gutkha 46.36%, tobacco 40.91%, smoking 37.27%, and alcohol 13.63%.  8.18% substance abusers used multiple substances. Synthetic narcotics and LSD were not used by any of the abusers. Our study revealed that prevalence of substance use among adolescents is high and cause significant problem in this population, therefore there is necessity of targeted interventions to reduce this huge burden.

scholarly journals Natural selection contributes to the myopia epidemic

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Erping Long ◽  
Jianzhi Zhang
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Natural Selection ◽  
Life Style ◽  
Antagonistic Pleiotropy ◽  
Uk Biobank ◽  
Health Crisis ◽  
Public Health Crisis ◽  
The Past ◽  
Life Style Changes ◽  
The Uk

Abstract The prevalence of myopia, or nearsightedness, has skyrocketed in the past few decades, creating a public health crisis that is commonly attributed to life-style changes. Here we report an overall increase in the frequencies of myopia-associated mutant alleles over 25 years among participants of the UK Biobank. Although myopia itself appears to be selected against, many of the mutant alleles are associated with reproductive benefits, suggesting that reproduction-related selection inadvertently contributes to the myopia epidemic. We estimate that, in the UK alone, natural selection adds more than 100,000 myopia cases per generation, and argue that antagonistic pleiotropy be broadly considered in explaining the spreads of apparently disadvantageous phenotypes in humans and beyond.

scholarly journals Introduction

Museum Worlds ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-6
Author(s):  
Paula Mota Santos ◽  
Hugo DeBlock
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Special Section ◽  
Present Form ◽  
American Anthropological Association ◽  
San Jose ◽  
Health Crisis ◽  
Daily Routines ◽  
Public Health Crisis ◽  
The World ◽  
The City

The articles for this special section of Museum Worlds first started to gain their present form as presentations in the panel “Voices Out of The Dark: Contemporary Museum-Like Practices and Culturalized Politics” during the 2018 Annual Meeting of the American Anthropological Association (AAA) in San José, California. Those were very different times from the ones in which this introduction is being rewritten. Now, in late July of 2020, the world has been living for several months with the full consequences of a major globalized public health crisis: the COVID-19 pandemic. The pandemic has disrupted and changed people’s lives in almost every aspect of their daily routines and actions. Also now, in late July of 2020, we have been living through times of increased calls for change: the Black Lives Matter movement has gained momentum and a global reach after the unlawful killing by a police officer of George Floyd this past May in the city of Minneapolis.

scholarly journals Media trust and infection mitigating behaviours during the COVID-19 pandemic in the USA

2020 ◽  
Vol 5 (10) ◽  
pp. e003323
Author(s):  
Erfei Zhao ◽  
Qiao Wu ◽  
Eileen M Crimmins ◽  
Jennifer A Ailshire
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Health Crisis ◽  
Behavioural Responses ◽  
Fox News ◽  
Public Health Crisis ◽  
The Usa ◽  
Risky Behaviours ◽  
Nationally Representative ◽  
The Difference ◽  
Health Messaging

IntroductionThe COVID-19 pandemic is an unprecedented public health crisis. It is becoming increasingly clear that people’s behavioural responses in the USA during this fast-changing pandemic are associated with their preferred media sources. The polarisation of US media has been reflected in politically motivated messaging around the coronavirus by some media outlets, such as Fox News. This resulted in different messaging around the risks of infection and behavioural changes necessary to mitigate that risk. This study determined if COVID-related behaviours differed according to trust in left-leaning or right-leaning media and how differences changed over the first several months of the pandemic.MethodsUsing the nationally representative Understanding America Study COVID-19 panel, we examine preventive and risky behaviours related to infection from COVID-19 over the period from 10 March to 9 June for people with trust in different media sources: one left-leaning, CNN and another right-leaning, Fox News. People’s media preferences are categorised into three groups: (1) those who trust CNN more than Fox News; (2) those who have equal or no preferences and (3) those who trust Fox News more than CNN.ResultsResults showed that compared with those who trust CNN more than Fox news, people who trust Fox News more than CNN engaged in fewer preventive behaviours and more risky behaviours related to COVID-19. Out of five preventive and five risky behaviours examined, people who trust Fox News more than CNN practised an average of 3.41 preventive behaviours and 1.25 risky behaviours, while those who trust CNN more than Fox News engaged in an average of 3.85 preventive and 0.94 risky behaviours, from late March to June. The difference between these two groups widened in the month of May (p≤0.01), even after controlling for access to professional information and overall diversity of information sources.ConclusionsOur findings indicate that behavioural responses were divided along media bias lines. In such a highly partisan environment, false information can be easily disseminated, and health messaging, which is one of the few effective ways to slowdown the spread of the virus in the absence of a vaccine, is being damaged by politically biased and economically focused narratives. During a public health crisis, media should reduce their partisan stance on health information, and the health messaging from neutral and professional sources based on scientific findings should be better promoted.

scholarly journals Postmarketing studies: can they provide a safety net for COVID-19 vaccines in the UK?

2020 ◽  
pp. bmjebm-2020-111507
Author(s):  
Sandeep Dhanda ◽  
Vicki Osborne ◽  
Elizabeth Lynn ◽  
Saad Shakir
Keyword(s):  
Vaccine Development ◽  
Clinical Trial Data ◽  
Safety Net ◽  
Global Public Health ◽  
Health Crisis ◽  
Beneficial Effects ◽  
Public Health Crisis ◽  
The World ◽  
Efficacious Vaccine ◽  
The Uk

In the current era of the COVID-19 pandemic, the world has never been more interested in the process of vaccine development. While researchers across the globe race to find an effective yet safe vaccine to protect populations from the newly emergent SARS-CoV-2 virus, more than one-third of the world has been subjected to either full or partial lockdown measures. With communities having felt the burden of prolonged isolation, finding a safe and efficacious vaccine will yield direct beneficial effects on protecting against COVID-19 morbidity and mortality and help relieve the psychological and economic load on communities living with COVID-19. There is hope that with the extraordinary efforts of scientists a vaccine will become available. However, given the global public health crisis, development of a COVID-19 vaccine will need to be fast tracked through the usual prelicensing development stages and introduced with limited clinical trial data compared with those vaccines that are developed conventionally over more than a decade. In this scenario, surveillance of the vaccine in the real world becomes even more paramount. This responsibility falls to observational researchers who can provide an essential safety net by continuing to monitor the effectiveness and safety of a COVID-19 vaccine after licensing. Postauthorisation observational studies for safety and effectiveness are complementary to prelaunch clinical trials and not a replacement. In this paper, we highlight the importance of postmarketing studies for future newly licensed COVID-19 vaccines and the key epidemiological considerations.

scholarly journals Firearm violence in the USA: a frank discussion on an American public health crisis—The Kansas City Firearm Violence Symposium

2019 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. e000359 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert D Winfield ◽  
Marie Crandall ◽  
Brian H Williams ◽  
Joseph Victor Sakran ◽  
Kathy Shorr ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Kansas City ◽  
Gun Violence ◽  
Diverse Population ◽  
Core Component ◽  
Health Crisis ◽  
Public Health Crisis ◽  
Firearm Violence ◽  
The Usa

Kansas City is a microcosm for USA. Although Kansas City shows a relatively diverse population, it is one that is segregated along the lines of race and income. This is an inequity that is common to all cities across the country. With this inequity comes unequal opportunity to survive and to thrive. Firearm violence is a core component of this societal inequity. In this article, we present the proceedings of the 2019 Kansas City Firearm Violence Symposium, where distinguished experts in trauma convened to share their experience, evidence and voices of gun violence—directly and indirectly. There were discussions on topics such as the human toll of gun violence, the role of structural violence in its perpetuation, the intersectional nature of race with both violence and medical care, and guidance on measures that could be taken to advocate for the reduction and elimination of gun violence. This was a symposium that started a country-wide conversation between academia, healthcare, survivors and the community on the most pressing public health crisis facing USA today.

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