School safety and emergency preparedness in Saudi Arabia: a call for effective action

Accidents and injuries are a growing global public health problem. Both accidents and injuries can happen anytime and anywhere. Children and school personnel might experience medical emergency situations because of injuries, complications of chronic health conditions, or unexpected major accidents that occur in schools. A safe learning environment is essential for students, and without it they are unable to focus on learning the skills needed for a successful education and future development. There are about 6 million children younger than 18 years living in the kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Regrettably, many accidental tragedies occurred during the few last years in schools in Saudi Arabia which caused many forms of injuries and death among children and school teachers. Unfortunately, most schools lack a health care professional to respond to school medical emergencies. It is essential to believe that there is a fundamental link between emergency preparedness and disaster response. Therefore, schools that are prepared for an emergency are more likely to be prepared for complex events such as major fire, injury related accidents and natural disaster. The quality of schools about safety management and emergency preparedness is far worrying in Saudi Arabia. Thus, there is a need in creating a ‘‘culture of safety’’ and realize that injuries prevention and safety promotion are everybody’s business. The time has come to develop effective injury prevention strategies and promote safety that can help reduce the impact of injuries on the health of the Saudi population, economy and health care system. The issue of school safety must be a major concern at all levels of government. Efforts should be made to increase the education of school personnel in the assessment and management of safety and life-threatening emergencies, particularly head injury, cardiac arrest, suffocation and fire events.

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COVID-19 Psychological Impact on Health Care Workers in Saudi Arabia

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health ◽

10.3390/ijerph18116076 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 18 (11) ◽

pp. 6076

Author(s):

Hasan S. Alamri ◽

Wesam F. Mousa ◽

Abdullah Algarni ◽

Shehata F. Megahid ◽

Ali Al Bshabshe ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Health Care ◽

Saudi Arabia ◽

Health Care Workers ◽

Psychological Impact ◽

Psychological Outcomes ◽

Cross Sectional Survey ◽

Online Questionnaire ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Care Workers ◽

The Impact

Objective: Little is known about the impact of Coronavirus (COVID-19) among the health care workers in Saudi Arabia. Therefore, the present study aimed to assess the psychological impact of COVID-19 among the health care workers. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted from May till mid-July among 389 health care workers from government and private hospitals in Saudi Arabia. Data was collected using a pre-structured online questionnaire that measured adverse psychological outcomes, including the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) scale and the Generalized Anxiety Disorder 7-item (GAD-7) scale. The Pearson chi-square test was used to assess the distribution of depression and anxiety among health care workers. Results: A high level of anxiety was recorded among the health care workers, and 69.3% of health care workers below the age of 40 were found to have depression. There was a significant increase in depression among staff with chronic health problems (72.1% vs. 61.9%; p = 0.048). High anxiety levels were detected among young staff compared to others (68.7% vs. 43.8%; p = 0.001). Moreover, 82.1% of the female staff were anxious, as compared to 55.6% of the males (p = 0.001). Conclusions: We found increased prevalence of adverse psychological outcomes among the health care workers in Saudi Arabia during the outbreak of COVID-19. Therefore, there is a need for proper screening and development of corresponding preventive measures to decrease the adverse psychological outcomes.

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COPD, Depression and COVID-19 Pandemic: A Harrowing, Demoralizing and Deleterious Triad

Clinical Medical Reviews and Reports ◽

10.31579/2690-8794/095 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 3 (8) ◽

pp. 01-06

Author(s):

Iqbal Akhtar Khan ◽

Hamza Iltaf Malik

Keyword(s):

Hospital Admissions ◽

Hospital Readmissions ◽

Public Health Problem ◽

Well Being ◽

Care Utilization ◽

Global Public Health ◽

Increased Risk ◽

Co Morbidity ◽

Pulmonary Manifestations ◽

The Impact

COPD is a highly incapacitating global public health problem, with pulmonary and extra-pulmonary manifestations and usually associated with significant concomitant chronic diseases. With enhanced understanding, it has extensively been reported as a complex, heterogeneous and dynamic disease affecting patients’ health beyond pulmones. Depression, with prevalence of 322 million people, is a major contributor to the overall global burden of disease. In various epidemiological and clinical studies, its prevalence among patients with COPD varies from 18% to 80%. This deadly duo leads to excessive health care utilization rates and costs including increased rates of exacerbation, sub-optimal adherence to prescribed medications, increased hospital admissions, longer hospital stays and increased hospital readmissions. Moreover, there is increased risk of suicidal ideation, suicidal attempts, and suicidal drug overdose. It is a pity that, in significant cases, the co-morbidity remains under-recognized and under-treated. The impact of prevailing COVID 19 pandemic, on the dual burden of COPD and depression, and possible remedial measures including “The 6 ways to boost one’s well-being-by Mental Heath UK, “The Living with the Times” toolkit--by WHO” and innovative add-ons like Dance Movement Therapy and Musical Engagement Therapy have been discussed.

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School Security and Safety for Students with Special Needs in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia: الأمن والسلامة المدرسية لطلاب ذوى الاحتياجات الخاصة فى المملكة العربية السعودية

Arab Journal of Sciences & Research Publishing - المجلة العربية للعلوم و نشر الأبحاث ◽

10.26389/ajsrp.ms15216 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 2 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Mohammed bin Nasser al-Maatiq Al-Shahrani

Keyword(s):

Saudi Arabia ◽

Special Needs ◽

School Safety ◽

Children With Disabilities ◽

School Security ◽

Special Educational Needs ◽

Negative Effects ◽

Students With Special Needs ◽

Regular School ◽

The Impact

The study aimed at evaluating the school safety and security which is necessary to protect students with special needs in Saudi Arabia. The analytical descriptive approach was used and study was divided into two main chapters: The first chapter deals with the conceptual framework by identifying the meaning of school security and safety, and identifying the special needs group. Then in the next chapter the researcher analyzed the current reality in Saudi society and diagnose it. The negative effects of not integrating special needs students in schools, and concluding with the most important recommendations and mechanisms to remedy these problems, and design a plan of action to implement the study and set a timetable for it. Results: Children with special needs face several problems, including psychological, educational or social, and the integration of this group into society in general and in schools is a complex issue. Integration is defined as providing opportunities for children with disabilities to become involved in the special education system as a means of emphasizing the principle of equality Opportunities in education and aims to integrate in general to meet the special educational needs of children with disabilities within the framework of the regular school and according to the methods and methods and methods of educational studies and supervised by the provision of a specialized educational system in addition to the cadres of education in the public school and many studies pointed to the impact Consolidation and support, including those rejected as a result of several positive and negative trends.

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(A226) Establishing a Framework for Synchronizing Critical Decision Making with Information Analysis during a Health/Medical Emergency

Prehospital and Disaster Medicine ◽

10.1017/s1049023x11002123 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 26 (S1) ◽

pp. s61-s61 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

J. Paturas ◽

J. Pelazza ◽

R. Smith

Keyword(s):

Decision Making ◽

Emergency Preparedness ◽

Disaster Response ◽

The United States ◽

Medical Emergency ◽

Incident Management ◽

Local Health ◽

Information Analysis ◽

Incident Command ◽

State And Local

BackgroundThe Yale New Haven Center for Emergency Preparedness and Disaster Response (YNH-CEPDR) has worked in the United States with state and local health and medical organizations to evaluate critical decision making activities and to develop decision making tools and protocols to enhance decision making in a time sensitive environment. YNH-CEPDR has also worked with international organizations and US federal agencies to support situational awareness activities in simulated and real world events.ObjectivesDuring this session YNH-CEPDR will share the best practices from recent events such as the H1N1 response and the Haiti Earthquake. Participants will be engaged in discussions regarding overall framework for successful information collection, analysis and dissemination to support decision making based on these experiences. This session will also incorporate concepts provided by the US National Incident Management System (NIMS) and the Incident Command System (ICS), specifically through the development of Situational Reports (SitReps), Incident Action Plans (IAP) and Job Action Sheets as methods to implement the framework and concepts discussed. Participants will be led through a series of scenario-based discussions to allow application of critical decision making factors to their organization. At the conclusion of the session, participants will be able to identify next steps for enhancing the synchronization of critical decision making and information analysis within their organizations.

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Evidence-Based Global Public Health

When People Come First ◽

10.23943/princeton/9780691157382.003.0004 ◽

2013 ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

Vincanne Adams

Keyword(s):

Public Health ◽

Health Care ◽

Global Health ◽

Experimental Research ◽

Evidence Based ◽

Global Public Health ◽

The Social ◽

Research Populations ◽

Based Medicine ◽

The Impact

This chapter examines the impact of “evidence-based medicine” (EBM) on global public health. An epistemic transformation in the field of global health is underway, and it argues that the impact of EBM has been twofold: (1) the creation of an experimental metric as a means of providing health care; and (2) a shift in the priorities of caregiving practices in public health such that “people [no longer] come first.” The production of experimental research populations in and through EBM helps constitute larger fiscal transformations in how we do global health. Notably, EBM has created a platform for the buying and selling of truth and reliability, abstracting clinical caregiving from the social relationships on which they depend.

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First report of Klebsiella quasipneumoniae harboring blaKPC-2 in Saudi Arabia

Antimicrobial Resistance and Infection Control ◽

10.1186/s13756-019-0653-9 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 8 (1) ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Sharif Hala ◽

Chakkiath Paul Antony ◽

Mohammed Alshehri ◽

Abdulhakeem O. Althaqafi ◽

Asim Alsaedi ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Public Health ◽

Saudi Arabia ◽

Tertiary Hospital ◽

Whole Genome ◽

Drug Resistant ◽

Global Public Health ◽

Gulf Region ◽

Carbapenem Resistant ◽

The Impact ◽

Klebsiella Spp

Abstract Background Nosocomial infections caused by multi-drug resistant Enterobacteriaceae are a global public health threat that ought to be promptly identified, reported, and addressed accurately. Many carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae-associated genes have been identified in Saudi Arabia but not the endemic Klebsiella pneumoniae carbapenemases (KPCs), which are encoded by blaKPC-type genes. KPCs are known for their exceptional spreading potential. Methods We collected n = 286 multi-drug resistant (MDR) Klebsiella spp. isolates as part of screening for resistant patterns from a tertiary hospital in Saudi Arabia between 2014 and 2018. Antimicrobial susceptibility testing was carried out using both VITEK II and the broth microdilution of all collected isolates. Detection of resistance-conferring genes was carried out using Illumina whole-genome shotgun sequencing and PacBio SMRT sequencing protocols. Results A Carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae (CRE) Klebsiella quasipneumoniae subsp. similipneumoniae strain was identified as a novel ST-3510 carrying a blaKPC-2 carbapenemase encoding gene. The isolate, designated as NGKPC-421, was obtained from shotgun Whole Genome Sequencing (WGS) surveillance of 286 MDR Klebsiella spp. clinical isolates. The NGKPC-421 isolate was collected from a septic patient in late 2017 and was initially misidentified as K. pneumoniae. The sequencing and assembly of the NGKPC-421 genome resulted in the identification of a putative ~ 39.4 kb IncX6 plasmid harboring a blaKPC-2 gene, flanked by transposable elements (ISKpn6-blaKPC-2–ISKpn27). Conclusion This is the first identification of a KPC-2-producing CRE in the Gulf region. The impact on this finding is of major concern to the public health in Saudi Arabia, considering that it is the religious epicenter with a continuous mass influx of pilgrims from across the world. Our study strongly highlights the importance of implementing rapid sequencing-based technologies in clinical microbiology for precise taxonomic classification and monitoring of antimicrobial resistance patterns.

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Needs assessment and impact of COVID-19 on pharmacy professionals in 31 commonwealth countries

Journal of Pharmaceutical Policy and Practice ◽

10.1186/s40545-020-00275-7 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 13 (1) ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Diane Ashiru-Oredope ◽

◽

Amy Hai Yan Chan ◽

Omotayo Olaoye ◽

Victoria Rutter ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Global Health ◽

Emergency Preparedness ◽

World Health ◽

Global Public Health ◽

Online Questionnaire ◽

Health Crisis ◽

Frequency Distributions ◽

The World ◽

Pandemic Response ◽

The Impact

Abstract Background The declaration of COVID-19 a pandemic by the World Health Organization on 11 March 2020 marked the beginning of a global health crisis of an unprecedented nature and scale. The approach taken by countries across the world varied widely, however, the delivery of frontline healthcare was consistently recognised as being central to the pandemic response. This study aimed to identify and explore the issues currently facing pharmacy teams across Commonwealth countries during the COVID-19 pandemic. The study also evaluates pharmacy professionals’ understanding of key knowledge areas from the COVID-19 webinar hosted by the Commonwealth Pharmacists’ Association (CPA). Method A quantitative survey-based approach was adopted, using a 32-item questionnaire developed from the literature on pharmacy and pandemic response. The survey was hosted on Survey Monkey and pilot tested. The final survey was disseminated by CPA member organisations. A 6-item online questionnaire was sent via email to all attendees of CPA's COVID-19 webinar. Descriptive statistics on frequency distributions and percentages were used to analyse the responses. Data were analysed using Microsoft® Excel (2010). Results There were 545 responses from pharmacy professionals across 31/54 Commonwealth countries in Africa, Asia, the Americas, Europe and the Pacific. Majority of the respondents reported being at least somewhat worried (90%) and more than 65% were very worried or extremely about the impact of COVID-19 on them personally and professionally. Nearly two-thirds of respondents stated finding it somewhat difficult or very difficult to work effectively during the pandemic. Challenges mostly faced by pharmacy professionals working remotely included; general anxiety about the impact of COVID-19 on their lives (12%), and difficulties in communicating with their co-workers (12%). Most pharmacy professionals had not previously been actively involved in a global health emergency (82%) nor obtained training on global/public health emergency preparedness (62%). Between 45 and 97% of the COVID-19 webinar attendees provided the correct answers to post-webinar questions, suggesting some improvement in knowledge. Conclusion Our study confirms pharmacy professionals’ concerns about practice during a pandemic and provides preliminary data on the challenges and learning needs of the profession. The CPA has since acted on these findings, providing ongoing opportunities to develop and refine resources for the profession as the pandemic evolves. Pharmacy professionals have also demonstrated improved knowledge on the management of COVID-19 and resources available for professionals.

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School Security in the Post-Columbine Era: Trends, Consequences, and Future Directions

Journal of Contemporary Criminal Justice ◽

10.1177/1043986219840188 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 35 (3) ◽

pp. 274-295 ◽

Cited By ~ 8

Author(s):

Sanna King ◽

Nicole L. Bracy

Keyword(s):

Emergency Preparedness ◽

School Safety ◽

Behavioral Interventions ◽

Empirical Support ◽

Threat Assessment ◽

School Security ◽

Security Measures ◽

Future Directions ◽

Promising Alternative ◽

The Impact

Harsh and reactionary school security measures, including policing, surveillance technology, and emergency preparedness strategies increased substantially in the two decades following the mass shooting at Columbine High School in 1999. These strategies have limited empirical support for preventing violence in general and mass shootings, in particular. Instead, they have proven to be problematic, often doing more harm than good by criminalizing student misbehavior, contributing to negative school climate, and having psychological impacts on students’ perceptions of safety. In recent years, many schools have started to explore promising alternative approaches, including threat assessment, positive behavioral interventions, restorative practices, and improving relationships between students and adults. This article reviews the trends in school security from the 1990s through the present, drawing on national data from the U.S. Department of Education and scholarly research on school security. Our specific focus will be on the changes in school security that have been made to prevent or minimize the impact of potential school shooters. We also discuss the consequences of the school security boom and the future directions to ensure school safety.

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Challenge of Hospital Emergency Preparedness: Analysis and Recommendations

Disaster Medicine and Public Health Preparedness ◽

10.1097/dmp.0b013e31819f754c ◽

2009 ◽

Vol 3 (S1) ◽

pp. S74-S82 ◽

Cited By ~ 47

Author(s):

Joseph A. Barbera ◽

Dale J. Yeatts ◽

Anthony G. Macintyre

Keyword(s):

Public Health ◽

United States ◽

Health Care ◽

Natural Disasters ◽

Emergency Response ◽

Emergency Preparedness ◽

Large Scale ◽

The United States ◽

Public Health Care ◽

Medical Emergency

ABSTRACTIn the United States, recent large-scale emergencies and disasters display some element of organized medical emergency response, and hospitals have played prominent roles in many of these incidents. These and other well-publicized incidents have captured the attention of government authorities, regulators, and the public. Health care has assumed a more prominent role as an integral component of any community emergency response. This has resulted in increased funding for hospital preparedness, along with a plethora of new preparedness guidance.Methods to objectively measure the results of these initiatives are only now being developed. It is clear that hospital readiness remains uneven across the United States. Without significant disaster experience, many hospitals remain unprepared for natural disasters. They may be even less ready to accept and care for patient surge from chemical or biological attacks, conventional or nuclear explosive detonations, unusual natural disasters, or novel infectious disease outbreaks.This article explores potential reasons for inconsistent emergency preparedness across the hospital industry. It identifies and discusses potential motivational factors that encourage effective emergency management and the obstacles that may impede it. Strategies are proposed to promote consistent, reproducible, and objectively measured preparedness across the US health care industry. The article also identifies issues requiring research. (Disaster Med Public Health Preparedness. 2009;3(Suppl 1):S74–S82)

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