scholarly journals Perception and Experiences of the Front Line Health Workers (FLWs) Attending Suspected or Confirmed Covid-19 Patients in Bangladesh: a Cross-sectional Study

Author(s):  
Bushra Zarin Islam ◽  
Mir Raihanul Islam ◽  
Samiun Nazrin Bente Kamal Tune ◽  
Syed Masud Ahmed

Abstract Background: Front-line health workers (FLWs) are always at a very high risk of being infected by COVID 19 due to their close contact with patients; thus, proper protection is critical. Concerning the FLWs' safety, Bangladesh's haphazard health system preparedness response on the eve of the pandemic triggered an uncoordinated management crisis, making the FLWs even more vulnerable. This study aims to elicit FLWs' perceptions and experiences regarding personal safety against COVID-19 while attending suspected/confirmed cases in the pandemic's early days. Methods: A mixed-methods quick telephone survey of a cross-sectional design was conducted during April and May 2020. 60 FLWs of various categories and levels from 14 districts and 43 institutions participated in the study in two rounds (initial and follow up) by four weeks apart. The participants were chosen using a combination of purposive sampling and the snowball sampling method and responded to a semi-structured questionnaire. Descriptive analysis was done for quantitative data, and qualitative data were thematically analysed.Results: The FLWs were obvious about the necessity of using Personal Protective Equipment (PPEs) for suspected/confirmed COVID-19 cases with suspected/asymptomatic patients. All types and levels of FLWs did not get the needed formal training on COVID-19 management and prevention. During the initial round, only 75% and 57% FLWs received PPEs and training for their proper use, respectively. Concerns about spreading the infection to family members precipitated mental health problems for the FLWs, so they recommended some safety measures, e.g. separate accommodation, transport, modified duty roaster during COVID placement. After almost a month, the follow-up round showed that a total of 76% FLWs received PPEs, but only 20% received training about them during the last month. The recommended measures were found to be more beneficial for physicians than the other FLWs. Conclusion: COVID 19 highlighted the shortcomings of Bangladesh's health systems and the low priority given to public health. This hampered the COVID 19 response, which was late, fragmented, and poorly coordinated, putting the FLWs at risk even more. Nonetheless, a coordinated, integrated approach involving all relevant authorities is required, and the health ministry should direct an efficient and inclusive COVID response.

2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (8) ◽  
pp. 1614
Author(s):  
Marta Llorente-Alonso ◽  
Cristina García-Ael ◽  
Gabriela Topa ◽  
María Luisa Sanz-Muñoz ◽  
Irene Muñoz-Alcalde ◽  
...  

The global emergency produced by COVID-19 has been a turning point for health organizations. Healthcare professionals have been exposed to high levels of stress and workload. Close contact with infected patients and the infectious capacity of COVID-19 mean that this group is especially vulnerable to contagion. In various countries, the Fear of COVID-19 Scale has been shown to be a fast and reliable tool. Early detection of fear complements clinical efforts to prevent emotional disorders. Thus, concepts focused on positive occupational health, such as Job Crafting or psychological empowerment (PE), have been examined as a tool to prevent mental health problems at work. In this work, we intended to adapt and validate the 7-item Fear of COVID-19 Scale in health workers (N = 194). The interpretation of the measurement model indicates adequate values of internal consistency reliability, and convergent and discriminant validity. The overall goodness of fit of the model was also adequate. The structural model indicates that the implementation of job crafting measures in health services leads to workers’ greater PE. High levels of anxiety and depression prevent health professionals from psychologically detaching from work. In turn, PE can reduce the emotional disorders caused by the fear of COVID-19.


2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jinghua Li ◽  
Jingdong Xu ◽  
Huan Zhou ◽  
Hua You ◽  
Xiaohui Wang ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT Background Public health workers at the Chinese Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (China CDC) and primary health care institutes (PHIs) were among the main workers who implemented prevention, control, and containment measures. However, their efforts and health status have not been well documented. We aimed to investigate the working conditions and health status of front line public health workers in China during the COVID-19 epidemic. Methods Between 18 February and 1 March 2020, we conducted an online cross-sectional survey of 2,313 CDC workers and 4,004 PHI workers in five provinces across China experiencing different scales of COVID-19 epidemic. We surveyed all participants about their work conditions, roles, burdens, perceptions, mental health, and self-rated health using a self-constructed questionnaire and standardised measurements (i.e., Patient Health Questionnaire and General Anxiety Disorder scale). To examine the independent associations between working conditions and health outcomes, we used multivariate regression models controlling for potential confounders. Results The prevalence of depression, anxiety, and poor self-rated health was 21.3, 19.0, and 9.8%, respectively, among public health workers (27.1, 20.6, and 15.0% among CDC workers and 17.5, 17.9, and 6.8% among PHI workers). The majority (71.6%) made immense efforts in both field and non-field work. Nearly 20.0% have worked all night for more than 3 days, and 45.3% had worked throughout the Chinese New Year holiday. Three risk factors and two protective factors were found to be independently associated with all three health outcomes in our final multivariate models: working all night for >3 days (multivariate odds ratio [ORm]=1.67~1.75, p<0.001), concerns about infection at work (ORm=1.46~1.89, p<0.001), perceived troubles at work (ORm=1.10~1.28, p<0.001), initiating COVID-19 prevention work after January 23 (ORm=0.78~0.82, p=0.002~0.008), and ability to persist for > 1 month at the current work intensity (ORm=0.44~0.55, p<0.001). Conclusions Chinese public health workers made immense efforts and personal sacrifices to control the COVID-19 epidemic and faced the risk of mental health problems. Efforts are needed to improve the working conditions and health status of public health workers and thus maintain their morale and effectiveness during the fight against COVID-19.


BMJ Open ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 7 (8) ◽  
pp. e016489 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kjersti Oterhals ◽  
Rune Haaverstad ◽  
Jan Erik Nordrehaug ◽  
Geir Egil Eide ◽  
Tone M Norekvål

ObjectivesTo investigate symptoms and self-reported health of patients conservatively treated for aortic stenosis (AS) and to identify factors associated with treatment decision and patient outcomes.DesignA cross-sectional survey with an 18-month follow-up.SettingOne tertiary university hospital in Western Norway.ParticipantsIn all, 1436 patients were diagnosed with AS between 2000 and 2012, and those 245 still under conservative treatment in 2013 were included in this study.Primary and secondary outcome measuresPrimary outcome measures were symptoms and self-reported health status. Secondary outcomes were treatment decision and patient survival after 18 months.ResultsA total of 136 patients with mean (SD) age 79 (12) years, 52% men responded. Among conservatively treated patients 77% were symptomatic. The symptom most frequently experienced was dyspnoea. Symptomatic patients reported worse physical and mental health compared with asymptomatic patients (effect size 1.24 and 0.74, respectively). In addition, symptomatic patients reported significantly higher levels of anxiety and depression compared with asymptomatic patients. However, symptom status did not correlate with haemodynamic severity of AS. After 18 months, 117 (86%) were still alive, 20% had undergone surgical aortic valve replacement (AVR) and 7% transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI). When adjusting for age, gender, symptomatic status, severity of AS and European system for cardiac operative risk evaluation (EuroSCORE), patients with severe AS had more than sixfold chance of being scheduled for AVR or TAVI compared with those with moderate AS (HR 6.3, 95% CI 1.9 to 21.2, p=0.003). Patients with EuroSCORE ≥11 had less chance for undergoing AVR or TAVI compared with those with EuroSCORE ≤5 (HR 0.06, 95% CI 0.01 to 0.46, p=0.007).ConclusionsSymptoms affected both physical and mental health in conservatively treated patients with AS. Many patients with symptomatic severe AS are not scheduled for surgery, despite the recommendations in current guidelines. The referral practice for AVR is a path for further investigation.


2020 ◽  
Vol 2020 ◽  
pp. 1-10
Author(s):  
M. A. Alao ◽  
A. O. Durodola ◽  
O. R. Ibrahim ◽  
O. A. Asinobi

Background. Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is a highly infectious disease with a potential for healthcare workers (HCWs) getting infected due to inadequate protection while attending to patients. Effective use of personal protective equipment (PPE) is key to mitigating the spread of SARS-CoV-2 infection in healthcare settings. Hence, there is a need to understand HCWs’ use of PPE in resource-limited settings and how closely the currently recommended guidelines for PPE are followed. This study assessed the HCWs’ knowledge about, attitudes towards, beliefs on, and use of PPE to prevent SARS-CoV-2 infection in a resource-limited setting. Methods. This cross-sectional study was conducted in April 2020 in Southwest and Northwest Nigeria. The selection of participants was performed via the snowball sampling technique using a 33-item, web-based, self-administered questionnaire via a social media network. We obtained relevant sociodemographic data and information on participants’ occupations and knowledge about, attitudes towards, beliefs on, and use of PPE. We analysed the data using SPSS version 23.0 for Windows (IBM, Armonk, New York, USA). A p values <0.05 were considered statistically significant. Results. A total of 290 subjects responded to the questionnaire, and 18 (6.2%) were excluded because of incomplete data. The mean age of the respondents was 32.3 ± 9.9 years. There were 116 males (42.6%). The majority of the respondents were medical doctors (114, 41.9%), followed by nurses and clinical students. Of the 272 respondents in this survey, only 70 (25.7%) had adequate knowledge about PPE. Of the respondents who presumed they had adequate knowledge about donning and doffing PPE, 94 (56%) were incorrect. The predictors of good knowledge were ages younger than 45 years (p=0.046) and practice location (p=0.009). Conclusion. This study showed that HCWs’ knowledge about, attitudes towards, and beliefs on PPE and their PPE skill in practice in Nigeria were remarkably poor. There is an urgent need for nationwide practical training on PPE use to curtail the spread of SARS-CoV-2 infection among HCWs.


2018 ◽  
Vol 16 (2) ◽  
pp. 149-155 ◽  
Author(s):  
Binod Kumar Aryal ◽  
Mohammad Daud ◽  
Ambika Thapa ◽  
Anita Mahotra ◽  
Sudip Ale Magar ◽  
...  

Background: Non-communicable Diseases are an alarming public health emergency in Nepal. Owing to the risk of NCD’s in Nepal, Government of Nepal has developed a Multisectoral Action Plan for Non-communicable Disease 2014-2020 and has adopted the World Health Organization Package of Essential Non-communicable Disease protocol. Prior for its implementation in Nepal, baseline study has been carried out to assess the status of health facilities in Nepal.Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was carried out in Kailali and Ilam district encompassing a total of 92 health facilities. A set of structured questionnaire and interview guideline was used to obtain the data. Collected data was transferred to Microsoft Excel, cleaned and analyzed in SPSS 16.0. Descriptive analysis was performed to express the frequencies and relative frequencies Results: Of the total health facilities, 49 and 43 health facilities of Ilam and Kailali were interviewed. The hospital of Ilam consisted all the procedure, equipment and medicine for the management of NCDs whilst, health posts lacked Oxygen services. Only 592 posts were fulfilled out of 704 sanctioned post in both the districts of which only 161 were trained in management of NCDs. Atotal of 231 patients were diagnosed with NCDs before the day of study in all the health facilities of both districts. Conclusions: Study reveals the gaps in capacity of health institution and system in terms of training, supply, equipments, and diagnostics. However, training of health workers, supply of essential medicines and improvising the service delivery would supplement the effective implementation of PEN in Nepal.


2007 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 416-421 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dawn M. Edwards ◽  
Peter H. Gray ◽  
Barbara Soong ◽  
Fung-Yee Chan ◽  
Robert Cincotta

AbstractTwin–twin transfusion syndrome (TTTS) is a severe complication of twin pregnancies with high risk for perinatal mortality and long-term morbidity. This cross-sectional cohort study aimed to determine parenting stress and psychosocial health in mothers with a pregnancy complicated by TTTS that had been managed with laser ablation of communicating placental vessels. Questionnaires were sent to the mothers for completion: Parenting Stress Index (PSI), Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) and a semi-structured questionnaire related to mental health problems and support received from health professionals. Thirty-seven mothers were sent questionnaires with 32 being returned. The results showed that 47% of women had total scores equal to or greater than the 85th percentile on the PSI, which is considered abnormally high. Twenty-six per cent of mothers had evidence of depression on the EPDS. Mothers of children with prolonged medical conditions or neurological problems had significantly higher scores (p =.011). Parenting stress was not associated with high scores on the EPDS. Medical and midwifery staff were considered to provide high levels of support, with social work providing none or low levels of support. In conclusion, women whose TTTS pregnancy was managed by laser surgery have high levels of parenting stress. As the results showed that parenting stress cannot be predicted at the time of hospitalization, it is suggested that more support should be provided in hospital with further follow-up after discharge.


Author(s):  
Mohammad Shahadat Hossen ◽  
Abu Hayat Md Rafiqul Rezvi

Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) is a dangerous virus that was first emerged in China at December 2019. It has already infected more than 128 million people and killed more than 2.8 million people. The main purpose of this paper is to find out the present mental condition of Bangladeshi Senior Citizens in Dhaka city to overcome their loneliness or boringness. A systematic cross-sectional online survey regarding COVID-19 has been conducted from June 15 to June 25, 2020. After developing questionnaires utilizing Google form, it has been sent out to the participants using an online platform and the responses of the participants have been recorded. A total of 280 participants (100 female and 180 male) completed the survey. The average age of them is about 60 years. It has been observed that maximum male participants (58.3%) felt financial stress and maximum female participants (56%) felt horrified due to COVID-19. Additionally, it has been found that maximum male and female participants were utilized more time in social media then the normal time. Since COVID-19 has already become a major issue all over the world, it is necessary to identify the mental health conditions and activities of people during this pandemic situation so that appropriate measures can be taken. More research should be conducted regarding mental health impact and possible solutions. Hopefully, it will ease to provide fruitful information especially for the community health workers with a view to helping them tackle these psychological fitness-related issues in response to other similar societal disasters. After the pandemic, follow-up should be made in order to improve mental health.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Larrey Kasereka Kamabu ◽  
Hervé Monka Lekuya ◽  
Richard Newton Iranya ◽  
Bienvenu Muhindo Kasusula ◽  
Franck Katembo Sikakulya ◽  
...  

Abstract Background: During its first wave of COVID-19 infection in sub-Saharan Africa, there was insufficient understanding of the pandemic among front-line health care professionals that has led to a misidentification, and mistreatment of affected patients, with a potential risk of contracting and spreading the disease. This study was carried out to determine the Knowledge, attitude, and practices (KAP) of front-line health workers (HWs) towards COVID-19 in Africa and their related factors.Methods: This was a multi-centers online cross-sectional study conducted over a 3-months study-period using a google survey link among front lines HWs involved in the COVID-19 response in 26 African countries. Chi-square test & logistic regression were used in the bivariate and multivariate analysis respectively to assess determinants of KAP. Statistical analysis was done using STATA version 16; all tests were two-sided with 95% confidence interval. Results: Five hundred and seventeen (517, 96.3%) consented to participate in this study from 26 African countries; 289 (55.9%) were male and 228 (44.1%) female. Overall, most of HWs, 379 (73.3%) showed poor knowledge about COVID-19 infection and preventive measures. In contrast, majority of them showed good attitude (89%) and practice (90.3%) towards prevention of COVID-19 infections. Knowledge varied among countries; Uganda had the greatest number of HWs with good knowledge. (OR = 28.09, p <0.0001) followed by Ghana (OR=10.92, p=0.001) and DRC (OR: 4.59, p=0.015). The cadre of HWs also influenced knowledge; doctors were the most knowledgeable as compared to other cadres (OR: 3.4, p= 0.005). Additionally, knowledge increased with increasing HWs’ education level (p=0.011).Attitude and practice were both influenced by HWs country of workplace (p=0.05 & p< 0.0001 respectively) and their cadre (p = 0.025 & p < 0.0001 respectively).Conclusions: Majority of the front-line HWs in the African region had an overall good attitude and practice towards COVID-19 infection and practice measures despite relatively poor Knowledge. The KAP is influenced by HWs country of workplace, their cadre and level of education.


2021 ◽  
Vol 3 (4) ◽  
pp. 636-642
Author(s):  
Liliek Pratiwi ◽  
Harnanik Nawangsari

ABSTRACT : REVIEW OF THE CHARACTERISTICS OF PREGNANT MOTHERS WITH PRECLAMATION AND ANEMIA IN BANDUNG CITY CIREBON REGENCY, KUNINGAN REGENCY Background: Preeclampsia and anemia in pregnant women are still common and cause maternal mortality to increase. Late help is still found because pregnant women are not detected early. Anemia can cause shortness of breath, fatigue, palpitations, bleeding disorders during labor, sleep disturbances and sepsis. Pre-eclampsia is one of the direct causes of maternal death, the incidence of pre-eclampsia initially does not provide symptoms and signs, but at one time it can deteriorate rapidly, so it takes a series of examinations, detection, and identification of risk factors and control them so as to enable complex primary prevention.Objective: This study will provide an overview of the characteristics of pregnant women with preeclampsia and anemia in Bandung City, Cirebon Regency and Kuningan Regency.Research Methods: This study uses descriptive analysis, with a cross sectional approach, is retrospective in nature, observing the results of medical records. The population is pregnant women with preeclampsia and anemia in Bandung City, Cirebon Regency and Kuningan Regency, the pregnancy period from October 2020 to February 2021 is 489. The inclusion criteria for this study were pregnant women from trimester 1 to trimester 3 who experienced preeclampsia and anemia. The sampling technique is using quota sampling. The number of samples is 110 respondents. Exclusion criteria in this study were pregnant women with a history of congenital disease, being infected and other pregnancy complications besides anemia and preeclampsia.Results: Characteristics of pregnant women with preeclampsia and anemia in Bandung City, Cirebon Regency and Kuningan Regency, the majority of pregnant women experiencing preeclampsia, preceded by a history of preeclampsia in a previous pregnancy of 34.6%, primiparous status 18.1% and having hypertension. ,3%. The majority of pregnant women who experience anemia are with multiparous status of 28.1% and often occur when stepping on the 3rd trimester, as well as mothers who do not consume Fe tablets.Conclusion: So, by looking at these results, the outcome for the future is a proactive effort to screen pregnant women at risk in several areas by involving health workers, the community and other researchers as well as volunteers, for the sake of maternal and child health. Keywords: Preeclampsia, Anemia, Bandung City, Cirebon Regency, Kuningan RegencyINTISARI: TINJAUAN KARAKTERISTIK IBU HAMIL DENGAN PREKLAMSI DAN ANEMIA DI KOTA BANDUNG, KABUPATEN CIREBON, DAN KABUPATEN KUNINGAN Latar Belakang: Preklamsia dan anemia ibu hamil masih sering terjadi dan menyebabkan Angka Kematian Ibu meningkat. Pertolongan yang terlambat masih ditemukan karena ibu hamil tidak terdeteksi lebih awal. Anemia dapat mengakibatkan sesak nafas, fatigue, palpitasi, gangguan pendarahan selama persalinan, sampai gangguan tidur dan sepsis. Pre Eklamsi merupakan salah satu penyebab langsung kematian ibu, kejadian pre eklamsi pada awalnya tidak memberikan gejala dan tanda, namun pada suatu ketika dapat memburuk dengan cepat, sehingga butuh serangkaian pemeriksaan, deteksi, dan identifikasi faktor risiko serta mengontrolnya sehingga memungkinkan dilakukan pencegahan primer yang kompleksTujuan: Dalam penelitian ini akan memberikan gambaran tinjauan karakteristik ibu hamil dengan preklamsia dan anemia di Kota Bandung, Kabupaten Cirebon dan Kabupaten Kuningan.Metode Penelitian: Pada penelitian ini menggunakan analisis deskriptif, dengan pendekatan cross sectional, bersifat retrospektif, observasi dari hasil rekam medis. Populasi yaitu ibu hamil dengan preklamsia dan anemia di Kota Bandung, Kabupaten Cirebon dan Kabupaten Kuningan, periode kehamilan dari bulan Oktober tahun 2020 sampai Februari tahun 2021 yaitu 489. Kriteria inklusi penelitian ini adalah ibu hamil trimester 1 sampai trimester 3 yang mengalami preklamsia dan anemia. Teknik sampling yaitu menggunakan kuota sampling. Jumlah sampel adalah 110 responden. Kriteria eksklusi dalam penelitian ini yaitu ibu hamil dengan riwayat penyakit bawaan, sedang terinfeksi dan komplikasi kehamilan lainnya selain anemia dan preklamsia.Hasil: Karakteristik ibu hamil dengan preklamsia dan anemia di Kota Bandung, Kabupaten Cirebon dan Kabupaten Kuningan., mayoritas ibu hamil yang mengalami preklamsia, didahului dengan riwayat preklamsia pada kehamilan sebelumnya sebesar 34,6%, status primipara 18,1% serta memiliki hipertensi 16,3%. Mayoritas ibu hamil yang mengalami anemia yaitu dengan status multipara sebesar 28,1% dan sering terjadi Ketika menginjak trimester 3, serta ibu yang tidak mengkonsumsi tablet Fe.Kesimpulan: Jadi, dengan melihat hasil ini, outcome untuk ke depannya yaitu adanya upaya pro aktif penjaringan wanita hamil dengan risiko di beberapa daerah dengan melibatkan tenaga Kesehatan, masyarakat dan penelitia lain serta relawan, demi Kesehatan ibu dan anak. Kata Kunci:  Preklamsia, Anemia, Kota Bandung, Kabupaten Cirebon, Kabupaten Kuningan


2020 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Suryaman Menyangbo ◽  
Gakul Bhatta ◽  
Harihar Devkota ◽  
Manik Neupane ◽  
Poojan Rokaya ◽  
...  

Background: Acute appendicitis is the most common general surgical disease, worldwide. The exact etiology is still in conjecture. However, the inadequate fiber in diet, smoking, mechanical obstruction in appendiceal lumen, has been attributed as factors for appendicitis. Appendicitis presents throughout months of the year, however, incidence increases in particular months. The objective of this study is to observe the appendicitis incidence variation with months of the year in high altitude region of Nepal. Methods: The cross-sectional retrospective study was conducted in the Karnali Academy of Health Sciences, Jumla situated at the altitude above 2500 m from sea level. The clinical data were retrieved from the hospital record book in the Operation Theater that included age, gender, ethnicity, month of the appendectomy executed, pre-operative clinical presentation, and operative findings. The period of study was from July 2014 to March 2020.  The data were entered in Microsoft Excel software and descriptive analysis was done to get mean, median percentage, standard deviation by SPSS 16. Results: A total of 119 appendectomies performed during 5 years period, from 2014 to 2020, in the surgery department of Karnali Academy of Health Sciences were recorded. The mean age of appendectomy was 27 years. There were 53% female (n=64) and 46% male (n=55) patients. The months in which the highest appendectomy executed were July/August/September and February with 16% (n=19), 13.4% (n=16), (n=15) 12.6% and 13.4% (n=16) respectively. The lowest incidence was 1.7% in the month of April. Conclusion: The incidence of appendicitis is high in the months from July to September with the lowest incidence is in the months of April and May. This information could be useful to decrease the disease-associated morbidity and mortality as well as it can be useful for hospital administration for enrolling the needed health-workers in those particular time periods.


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