Changes in usage of a leisure activity mobile app for children with disabilities during the COVID-19 pandemic (Preprint)

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul Yejong Yoo ◽  
Mehrnoosh Movahed ◽  
Ishana Rue ◽  
Carlos Denner Dos Santos ◽  
Annette Majnemer ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Children With Disabilities ◽  
Leisure Activities ◽  
Mobile App ◽  
Mental Wellbeing ◽  
Strong Positive Correlation ◽  
Access To Information ◽  
Potential Health ◽  
Rights Of The Child ◽  
Online Activities

BACKGROUND Participation in leisure activities is essential for child development and a human right as per the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. Children with disabilities face several restrictions when participating in leisure activities as compared to same age peers without disabilities. Access to information about accessible, inclusive leisure activities is one of the barriers limiting participation, and one potential health promotion strategy is to provide access to information to increase participation. The Jooay App is a mobile App listing such activities in Canada and Australia. With the SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) global pandemic and subsequent public health measures, most community-based facilities providing the activities listed on Jooay were closed. The App, therefore, started listing online activities offered with the expectation of continuing to provide information for families and also understand the extent to which users relied on the mobile App as a tool to identify new safe leisure opportunities. OBJECTIVE The objective of this study was to describe the engagement of the Jooay app before and during COVID-19, and to estimate the extent to which the listing of online activities was related to the engagement of the Jooay app. METHODS Retrospective study comparing Jooay app usage between March 2020 and February 2021 to the engagement between March 2019 and February 2020, by Jooay users. Spearman rank correlations were carried out to identify associations between the activities listed and the users’ engagement from May 2020 to February 2021. RESULTS Active engagement with the Jooay app from March 2020 to February 2021 dropped an average of 64.2% compared to usage in 2019-2020. Largest monthly drop in engagement was observed in May 2020 (88.8%). There was a strong, positive correlation between the number of active users and the number of online activities listed on the app (rs=0.900). CONCLUSIONS The engagement with the Jooay App presented an expected decrease during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. Availability of online adapted leisure activities to the app’s listings during the pandemic enabled children and families to re-engage in finding virtual leisure opportunities that promote health. Mobile-health solutions must be responsive to contextual factors and consider the social determinants of health such as socio-economic and public health emergency issues that can impact participation of vulnerable populations such as children with disabilities. The provision of online leisure opportunities during the pandemic could lead to increased participation, which is essential and beneficial for the physical and mental wellbeing of children with disabilities and their families.

scholarly journals Emotional and Mental Wellbeing Following COVID-19 Public Health Measures on People Living With Dementia and Carers

2021 ◽  
pp. 089198872199681
Author(s):  
Kerry Hanna ◽  
Clarissa Giebel ◽  
Hilary Tetlow ◽  
Kym Ward ◽  
Justine Shenton ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Mental Health ◽  
Social Support ◽  
Support Services ◽  
Mental Wellbeing ◽  
Daily Lives ◽  
Health Measures ◽  
Social Support Services ◽  
The Uk ◽  
The Impact

Background: To date, there appears to be no evidence on the longer-term impacts caused by COVID-19 and its related public health restrictions on some of the most vulnerable in our societies. The aim of this research was to explore the change in impact of COVID-19 public health measures on the mental wellbeing of people living with dementia (PLWD) and unpaid carers. Method: Semi-structured, follow-up telephone interviews were conducted with PLWD and unpaid carers between June and July 2020. Participants were asked about their experiences of accessing social support services during the pandemic, and the impact of restrictions on their daily lives. Results: 20 interviews were conducted and thematically analyzed, which produced 3 primary themes concerning emotional responses and impact to mental health and wellbeing during the course of the pandemic: 1) Impact on mental health during lockdown, 2) Changes to mental health following easing of public health, and 3) The long-term effect of public health measures. Conclusions: The findings from this research shed light on the longer-term psychological impacts of the UK Government’s public health measures on PLWD and their carers. The loss of social support services was key in impacting this cohort mentally and emotionally, displaying a need for better psychological support, for both carers and PLWD.

Italian operators' response to the COVID-19 pandemic

2021 ◽  
Vol 51 (1) ◽  
pp. 26-31
Author(s):  
Massimo Candela ◽  
Antonio Prado
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Public Health Emergency ◽  
Internet Usage ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Market Conditions ◽  
The Public ◽  
Online Activities ◽  
Internet Network

Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, governments introduced several social restrictions. As of 18 March 2020, more than 250 million people were in lockdown in Europe. This drastically increased the number of online activities. Due to this unprecedented situation, some concerns arose about the suitability of the Internet network to sustain the increased usage. Italy was severely hit by the first wave of the pandemic and various regions underwent a lockdown before the main country-wide one. The Italian network operators started sharing information about improvements carried out on the network and new measures adopted to support the increase in Internet usage. In this report, by means of a questionnaire, we collect information and provide a quantitative overview of the actions undertaken by network operators in Italy. The attitude of Italian operators was synergic and proactive in supporting the changed market conditions caused by the public health emergency.

scholarly journals Increasing presence of xylazine in heroin and/or fentanyl deaths, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 2010–2019

2021 ◽  
pp. injuryprev-2020-043968
Author(s):  
Jewell Johnson ◽  
Lia Pizzicato ◽  
Caroline Johnson ◽  
Kendra Viner
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
United States ◽  
Drug Users ◽  
Active Drug ◽  
Illicit Drug ◽  
Adverse Outcomes ◽  
Drug Supply ◽  
Health Consequences ◽  
Potential Health ◽  
The Usa

Reports from active drug users state that xylazine, the veterinary tranquilliser, has been increasing in the illicit drug supply in Philadelphia. To describe trends and characteristics of unintentional deaths from heroin and/or fentanyl overdose with xylazine detections occurring in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the Philadelphia Department of Public Health analysed data on deaths from unintentional heroin and/or fentanyl overdose from the Philadelphia Medical Examiner’s Office over a 10-year period (2010–2019). Xylazine went from being detected in less than 2% cases of fatal heroin and/or fentanyl overdose between 2010 and 2015 to 262 (31%) of the 858 fatal heroin and/or fentanyl overdose cases in 2019. Currently, information is limited on the presence of xylazine in continental United States. Xylazine’s association with adverse outcomes in other locations indicates that potential health consequences should also be monitored in the USA. Whenever possible, jurisdictions should consistently test for xylazine.

scholarly journals Shining a Light also Casts a Shadow: Neuroimaging Incidental Findings in Neuromarketing Research

Neuroethics ◽  
2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Owen M. Bradfield
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Rapid Growth ◽  
Incidental Findings ◽  
Brain Research ◽  
Social Value ◽  
Financial Resources ◽  
Potential Health ◽  
Functional Brain ◽  
Public Health Systems ◽  
The Social

AbstractRapid growth in structural and functional brain research has led to increasing ethical discussion of what to do about incidental findings within the brains of healthy neuroimaging research participants that have potential health importance, but which are beyond the original aims of the study. This dilemma has been widely debated with respect to general neuroimaging research but has attracted little attention in the context of neuromarketing studies. In this paper, I argue that neuromarketing researchers owe participants the same ethical obligations as other neuroimaging researchers. The financial resources available to neuromarketing firms and the social value of neuromarketing studies should command greater attention to the elucidation and management of incidental findings. However, this needs to be balanced against finite resources available within most public health systems.

scholarly journals Household preferences and willingness to pay for health insurance in Kampala City: a discrete choice experiment

2021 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Edward Kalyango ◽  
Rornald Muhumuza Kananura ◽  
Elizabeth Ekirapa Kiracho
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Health Care ◽  
Health Insurance ◽  
Willingness To Pay ◽  
Health Care Providers ◽  
Public Health Care ◽  
Care Providers ◽  
Potential Health ◽  
Kampala City ◽  
Household Preferences

Abstract Introduction Uganda is in discussions to introduce a national health insurance scheme. However, there is a paucity of information on household preferences and willingness to pay for health insurance attributes that may guide the design of an acceptable health insurance scheme. Our study sought to assess household preferences and willingness to pay for health insurance in Kampala city using a discrete choice experiment. Methods This study was conducted from 16th February 2020 to 10th April 2020 on 240 households in the Kawempe division of Kampala city stratified into slum and non-slum communities in order to get a representative sample of the area. We purposively selected the communities that represented slum and non-slum communities and thereafter applied systematic sampling in the selection of the households that participated in the study from each of the communities. Four household and policy-relevant attributes were used in the experimental design of the study. Each respondent attended to 9 binary choice sets of health insurance plans that included one fixed choice set. Data were analyzed using mixed logit models. Results Households in both the non-slum and slum communities had a high preference for health insurance plans that included both private and public health care providers as compared to plans that included public health care providers only (non-slum coefficient β = 0.81, P < 0.05; slum β = 0.87, p < 0.05) and; health insurance plans that covered extended family members as compared to plans that had limitations on the number of family members allowed (non-slum β = 0.44, P < 0.05; slum β = 0.36, p < 0.05). Households in non-slum communities, in particular, had a high preference for health insurance plans that covered chronic illnesses and major surgeries to other plans (0.97 β, P < 0.05). Our findings suggest that location of the household influences willingness to pay with households from non-slum communities willing to pay more for the preferred attributes. Conclusion Potential health insurance schemes should consider including both private and public health care providers and allow more household members to be enrolled in both slum and non-slum communities. However, the inclusion of more HH members should be weighed against the possible depletion of resources and other attributes. Potential health insurance schemes should also prioritize coverage for chronic illnesses and major surgeries in non-slum communities, in particular, to make the scheme attractive and acceptable for these communities.

Microcystin Exposure Pathways and Human Health

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-5
Author(s):  
Rajesh Melaram ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Policy Development ◽  
Mitigation Strategies ◽  
World Health ◽  
Health Concern ◽  
Human Populations ◽  
Algal Toxins ◽  
Potential Health ◽  
Exposure Pathways ◽  
Green Algal

Microcystins (MCs) are blue-green algal toxins produced by freshwater cyanobacteria. Their environmentally relevant concentrations throughout global surface waters have tampered with human populations’ drinking and recreational supplies. MCs have gained immense public health attention due to their potential health effects. Microcystin-LR (MC-LR) is the most toxic variant of the MCs. Investigations on MC-LR toxicity and detection in water signify a growing potential environmental health concern worldwide. The World Health Organization established a provisional drinking water guidance value of 1 μg/L and a provisional recreational exposure guidance value of 10 μg/L for MC-LR. This review surveys human MC exposure pathways and integrates epidemiological studies to support MCs’ critical exposure pathways. A discussion on monitoring and mitigation strategies provides a guide for policy development in adopting MCs’ regulatory levels to protect public health.

Potential Public Health Significance of Non-Escherichia coli Coliforms in Food

1979 ◽  
Vol 42 (2) ◽  
pp. 161-163 ◽  
Author(s):  
ROBERT M. TWEDT ◽  
BRENDA K. BOUTIN
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Escherichia Coli ◽  
Diarrheal Disease ◽  
Health Hazard ◽  
High Yield ◽  
Potential Health ◽  
E Coli ◽  
Potential Health Hazard ◽  
Health Significance

Several coliform species other than Escherichia coli are often associated with and possibly responsible for acute and chronic diarrheal disease. Recent evidence suggests that non-Escherichia coli coliforms may be capable of colonizing the human intestine and producing enterotoxin(s) in high-yield. Whether these organisms are newly capable of causing disease because of infestation with extrachromosomal factors mediating pathogenicity or simply because of inherent pathogenic capabilities that have gone unrecognized, they pose a potential health hazard. Food, medical, and public health microbiologists should be aware that the non-E. coli coliforms contaminating foods may be potential enteropathogens. This possibility may make determination of their pathogenic capabilities even more important than identification of their taxonomic characteristics.

scholarly journals Telemedicine and mental health: coming of age?

2020 ◽  
Vol 30 (Supplement_5) ◽  
Author(s):  
R Ohannessian ◽  
A Scardoni ◽  
L Bellini ◽  
S Salvati ◽  
A Amerio ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Massachusetts General Hospital ◽  
Coming Of Age ◽  
Global Scale ◽  
Mobile App ◽  
Mental Wellbeing ◽  
Health Issues ◽  
Implementation Challenges ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
Remote Patient

Abstract Telemedicine is the practice of medicine from distance using information technology and include mainly teleconsultation via video and/or chat, teleexpertise to request the opinion of a specialist, and remote patient monitoring to improve the follow-up of patients. The use of telemedicine in mental health and most specially psychiatry has been one of the first use case described in the scientific literature, via video teleconsultation, due to the absence of physical patient examination. One of the oldest telepsychiatry case from the literature was published in 1973 for patients assessed from 1968 with the Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, USA. Despite its medical and technical ease, telepsychiatry is still not widely spread and integrated into healthcare systems due to organisational and implementation challenges. More recently, telepsychology and other telemedicine interventions in mental health have been growing across the globe, including for mental wellbeing promotion and prevention of mental health conditions in specific environments. The rise of consumer digital healthcare directly through mobile app and dedicated websites is also to be considered in the wide opportunities of telemedicine opportunities to address mental health issues at a global scale. Various models needs thus to be considered between digital only care and blended approach mixing face-to-face and digital ways, as well as telemental health delivered only via the existing healthcare system or via new private digital players. The objective of the presentation is to describe the spectrum of existing telemedicine interventions in mental health, the digital features enabling its adoption and the assessment of its impact on clinical and public health outcomes.

Restraint and Seclusion of Students with Disabilities

2015 ◽  
Vol 23 (1) ◽  
pp. 189-239 ◽  
Author(s):  
Darcie Lyons
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Students With Disabilities ◽  
Children With Disabilities ◽  
Duty Of Care ◽  
International Human Rights Law ◽  
Human Rights Law ◽  
Cultural Shift ◽  
Rights Of The Child ◽  
United Nations Convention ◽  
Harm Prevention

Students with disabilities are being subjected to restraint and seclusion in some schools in Victoria, Australia. The practices are being used for purposes such as punishment, behaviour change and harm prevention. This article analyses the legality of the practices under the Victorian Charter of Human Rights and Responsibilities and the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, which Australia has ratified. It concludes that the use of restraint and seclusion on students with disabilities in some Victorian schools has violated children’s rights, under both domestic and international human rights law. The Australian and Victorian governments have failed to recognise the presumption against the use of restraint and seclusion on children with disabilities in school and have failed to justify the associated rights limitations. A cultural shift is required to ensure that children with disabilities no longer experience unlawful rights violations, injuries and mental anguish as a result of restraint and seclusion in the very institutions that have a duty of care to protect them.

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