scholarly journals THE CONCEPTUAL MODEL OF AN APPLICATION TO INCREASE PUBLIC AWARENESS ON ANTIBIOTIC RESISTANCE

2020 ◽  
Vol 5 (18) ◽  
pp. 33-45
Author(s):  
Ummul Hanan Mohamad ◽  
Aliimran Nordin ◽  
Azlina Ahmad

The emergence of antibiotics resistance has been one of the global health concerns. Hence, this paper analyzed the users' requirements to design a conceptual model of an application that can increase public awareness of the antibiotic resistance issue. The study involves 123 participants, in which they completed an online-based questionnaire to address the study's objectives. Two contributing factors associated with antibiotic resistance via common public malpractices are identified, including taking antibiotics for common viral diseases and not finishing antibiotics treatment. Hence, the conceptual model's design considers the need to educate users with correct information, engage users, and integrate elements that allow for voluntary behavior changes. For that reason, the gamification technique is incorporated into the design of the conceptual awareness model.

2018 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
pp. 43-56
Author(s):  
Bukola Oyebanji

This survey was carried out to investigate antibiotics usage and knowledge of antibiotic resistance among farmers in Oyo town, Nigeria. Data was collected using a questionnaire and interviews. A snowball sampling technique was used to select 150 farmers and veterinary drug shop owners. The farmers were involved in cattle, fish and poultry farming. The farmers administered antibiotics to their animals when the animals were sick (curative), to prevent secondary bacterial infection after a viral infection and on healthy animals (for prophylaxis). Majority of the respondents had easy access to antibiotics and information about them. On average, farmers had some knowledge about antibiotics resistance but not on how it spread. About 62% of the respondents believed that antibiotic resistance was a problem of other countries not Nigeria. They also did not believe that sub-optimal dosing of antibiotics leads to resistance. It was concluded that there is need for public awareness on the risk of misuse of antibiotics in animals and of consuming livestock products with unsafe levels of antibiotic residues. Keywords: Antibiotics; Drug resistance; Livestock


Author(s):  
Hanan Khudadad ◽  
Lukman Thalib

Background: Antibiotics are antimicrobial drugs used in the treatment and prevention of bacterial infections. They played a pivotal role in achieving major advances in medicine and surgery (1). Yet, due to increased and inappropriate use of antibiotics, antibiotic resistance (AR) has become a growing public health problem. Information on antibiotic prescription patterns are vital in developing a constructive approach to deal with growing antibiotic resistance (2). The study aims to describe the population based antibiotic prescriptions among patients attending primary care centers in Qatar. Methodology: A population based observational study of all medications prescribed in the all Primary Health Care Centers during the period of 2017-2018 in Qatar. Records with all medication prescriptions were extracted and linked to medical diagnosis. Antibiotics prescriptions records were compared to non- antibiotics records using logistic regression model in identifying the potential predictors for antibiotic prescriptions. Results: A total of 11,069,439 medication prescriptions given over a period of two-years, we found about 12.1% (n= 726,667) antibiotics prescriptions were antibiotics, and 65% of antibiotics are prescribed and received by the patients at the first visits. Paracetamol (22.3%) was the first highest medication prescribed followed by antibiotics (12.1 %) and vitamin D2 (10.2 %). More than half of all antibiotics prescribed during the period of January 2017 to December 2018 were Penicillin (56.9%). We found that half of the antibiotics (49.3 %) have been prescribed for the respiratory system comparing to the other body system. We found that males were 29% more likely be given an antibiotic compared to females (OR=1.29, 95% CI= 1.24- 1.33). Implications: The study provides a baseline data to enable PHCC management to design effective intervention program to address the problem of antibiotics resistance. Furthermore, it will help the policymakers to comprehend the size of the issue and develop a system to manage the antibiotics therapy. Conclusion: Antibiotics was the second highest medication prescribed in the Primary Health Care Centers in Qatar after paracetamol and most of the patients received it at the first visit. Most of the prescriptions in Primary Health Care Centers in Qatar were for the respiratory system, and Penicillin was the highest class prescribed. Male visitors were prescribed antibiotics more than female visitors.


2020 ◽  
Vol 5 (15) ◽  
pp. 185-192
Author(s):  
Nor Jannah Nasution Raduan ◽  
Mohd Razali Salleh ◽  
Ghazali Ahmad ◽  
Zaleha Ismail

Depression and cognitive impairment are the most common complications of patients on hemodialysis. The objective of this study is to identify contributing factors to depression and cognitive impairment in hemodialysis patients. This is a cross-sectional study involving 110 hemodialysis patients in Hospital Kuala Lumpur. The samples were recruited through universal sampling. Patients were assessed with the Beck Depression Inventory and Montreal Cognitive Assessment. This study found that 18.2% of patients had depression, and 48.2% had cognitive impairment. Factors associated with depression were unmarried status, low education level, and cognitive impairment. Factors associated with cognitive impairment were low education level, depression, and unemployment. Keywords: hemodialysis, depression, cognitive, ESRD eISSN: 2398-4287© 2020. The Authors. Published for AMER ABRA cE-Bs by e-International Publishing House, Ltd., UK. This is an open access article under the CC BYNC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/). Peer–review under responsibility of AMER (Association of Malaysian Environment-Behaviour Researchers), ABRA (Association of Behavioural Researchers on Asians) and cE-Bs (Centre for Environment-Behaviour Studies), Faculty of Architecture, Planning & Surveying, Universiti Teknologi MARA, Malaysia. DOI: https://doi.org/10.21834/ebpj.v5i15.2468.


2019 ◽  
Vol 58 (13) ◽  
pp. 1423-1428 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chris A. Rees ◽  
Lois K. Lee ◽  
Eric W. Fleegler ◽  
Rebekah Mannix

School shootings comprise a small proportion of childhood deaths from firearms; however, these shootings receive a disproportionately large share of media attention. We conducted a root cause analysis of 2 recent school shootings in the United States using lay press reports. We reviewed 1760 and analyzed 282 articles from the 10 most trusted news sources. We identified 356 factors associated with the school shootings. Policy-level factors, including a paucity of adequate legislation controlling firearm purchase and ownership, were the most common contributing factors to school shootings. Mental illness was a commonly cited person-level factor, and access to firearms in the home and availability of large-capacity firearms were commonly cited environmental factors. Novel approaches, including root cause analyses using lay media, can identify factors contributing to mass shootings. The policy, person, and environmental factors associated with these school shootings should be addressed as part of a multipronged effort to prevent future mass shootings.


2021 ◽  
Vol 23 ◽  
pp. 100159
Author(s):  
Zemenay Ayinie Mekonnen ◽  
Debas Yaregal Melesse ◽  
Habitamu Getinet Kassahun ◽  
Tesera Dereje Flatie ◽  
Misganaw Mengie Workie ◽  
...  

Author(s):  
Jun Yang ◽  
Yutong Zhang ◽  
Yixiong Xiao ◽  
Shaoqing Shen ◽  
Mo Su ◽  
...  

Cities around the globe are embracing the Healthy Cities approach to address urban health challenges. Public awareness is vital for successfully deploying this approach but is rarely assessed. In this study, we used internet search queries to evaluate the public awareness of the Healthy Cities approach applied in Shenzhen, China. The overall situation at the city level and the intercity variations were both analyzed. Additionally, we explored the factors that might affect the internet search queries of the Healthy Cities approach. Our results showed that the public awareness of the approach in Shenzhen was low. There was a high intercity heterogeneity in terms of interest in the various components of the Healthy Cities approach. However, we did not find a significant effect of the selected demographic, environmental, and health factors on the search queries. Based on our findings, we recommend that the city raise public awareness of healthy cities and take actions tailored to health concerns in different city zones. Our study showed that internet search queries can be a valuable data source for assessing the public awareness of the Healthy Cities approach.


2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Muhammad Atif ◽  
Beenish Ihsan ◽  
Iram Malik ◽  
Nafees Ahmad ◽  
Zikria Saleem ◽  
...  

Abstract Background The emerging threat of antibiotic resistance is growing exponentially and antibiotic stewardship programs are cornerstone to fight against this global threat. The study aimed to explore the knowledge, perspectives and practices of physicians regarding various aspects of antibiotic stewardship program including antibiotic stewardship activities, rational use of antibiotics, antibiotic resistance, prescribing practices and factors associated with these practices. Methods In this qualitative study, a total of 17 semi-structured, in-depth interviews with doctors of three tertiary care public sector hospitals in Bahawalpur and Rahim Yar Khan were conducted. The convenient sampling method was adopted to collect the data and the saturation point criterion was applied to determine the sample size. Thematic analysis approach was used to draw conclusions from the data. Results The analysis of data yielded five themes, 12 subthemes and 26 categories. The themes included, (i) perception about antibiotic use and antibiotic stewardship, (ii) antibiotic prescription practices, (iii) antibiotic resistance, (iv) limited strategies adopted by hospital administration to ensure quality and safe distribution of antibiotics, (v) implementation of antibiotic stewardship program: barriers, suggestion and future benefits. Doctors had misconceptions about the rational use of antibiotics. The perception regarding antibiotic stewardship programs was poor. Moreover, very few activities related to ASP existed. The participants gave many suggestions for successful implementation of ASP in order to reduce the burden of antibiotic resistance, including development of guidelines for the use of antibiotics, strict legislation regarding use of antibiotics, active participation of healthcare professionals and awareness program among general public about the use of antibiotics. Conclusion This study concluded that poor knowledge of doctors regarding ASP, non-existence of antibiogram of hospital and lack of rules for the safe use of antibiotics were the main driving factors associated with irrational antibiotic prescription practices and development of AR.


2021 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
pp. 31-47
Author(s):  
Meng Seng Wong ◽  
Stephen Jackson

This paper investigates the nature of expectations and its influence on attitudes towards government electronic services (e-services) in Malaysia. Based on a discussion of findings from in-depth focus group studies with government providers and users of e-services in Malaysia, a conceptual model is devised which explores both the extrinsic and intrinsic forces (in the form of e-government stimuli) influencing the articulation and actualization of stakeholder expectations, which can sway attitudes toward e-services. Key contributing factors (e.g., technological issues, managerial/institutional challenges, resource constraints, user needs), which have inhibited the extent of benefits realization when using e-services are explored. The model also introduces the concept of situational context—the importance of considering e-services in relation to its specific setting or circumstances at play.


mSystems ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 3 (5) ◽  
Author(s):  
Johannes Cairns ◽  
Katariina Koskinen ◽  
Reetta Penttinen ◽  
Tommi Patinen ◽  
Anna Hartikainen ◽  
...  

ABSTRACTMobile genetic elements such as conjugative plasmids are responsible for antibiotic resistance phenotypes in many bacterial pathogens. The ability to conjugate, the presence of antibiotics, and ecological interactions all have a notable role in the persistence of plasmids in bacterial populations. Here, we set out to investigate the contribution of these factors when the conjugation network was disturbed by a plasmid-dependent bacteriophage. Phage alone effectively caused the population to lose plasmids, thus rendering them susceptible to antibiotics. Leakiness of the antibiotic resistance mechanism allowing Black Queen evolution (i.e. a “race to the bottom”) was a more significant factor than the antibiotic concentration (lethal vs sublethal) in determining plasmid prevalence. Interestingly, plasmid loss was also prevented by protozoan predation. These results show that outcomes of attempts to resensitize bacterial communities by disrupting the conjugation network are highly dependent on ecological factors and resistance mechanisms.IMPORTANCEBacterial antibiotic resistance is often a part of mobile genetic elements that move from one bacterium to another. By interfering with the horizontal movement and the maintenance of these elements, it is possible to remove the resistance from the population. Here, we show that a so-called plasmid-dependent bacteriophage causes the initially resistant bacterial population to become susceptible to antibiotics. However, this effect is efficiently countered when the system also contains a predator that feeds on bacteria. Moreover, when the environment contains antibiotics, the survival of resistance is dependent on the resistance mechanism. When bacteria can help their contemporaries to degrade antibiotics, resistance is maintained by only a fraction of the community. On the other hand, when bacteria cannot help others, then all bacteria remain resistant. The concentration of the antibiotic played a less notable role than the antibiotic used. This report shows that the survival of antibiotic resistance in bacterial communities represents a complex process where many factors present in real-life systems define whether or not resistance is actually lost.


2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (7) ◽  
pp. 1448-1456
Author(s):  
Irene Mkavi Okoko ◽  
Naomi Maina ◽  
Daniel Kiboi ◽  
John Kagira

Aim: This study determined the resistance pattern to β-lactam antibiotics of bacteria isolated from goats with subclinical mastitis in Thika subcounty, Kenya. We also administered a questionnaire to assess the risk factors associated with the occurrence of resistance to commonly used antibiotics. Materials and Methods: We collected milk samples from 110 lactating dairy goats in Thika subcounty to screen for subclinical mastitis using the California mastitis test. Bacterial isolation and identification were performed according to colony morphology, the hemolytic pattern on sheep blood agar, lactose fermentation on MacConkey plates, Gram staining, and standard biochemical tests. The antibiotic susceptibility of the isolates was determined by the agar disk diffusion method using penicillin G, cephalexin, cefoxitin, and cefotaxime antibiotic disks. The double-disk synergy test using amoxicillin-clavulanic acid was employed as a confirmatory test for extended-spectrum β-lactamase (ESBL) production. Fisher's exact test was used to determine the risk factors associated with the occurrence of antibiotic resistance (p≤0.05 was considered significant). Results: Of the 110 dairy goats sampled, 72.7% (80) were positive for subclinical mastitis. Isolation and identification of the bacteria from the positive samples yielded 149 bacteria isolates, including Staphylococcus aureus, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Acinetobacter spp., Yersinia spp., coagulase-negative staphylococci, and Escherichia coli. A high percentage (76.5%, 114/149) of the bacterial isolates was resistant to at least one of the tested antibiotics. At least 56/106 isolates (52.8%) showing cross-resistance to the β-lactam antibiotics were resistant to all four of the tested antibiotics, while only one isolate was resistant to three antibiotics (penicillin G, cephalexin, and cefoxitin). The double-disk synergy test confirmed that none of the isolates possessed ESBLs. Pre- and post-milking practices (p=0.0336) were found to be significantly associated with the occurrence of antibiotic resistance. Conclusion: A large proportion of the goats in our study cohort were infected with β-lactam-resistant bacteria associated with subclinical mastitis. Because the identified bacteria are of zoonotic importance, further studies should be undertaken to determine the transmission dynamics between humans and livestock and to identify novel intervention strategies.


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