scholarly journals Fighting the Battle against Infectious Diseases: Contributions of Selected Social Science Disciplines

2009 ◽  
Vol 2 ◽  
pp. IDRT.S3628
Author(s):  
Kai-Lit Phua
Keyword(s):  
Infectious Diseases ◽  
Social Factors ◽  
Disease Outbreaks ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Human Populations ◽  
Mass Communications ◽  
Social Scientists ◽  
Sexually Transmitted ◽  
Infectious Disease Outbreaks ◽  
Health And Well Being

In spite of the “epidemiological transition”, infectious diseases remain as major threats to the health and well-being of human populations. Social factors are related to the emergence and spread of infectious diseases. However, except for diseases which are more obviously social in their origin and patterns of spread (e.g. sexually-transmitted and blood-borne infections such as HIV/AIDS), social scientists are less prominent in the battle against infectious diseases vis-à-vis their counterparts from the natural sciences. Sociologists and other social scientists from disciplines such as history, political science, economics, anthropology and mass communications can contribute significantly to the battle against infectious disease outbreaks.

scholarly journals Caring for the carers: a COVID-19 psychological support programme

2021 ◽  
pp. bmjmilitary-2021-001854
Author(s):  
Di Lamb ◽  
A Simms ◽  
N Greenberg ◽  
R D J Withnall
Keyword(s):  
Healthcare Workers ◽  
Disease Outbreaks ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Infectious Disease Outbreaks ◽  
Support Programme ◽  
Contextual Understanding ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Programme Of Care ◽  
Personal Challenges ◽  
Health And Well Being

The outbreak of COVID-19 and the subsequent pandemic brought unprecedented worldwide challenges born out of a rapidly escalating health and economic crisis. From emergency planners to healthcare workers on the front line, and everyone in between, the pandemic, and the uncertainty surrounding it, was likely to become a significant stressor, one with no immediate solution but with the potential to cause enduring distress beyond its conclusion. The UK Defence Medical Services recognised the need to provide an evidence-based programme of care intended to support personnel transitioning from assisting the national response back to normal duties. This was informed by a narrative review that targeted literature exploring strategies for supporting the mental health and well-being of healthcare workers during 21st-century infectious disease outbreaks. The literature identified the experiences most likely to cause enduring distress, which comprised morally challenging decisions, vulnerability, death and suffering, professional and personal challenges, and expectations. The opportunity to find meaning in these experiences, by discussing them with peers who share a contextual understanding, is important to limit the longer-term psychosocial impact of such events. This paper will discuss the design considerations and planned implementation strategy of the Recovery, Readjustment and Reintegration Programme to limit the incidence of distress or longer-term mental ill health among military personnel.

scholarly journals Psychological Intervention Measures for Mental Health During COVID-19 Pandemic

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ancha Rani ◽  
Vandana Singh Malik ◽  
Rakesh Kumar Behamani
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Psychological Intervention ◽  
Disease Outbreaks ◽  
Well Being ◽  
World Health ◽  
Medical Emergency ◽  
Infectious Disease Outbreaks ◽  
Intervention Measures ◽  
Health Organization ◽  
Health And Well Being

The COVID-19 pandemic is a global health problem affecting around 213 countries and territories worldwide, with more than 6,474,200 cases reported and 382,914 deaths documented so far. The World Health Organization announced COVID-19 is a pandemic outbreak on 11 March, 2020. We are facing a medical emergency because of COVID-19 pandemic. These large incidents have negative and detrimental effects on mental health and well-being of individuals worldwide. Widespread infectious disease outbreaks such as COVID-19 are linked to mental illness symptoms and psychological distress. Preliminary studies indicate that depression (28%) and anxiety (16%) symptoms and self-reported stress (8 %) are typical psychological responses to the COVID-19 pandemic, which could be correlated with sleep disturbance. The physical and psychological wellbeing of general people, particularly health care practitioners, has been profoundly affected by illness. The main objective of this review-based study is to focus mental health and psychological interventions which can be provided during this pandemic. Stress, fear, anxiety, panic, frustration is very common during COVID-19 pandemic and these can be reduced by some psychological intervention measures.

scholarly journals Threshold Effects of Infectious Disease Outbreaks on Livestock Prices: Cases of African Swine Fever and Avian Influenza in South Korea

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (11) ◽  
pp. 5114
Author(s):  
Hyung-Chul Rah ◽  
Hyeon-Woong Kim ◽  
Aziz Nasridinov ◽  
Wan-Sup Cho ◽  
Seo-Hwa Choi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Avian Influenza ◽  
Infectious Diseases ◽  
Disease Outbreaks ◽  
African Swine Fever ◽  
Threshold Effect ◽  
Impact Response ◽  
Threshold Effects ◽  
Infectious Disease Outbreaks ◽  
Retail Prices ◽  
The Impact

In this paper we demonstrate the threshold effects of infectious diseases on livestock prices. Daily retail prices of pork and chicken were used as structured data; news and SNS mentions of African Swine Fever (ASF) and Avian Influenza (AI) were used as unstructured data. Models were tested for the threshold effects of disease-related news and SNS frequencies, specifically those related to ASF and AI, on the retail prices of pork and chicken, respectively. The effects were found to exist, and the values of ASF-related news on pork prices were estimated to be −9 and 8, indicating that the threshold autoregressive (TAR) model can be divided into three regimes. The coefficients of the ASF-related SNS frequencies on pork prices were 1.1666, 0.2663 and −0.1035 for regimes 1, 2 and 3, respectively, suggesting that pork prices increased by 1.1666 Korean won in regime 1 when ASF-related SNS frequencies increased. To promote pork consumption by SNS posts, the required SNS frequencies were estimated to have impacts as great as one standard deviation in the pork price. These values were 247.057, 1309.158 and 2817.266 for regimes 1, 2 and 3, respectively. The impact response periods for pork prices were estimated to last 48, 6, and 8 days for regimes 1, 2 and 3, respectively. When the prediction accuracies of the TAR and autoregressive (AR) models with regard to pork prices were compared for the root mean square error, the prediction accuracy of the TAR model was found to be slightly better than that of the AR. When the threshold effect of AI-related news on chicken prices was tested, a linear relationship appeared without a threshold effect. These findings suggest that when infectious diseases such as ASF occur for the first time, the impact on livestock prices is significant, as indicated by the threshold effect and the long impact response period. Our findings also suggest that the impact on livestock prices is not remarkable when infectious diseases occur multiple times, as in the case of AI. To date, this study is the first to suggest the use of SNS to promote meat consumption.

scholarly journals Qualitative Research: Institutional Preparedness During Threats of Infectious Disease Outbreaks

2020 ◽  
Vol 2020 ◽  
pp. 1-10 ◽  
Author(s):  
Doret de Rooij ◽  
Evelien Belfroid ◽  
Renske Eilers ◽  
Dorothee Roßkamp ◽  
Corien Swaan ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Infectious Disease ◽  
Focus Group ◽  
Infectious Diseases ◽  
Group Discussion ◽  
Disease Outbreaks ◽  
Care Staff ◽  
Infectious Disease Outbreaks ◽  
High Resource ◽  
The World ◽  
Centralized Care

Background. As demonstrated during the global Ebola crisis of 2014–2016, healthcare institutions in high resource settings need support concerning preparedness during threats of infectious disease outbreaks. This study aimed to exploratively develop a standardized preparedness system to use during unfolding threats of severe infectious diseases. Methods. A qualitative three-step study among infectious disease prevention and control experts was performed. First, interviews (n=5) were conducted to identify which factors trigger preparedness activities during an unfolding threat. Second, these triggers informed the design of a phased preparedness system which was tested in a focus group discussion (n=11). Here preparedness activities per phase and per healthcare institution were identified. Third, the preparedness system was completed and verified in individual interviews (n=3). Interviews and the focus group were recorded, transcribed, and coded for emerging themes by two researchers independently. Data were analyzed using content analysis. Results. Four preparedness phases were identified: preparedness phase green is a situation without the presence of the infectious disease threat that requires centralized care, anywhere in the world. Phase yellow is an outbreak in the world with some likelihood of imported cases. Phase orange is a realistic chance of an unexpected case within the country, or unrest developing among population or staff; phase red is cases admitted to hospitals in the country, potentially causing a shortage of resources. Specific preparedness activities included infection prevention, diagnostics, patient care, staff, and communication. Consensus was reached on the need for the development of a preparedness system and national coordination during threats. Conclusions. In this study, we developed a standardized system to support institutional preparedness during an increasing threat. Use of this system by both curative healthcare institutions and the (municipal) public health service, could help to effectively communicate and align preparedness activities during future threats of severe infectious diseases.

scholarly journals Global mapping of infectious disease

2013 ◽  
Vol 368 (1614) ◽  
pp. 20120250 ◽  
Author(s):  
Simon I. Hay ◽  
Katherine E. Battle ◽  
David M. Pigott ◽  
David L. Smith ◽  
Catherine L. Moyes ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Infectious Disease ◽  
Infectious Diseases ◽  
Disease Outbreaks ◽  
Data Sources ◽  
Global Burden ◽  
Rapid Improvement ◽  
Disease Evolution ◽  
Infectious Disease Outbreaks ◽  
Disease Occurrence ◽  
Global Mapping

The primary aim of this review was to evaluate the state of knowledge of the geographical distribution of all infectious diseases of clinical significance to humans. A systematic review was conducted to enumerate cartographic progress, with respect to the data available for mapping and the methods currently applied. The results helped define the minimum information requirements for mapping infectious disease occurrence, and a quantitative framework for assessing the mapping opportunities for all infectious diseases. This revealed that of 355 infectious diseases identified, 174 (49%) have a strong rationale for mapping and of these only 7 (4%) had been comprehensively mapped. A variety of ambitions, such as the quantification of the global burden of infectious disease, international biosurveillance, assessing the likelihood of infectious disease outbreaks and exploring the propensity for infectious disease evolution and emergence, are limited by these omissions. An overview of the factors hindering progress in disease cartography is provided. It is argued that rapid improvement in the landscape of infectious diseases mapping can be made by embracing non-conventional data sources, automation of geo-positioning and mapping procedures enabled by machine learning and information technology, respectively, in addition to harnessing labour of the volunteer ‘cognitive surplus’ through crowdsourcing.

scholarly journals The accelerated infectious disease risk in the Anthropocene: more outbreaks and wider global spread

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Serge Morand ◽  
Bruno A. Walther
Keyword(s):  
Infectious Disease ◽  
Economic Growth ◽  
Disease Risk ◽  
Disease Outbreaks ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Infectious Disease Outbreaks ◽  
Disease Networks ◽  
Increased Risk ◽  
Climate Crisis ◽  
Human Infectious Disease

The greatly accelerated economic growth during the Anthropocene has resulted in astonishing improvements in many aspects of human well-being, but has also caused the acceleration of risks, such as the interlinked biodiversity and climate crisis. Here, we report on another risk: the accelerated infectious disease risk associated with the number and geographic spread of human infectious disease outbreaks. Using the most complete, reliable, and up-to-date database on human infectious disease outbreaks (GIDEON), we show that the number of disease outbreaks, the number of diseases involved in these outbreaks, and the number of countries affected have increased during the entire Anthropocene. Furthermore, the spatial distribution of these outbreaks is becoming more globalized in the sense that the overall modularity of the disease networks across the globe has decreased, meaning disease outbreaks have become increasingly pandemic in their nature. This decrease in modularity is correlated with the increase in air traffic. We finally show that those countries and regions which are most central within these disease networks tend to be countries with higher GDPs. Therefore, one cost of increased global mobility and greater economic growth is the increased risk of disease outbreaks and their faster and wider spread. We briefly discuss three different scenarios which decision-makers might follow in light of our results.

Human biology and the urban environment

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Philip James
Keyword(s):  
Social Factors ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Urban Environments ◽  
Urban Life ◽  
First Century ◽  
Calorie Intake ◽  
Stress Hormone ◽  
Disease Patterns ◽  
Cellular Inflammation ◽  
Health And Well Being

Climate change and the rapid movement of people and goods over great distances are changing global disease patterns. Human health and well-being are also being adversely affected by the absence of biodiverse, vegetation-rich green spaces. The human body adapts poorly to urban life. The result is ill health. A typology of interactions (intentional, incidental, and indirect) between people and nature is set out. Similarly, benefits of contact with nature in terms of physiological, psychological, cognitive, and social factors. The emergent central mechanism linking urban environments to ill health is studied. Urban environments cause chronic, low level stress resulting in the release of cortisone (a stress hormone), decreased physical activity, and increased calorie intake, all of which lead to chronic cellular inflammation and to the life-style diseases of the twenty-first century: depression, cancer, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and dementia.

Review on few South Indian medicinal plants as antimicrobial agents

2016 ◽  
Vol 5 (03) ◽  
pp. 4915
Author(s):  
Phani Kumari Uddandapu* ◽  
Venkateswar Rao, Y. ◽  
Chandrasekhara Naidu K.
Keyword(s):  
Medicinal Plants ◽  
Infectious Diseases ◽  
Human Health ◽  
Antimicrobial Agents ◽  
Well Being ◽  
New Drugs ◽  
South Indian ◽  
Medicinal Properties ◽  
Health And Well Being ◽  
Indian Medicinal Plants

The Plant kingdom is a storehouse of potential drugs. Plant derived medicines have made large contributions to human health and well-being. They play dual role in the development of new drugs. At first they act as a natural blueprint for the development of new drugs and secondly they can be used for the treatment of infectious diseases. Many evidences gathered from earlier studies which confirmed that the presence of variety of phytochemicals in plants contribute medicinal properties. In this present review, an attempt has been made to give an overview of few south Indian medicinal plants and their phytochemicals which are useful in the treatment of several infectious diseases.

Minimum Standards for Child Protection in Humanitarian Action

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Keyword(s):  
Child Protection ◽  
Disease Outbreaks ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Global Network ◽  
Technical Standards ◽  
Humanitarian Settings ◽  
Humanitarian Action ◽  
Infectious Disease Outbreaks ◽  
Minimum Standards ◽  
Quality Child

The 2019 edition of the Minimum Standards for Child Protection in Humanitarian Action (CPMS) is a ‘one-stop shop’ for all the latest resources on child protection. The CPMS aims to strengthen quality and accountability in child protection programming and improve multi-sectoral approaches to children’s safety and well-being. This new edition strengthens the emphasis on principles, evidence and prevention, and increases their applicability in refugee contexts and infectious disease outbreaks. The CPMS standards are grouped around four pillars: ensuring a quality child protection response, understanding risks, developing adequate strategies, and working across sectors. Whether you’re planning a rapid response or looking for ways to improve the well-being of children during a protracted crisis, the handbook provides key actions, indicators and guidance notes on a range of approaches, and links to additional resources. The handbook should be used by humanitarian actors -- including those in community groups, non-governmental organisations, government personnel, policy makers, donors, and those working on advocacy, media or communications – as well as students and researchers. The Alliance for Child Protection in Humanitarian Action (the Alliance) is a global network of operational agencies, academic institutions, policymakers, donors and practitioners. Its mission is to support the efforts of humanitarian actors to achieve high-quality and effective child protection interventions in both refugee and non-refugee humanitarian settings. The Alliance achieves this primarily by facilitating inter-agency collaboration on child protection and by producing technical standards and tools. The Alliance envisions a world in which children are protected from abuse, neglect, exploitation and violence in all humanitarian settings.

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