scholarly journals Challenges faced during COVID-19 outbreak investigation in Qatar: From the investigators’ perspective

2021 ◽  
Vol 2021 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Abrar Ahmed ◽  
Syed Shariq Jaffrey ◽  
Farhat Fatima ◽  
Fatimah Ahmed Elnour ◽  
Marwa Saleh Mohamed Abuzaid ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Migrant Workers ◽  
Social Stigma ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Cultural Backgrounds ◽  
World Cup ◽  
Public Places ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
The Public ◽  
Case Investigation

Background: Case investigation and surveillance is a key step in managing any epidemic. This report aimed to identify the main challenges faced by COVID-19 case investigators in Qatar and to suggest possible solutions to improve the case investigation process in managing future pandemics. Methods: Purposive sampling was used to select 40 COVID-19 case investigators posted at the Ministry of Public Health, Qatar. Interviewees were from diverse educational and cultural backgrounds and had been investigating COVID-19 cases for more than 6 months, at the time of interview. Face-to-face semi-structured interviews were done to collect data which was anonymized before analyzing for the purpose of this qualitative study. Results: The most common concern faced in conducting case investigations was language barrier, given the multinational and diverse diasporas Qatar is host to. Authenticity of the investigation was a matter of suspicion for many patients; whereas the majority of the investigators opined that multiple calls received from different healthcare departments asking for information overwhelmed many patients. Laborers/migrant workers often did not divulge information due to fear of repercussions from their supervisors. Social stigma associated with COVID-19caused reluctance to reveal the index case and close contacts. Information regarding social gatherings attended and public places visited was often concealed . Cultural differences as well hindered smooth investigation in a few cases. Rising case load at times put restraints on improved coordination between different health departments and structured guidance for investigators about the pandemic response system, which could help to deliver appropriate health services more efficiently. Comprehensive orientation in using the Electronic Surveillance database could also improve the efficacy of epidemiological analysis for improved public health outcomes. Conclusion: Addressing these challenges will help the public health team in Qatar to increase preparedness and efficiency in managing potential future outbreaks, especially in view of upcoming mass gathering events such as the FIFA 2022 World Cup.

The Perceptions of Greek Immigrants in Germany About the Health Illness and Pain in the Context of Mental Health

2017 ◽  
Vol 41 (S1) ◽  
pp. S624-S624
Author(s):  
S. Kotrotsiou ◽  
A. Tsoumani ◽  
E. Kotrotsiou ◽  
M. Gouva ◽  
E. Dragioti ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Participant Observation ◽  
Access To Health Services ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Cultural Backgrounds ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
The Public ◽  
Sociocultural Environment ◽  
Health And Disease ◽  
Competing Interest ◽  
The Individual

AimThis study aims to investigate the perceptions of health, disease and pain issues among Greek immigrant, living in Germany, as they were formed through their previous experiences, their immigration routes and their experiences in a new sociocultural environment, while taking under consideration their varying cultural backgrounds.Material-methodThis research was based on the personal interpretations of ten Greek immigrant (6 women and 4 men). As to methodology, qualitative research was employed. The methodological tools used for the collection of the material were semi-structured interviews (face to face), participant observation and a field diary. Finally, the method of analysis used for the empirical material was content thematic analysis.ResultsAll participants experienced immigration as an especially stressful period of their lives that changed their state of health (these changes extend from physical complaints to manifestation of depression). Most person describe life in Germany as difficult due to various problems (loss of relatives and friends’ social networks, poor language knowledge, isolation, etc.). However, the public health system's organization (regardless any flaws), which ensures their access to health services, positively contributed in changing their attitudes regarding the issues under question. Lastly, the reference to psycho-traumatic situations, transitional life phases, as well as to stimuli in the difficult everyday life feed person's meaning-makings about pain.ConclusionsThe research's results showed that health and disease are not only biologically determined phenomena. They also are socially determined situations, given that they are not only related to changes in the individual's psychology but are influenced by the broader sociocultural environment in which the individual lives and works.Disclosure of interestThe authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.

scholarly journals Perceptions of Antibiotic Use and Resistance: Are Antibiotics the Dentists’ Anxiolytics?

Antibiotics ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (6) ◽  
pp. 735
Author(s):  
Julie Dormoy ◽  
Marc-Olivier Vuillemin ◽  
Silvia Rossi ◽  
Jean-Marc Boivin ◽  
Julie Guillet
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Antibiotic Resistance ◽  
Qualitative Method ◽  
Oral Surgery ◽  
Antibiotic Use ◽  
Public Health Issue ◽  
Clinical Factors ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Health Crisis ◽  
The Public

Background: Antibiotic resistance is a global health crisis. The aim of this study was to explore dentists’ perceptions of antibiotic resistance. Methods: A qualitative method was used. Seventeen dentists practising in the Nancy (Lorraine, France) region were surveyed. They were general practitioners or specialised in oral surgery, implantology, or periodontology. The practitioners took part in semi-structured interviews between September 2019 and July 2020. All of the interviews were transcribed in full and analysed thematically. Results: Four major themes have been selected: attitudes of the dentists in regard to the guidelines, clinical factors that influence prescriptions, non-clinical factors that influence prescriptions, and the perception of antibiotic resistance. The dentists stated that they were very concerned regarding the public health issue of antibiotic resistance. However, they often prescribe according to their own interests and habits rather than according to the relevant guidelines. Conclusions: Although dentists are generally well aware of antibiotic resistance, they often do not adequately appreciate the link between their prescribing habits and the phenomenon of antibiotic resistance. Regular updating of practitioners’ knowledge in this regard is necessary, but patients and the general public should also be made more aware of the issue.

scholarly journals OP0191-PARE DEVELOPMENT OF A PUBLIC AND PATIENT INVOLVEMENT (PPI) RESEARCH NETWORK FOR PEOPLE WHO HAVE RHEUMATIC CONDITIONS

2021 ◽  
Vol 80 (Suppl 1) ◽  
pp. 115.2-115
Author(s):  
L. Larkin ◽  
A. Moses ◽  
T. Raad ◽  
A. Tierney ◽  
N. Kennedy ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Patient Involvement ◽  
Research Network ◽  
Ppi Network ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
The Public ◽  
World Cafe ◽  
Patient Representatives ◽  
The University ◽  
Public And Patient Involvement

Background:Public and patient involvement (PPI) improves quality and relevance of research (1). PPI is advocated by policy makers and funding bodies and is supported by EULAR (2). Arthritis Research Limerick (ARL) is a partnership between researchers at the University of Limerick and clinicians at University Hospitals Limerick. PPI representatives have been involved in ARL projects, however no formal PPI network had been established prior to 2020. The need for a formal PPI network to collaborate with ARL was identified by both ARL and patient representatives. This need arose from a joint ambition to promote meaningful involvement of the public and patients in ARL projects and to develop a platform through which researchers and PPI representatives could collaboratively set research priorities.Objectives:The aim of this project was to create a formal PPI network to engage with people living with rheumatic and musculoskeletal diseases (RMDs) and their families and to identify collaborative research opportunities between ARL and PPI representatives.Methods:A face-to-face PPI seminar was planned for October 2020. The seminar consisted of speakers from ARL providing an overview of research projects and a World Café research ideas session. Funding was obtained through a competitive, peer-review funding call from the PPI Ignite group at the University of Limerick to support the PPI seminar. The funding application was a joint application between ARL members and a PPI partner (iCAN - Irish Children’s Arthritis Network). The seminar was advertised through national patient organisations (iCAN and Arthritis Ireland), social media and ARL research networks.Results:Due to Covid-19 public health restrictions the PPI seminar was held virtually. The ARL PPI inaugural seminar was attended by N=19 researchers and people living with RMDs. The seminar speakers included ARL researchers and a PPI representative. The World Café event was modified to adapt to the virtual seminar delivery. Research ideas were noted by the seminar organiser and summarised for attendees at the end of the research ideas and priorities session. An ARL PPI mailing list was set-up post seminar as a means of communicating with seminar attendees and will serve as a formal PPI network for ARL. Research updates and opportunities will be communicated via this formal network to people living with RMDs and researchers alike.Conclusion:This was the first PPI seminar organised by ARL in collaboration with a PPI seminar, and has led to the creation of a formal PPI network. Delivery mode of the PPI seminar was changed due to Covid-19 public health restrictions. This change may also have impacted engagement and attendance at the PPI seminar, given that virtual events are not accessible to all of the RMD population. Future PPI seminars will consider a hybrid approach of face-to-face and virtual attendance, to enhance accessibility. A formal PPI communication network has been established. Future work will focus future collaborative opportunities between the PPI panel and the ARL group, including project development, co-led research funding applications and joint research dissemination.References:[1]INVOLVE. (2012). Briefing notes for researchers: Involving the public in NHS, public health and social care research. Retrieved from www.invo.org.uk 7th January 2020.[2]de Wit MPT, Berlo SE, Aanerud GJ, et al (2011). European League Against Rheumatism recommendations for the inclusion of patient representatives in scientific projects. Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases 70:722-726Disclosure of Interests:None declared

Will Nurses’ Work Still be Valued after the COVID-19 Pandemic?

2021 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Pasquot L ◽  
◽  
Giorgetta S ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Infection Rate ◽  
Health Sector ◽  
Risk Of Infection ◽  
Initial State ◽  
Public Places ◽  
The Public ◽  
High Infection ◽  
A Minor ◽  
Second Wave

Many are the aspects we should ponder on, after 17 months from the burst of the COVID-19 pandemic, especially as nurses. Due to the numerous cuts to the public health sector in the last decades in Italy, the sanitary emergency has been a great sacrifice for health professionals, as public health was completely unprepared to withstand it. The Italian government reacted to this lack of preparation with exceptionally urgent measures. Although, these measures were implemented long after the initial state of confusion and of inappropriate management, they brought about stability and led to a containment strategy for the spread of the virus across the nation [1]. The reduction in the number of COVID-19 diagnoses was mainly achieved through social distancing. At first this was only required to a small number of communities affected by high infection rates, but was eventually extended to the rest of the country from March 2020 [2]. The national lockdown during the first COVID-19 wave (from March to May 2020), was replaced by regional lockdowns in the second wave (from November 2020). As of now, regional lockdowns are integrated by the vaccine campaign and Green Pass enforcement. In November 2020 the Italian Prime Minister at the time, issued legislative measures to enforce regional lockdowns, limiting nonessential movements, cafes, restaurants and other public places opening hours. This legislation established to classify the national territory in different levels of restriction based on the infection rate: red zones - highest risk of infection, orange zones - medium high risk and yellow zones with a minor risk of infection. A later legislation introduced the white zone for territories with the lowest risk of infection (DPCM-14th January 2021). The infection rate has been important to establish a region’s tier status; however, it is not the defining parameter anymore. A new legislation from July 2021 (n.105 - 23rd July 2021), opted to classify a region’s tier status according to the hospital bed’s occupancy rate for COVID-19 patients in intensive care and other medical areas.

Online Opinion Leaders in the Health Promotion Digital Era

2021 ◽  
Vol 37 (4) ◽  
pp. 295-309
Author(s):  
Joyce Cheah Lynn-Sze ◽  
◽  
Azlina Kamaruddin ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Decision Making ◽  
Social Media ◽  
Health Promotion ◽  
Health Communication ◽  
Opinion Leader ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Opinion Leaders ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
The Public

Health opinion leaders have widely embraced social media for health promotion and public health communication which can make a strong influence on the public decision making. However, despite the growing relevance of public health threats such as infectious diseases, pandemic influenza and natural disasters, research has paid little attention to the qualities of opinion leaders. Moreover, there is limited evidence that public health organisations use social media appropriately to engage in meaningful conversations with audiences. Thus, the aims of the study are to describe principles of communication practised by online opinion leaders to promote health issues, to discuss the strategies of social media used, to explain the opinion leaders’ influence attributes in health decision making and finally to develop a model of online opinion leader in the contemporary health promotion era. Content analysis was conducted on Facebook postings of five selected health opinion leaders. In addition, semi-structured interviews with 10 followers were conducted. The findings of the study revealed that there are three principles of communication practised by online opinion leaders, which are language, interaction and themes. There are three strategies opinion leaders use to influence the public: social connectivity, social support and social consultation. Furthermore, there are five opinion leaders’ attributes that influence the public’s decision making, namely personality, authenticity, trust/credibility, professional knowledge and social position. The model would be beneficial in educating and guiding the current public health opinion leaders in order to establish health and social well-being. Keywords: Online opinion leader, online health communication, public health, two-step flow theory, decision making.

The experiences of maternity in front of hospitalization in high risk pregnances

2020 ◽  
Vol 30 (Supplement_5) ◽  
Author(s):  
M Ciciliotti da Silva ◽  
B Heintze Ferreira ◽  
D Fraga Santos ◽  
F Fernandes ◽  
Bersot Magalhães ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
High Risk ◽  
Pregnant Women ◽  
Maternity Hospital ◽  
High Risk Pregnancy ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
The Public ◽  
Prenatal Consultation ◽  
Risk Pregnancy ◽  
Specialized Care

Abstract Introduction The pregnancy-puerperal cycle is defined as a moment that involves physical, psychological and social changes. There are pregnancies that require specialized care and attention due to the presence of risk factors that may be prior to pregnancy and / or that may be associated with the pregnancy condition itself, which characterize them as high-risk pregnancies. Currently, prenatal care with risk stratification is the main care strategy for pregnant women, once the risk classification is identified, it is possible to promote interventions according to the health needs of each pregnant woman. For this, the risk assessment is carried out at each prenatal consultation, so that, depending on the course of pregnancy, hospitalization becomes necessary. The diagnosis of high-risk pregnancies accompanied by hospitalization has impacts on the woman's life, such as loss of autonomy, a sense of failure and the incidence of greater care and interventions by the health team and the family that can configure practices to control their bodies. Objective This work aims to identify the hospitalization process during high-risk pregnancy as a space for the production of projects, resistance and protagonism through the protocols and regulations that configure the hospital context. Methodology This is an exploratory analysis of a qualitative approach in public health. A reference maternity hospital in high-risk pregnancy located in a teaching hospital in Greater Vitória was chosen. It will be used to define sampling for convenience. The data will be collected through semi-structured interviews and on-site observations by the researcher. The data analysis methodology used will be content analysis. Expected Results It is expected to understand the various practices of protagonism and resistance that permeate the care of hospitalized pregnant women. Key messages This work has an impact on the improvement of the maternal and child care network of the public health system in Brazil. This work allows to evaluate the quality of the assistance provided in the public maternity.

Japanese student writers’ perspectives on anonymous peer review

ELT Journal ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 73 (3) ◽  
pp. 296-305 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sugene Kim
Keyword(s):  
Peer Review ◽  
Asian Students ◽  
Writing Classroom ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Cultural Backgrounds ◽  
Student Writers ◽  
Efl Learners ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
Japanese Student ◽  
Peer Reviewers

Abstract This article explores Japanese EFL learners’ perceptions of face-to-face vs. anonymous peer review in a writing classroom. Albeit few in number, some studies claim that Asian students exhibit difficulty in providing negative feedback because they tend to be hesitant for cultural reasons to criticize others’ work. To verify and extend such observations, this study collected data from 64 Japanese college students regarding their experiences and perspectives after they performed peer review in both conditions. Analysis of the data collected through a survey and semi-structured interviews did not support the previously held views that learners from non-Western cultural backgrounds are predisposed to be reluctant peer reviewers. Further, the findings indicated that Japanese EFL learners’ preference for a specific peer-review mode interacts closely with various factors. Possible pedagogical implications are discussed in relation to ways to better implement peer-review sessions.

scholarly journals Public Response to the Implementation of Health Protocols during the Covid-19 Pandemic

2021 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 1-7
Author(s):  
Angle Lustre ◽  
Liza Chiu
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Public Places ◽  
Public Response ◽  
The Public ◽  
Transmission Chain ◽  
Public Reaction

The public's reaction to the implementation of health protocols during the Covid-19 pandemic is discussed in this report, as well as the idea of enforcing public health protocols, the relevance of implementing health protocols, and the public's reaction to implementing health protocols during the Covid-19 pandemic. This thesis is a quantitative one that relies on data gathered from surveys. The public reaction demonstrates that health guidelines are needed to strengthen attempts to avoid and monitor COVID-19 for people in public places and hospitals in order to avoid the emergence of new epicenters / clusters during the pandemic, as shown by the 78 percent who cooperate and the 22 percent who deliberately and inadvertently disregard. The community's position in breaking the COVID-19 transmission chain, or the possibility of contracting and distributing it, must be accomplished by the implementation of health protocols. The community's reaction to COVID 19 varies; some people really follow the government's protocol, which some people understand; but, for economic reasons, they still operate outside the home to survive.

scholarly journals A qualitative study on the working experiences of clinical pharmacists in fighting against COVID-19

2022 ◽  
Vol 22 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiaojuan Wang ◽  
Xiali Yao ◽  
Xuedong Jia ◽  
Xiangfen Shi ◽  
Jie Hao ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Qualitative Study ◽  
Interview Data ◽  
Work Experiences ◽  
Descriptive Phenomenology ◽  
Career Expectations ◽  
Health Crisis ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
The Public ◽  
Clinical Pharmacists

Abstract Background The spread of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has overwhelmed healthcare systems across the world. Along with the medical team, clinical pharmacists played a significant role during the public health emergency of COVID-19. This study aimed to explore the working experience of clinical pharmacists and provide reference for first-line clinical pharmacists to prepare for fighting against COVID-19. Methods A qualitative study based on descriptive phenomenology was employed with face-to-face and audio-recorded interviews to study the working experience of 13 clinical pharmacists (including two clinical nutritional pharmacists). All interviews were transcribed verbatim, and the interview data were analyzed thematically using NVivo software. Results Four themes emerged from interview data, including roles of clinical pharmacists, working experiences of clinical pharmacists, psychological feelings of clinical pharmacists, and career expectations of clinical pharmacists. Conclusions The results contributed to a deeper understanding of the clinical pharmacists’ work experiences in COVID-19 and offered guidance to better prepare clinical pharmacists in participating in a public health crisis.

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