scholarly journals A Comparative Study on Medicine Pricing in Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (BRICS)

2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (10) ◽  
pp. 152
Author(s):  
Varsha Bangalee ◽  
Fatima Suleman
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Access To Medicines ◽  
Control Measures ◽  
Individual Country ◽  
Middle Income ◽  
Middle Income Countries ◽  
Brics Countries ◽  
Time Frames ◽  
And Control

BACKGROUND: It is well documented that high prices hinder access to medicines to a large percentage of the population in low- and middle-income countries. It is with this in mind that governments have made attempts to control medicine pricing with the intent to protect and promote a country’s overall health. BRICS as Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa have collectively become to be known, represent five newly emerging global economies, each one attempting to control medicine pricing and improve accessibility. OBJECTIVE: To compare the medicine pricing regulatory efforts made by each of the BRICS countries. METHOD: This was achieved through the dissemination of an online survey posed to members of the BRICS Medicines Alliance. Questions in the survey looked at the presence of an essential’s medicines list; pricing regulations and control measures employed at the manufacturer, wholesaler and retail level. RESULTS: The findings reveal that each country has adopted different paths and time frames toward policy and regulatory development. CONCLUSION: Despite the variations in policy adoption, shared lessons can still be learnt from each country to improve the outcomes for each individual country and create an opportunity for pharmaceutical growth and transparency in medicine pricing.

scholarly journals Ambient Particulate Matter Exposure and Under-Five and Maternal Deaths in Asia

2019 ◽  
Vol 16 (20) ◽  
pp. 3855 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wei-Hung Lien ◽  
Patrick Opiyo Owili ◽  
Miriam Adoyo Muga ◽  
Tang-Huang Lin
Keyword(s):  
Control Measures ◽  
High Concentration ◽  
Mixed Effect ◽  
Maternal Deaths ◽  
Middle Income ◽  
Under Five ◽  
Middle Income Countries ◽  
Moderate Resolution ◽  
Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer ◽  
And Control

The Asian region is one of the major emission sources of air pollution. Although ambient PM2.5 has been linked to several health risks in high-, low-, and middle-income countries, the further analysis of type impact is still rare but significant. The PM2.5 distribution retrieved from MODIS (Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer) aerosol optical depth products within 16 years thus explored the associations between under-five and maternal mortality for 45 countries in Asia. Both the nonparametric (Generalized Additive Mixed-Effect) and parametric (Generalized Linear Mixed-Effect) models were employed to analyze the collected datasets. The results show that the levels of PM2.5 in Asian sub-regions were higher than the Global Air Quality Standards. Biomass PM2.5 concentrations was associated with increased the rate of under-five (Incidence Rate Ratio, IRR = 1.29, 95% CI, 1.13–1.47) and maternal (IRR = 1.09, 95% CI: 1.08–1.10) deaths in Asia. Anthropogenic PM2.5 was associated with increased rate of under-five deaths in Asia by 12%. The nonparametric method revealed that dust PM2.5 was positively associated with the under-five (β = 0.04, p < 0.001) and maternal (β = 0.07, p < 0.001) deaths in Asia. The rate of maternal deaths was increased by biomass/dust (IRR = 1.64, 95% CI: 1.63–1.65) and anthropogenic/dust (IRR = 1.22, 95% CI: 1.19–1.26) mixture types. In summary, long-term exposure to different types of ambient PM2.5 in high concentration increased the rate of under-five and maternal deaths, suggesting that policies focusing on preventive and control measures is imperative for developing an improved maternal, newborn, and child health in Asia.

scholarly journals The Impact of COVID-19 on the Care of Patients With Noncommunicable Diseases in Low- and Middle-Income Countries: An Online Survey of Patient Perspectives

2021 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
pp. 237437352110340
Author(s):  
Ratna Devi ◽  
Felicity Goodyear-Smith ◽  
Kannan Subramaniam ◽  
Jessica McCormack ◽  
Amanda Calder ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Control Measures ◽  
Noncommunicable Diseases ◽  
Middle Income ◽  
Middle Income Countries ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Mental Well Being ◽  
Low And Middle Income

We sought to gain insights into the impacts of COVID-19 and associated control measures on health and health care of patients from low- and middle-income countries with cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and mental health conditions, using an online survey during the COVID-19 pandemic. The most common concern for the 1487 patients who took part was contracting COVID-19 when they accessed health care. Of those infected with COVID-19, half said that their health had been worse since being infected. Collectively, most people reported an increase in feelings of stress and loneliness. The COVID-19 pandemic has led to a range of health care impacts on patients with noncommunicable diseases, including constraints on access to care and health effects, particularly mental well-being.

scholarly journals Multimorbidity of chronic non-communicable diseases in low- and middle-income countries: A scoping review

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 ◽  
pp. 2235042X2096191
Author(s):  
Fantu Abebe ◽  
Marguerite Schneider ◽  
Biksegn Asrat ◽  
Fentie Ambaw
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Sample Size ◽  
Scoping Review ◽  
Grey Literature ◽  
Individual Country ◽  
Middle Income ◽  
Non Communicable Diseases ◽  
Middle Income Countries ◽  
High Prevalence ◽  
Low And Middle Income

Background: Multimorbidity is rising in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). However, the evidence on its epidemiology from LMICs settings is limited and the available literature has not been synthesized as yet. Objectives: To review the available evidence on the epidemiology of multimorbidity in LMICs. Methods: PubMed, Scopus, PsycINFO and Grey literature databases were searched. We followed the PRISMA-ScR reporting guideline. Results: Of 33, 110 articles retrieved, 76 studies were eligible for the epidemiology of multimorbidity. Of these 76 studies, 66 (86.8%) were individual country studies. Fifty-two (78.8%) of which were confined to only six middle-income countries: Brazil, China, South Africa, India, Mexico and Iran. The majority (n = 68, 89.5%) of the studies were crosssectional in nature. The sample size varied from 103 to 242, 952. The largest proportion (n = 33, 43.4%) of the studies enrolled adults. Marked variations existed in defining and measuring multimorbidity. The prevalence of multimorbidity in LMICs ranged from 3.2% to 90.5%. Conclusion and Recommendations: Studies on the epidemiology of multimorbidity in LMICs are limited and the available ones are concentrated in few countries. Despite variations in measurement and definition, studies consistently reported high prevalence of multimorbidity. Further research is urgently required to better understand the epidemiology of multimorbidity and define the best possible interventions to improve outcomes of patients with multimorbidity in LMICs.

Investigation on emotion and behavior of children aged 1-11 during the pandemic of COVID-19: A Cross-sectional study in Guizhou, China (Preprint)

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yushi Mo ◽  
Yan Luo ◽  
Hong Li ◽  
Dewei Xiao ◽  
Shuqing Liu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Behavioral Problems ◽  
Prevention And Control ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Sleep Problems ◽  
Emotional Problems ◽  
Control Measures ◽  
Emotional And Behavioral Problems ◽  
Guizhou Province ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
And Control

BACKGROUND In face of the sudden epidemic of COVID-19, strict prevention and control measures had been urgently carried out all over China. Because of the long-term home quarantine, all kinds of people were affected by it. OBJECTIVE In order to understand the mental health of children during the pandemic of COVID-19, this study investigated the prevalence and characteristics of emotional and behavioral problems of children aged 1-11 in Guizhou. METHODS Based on the online survey platform, the survey link was pushed through Wechat in April 2020. Electronic questionnaires were used to investigate children's demographic characteristics, emotional or behavioral problems. RESULTS A total of 3505 valid questionnaires were received from 9 prefectures and cities in Guizhou Province. 39.67% of the children in the 1-2-year-old group had emotional problems. 17.63% of the children agd 3-5 years had behavioral or emotional problems. And 23.57% of the children agd 6-11 years havd behavioral problems. CONCLUSIONS During the home quarantine period of prevention and control of COVID-19, even young children were adversely affected. The prevalence of emotional and behavioral problems in children was high, which was mainly manifested as anxiety, difficulty in concentration and sleep problems.

An Overview of the Ethics of Injury in Public Health

2019 ◽  
pp. 597-603
Author(s):  
Adnan A. Hyder
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Injury Prevention ◽  
Prevention And Control ◽  
Public Health Ethics ◽  
Ethical Challenges ◽  
Middle Income ◽  
Middle Income Countries ◽  
Health Ethics ◽  
Prompt Attention ◽  
And Control

This chapter briefly introduces ethics issues in injury prevention and control in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), using a series of examples that prompt attention to the ethical principles of autonomy and justice. The chapter also introduces the section of The Oxford Handbook of Public Health Ethics dedicated to an examination of injury and public health ethics, with attention given to the complex ethical challenges arising in injury prevention and control in LMICs. The section’s two chapters discuss public health ethics issues arising in the prevention and control of unintentional injuries and intentional injuries, respectively. Those chapters define a set of ethics issues within international injury work and provide an initial analysis of the nature of those ethics issues, their specificity, and potential pathways for addressing them.

scholarly journals Climate drivers of plague epidemiology in British India, 1898–1949

2020 ◽  
Vol 287 (1928) ◽  
pp. 20200538
Author(s):  
Warren S. D. Tennant ◽  
Mike J. Tildesley ◽  
Simon E. F. Spencer ◽  
Matt J. Keeling
Keyword(s):  
Predictive Models ◽  
Control Measures ◽  
Climate Data ◽  
British India ◽  
Middle Income ◽  
Middle Income Countries ◽  
Complex Interactions ◽  
The World ◽  
Spatio Temporal

Plague, caused by Yersinia pestis infection, continues to threaten low- and middle-income countries throughout the world. The complex interactions between rodents and fleas with their respective environments challenge our understanding of human plague epidemiology. Historical long-term datasets of reported plague cases offer a unique opportunity to elucidate the effects of climate on plague outbreaks in detail. Here, we analyse monthly plague deaths and climate data from 25 provinces in British India from 1898 to 1949 to generate insights into the influence of temperature, rainfall and humidity on the occurrence, severity and timing of plague outbreaks. We find that moderate relative humidity levels of between 60% and 80% were strongly associated with outbreaks. Using wavelet analysis, we determine that the nationwide spread of plague was driven by changes in humidity, where, on average, a one-month delay in the onset of rising humidity translated into a one-month delay in the timing of plague outbreaks. This work can inform modern spatio-temporal predictive models for the disease and aid in the development of early-warning strategies for the deployment of prophylactic treatments and other control measures.

scholarly journals The Integration of Conventional Equity Indices with Environmental, Social, and Governance Indices: Evidence from Emerging Economies

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 676
Author(s):  
Ramiz ur Rehman ◽  
Muhammad Zain ul Abidin ◽  
Rizwan Ali ◽  
Safwan Mohd Nor ◽  
Muhammad Akram Naseem ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Function Analysis ◽  
Impulse Response Function ◽  
Decomposition Analysis ◽  
Individual Country ◽  
Brics Countries ◽  
Long Run ◽  
Integration Test ◽  
Short Run ◽  
Equity Indices

This study investigates the integration of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) equity indices with conventional indices in Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa (BRICS) individually and across all BRICS countries to better understand regional economic cooperation. Accordingly, we look at daily returns from 13 July 2013 to 28 February 2018 for the Morgan Stanley Capital International (MSCI) ESG indices and MSCI composite indices of the respective countries. To analyze the integration between the ESG equity indices of the sampled countries with their regional and across regional conventional counterparts, the Johansen Co-integration test is employed in this study. Further, the vector error correction model (VECM) is applied to test the causality between the sampled time-series. The impulse response function analysis further explains the impulse responses of each country’s MSCI ESG returns to one standard deviation of innovations to MSCI composite returns of the same country and across countries. Finally, the extent of the MSCI composite returns’ impact on the MSCI ESG returns in the same country indices, and cross-regional indices is examined with variance decomposition analysis. The results suggest that all ESG equity indices are integrated with conventional indices in all BRICS countries. Furthermore, there is a short-or long-run causality between MSCI ESG and MSCI composite equity indices of China and South Africa. Moreover, the study finds only short-run causality between conventional and non-conventional equity indices of Brazil and Russia, whereas we find only long-run causality between India’s non-conventional and conventional equity indices. Finally, the study finds that the all-individual country MSCI ESG equity indices shows a long-run causality with MSCI composite equity indices of all other BRICS countries. The findings also confirm the economic and financial cooperation between the BRICS countries.

The Economic Cost of Violence Against Women and Girls in Low- and Middle-Income Countries: A Systematic Review of the Evidence

2021 ◽  
pp. 152483802110160
Author(s):  
Seema Vyas ◽  
Melissa Meinhart ◽  
Katrina Troy ◽  
Hannah Brumbaum ◽  
Catherine Poulton ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Systematic Review ◽  
Violence Against Women ◽  
Economic Burden ◽  
Data Availability ◽  
Female Genital Cutting ◽  
Middle Income ◽  
Middle Income Countries ◽  
Women And Girls ◽  
Low And Middle Income

Evidence demonstrating the economic burden of violence against women and girls can support policy and advocacy efforts for investment in violence prevention and response programming. We undertook a systematic review of evidence on the costs of violence against women and girls in low- and middle-income countries published since 2005. In addition to understanding costs, we examined the consistency of methodological approaches applied and identified and assessed common methodological issues. Thirteen articles were identified, eight of which were from sub-Saharan Africa. Eight studies estimated costs associated with domestic or intimate partner violence, others estimated the costs of interpersonal violence, female genital cutting, and sexual assaults. Methodologies applied to estimate costs were typically based on accounting approaches. Our review found that out-of-pocket expenditures to individuals for seeking health care after an episode of violence ranged from US$29.72 (South Africa) to US$156.11 (Romania) and that lost productivity averaged from US$73.84 to US$2,151.48 (South Africa) per facility visit. Most studies that estimated provider costs of service delivery presented total programmatic costs, and there was variation in interventions, scale, and resource inputs measured which hampered comparability. Variations in methodological assumptions and data availability also made comparisons across countries and settings challenging. The limited scope of studies in measuring the multifaceted impacts of violence highlights the challenges in identifying cost metrics that extend beyond specific violence episodes. Despite the limited evidence base, our assessment leads us to conclude that the estimated costs of violence against women and girls are a fraction of its true economic burden.

scholarly journals The impact of COVID-19 on the care of people living with noncommunicable diseases in low- and middle-income countries: an online survey of physicians and pharmacists in nine countries

2021 ◽  
Vol 22 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chris Bullen ◽  
Jessica McCormack ◽  
Amanda Calder ◽  
Varsha Parag ◽  
Kannan Subramaniam ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Healthcare Workers ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
World Health ◽  
Noncommunicable Diseases ◽  
Middle Income ◽  
Middle Income Countries ◽  
Health Measures ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Low And Middle Income

Abstract Background: The global COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted healthcare worldwide. In low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), where people may have limited access to affordable quality care, the COVID-19 pandemic has the potential to have a particularly adverse impact on the health and healthcare of individuals with noncommunicable diseases (NCDs). A World Health Organization survey found that disruption of delivery of healthcare for NCDs was more significant in LMICs than in high-income countries. However, the study did not elicit insights into the day-to-day impacts of COVID-19 on healthcare by front-line healthcare workers (FLHCWs). Aim: To gain insights directly from FLHCWs working in countries with a high NCD burden, and thereby identify opportunities to improve the provision of healthcare during the current pandemic and in future healthcare emergencies. Methods: We recruited selected frontline healthcare workers (general practitioners, pharmacists, and other medical specialists) from nine countries to complete an online survey (n = 1347). Survey questions focused on the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on clinical practice and NCDs; barriers to clinical care during the pandemic; and innovative responses to the many challenges presented by the pandemic. Findings: The majority of FLHCWs responding to our survey reported that their care of patients had been impacted both adversely and positively by the public health measures imposed. Most FLHCs (95%) reported a deterioration in the mental health of their patients. Conclusions: Continuity of care for NCDs as part of pandemic preparedness is needed so that chronic conditions are not exacerbated by public health measures and the direct impacts of the pandemic.

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