The Role of Physician Immunization in Preventing Influenza Outbreaks:

2014 ◽  
Vol 3 (3) ◽  
pp. 191-197
Author(s):  
Tea E Collins
Keyword(s):  
Medical Association ◽  
Healthcare Professionals ◽  
Clinical Settings ◽  
World Medical Association ◽  
Global Campaign ◽  
Immunization Rates ◽  
The World ◽  
Centered Care ◽  
The Many ◽  
Influenza Outbreaks

Influenza outbreaks in clinical settings represent a major threat to patient safety. An average season of influenza results in tens of thousands of deaths and up to 200,000 hospitalizations due to influenza-related causes every year. The risk of complications of influenza is highest among older persons, young children, patients with underlying medical conditions and pregnant women. Physicians and other healthcare professionals play an important role in both preventing and transmitting the infection. The most effective way to reduce transmission from healthcare workers to patients is immunization. Yet, immunization rates among healthcare professionals remain very low. To correct the gap, the World Medical Association launched a global campaign to promote immunization against influenza among physicians globally. The purpose of this paper is to introduce a framework for clinical preventive care, which considers the physician, the patient and the many factors that come into play, resulting in preventive behaviors and improved health outcomes. The framework is applied to the analysis of the World Medical Association campaign and emphasizes the importance of the relationship between doctor and patient and their interaction as a basis for person-centered care. 

scholarly journals The DSM 5 and the Istanbul Protocol: Diagnosis of psychological sequels of torture

2018 ◽  
Vol 25 (1) ◽  
pp. 11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas Wenzel ◽  
Andreas Frewer ◽  
Siroos Mirzaei
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Medical Association ◽  
World Medical Association ◽  
Statistical Manual ◽  
Dsm 5 ◽  
The World ◽  
Challenges And Opportunities ◽  
Istanbul Protocol ◽  
Degrading Treatment ◽  
Effective Assessment

The Manual on Effective Investigation and Documentation of Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, commonly known as the Istanbul Protocol, is an interdisciplinary standard supported by, among others, the United Nations and the World Medical Association. It aims at aiding the fight against torture by giving clear guidelines to ensure better and more effective assessment of physical and psychological sequels. Mental health is a key aspect of diagnostical assessment and documentation due to the severe and frequently long-lasting impact of torture that often lasts longer than physical sequels. The inclusion of psychological aspects and a psychiatric diagnosis is to be treated as an important obligatory. Care must be taken to avoid common pitfalls. The new and substantial revisions in the frequently used but also criticised Diagnostical and Statistical Manual (DSM) reflect challenges and opportunities in a comprehensive approach to the documentation of torture.

To begin …

2010 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stavros Prineas ◽  
Andrew F Smith
Keyword(s):  
Human Dimensions ◽  
Pain Clinic ◽  
Clinical Settings ◽  
Hospital Administrators ◽  
High Dependency ◽  
The World ◽  
Theatre Staff ◽  
Anaesthetic Assessment ◽  
The Many ◽  
Labour Suite

Communication is an innately fascinating and, on occasions, a somewhat mysterious topic. At its heart, it is the means of expressing, both to ourselves and to others, how we perceive the world and how we influence the world around us. It is a tool for exchanging information and meaning, but also a way to connect with others. While obviously a means to an end, it is also an end in itself—without the ability to share with others, life would be greatly impoverished. The many human dimensions of communication— the practical, the social, the linguistic, the lyrical, the subliminal, its ability to soothe and to injure, to inform, to entertain, to terrify—are what make this topic so challenging. Anaesthesia has come a very long way since the 1840s. The advent of safer and more selective drugs, coupled with ever more sophisticated technology, has made the practice of anaesthesia safer, yet also more complicated. The patients that we treat are often older, have multiple co-morbidities, and are undergoing procedures that would have been unthinkable 20 years ago. Yet with the increasingly complex workload have come the additional pressures of time and resource allocation. Patients are admitted on the day of surgery, leaving minimal time for anaesthetic assessment. Anaesthetists are frequently busy, isolated and unavailable when working in theatre, or find themselves working at multiple sites with little opportunity for interaction with colleagues. Similarly, theatre staff rarely work in the same operating room with the same team on a regular basis. The hospital administrators are under constant pressure as they strain to contain costs and reduce length of stay, while wards are increasingly understaffed and overworked. In the midst of all this, patients are left wondering who is actually caring for them, and if anyone is listening to their concerns. Anaesthetists play a crucial role in multi-professional teams in a wide variety of clinical settings of which theatre is only one. There is the high dependency unit (HDU), the labour suite, paediatrics, the chronic pain clinic—to name but a few. In almost every aspect of anaesthetic clinical practice the ability to communicate effectively is a vital component of patient care.

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