Information dissemination during pandemics: a review on the Spanish Influenza and Covid-19

Background of the study: Information dissemination could be seen as the means through which facts and information are linked to the rightful individual seekers and organizations. Due to restrictions during pandemics, health professionals and other stakeholders have the important role of disseminating information and resources on the pandemic to the public through various media channels available to them. Purpose: This study looked into how information disseminations were carried out during the Spanish Influenza and Covid-19 pandemics based on review of literature Method: Through the use of relevant keywords and search strategies, the study retrieved literature from Google Scholar for review. The literature were then analysed based on themes to produce a narrative report. Findings: The study reveals that information access and dissemination were timely and speedily during the Covid-19 pandemic dur to advancements in technology whereas the dissemination of information during the Spanish Influenza were limited and rarely timely worldwide. Conclusion: Currently, there exist a problem of misinformation and an ‘infodemic.' Due to advancements in information sharing technologies. The study recommends the need to tackle ‘infodemic’ and misinformation during pandemics.

Implementation of the WHO’s collaborative framework for the management of tuberculosis and diabetes: a scoping review

ObjectiveTo map evidence on the implementation of the WHO’s collaborative framework for the management of tuberculosis (TB) and diabetes mellitus (DM) comorbidity, globally.DesignScoping review.MethodsGuided by Arksey and O’Malley’s scoping review framework, this review mapped literature on the global implementation of the framework for the management of TB and DM comorbidity, globally. An extensive literature search for peer-reviewed studies, theses, studies in the press and a list of references from the selected studies was conducted to source-eligible studies. PubMed, Google Scholar, Web of Science, Science Direct, the EBSCOhost platform (academic search complete, health source: nursing/academic edition, CINAHL with full text), Scopus and the WHO library were used to source the literature. We performed title screening of articles using keywords in the databases, after which two independent reviewers (RS and PV) screened abstracts and full articles. Studies from August 2011 to May 2021 were included in this review and the screening was guided by the inclusion and exclusion criteria. Findings were analysed using the thematic content analysis approach and results presented in the form of a narrative report. The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis extension was used as a checklist and for explaining the scoping review process.ResultsThis review found evidence of the WHO TB-DM collaborative framework’s implementation in 35 countries across the globe. TB-DM comorbidity was identified in patients through bidirectional screening of both patients with TB and patients with DM in rural and urban settings.ConclusionDue to the paucity of evidence on mechanisms of collaboration, we recommend further research in other implementing countries to identify techniques used for diagnosis and integration of TB and DM services, in order to ensure that effective and joint management of TB-DM comorbidity in populations is achieved.

Radiomics as a New Frontier of Imaging for Cancer Prognosis: A Narrative Review

The evaluation of the efficacy of different therapies is of paramount importance for the patients and the clinicians in oncology, and it is usually possible by performing imaging investigations that are interpreted, taking in consideration different response evaluation criteria. In the last decade, texture analysis (TA) has been developed in order to help the radiologist to quantify and identify parameters related to tumor heterogeneity, which cannot be appreciated by the naked eye, that can be correlated with different endpoints, including cancer prognosis. The aim of this work is to analyze the impact of texture in the prediction of response and in prognosis stratification in oncology, taking into consideration different pathologies (lung cancer, breast cancer, gastric cancer, hepatic cancer, rectal cancer). Key references were derived from a PubMed query. Hand searching and clinicaltrials.gov were also used. This paper contains a narrative report and a critical discussion of radiomics approaches related to cancer prognosis in different fields of diseases.

Analysis of English Alive Textbook in Terms of Genres and Lexical Density

The current study aimed at analyzing an English textbook titled English Alive used by English teachers from some senior high schools in Curup, Bengkulu, Indonesia. The textbook analysis was oriented towards two domains, namely genres and lexical density, by applying a content analysis method. This study revealed that the English Alive textbook had five genres: reading materials in the narrative, report, analytical exposition, spoof, and hortatory exposition. Those genres were embedded in sixteen passages distributed to the entire textbook, and those passages were mapped into ten units. Lexical density measurement indicated that most of the passages were categorized as easy to be comprehended, and a few passages were categorized as too easy to be comprehended. However, text genres in this textbook did not sufficiently conform to the distribution of English reading materials as suggested by the K-13 curriculum. Some reading passages did not seem contributive to students’ English acquisition according to comprehensible input theory and other related findings. Hence, the English Alive textbook could be used in today’s context and needs as supplementary material, but the primary reading materials should be resting upon K-13-driven English textbooks. Strength and weaknesses were also identified from the English Alive textbook. The former could be noted that this textbook adopted the constructivism theory and genre-based approach properly. However, the latter indicated that the provision of genre materials did not entirely conform to essential competencies formulated in the current K-13 curriculum of English education. Further studies could analyze more textbooks to help teachers choose appropriate English textbooks.

Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the selection of chest imaging modalities and reporting systems: a survey of Italian radiologists

Purpose Chest imaging modalities play a key role for the management of patient with coronavirus disease (COVID-19). Unfortunately, there is no consensus on the optimal chest imaging approach in the evaluation of patients with COVID-19 pneumonia, and radiology departments tend to use different approaches. Thus, the main objective of this survey was to assess how chest imaging modalities have been used during the different phases of the first COVID-19 wave in Italy, and which diagnostic technique and reporting system would have been preferred based on the experience gained during the pandemic. Material and Methods The questionnaire of the survey consisted of 26 questions. The link to participate in the survey was sent to all members of the Italian Society of Medical and Interventional Radiology (SIRM). Results The survey gathered responses from 716 SIRM members. The most notable result was that the most used and preferred chest imaging modality to assess/exclude/monitor COVID-19 pneumonia during the different phases of the first COVID-19 wave was computed tomography (51.8% to 77.1% of participants). Additionally, while the narrative report was the most used reporting system (55.6% of respondents), one-third of participants would have preferred to utilize structured reporting systems. Conclusion This survey shows that the participants’ responses did not properly align with the imaging guidelines for managing COVID-19 that have been made by several scientific, including SIRM. Therefore, there is a need for continuing education to keep radiologists up to date and aware of the advantages and limitations of the chest imaging modalities and reporting systems.

AIRLINE PILOT SITUATION AWARENESS: PRESENTING A CONCEPTUAL MODEL FOR META-COGNITION, REFLECTION AND EDUCATION

The dissertation research summarized here, utilized the Grounded Theory Method to develop a conceptual model of pilot situation awareness from 223 Aviation Safety Reporting System (ASRS) narratives. The application of Latent Semantic Analysis aided the theoretical sampling of ASRS reports. A multistage model was developed involving attention, perception, interpretation, decision making, and action in support of goal-driven behavior. Narrative report coding identified several categories of situation awareness elements that pilots direct their attention to in building and maintaining situation awareness. Internal to the aircraft, flight crews directed their attention to the aircraft’s flight state and automation state. They also directed their attention to the condition of the aircraft, the functioning of the crew, and the status of the cabin. External to the aircraft, flight crews directed their attention to airport conditions, air traffic control, terrain, traffic, and weather. Pilots were also aware of the passage of time. Twelve characteristics of situation awareness were identified from narrative report coding which were subsequently compared with existing theoretical perspectives of situation awareness.

Back to the Vinyl Age – A Narrative Report of a Total Computer Blackout at a Large University Medical Center

We report here our experience during a total blackout of all computer systems at a large-scale medical university center lasting for almost two days, affecting not only the hospital information system, but also all PACS systems, access to laboratory data, office and email software and even the personnel’s ability to log into their accounts. While initially threatening, staff quickly adapted to the situation and the promise of ‘digital health’ to enable more time for the patient and improve communication, was essentially fulfilled when our computer system was totally down. Based on our experience, we recommend an involvement of health professionals and their medical societies in every step of the digital transformation to accomplished this mission in a responsible, safe and human-centered way.

Thought Presentation in Veronica Roth’s "Divergent": Stylistic Analysis

<p><span lang="IN">There are several ways to scrutinize literature. </span><span>Indeed it is done according to the field of interests or needs. Linguistics is one of the fields that provides the way in analyzing literature through the perspective of a linguist</span><span lang="IN">, which is called stylistics. This research applies a stylistic approach using discourse as the language level, specifically seen through thought presentation in Divergent novel by Veronica Roth. This research endeavours: (1) to discover the types of thought presentation techniques used in the novel and (2) how thought presentation techniques reveal the language style of the author. The writer utilized purposeful sampling method since the first three chapters' data were selected and it presented the plot of why the author titled the novel 'Divergent.' Moreover, one of the aims in this research is to discover the style of the author. Thus the first three chapters were significant for the whole representative sampling. The data were categorized in the thought presentation techniques suggested by Leech and Short (2007) which are namely; Direct Thought (DT), Indirect Thought (IT), Free Direct Thought (FDT), Free Indirect Thought (FIT), and Narrative Report of Thought Acts (NRTA). Three thought presentation techniques were found in the analysis: Free Direct Thought (FDT) 8</span><span>3</span><span lang="IN">% and Free Indirect Thought (FIT) 11% and the least category is Narrative Report of a Thought Acts </span><span>(NRTA) </span><span lang="IN">with </span><span>6</span><span lang="IN">% only. The study concludes that the employment of FDT and FIT as it occurred the most can reveal the author’s style. Roth</span><span>’s style is dramatic since she employs</span><span lang="IN">freer techniques, so that the readers</span><span lang="EN-ID">get a vivid image of what is undergone by the characters. Thus, the thoughts produced obtain a high conscious quality.</span></p>