RuralCovidLife: Study protocol and description of the data

RuralCovidLife is part of Generation Scotland’s CovidLife project, investigating the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and mitigation measures on people in Scotland. The RuralCovidLife project focuses on Scotland’s rural communities, and how they have been impacted by the pandemic. During survey development, Generation Scotland consulted with people living or working in rural communities, and collaborated with a patient and public involvement and engagement (PPIE) group composed of rural community leaders. Through this consultation work, the RuralCovidLife survey was developed to assess the issues most pertinent to people in rural communities, such as mental health, employment, transport, connectivity, and local communities. Between 14th October and 30th November 2020, 3,365 participants from rural areas in Scotland took part in the survey. Participant ages ranged from 16 to 96 (mean = 58.4, standard deviation [SD] = 13.3), and the majority of the participants were female (70.5%). Over half (51.3%) had taken part in the original CovidLife survey. RuralCovidLife includes a subsample (n = 523) of participants from the Generation Scotland cohort. Pre-pandemic data on health and lifestyle, as well as biological samples, are available for these participants. These participants’ data can also be linked to past and future healthcare records, allowing analysis of retrospective and prospective health outcomes. Like Generation Scotland, RuralCovidLife is designed as a resource for researchers. RuralCovidLife data, as well as the linked Generation Scotland data, is available for use by external researchers following approval from the Generation Scotland Access Committee. RuralCovidLife can be used to investigate mental health, well-being, and behaviour in participants living in rural areas during the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as comparisons with non-rural samples. Moreover, the sub-sample with full Generation Scotland data and linkage can be used to investigate the long-term health consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic in rural communities.

How to Make Money while Running from the Cops

Chapter 6 develops the theory in a comparative context, by adding case studies of organized and unorganized street vendors and the city governments that they interact with in El Alto, Bolivia and two districts in São Paulo, Brazil. The chapter is based on original interview, survey, participant observation, and ethnographic data that was collected during a total of three months in each city over four research trips in 2012, 2014 to 2015, 2018, and 2019. As part of the project, the author briefly sold selfie sticks as a street vendor in a central district of São Paulo in 2015. Comparing the city of La Paz to the neighboring city of El Alto holds many national-level features constant but varies city government enforcement capacity. Comparing two districts in São Paulo to each other and then La Paz and El Alto adds more variation on enforcement capacity. São Paulo, the large, modern metropolis of the region’s richest country, with many employment opportunities, services, stable laws, and a history of labor organizing, should have more organized street vendors than La Paz, according to resource- or political context-based theories of collective action. Instead, only 2 percent of São Paulo’s 100,000 vendors are organized, compared to 75 percent of La Paz’s 60,000. I explain this difference with the interaction between individual resources, official incentives, and local government enforcement capacity.

Implications of omnibus law for forestland conflict resolution systems (a case study in Sumbawa)

There are many cases of forestland tenure in Indonesia and one of them occurre in a village on the island of Sumbawa. Currently, the Omnibus Law no.11/2020 and its derivative regulation PP no. 23/2021 came up to create a more robust business enabling environment in the forestry sector with one of the targets is to improve the economic conditions of the communities around the forests. In relation to the forestry conflict in Sumbawa, these regulations bring hope for the parties involved in the conflict in the efforts to resolve prolonged tenure conflicts. The purpose of this case study is to examine how the new forestry regulations can provide options for communities and the Forest Management Unit (FMU) in resolving forestry conflicts, assess how conflicting communities perceive the forms of cooperation of their expectation in the future, and provide options for potential partnerships to be initiated. The research methods used are historical study, survey, participant observation, semi-structured interviews with forest managers and communities, and focus group discussion that was all carried out in 2017. The findings show that according to PP. no. 23/2021 and the history of this area, this piece of land is a potential object of the social forestry program. In addition, through this action research, two farmer groups are successfully formed. This makes the legalization of social forestry one-step forward to be a reality. Moreover, all respondents agree to carry out partnership with the FMU. This study recommends that the ideal form of forestry partnership is community forestry considering the location of the conflict land is in a production forest area. The facilitations could be implemented to support; the community are the legalization of community forestry, support for the development of honey from stingless bees that has been being developed by some farmers, cashew based business development, and assistance in implementing agroforestry with a sustainable alley cropping model of wood-cashew-corn plants. Initiatives from local people and facilitation from FMU are required to succeed the implementation of Omnibus Law in the forestry sector.

The integrated nuclear medicine and radiology residency program in the Netherlands: strengths and potential areas for improvement according to nuclear medicine physicians and radiologists.

Purpose To evaluate the Dutch integrated nuclear medicine and radiology residency program from the perspective of nuclear medicine physicians and radiologists. Methods A survey was distributed among nuclear medicine physicians and radiologists in hospitals that participate in the Dutch integrated nuclear medicine and radiology training program. Results A total of 139 completed questionnaires were included. Nuclear medicine physicians (n = 36) assigned a mean score of 5.7 ± 2.0, and radiologists (n = 103) assigned a mean score of 6.5 ± 2.8 (on a 1–10 scale) to the success of the integrated training program in their hospital. On multiple regression, female gender of the survey participant (B = 2.22, P = 0.034), musculoskeletal radiology as subspecialty of the survey participant (B = 3.36, P = 0.032), and the survey participant’s expectancy of resident’s ability to handle workload after completion of residency, were significantly associated with perceived success of the integrated training program (B = 1.16, P = 0.023). Perceived strengths of the integrated training program included: broadening of expertise, a better preparation of future imaging specialists for hybrid imaging, increased efficiency in training residents, and increased efficiency in multidisciplinary meetings. Perceived weaknesses of the integrated training program included: reduced exposure to nuclear medicine, less time for research and innovation, and concerns about its international recognition. Conclusion This study provided insights into the experiences of nuclear medicine physicians and radiologists with the Dutch integrated nuclear medicine and radiology residency program, which may be helpful to improve the program and similar residency programs in other countries.

Novice and Experienced Elementary General Music Teachers’ Classroom Management Self-Efficacy

The purpose of this study was to investigate elementary general music teachers’ classroom management self-efficacy. Targeted participants were novice and experienced elementary general music teachers teaching in urban, suburban, and rural/small town settings who received a survey disseminated through the National Association for Music Education. Survey participant data were analyzed using analysis of variance and analytic induction. Teaching experience had a significant effect on classroom management efficacy, while school setting did not. Themes that emerged from the analysis of responses to open-ended questions included adapting and implementing classroom management strategies, consistency, parental involvement, students’ home environments, and teacher expectations. Implications are also presented that relate to general music teachers’ self-efficacy.

Obesity Management in Primary Health Care: Front-Line Providers’ Experiences and Views

As in the rest of the world, obesity in Oman has increased and according to World Health Organization (WHO) data, prevalence of obesity in 2008 and 2016 were 20.9% and 27% respectively. This study explores primary care physicians’ current strategies and management of obesity, attitude and perceptions towards obesity, educational needs, and their views on long-term follow up. Methods: A cross sectional study was conducted where practicing family medicine physicians from different governorates were invited to participate in an online questionnaire-based survey. Participant were invited via email and responses were kept anonymous. Responses were collected over three weeks in April 2019 and only responses that met inclusion criteria were analyzed with SPSS v22. Results: 77 complete responses met inclusion criteria and female were the majority (67.5%). Half of participants had less than 10 years of experience. Weight and BMI were recorded routinely by two-thirds of participants whereas waist- hip ratio was recorded by only 12%. Weight reduction medications were prescribed by 5.2% and 24% would refer an obese patient to Bariatric center. Main barrier to obesity management and referral was inadequate obesity specialist centers followed by short consultation times. The pathophysiology mechanism of obesity and related hormones was only known by 40.8%. Almost all participants agreed that formal obesity management training should be integrated as part of residency training. Conclusion: Despite the significant number of comorbidities related to obesity and its complications, weight, BMI and other anthropometric measures were not routinely performed. Nationally, the rate of referral to bariatric centers for evaluation is low. Boundaries and challenges do exist and need to be addressed. Obesity and weight management need to be integrated as part of Family Physicians Training Program.

Perceptions of Risk of Attending Hospital During The COVID-19 Pandemic: A UK Public Opinion Survey

Background: To inform clinical and research practice in secondary care in the COVID-19 pandemic, we consulted patients and the public on their feelings of safety, factors affecting feelings of safety, intention to participate in research, attitudes to research and comfort with new ways of working in order to inform secondary care policy on restarting research and some clinical activity. Method: An online survey was used to collect public opinions on attending hospitals. The survey link was circulated via the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Public Involvement (PPI) Leads network and social media. Results: 402 people completed the survey. Participant age ranged from 18-85+, with the majority (337 [84%]) aged 35-74. There was a higher number of women (77%) compared to men (23%); and participants were mainly White European (91%) compared to Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) (6%), or other (2%).Results for feelings of safety scales show bi-polarity, with few respondents in the middle ground. Implementation of COVID-19 related safety measures such as social distancing, use of personal protective equipment (PPE) and cleaning were strongly supported by most respondents. There was ambivalence around less certain measures such as staff antigen and antibody testing. Respondents were most likely to participate in research related to their own condition, COVID-19 and vaccine, but less likely to participate as healthy volunteers, especially female participants, and those suffering from a pre-existing comorbidity identified with increased risk. There was general agreement that participants are comfortable with new ways of working, such as remote consultation, though women and BAME respondents were less comfortable.Conclusions: Findings raise concerns for health inequalities already impacting some groups during the pandemic. The roles of clinical necessity and personal benefit support the reopening of services in line with clinical necessity. Moderate caution in respect of vaccine research relative to patient-participant research presents a challenge for pending recruitment demands. This area would benefit from qualitative research to explore themes and concerns in more depth and support development and targeting of key messaging.

Beliefs and Experiences of Individuals Following a Zero-Carb Diet: An Online Qualitative Study

An increasing number of people eat diets that restrict carbohydrates. A variant of these diets, the zero-carb diet, aims to severely limit, or even exclude entirely, carbohydrate. This study aimed to investigate the beliefs and experiences of people eating zero-carb diets for at least 6 months and to define a zero-carb diet. Zero-carb dieters (N = 170) recruited from a social media platform completed an online survey. Participant responses were thematically analyzed. Results revealed that participants were driven by health concerns to uptake the diet and adhered to the diet for its health benefits. Moreover, participants expressed a strong social identity and belongingness to online zero-carb communities. Shortcomings of the diet centered on social stigma, lack of support from health-care providers and significant others, limited access to, and high cost of, foods, and lack of empirical support for the diet. Participants reported strong intentions to follow the diet indefinitely. We recommend further research into the benefits and shortcomings of zero-carb diets across settings and populations, and into developing guidelines for healthcare professionals to support individuals wishing to eat zero-carb diets.

Knowledge and awareness on the Impact of Covid-19 on global wealth - A survey

Coronavirus, also called as COVID-19, a pandemic disease that causes a widespread concern about the economic hardships for both the consumers and businessman communities that are present across the globe. As the coronavirus unfolds, the global economic market melts down, which is caused by this pandemic disease, pushes the wealthy. The main aim of this study is to evaluate the awareness level of global wealth due to covid 19. A self-designed survey study was conducted among 100 individuals of the general population. The questionnaire was designed in the manner to assess their knowledge about the impact of COVID-19 on global wealth. The questionnaire contains a set of 15 questions. It was distributed through the google docs. The results and data from this study was using SPSS software. The responses recorded in the present study from the survey participant depicts that the participants possess adequate knowledge about the COVID-19 infection and equally they possess an adequate awareness about the impact caused globally due to COVID-19. The results of the present study shows that 71.03% of the participants are aware about the pandemic outbreak COVID-19 and among them 57.94% participants believes that the pandemic outbreak COVID-19 resulted in a global impact on various industries. Within the limitations of the present study, awareness and knowledge among the survey population about the impact of COVID-19 on global wealth is and from the result of the descriptive analysis carried out in the present study, it is evident that majority of the population are aware of the impact caused on the global wealth due to the pneumonia associated with the global pandemic outbreak, COVID-19.