Connections, rituals and identities: healthcare students’ descriptions of objects that represent resilience

Purpose Health-care student resilience is a well-researched topic, although the concept continues to evolve, not least as “resilience-building” has become an expected feature of health-care student professional education. The study aimed to understand the concept of resilience from the point of view of student nurses and midwives. Design/methodology/approach The study used a novel arts-informed method, informed by Miller’s and Turkle’s work on “evocative objects.” A total of 25 student nurses and midwives from a London-based university selected “resilience objects” which were photographed and discussed during interviews with an artist-researcher. Findings Analysis of the interviews revealed that “resilience” was founded on identity, connection, activity and protection. “Resilience objects” were used in everyday rituals and “resilience” was a characteristic that developed over time through the inhabiting of multiple identities. Practical implications Given that resilience is intertwined with notions of identity, health-care faculties should enhance students’ sense of identity, including, but not exclusively, nursing or midwifery professional identity, and invite students to develop simple rituals to cope with the challenges of health-care work. Originality/value To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study to locate health-care students’ resilience in specific material objects. Novel insights are that health-care students used everyday rituals and everyday objects to connect to their sense of purpose and manage their emotions, as means of being resilient.

High correlation between binding IgG (anti-RBD/S) and neutralizing antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 six months after vaccination

Vaccination is considered the most important measure to control the COVID-19 pandemic. Extensive fol-low-up studies with distinct vaccines and populations are able to promote robust and reliable data to better understand the effectiveness of this pharmacologic strategy. In this sense, we present data regarding binding and neutralizing antibodies throughout time, from vaccinated and previously infected (PI) health care work-ers (HCW) in Portugal. We analyzed serum samples of 132 HCW, vaccinated and with previous SARS-CoV-2 infection. Samples were collected before vaccination (baseline, M1), at second dose vaccine uptake (M2), and 25-70 days (M3) and 150-210 days (M4) after the second dose for vaccinated individuals. The IgG (anti-RBD/S) antibody geometric mean titer found on vaccinated HCW at M2 (814.7 AU/ml; 95% CI 649.8-1021.5) were sig-nificantly higher than those found on PI HCW at recruitment (M1) (252.6 AU/ml; 95% CI 108.7 - 587.1), and the neutralizing antibodies (nAb) were similar between these groups, 93.2 UI/ml (95% CI 73.2- 118.5) vs. 84.1 UI/ml (95% CI 40.4-155.9), respectively. We detected about 10-fold higher IgG (anti-RBD/S) antibodies titers in M3 when compared with M2, with a slightly but significant decrease in titers from 36 days after the second dose vaccine uptake. The increase of nAb titers were correlated with IgG (anti-RBD/S) antibodies titers, how-ever, contrasting to IgG (anti-RBD/S) antibodies titers, we did not detect a decrease in nAb titer from 36 days after a second vaccine dose uptake. At M4, was observed a decrease of 8-fold in binding IgG (anti-RBD/S) and nAb. No significant differences in antibody titers were observed by sex, age or chronic diseases. Our results suggest that IgG (anti-RBD/S) antibodies titers and nAb titers could be correlated, but ongoing follow up of the cohort, is required to better understand this correlation, and the duration of the immune response.

Unpaid Health Care Work: A Gender Equality Perspective

A debate on public goods is urgently needed in health care. Care must be recognized as a social function, as an occupation and, at the same time, as a human right—which imposes binding obligations to comply with precise standards of quality, quantity, suitability, adaptability, and accessibility, among others. It is a complex and invisible task, that may be done as part of a medical treatment, post-surgical recovery process, or permanent support in cases of chronic illness, disability, or mental health conditions. And it tends to be provided mainly in the home, by women, without remuneration. In Latin America, care has not been included in a coordinated and specific public health policy agenda but has been advanced through isolated actions—in many cases highly fragmented and heterogeneous—without a clear awareness of the public nature of care and the associated responsibility of the State. Accordingly, this document takes a gender and rights-based approach. It starts with an analysis of the main definitions of unpaid work in the health sector, and then focuses on initiatives in three Latin American countries (Colombia, Costa Rica, and Uruguay) with regard to measurement, valuation, integration, and recognition in national health systems or policies, in care models, and in time-use surveys. The conclusions propose recommendations aimed at addressing unpaid care as an essential element of social policies in general, and health policies in particular, from a gender and rights-based perspective.

STATE INSTITUTION «NATIONAL RESEARCH CENTER FOR RADIATION MEDICINE OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF MEDICAL SCIENCES OF UKRAINE» – RESEARCH ACTIVITIES AND SCIENTIFIC ADVANCE IN 2020

Research activities and scientific advance achieved in 2020 at the State Institution «National Research Center for Radiation Medicine of the National Academy of Medical Sciences of Ukraine» (NRCRM) concerning medical problems of the Chornobyl disaster, radiation medicine, radiobiology, radiation hygiene and epidemiology in collaboration with the WHO network of medical preparedness and assistance in radiation accidents are outlined in the annual report. The report presents the results of fundamental and applied research works of the study of radiation effects and health effects of the Chornobyl accident. The report also shows the results of scientific-organizational and health care work, staff training. The Scientific Council meeting of NAMS approved the NRCRM Annual Report. Key words: NRCRM, Chornobyl, radiation effects, epidemiology, radiation hygiene, treatment of victims, international cooperation, personnel.

Implications of False Positive SARS-CoV-2 by PCR Test in the Health Care Work Force

The novel nature of the SARS-CoV-2 virus inherently creates a paucity of reliable and validated data. Implementing evidence-based and data-driven protocols have been exceedingly difficult. As new information is released and integrated into the complex system, the health care delivery workflow must adapt. Incorporating changes on a frequent, if not daily basis, has led to confusion, frustration and loss of confidence among clinicians across the nation. This report illustrates the negative impact that false-positive COVID-19 results can have on the health delivery workforce and the emotional implications that false-positive results cast on health care providers.

The Human Component

This contribution is written from the perspective of a trial attorney with more than 20 years of experience representing clients in the California criminal justice system. Proper representation of the accused often requires a multidisciplinary approach in which legal care, medical care and mental health care work in conjunction with one another. Often, a client is laboring through layers of physical pain, fear, grief, and a possible myriad of mental health issues when his or her liberty is dependent on the ability to provide an accurate picture of their lives. In order to assist the client in providing the most comprehensive description of himself or herself, the defense team requires an empathic approach; one that is respectful of boundaries; and one willing to explore the context of the information uncovered during the course of investigation and representation.This contribution will detail the case of Marissa B , and how her investigation and advocacy wed her data to the context and circumstances surrounding her case to reveal information behind the human being in need of representation.

Social and Legal Healthcare Models and Their Functioning During a Global Crisis

The article analyzes the existing health models in terms of their legal, economic and social effectiveness, innovative potential, as well as in the context of their ability to resist modern threats caused by changes in the environment, ecology, bio-information development and other technologies. The authors used the methods of comparative analysis, synthesis, structural-functional and statistical analysis. Everything indicates the need for a major modernization of existing care models and / or their replacement by new ones that satisfy the basic needs of the majority of society at the current stage of its development. Among the most prominent findings, it is also highlighted that the health insurance model is a creation of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It was developed and implemented at a time when the economy, society, the social sphere, and technologies were completely different. The 2020 pandemic has revealed the reasons for the unsatisfactory health care work, in a seemingly as prosperous country as the United States, where the largest amount of budget money traditionally goes to health care.

Identifying Barriers to and Opportunities for Telehealth Implementation Amidst the COVID-19 Pandemic by Using a Human Factors Approach: A Leap Into the Future of Health Care Delivery? (Preprint)

UNSTRUCTURED The extensive uptake of telehealth has considerably transformed health care delivery since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic and has imposed tremendous challenges to its large-scale implementation and adaptation. Given the shift in paradigm from telehealth as an alternative mechanism of care delivery to telehealth as an integral part of the health system, it is imperative to take a systematic approach to identifying barriers to, opportunities for, and the overall impact of telehealth implementation amidst the current pandemic. In this work, we apply a human factors framework, the Systems Engineering Initiative for Patient Safety model, to guide our holistic analysis and discussion of telehealth implementation, encompassing the health care work system, care processes, and outcomes.