Emergency response planning

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Climate change is a major threat to the health of people worldwide. The health care system deals with the immediate health-related effects of climate change and, at the same time, is a major emitter of greenhouse gas. This study aimed to investigate (a) the awareness and perception of climate change among family medicine residency program directors, and (b) the state of climate change education in family medicine residency programs. METHODS: The Council of Academic Family Medicine Educational Research Alliance (CERA) conducted a cross-sectional survey of family medicine program directors in the United States in April 2023...

BACKGROUND: Road traffic accidents (RTAs) are predicted to become the world's seventh leading cause of death by 2030. Given the significant impact of RTAs on public health, effective hospital preparedness plays a pivotal role in managing and mitigating associated health and life-threatening issues. This study aims to meticulously evaluate the preparedness of selected hospitals in western Iran to handle road traffic accidents with mass casualties (RTAs-MC). METHODS: The study employed a descriptive-analytical approach, utilizing a reliable and valid questionnaire to measure hospitals' preparedness levels...

One of the key challenges in diagnosing thyroid cancer lies in the substantial percentage of indeterminate diagnoses of thyroid nodules that have undergone ultrasound-guided fine-needle aspiration (FNA) biopsy for cytological evaluation. This delays the definitive diagnosis and treatment plans. We recently demonstrated that hydroxyapatite microcalcifications (MCs) aspirated from thyroid nodules may aid nodule diagnosis based on their composition. In particular, Zn-enriched MCs have emerged as potential cancer biomarkers...

This opinion piece emphasies the critical role of translational research in enhancing the UK's resilience against future pandemics. The COVID-19 pandemic demonstrated the lifesaving potential of scientific innovation, including genomic tracking of SARS-CoV-2, vaccine development, data linkage, modelling, and new treatments. These advances, achieved through collaborations between academic institutions, industry, government, public health bodies, and the NHS, occurred at an unprecedented pace. However, the UK's pandemic preparedness planning, as reflected in the 2016 Exercise Cygnus report, notably lacked provision for scientific innovation...

There has been increasing recognition of gender-based inequity as a barrier to successful policy implementation. This consensus, coupled with an increasing frequency of emergencies in human and animal populations, including infectious disease events, has prompted policy makers to re-evaluate gender-sensitivity in emergency management planning. Seeking to identify key publications relating to gendered impacts and considerations across diverse stakeholders in different types of animal health emergencies, we conducted a non-exhaustive, targeted scoping review...

A variety of cutting-edge methods and good knowledge of the illness's complex causes are causing a sea change in the field of Alzheimer's Disease (A.D.) research and treatment. Precision medicine is at the vanguard of this change, where individualized treatment plans based on genetic and biomarker profiles give a ray of hope for customized therapeutics. Combination therapies are becoming increasingly popular as a way to address the multifaceted pathology of Alzheimer's by simultaneously attacking Aβ plaques, tau tangles, neuroinflammation, and other factors...

BACKGROUND: The novel coronavirus disease(corona virus disease 2019: COVID-19)has calmed down worldwide, and the severity of the disease is decreasing. On the other hand, due to the emergence of strain mutations, the number of infected people shows a wavy course. I have experienced a case of gastric cancer that underwent chemotherapy including an immune checkpoint inhibitors(ICI) early after COVID-19, so I will report it including a discussion. CASE: A 71-year-old man...

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Without strategic actions in its support, the translation of scientific research evidence into health policy is often absent or delayed. This review systematically maps and assesses national-level strategic documents in the field of knowledge translation (KT) for health policy, and develops a practical template that can support Evidence-informed Policy Network (EVIPNet) Europe countries in producing national strategies for evidence-informed policy-making. METHODS: Websites of organizations with strategic responsibilities in KT were electronically searched, on the basis of pre-defined criteria, in July-August 2017, and an updated search was carried out in April-June 2021...

BACKGROUND: When it comes to pandemic response, preparation can be the key. Between 2020 and 2024, the fast-paced development of COVID-19-often compounded by pubic policies' failures to reflect the latest reality and the public's divergent reactions to the pandemic and the policies-means that society should prepare for exit strategies that can reflect the reality of the pandemic and the interests of the people. Yet oftentimes societies only have one exit strategy with limited scope. This paper investigates the dangers of having only one pandemic exit strategy for pandemics like COVID-19...

BACKGROUND: Health workforce projection models are integral components of a robust healthcare system. This research aims to review recent advancements in methodology and approaches for health workforce projection models and proposes a set of good practice reporting guidelines. METHODS: We conducted a systematic review by searching medical and social science databases, including PubMed, EMBASE, Scopus, and EconLit, covering the period from 2010 to 2023. The inclusion criteria encompassed studies projecting the demand for and supply of the health workforce...

BACKGROUND: The Recommended Summary Plan for Emergency Care and Treatment (ReSPECT) was launched in the UK in 2016. ReSPECT is designed to facilitate meaningful discussions between healthcare professionals, patients, and their relatives about preferences for treatment in future emergencies; however, no study has investigated patients' and relatives' experiences of ReSPECT in the community. OBJECTIVES: To explore how patients and relatives in community settings experience the ReSPECT process and engage with the completed form...

Residential substance use disorder (SUD) treatment programs are challenged by the differing values of the problem-solving court (PSC) and child welfare (CW) systems, along with communication barriers between staff. This study aimed to understand, from the viewpoints of SUD treatment providers, how divergent values and communication barriers adversely affect women's residential SUD treatment. We conducted qualitative semistructured interviews with 18 SUD treatment clinicians and six directors from four women's residential SUD treatment programs...

PURPOSE: An up-to-date overview of epidemiology, etiology and pathophysiological mechanisms, diagnostic and evaluation methods, current treatment status and future directions of subjective tinnitus in adults. METHODS: Review of current evidence-based literature on subjective tinnitus in adults. RESULTS: The prevalence of subjective tinnitus in the adult population is estimated to be around 14%, and it tends to increase with age. Subjective tinnitus is a complex condition with multiple factors contributing to its origin...

BACKGROUND: People with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) in the US, especially those living in group homes, experienced comparatively higher Covid-19 case/case fatality rates than the general population during the first year of the pandemic. There is no information about the patterns of case/case fatality rates during this time. OBJECTIVE: This study compared Covid-19 case/case fatality rates among people with IDD living in residential group homes to the general population across the first year of the pandemic in New York State (NYS)...

Purpose: Oncology clinicians are appropriately positioned to facilitate discussions of assisted reproductive technologies including preimplantation genetic testing for monogenic disease (PGT-M), in the context of cancer treatment or surveillance. Yet, reproductive services, including PGT-M, remain one of the least implemented services in oncology. No studies to date have explored which practice resources the clinicians need to increase knowledge of PGT-M. The objective of this study was to explore the specific needs of oncology clinicians to help maximize the reproductive potential of young adult patients with hereditary cancers...

BACKGROUND: The COVID-19 pandemic presents the possibility of future large-scale infectious disease outbreaks. In response, we conducted a systematic review of COVID-19 pandemic risk assessment to provide insights into countries' pandemic surveillance and preparedness for potential pandemic events in the post-COVID-19 era. OBJECTIVE: We aim to systematically identify relevant articles and synthesize pandemic risk assessment findings to facilitate government officials and public health experts in crisis planning...

INTRODUCTION: The COVID-19 pandemic unveiled huge challenges in health workforce governance in the context of public health emergencies in Africa. Several countries applied several measures to ensure access to qualified and skilled health workers to respond to the pandemic and provide essential health services. However, there has been limited documentation of these measures. This study was undertaken to examine the health workforce governance strategies applied by 15 countries in the World Health Organization (WHO) Africa Region in responding to the COVID-19 pandemic...

Public health authorities around the world are planning to manage infodemics as part of their next public health emergency. But the experience of managing communications for Ontario's COVID-19 Science Advisory Table suggests that emerging infodemic management (IM) strategies should include three key principles, which appear to be missing from much of the existing literature: (1) emerging IM strategies should incorporate leadership from epidemiologists who can align infodemic response with underlying disease; (2) they should embrace journalists who mediate trust in crises; and (3) they should acknowledge the unique opportunity for public health leaders to build public trust rapidly in the first days of a crisis-a foundation for all subsequent IM...

INTRODUCTION: To identify service users' preferences for an alternative care pathway for adults with epilepsy presenting to the ambulance service. METHODS: Extensive formative work (qualitative, survey and knowledge exchange) informed the design of a stated preference discrete choice experiment (DCE). This hypothetical survey was hosted online and consisted of 12 binary choices of alternative care pathways described in terms of: the paramedic's access to medical records/ 'care plan', what happens next (described in terms of conveyance), time, availability of epilepsy specialists today, general practitioner (GP) notification and future contact with epilepsy specialists...

Biosecurity practices aim to reduce the frequency of disease outbreaks in a farm, region, or country and play a pivotal role in fortifying the country's pork industry against emerging threats, particularly foreign animal diseases (FADs). This article addresses the current biosecurity landscape of the US swine industry by summarizing the biosecurity practices reported by the producers through the United States Swine Health Improvement Plan (US SHIP) enrollment surveys, and it provides a general assessment of practices implemented...