Change Communication Strategies Research Articles

Determinants of an unfavorable treatment outcome among tuberculosis patients in the Jimma Zone, Southwest Ethiopia.

Tuberculosis (TB) is a major public health challenge in Ethiopia. TB treatment outcomes were suboptimal compared to the expected target of the national TB control Program. The provision of standard anti-TB treatment is the primary component of the directly observed treatment, short-course strategy. The aim of this study was to assess the TB treatment outcomes and the determinants of an unfavorable treatment outcome. The study used a cross-sectional study design at baseline and record review to identify treatment outcomes. A total of 1,161TB patients were recruited from eight randomly selected districts and one town administration in the Jimma Zone, Ethiopia. Treatment outcomes were grouped into favorable and unfavorable. Of the total participants, 86.9% had a favorable treatment outcome, and 5.7% an unfavorable treatment outcome. The rest were transferred out and not recorded cases. Women were more likely to experience an unfavorable treatment outcome [adjusted odds ratio (AOR) = 1.96, 95% CI 1.06, 3.64]. Patients who were perceived to not be stigmatized were less likely to have an unfavorable treatment outcome (AOR = 0.32, 95% CI 0.15, 0.73). Patients who had a monthly income of > 3,500 Ethiopian birr were less likely to have an unfavorable outcome than patients who did not have a regular income (AOR = 0.04, 95% CI 0.01, 0.45). The observed treatment success rate is lower than the World Health Organization's target of successfully treating > 90% of detected TB cases. It is imperative to ensure that information, education and communication/behavior change communication strategies consider the needs of women and patients with perceived TB stigma. Furthermore, designing locally acceptable and affordable interventions may help to address the financial challenges of TB treatment adherence.

A Scoping Review of Existing Policy Instruments to Tackle Overweight and Obesity in India: Recommendations for a Social and Behaviour Change Communication Strategy

Background The Indian government is committed to addressing various manifestations of malnutrition, including overweight and obesity, inorder to improve individual health and well-being. The scoping review aims to map existing national policy instruments (programmes, schemes, regulations and guidelines) addressing overweight and obesity in India and analysing them for Social and Behaviour Change Communication (SBCC) strategies. Methods Systematic identification and selection of policy instruments using ‘Arksey and O’Malley’ framework was conducted from central government ministry websites, between March and June 2023. These instruments focused on nutrition and/or physical activity, targeting specific demographic groups like pregnant women, lactating mothers, children (0-5 years and 5-9 years), or adolescents (10-19 years); excluding those focusing on specific diseases like micronutrient deficiencies, wasting, and stunting. Based on search strategy six policy instruments were included and analysed for SBCC strategies. Results While many policy instruments incorporated SBCC plans; the ‘National Programme for Prevention of Non-Communicable Diseases (NP-NCD)’ stands out as a significant policy initiative specifically targeting the prevention of overweight and obesity within the broader context of Non-Communicable Diseases. It adopts a comprehensive approach addressing key drivers contributing to overweight/obesity across multiple levels of behavioural influence i.e., individual, interpersonal, community and organisation for health promotion. However, there’s need to strengthen SBCC strategies related to prevention and management of obesity, especially screening and counselling, to cover all age groups with a particular focus on adolescents and youth. SBCC strategies can also be incorporated into India’s Integrated Nutrition Support Programme (POSHAN 2.0) and/or Reproductive, Maternal, New-born, Child, Adolescent Health and Nutrition (RMNCAH+N) under the National Health Mission. Conclusion This paper underscores the necessity for comprehensive strategies to address multifaceted origins of overweight and obesity. The NP-NCD stands out as a noteworthy initiative, and there is considerable potential for other programmes to emulate SBCC strategies to bolster their overall effectiveness. Note : *Policy instruments throughout the paper have been used to cover programmes, schemes, regulations and guidelines.

Systems delay in women with breast cancer – A sequential explanatory mixed-methods study from central rural India

ABSTRACT Background: Globally, breast cancer is the most common malignant tumor in both developed and developing nations, with an incidence of 2 million cases every year and around 6 lakh deaths. Even after the availability of healthcare facilities, delays in the management of breast cancer are seen in both developed and developing countries. Objectives: To assess the patient and system-level delays and to determine the factors that cause the identified delays in women with breast cancer from central rural India. Methodology: The present Mixed-method study was conducted in a tertiary care hospital in central rural India among 128 female breast cancer patients. Socio-demographic and clinical information of the patients was summarized using frequency and proportions. Delays were reported using a median number of days and interquartile range. To assess the factors associated with the delays, we used Negative log-binomial regression analysis. Qualitative data analysis was done by manual thematic analysis. Results: The mean age of the study participants was 50.54, SD was 10.46, Median was 50, and the Interquartile range (IQR) was 43-58 years. A median patient delay of 45 days, and IQR was 15-120. A median system delay of 19 days and IQR was 7-35 days. We identified seven themes addressing the factors influencing delays at various levels by thematic analysis. Negative log-binomial regression models were built for the association of the socio- demographic and clinical variables with patient and system delays. Conclusion: Our study concludes that there is a substantial delay at patient level reporting to healthcare care providers, which needs an increase in awareness levels in the community through dedicated Behavior Change Communication strategies along with addressing identified socio-cultural and economic determinants influencing delay at various levels.

Critical Vulnerability in Leadership as a Key Factor in Successful Change Management Communication

This research explores the relationship between the discovered phenomenon of critical vulnerability in leadership during organizational change and its successful outcome. The phenomenon under study is fundamentally distinguished from vulnerable leadership, which is covered in literature as a deliberate tactic leaders use to improve interpersonal relationships and performance. This study concentrates on challenging and uncontrollable leader vulnerability manifested as a decline in the authority and influence of the leader among stakeholders. The main reason for the observed critical leader vulnerability is hypothesized to be the gap in leadership mindset levels between the leader and stakeholders at the onset of the organizational change. It is also hypothesized that the change communication of an authentic leader, predetermined by a high level of leadership mindset, triggers the leader's vulnerability and, at the same time, paradoxically contributes to the evolution of stakeholders' leadership mindset. This, in turn, is a prerequisite for achieving remarkable prosocial results. Relying on the described assumptions, we executed preliminary research, aiming to identify the change communication patterns of leaders in the state of vulnerability (hereinafter referred to as "vulnerable change communication") and to explore how they catalyze the stakeholder mindset evolution. The final sample group involved 9 top managers who faced vulnerability while leading the change process and made significant contributions to the development of their organizations. The research methodology relied on qualitative methods—in-depth interviews on which narrative and thematic analysis was based. Leaders were asked questions to discover goals of change, the presence of periods of vulnerability, the causes and consequences of its occurrence, their communication patterns, and results achieved. The obtained data were analyzed by applying recognized frameworks such as the Michigan Model of Leadership with its Competing Values Framework (CVF), the Approach of Management of Organizational Change Paradoxes, Programmed and Adaptive Approaches to Change, and Stakeholder Communication Model of Change. The present study has taken the first steps towards confirming the existence of an unambiguous connection between certain patterns of leadership change communication, embracing vulnerability by leaders, and remarkable prosocial outcomes. We found that change communication strategy based on embracing personal vulnerability and a high level of leadership mindset characterized by a value-based position, commitment to outstanding prosocial results, and synthetic decision-making ensures the leader the following: 1) Construction of Shared Leadership. The leader creates an organizational culture that transforms stakeholder resistance based on self and group interests into the evolution of a stakeholder leadership mindset and consolidation of the company. The formula for combining the best of both programmed and adaptive approaches to change includes preserving the integrity of the vision and managing meaning and outcome on the one hand, and supporting the strategy by the deployment of communication and bottom-up initiative on the other. 2) Managing Organizational Change Paradoxes. The leader addresses institutional contradictions and stakeholder divergent interests that naturally arise during the change process and creates the basis for subsequent institutionalization on a much stronger and healthier foundation. The paradoxical effect of a leader's personal vulnerability on organizational vulnerability is that the leader helps to reduce the organization's risks by taking them on themselves. Further exploration of the phenomenon of vulnerability will allow us to consider the inclusion of this component in the framework of change management models, to identify vulnerable leaders, specify the vulnerable communication model of change, and develop a list of recommendations for leaders to more consciously navigate the difficult stage of vulnerability as a systemic and inevitable attribute of achieving remarkable prosocial results.

“An obedient wife never says “no” to her virtual god.” High fertility conceptions and barriers to contraceptive use among mothers of Southern Pakistan: a qualitative study

IssueBiomedical approaches want to change locals’ behaviors without understanding the sociocultural rationales and contextualizing the cultural and structural backdrop of women’s agency.ObjectivesThis study explored the perceptions and practices of rural mothers about fertility and reproductive health and further examine the lack of preference for contraception and birth spacing in Southern Pakistan.MethodologyUsing purposive sampling we recruited 15 healthcare providers and 20 mothers from Southern Punjab. Key informants and in-depth interviews were used for data collection. We extracted themes and sub themes to analyse qualitative data.FindingsFive major themes identified preventing birth spacing and contraceptive use: (1) cultural barriers (2) economic difficulties and demographic factors; (3) gender-related hurdles; (4) spiritual and religious obstacles, and (5) medico-ethical complications. Nearly, ten sub-themes contributing to these major themes were: custom of girls’ early marriages, in-laws’ permission for contraception, women’s concern for medical complications and preference for safer methods, misuse of contraceptive methods by the medical community, mothers’ perception of contraception as sinful act and controlling birth is against faith, economic and rural-ethnic factors for high fertility, masculine disapproval of condom use, and wishing to give birth to male children.SuggestionsWe advocate for understanding the sociocultural explanations for low contraceptive use and urge practice of more natural methods of birth spacing over commercial solutions. The study suggests socio-economic development of less developed communities and empowerment of poor, illiterate, and rural women along with behavior change communication strategies.

Behavioral change communication strategy options to improve under five-year children’s nutrition: a scoping review

Behavioral change communication strategy options to improve under five-year children’s nutrition: a scoping review

Assessing the knowledge of farmers on doubling farmers income of Assam through behaviour change communication strategy

Assessing the knowledge of farmers on doubling farmers income of Assam through behaviour change communication strategy

Determinants of diarrhea prevalence among children under 5 years in semi-arid Ghana

ABSTRACT Despite the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG6) of achieving universal access to clean water and sanitation by 2030, many developing countries still face water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH)-related health issues such as child mortality caused by diarrhea. This study investigated the factors contributing to diarrhea prevalence in rural children, utilizing a cross-sectional survey (n = 517) of smallholder household representatives from a Risk, Attitudes, Norms, Abilities, and Self-Regulation (RANAS) perspective. Using binary logistic regression, the study found that a high prevalence of diarrhea among children was associated with unsafe/open disposal of child feces, living in the poorest households, poor self-rated health, and residing in the Wa East district. Conversely, children from the Brifo ethnicity and those from larger households were less likely to have a high prevalence of diarrhea. These findings underscore the influence of behavioral, socio-cultural, and socioeconomic factors on the prevalence of diarrhea in rural areas. To achieve SDG6, child-friendly sanitation infrastructure, behavior change communication strategies, and incentivizing WASH infrastructure in Ghana and other regions in Sub-Saharan Africa facing similar conditions are recommended.

Science-Consistent Climate Health Beliefs As Predictors of Climate Behaviors and Support for Inflation Reduction Act Provisions and a Carbon Emissions Tax

Understanding the factors associated with acceptance of climate action is central in designing effective climate change communication strategies. An exploratory factor analysis of 12 science-consistent beliefs about the existence, causes, and consequences of climate change reveals three underlying factors: climate change [a] is real and human caused, [b] has increased the frequency of extreme weather events, and [c] negatively affects public health. In the presence of demographic, ideological, and party controls, this health factor significantly predicts a 3–6 percentage point increase in respondents’ [a] willingness to advocate for climate change; [b] reported personal pro-climate behaviors; and [c] support for government policies addressing climate change. These results are robust when controlling for respondents’ underlying belief in the existence and causes of climate change, respondent worry, self-efficacy, and respondent belief that extreme weather events and heat waves are increasing. These findings suggest ways to bolster public support for climate policies that may otherwise be at risk.

A Scoping Review of Existing Policy Instruments to Tackle Overweight and Obesity in India: Recommendations for a Social and Behaviour Change Communication Strategy

Background The Indian government is committed to address various manifestations of malnutrition, including overweight and obesity, inorder to improve individual health and well-being. The scoping review aims to map existing national policy instruments (programmes, schemes, regulations and guidelines) addressing overweight and obesity in India and analysing them for Social and Behaviour Change Communication (SBCC) strategies. Methods Systematic identification and selection of policy instruments using ‘Arksey and O’Malley’ framework was conducted from central government ministry websites, between March and June 2023. These instruments focused on nutrition and/or physical activity, targeting specific demographic groups like pregnant women, lactating mothers, children (0-5 years and 5-9 years), or adolescents (10-19 years); excluding those focusing on specific diseases like micronutrient deficiencies, wasting, and stunting. Based on search strategy six policy instruments were included and analysed for SBCC strategies. Results While many policy instruments incorporated SBCC plans; the ‘National Programme for Prevention of Non-Communicable Diseases (NP-NCD)’ stands out as a significant policy initiative specifically targeting the prevention of overweight and obesity within the broader context of Non-Communicable Diseases. It adopts a comprehensive approach addressing key drivers contributing to overweight/obesity across multiple levels of behavioural influence i.e., individual, interpersonal, community and organisation for health promotion. However, there’s need to strengthen SBCC strategies related to prevention and management of obesity, especially screening and counselling, to cover all age groups with a particular focus on adolescents and youth. SBCC strategies can also be incorporated into India’s Integrated Nutrition Support Programme (POSHAN 2.0) and/or Reproductive, Maternal, New-born, Child, Adolescent Health and Nutrition (RMNCAH+N) under the National Health Mission. Conclusion This paper underscores the necessity for comprehensive strategies to address multifaceted origin of overweight and obesity. The NP-NCD stands out as a noteworthy initiative, and there is considerable potential for other programmes to emulate it SBCC strategies to bolster their overall effectiveness. Note : *Policy instrument’s throughout the paper has been used to cover programmes, schemes, regulations and guidelines.

One Day When We Were Young: Nostalgia Brings Climate Change Temporally Closer

ABSTRACT The perceived temporal distance of climate change impacts has been considered a long-standing barrier to climate engagement. Because nostalgia has distinct cognitive properties related to temporal thinking, three experimental studies are conducted to investigate nostalgia's potential for shortening temporal distance. Study 1 shows that nostalgia increases climate engagement by reducing temporal distance. Study 2 further identifies vivid imagery as a mechanism for the nostalgia effects across US and Chinese samples. Study 3 shows that nostalgic public service announcements increase climate engagement more than non-nostalgic ones. This study provides strong evidence that evoking nostalgia can be a useful climate change communication strategy.

Analysis of Individual Aspects in Riverbank Slums on Sustainable Sanitation Development, Case Study: Bima City, NTB, Indonesia

Currently, 24.5% of the population of Bima City lack access to sanitation. The issue is predominantly concentrated in densely populated urban slums along the riverbanks, influenced by the cultural and societal context of Indonesian society. From 2021 to 2022, a comprehensive mixed-method study was conducted in three urban slums, applying the Integrated Framework for Sanitation Services (IFSS) to explore individual aspects within a socio-cultural context. Combining quantitative and qualitative methods, the research involved a household questionnaire survey and in-depth interviews (IDI). The study revealed that individual aspects are shaped by perceptions of the convenience of open defecation and latrine use as well as experiences with shared latrines, driving the adoption of private latrines. Challenges such as financial constraints and limited construction capabilities in urban slum communities often hinder latrine construction, though cultural and traditional values (adat) in the Bima community in urban slums help to alleviate these obstacles. A recommendation is made to enhance the monitoring of sanitation adoption progress, focusing on the sanitation system’s functioning and adherence to the sanitation hierarchy. Despite awareness of the importance of safe disposal, its impact on sanitation behavior in Bima City’s urban slums has been constrained, underscoring the imperative for effective behavior change communication strategies.

Exploring health care providers’ engagement in prevention and management of multidrug resistant Tuberculosis and its factors in Hadiya Zone health care facilities: qualitative study

BackgroundEngagement of healthcare providers is one of the World Health Organization strategies devised for prevention and provision of patient centered care for multidrug resistant tuberculosis. The need for current research question rose because of the gaps in evidence on health professional’s engagement and its factors in multidrug resistant tuberculosis service delivery as per the protocol in the prevention and management of multidrug resistant tuberculosis.PurposeThe purpose of this study was to explore the level of health care providers’ engagement in multidrug resistant tuberculosis prevention and management and influencing factors in Hadiya Zone health facilities, Southern Ethiopia.MethodsDescriptive phenomenological qualitative study design was employed between 02 May and 09 May, 2019. We conducted a key informant interview and focus group discussions using purposely selected healthcare experts working as directly observed treatment short course providers in multidrug resistant tuberculosis treatment initiation centers, program managers, and focal persons. Verbatim transcripts were translated to English and exported to open code 4.02 for line-by-line coding and categorization of meanings into same emergent themes. Thematic analysis was conducted based on predefined themes for multidrug resistant tuberculosis prevention and management and core findings under each theme were supported by domain summaries in our final interpretation of the results. To maintain the rigors, Lincoln and Guba’s parallel quality criteria of trustworthiness was used particularly, credibility, dependability, transferability, confirmability and reflexivity.ResultsTotal of 26 service providers, program managers, and focal persons were participated through four focus group discussion and five key informant interviews. The study explored factors for engagement of health care providers in the prevention and management of multidrug resistant tuberculosis in five emergent themes such as patients’ causes, perceived susceptibility, seeking support, professional incompetence and poor linkage of the health care facilities. Our findings also suggest that service providers require additional training, particularly in programmatic management of drug-resistant tuberculosis.ConclusionThe study explored five emergent themes: patient’s underlying causes, seeking support, perceived susceptibility, professionals’ incompetence and health facilities poor linkage. Community awareness creation to avoid fear of discrimination through provision of support for those with multidrug resistant tuberculosis is expected from health care providers using social behavioral change communication strategies. Furthermore, program managers need to follow the recommendations of World Health Organization for engaging healthcare professionals in the prevention and management of multidrug resistant tuberculosis and cascade trainings in clinical programmatic management of the disease for healthcare professionals.

FutureCoast: A Playful Way to Assess Public Perceptions for Better Climate Change Communication

ABSTRACT We examine how the FutureCoast storytelling game creates an accessible, online space to explore the climate problem and its impacts, as well as to glean insights regarding player perceptions. Through FutureCoast, players imagine a climate-changed future by creating stories about an altered world. A total of 251 voicemail responses generated from game participants recruited through social media and other channels were coded and analyzed. Subject engagement with the storytelling game provided valuable data about climate change understanding, as well as rich, player-created narratives that document the complexity of public thinking about climate-changed futures. Commonly occurring themes include Adaptation, Challenge, Technology, Weather, Governance and Policy, and Food. FutureCoast participants perceived optimistic scenarios for technology, energy and mitigation, and pessimistic scenarios for weather, food, water and adaptation. From FutureCoast stories, we gain an understanding of public perceptions toward climate issues that can help communicators develop more informed and effective climate change communication strategies. Key policy highlights Through playful approaches, such as FutureCoast, we can gain an understanding of public perceptions toward climate issues that can help communicators develop more informed and effective climate change communication strategies. Using novel approaches such as games to understand perceptions can elicit information from people who would otherwise not engage in surveys or other research methods. An innovation of the FutureCoast approach is its ability to produce rich, player-created narratives, which can be analyzed to uncover complex thinking about climate-changed futures. Responses may reveal where the public identifies and voices emerging issues earlier than experts. Identifying optimistic and pessimistic trends around climate issues gives communicators the opportunity to re-frame negative climate perceptions toward actions and solutions, thus empowering their audiences with information that can elicit climate action.

IJCM_351A: A study on Internet use and its association with psychopathology of Sleep among: students at a Government Medical college in Koppal, Karnataka

Background: Internet addiction has become a very common disorder because of which youngsters are wasting a lot of time, becoming irritable and depressed and having poor academic/ work performance and are becoming victims of social isolation. College students have easy access to internet and so there is high chance of higher prevalence of Internet addiction among them. By studying the association of internet usage and its impact on sleep we can set boundaries for early warning signs of underlying psychopathology at the earliest. Objective: The Objectives of the study were: 1) To estimate the prevalence of Internet addiction among medical students in the study setting, 2) To estimate the prevalence of psychopathology in sleep pattern among medical students in the study setting, and 3) To determine the impact of Internet addiction on psychopathology in sleep pattern among them. Methodology: : A cross sectional study was conducted among medical students at a Government Medical college, Koppal, Karnataka for a duration of 3 months from June 2023 to August 2023. Data collection was done using a pretested and semi structured questionnaire (shared through Google form) consisting of questionnaires of Internet addiction test (IAT) to assess Internet use and Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) to assess quality of sleep among them along with socio demographic and other relevant details. Statistical analysis was done using WHO Epi info software version 3.5.4. Results: The prevalence of Internet addiction among medical students was 286 (57.2%) and was found to be mild, moderate and severe in 214 (42.8%), 68 (13.6%) and 4 (0.8%) of students respectively. Quality of sleep was disturbed in 270 (54%) of students according to PSQI. The study found significant association between Internet addiction among medical students and quality of sleep among them Conclusion: Need for Behavior change communication strategies to reduce unnecessary use of Internet.

IJCM_143A: Dietary changes during pregnancy: exploring the influencing factors as perceived by antenatal women and health care providers - a mixed methods study from a rural area in Dakshina Kannada district.

Background: Maternal nutrition impacts maternal-child health. Antenatal diet affects well-being and anaemia-related maternal mortality. Objectives: The objectives are to assess the dietary changes made by antenatal women, its association with socio demographic and clinical variables and to explore the factors influencing the dietary changes as perceived by the antenatal women and health care providers (Medical officer, ANMs and ASHA) Methodology: A mixed method study was conducted. The study involved interviewing antenatal women registered between October2020 to October 2021 in Kurnad PHC area and those who have completed their second trimester and in-depth interview of antenatal women and the health care providers (Medical officer, ANMs and ASHA) of Kurnad PHC in 2021 and two quarters of 2022. Results: Most participants were aged 26-30 (43.1%), mean age 27.41±4.838 years. 47.3% had high school education, 75.5% were unemployed, and 17.8% were self-employed. 77% were below the poverty line, 55.4% belonged to joint families, and 39.3% to nuclear families. 42% lived with husband’s family, 22% with maternal family. Co-morbidities were in 36%, anaemia in 87%, gestational diabetes in 51.85%, pregnancy-induced hypertension in 42.95%. Reasons were health improvement, healthy child, co-morbidities, and gastritis. Statistical significance existed between pregnancy dietary changes and socio- demographics, clinical variables. Factors influencing changes were health promotion, advice from family and providers, co-morbidity management, cravings, affordability, community-based services. Conclusion: Dietary changes were seen in more than half of the antenatal women. Behaviour change communication strategies and adequate support for decision making and availing nutritious food will facilitate appropriate dietary changes during pregnancy.

PREVALENCE OF NON-COMMUNICABLE DISEASE RISK FACTOR AMONG THE ADULT POPULATION OF BHARATPUR METROPOLITAN CITY, CHITWAN, NEPAL

Background: Non-communicable diseases (NCDs) are the leading causes of disease burden worldwide. The data from Nepal indicated 6% increase in the deaths caused by non-communicable diseases from 2014 to 2018. The nationwide STEPS survey of non-communicable disease risk factor, 2019 showed high prevalence of risk factors, posing a greater threat for the NCD epidemic in future in the country. Thus, this study aims to find out the prevalence of non-communicable disease risk factors among the adult population of Bharatpur Metropolitan City in Chitwan, Nepal. Methods: A descriptive, community-based cross-sectional study was conducted among 310 respondents residing in Bharatpur Metropolitan. Four wards were selected purposively and convenient sampling was used to select the sample. A semi-structured questionnaire based on WHO NCD STEPS instrument adapted to the local context, was used to collect the data. A descriptive analysis was carried out to analyze the data. Results: The prevalence of current smoking, alcohol consumption, low intake of vegetables and fruits, raised salt intake and low physical activity was found to be 18.1%, 38.7%, 94.6%, 80% and 66.5% respectively. Regarding metabolic risk factors, the prevalence of ever-raised blood pressure, blood sugar and cholesterol was 50%, 28.4% and 17.4% respectively. Conclusions: The study revealed a high prevalence of behavioral and metabolic risk factor which varied in the age group of 40-60 years. The findings call for population specific policy and interventions and focused actions for the behavior modification through primary prevention module and behavior change communication strategy.

The effectiveness of utilizing the framing effect to motivate climate change mitigation effects on an individual level

Climate change has become a concerning threat to our planet. This essay explores the potential of employing the framing effect as a strategic tool to inspire individual involvement in mitigating climate change. Framing, representing certain perceived reality through language, can significantly influence decision-making. This research examines how positive and negative ways of discussing climate change affect people. It uses experiments and surveys involving 300 participants to understand how individuals react to different ways of framing the issue. Following psychological theories by Tversky and Kahneman, the study looks at specific aspects of framing, like actions and outcomes, to see how people respond. The goal is to understand how these framing techniques influence people’s engagement with climate change. The research assesses participants’ responses, considering demographic factors like age, gender, and political affiliation. The study aims to elucidate whether framing can bridge the gap between climate change awareness and action through statistical analyses and correlation tests. Preliminary expectations suggest that positive framing might inspire proactive measures, while negative framing could invoke fear-driven actions. By understanding the nuances of framing effects, this research sheds light on individual decision-making and offers vital insights into climate change communication strategies. Acknowledging the complexities of human decision-making, this study underscores the need for continued exploration, emphasizing the potential of framing as a powerful tool in the fight against climate change.

The role of algae, fungi, and insect-derived proteins and bioactive peptides in preventive and clinical nutrition.

The current global trend in the nutrition, epidemiologic and demographic transitions collectively alarms the need to pursue a sustainable protein diet that respects ecosystem and biodiversity from alternative sources, such as algae, fungi and edible insects. Then, changing the nutrition reality is extremely important to impede the global syndemic of obesity, undernutrition and climate change. This review aims to synthesize the published literature on the potential roles of alternative proteins and their derived bioactive peptides in preventive and clinical nutrition, identify research gaps and inform future research areas. Google Scholar and PubMed databases from their inception up to 30 June 2024 were searched using keywords to access pertinent articles published in English language for the review. Overall, proteins derived from algae, fungi, and edible insects are high-quality proteins as animal sources and demonstrate significant potential as a sustainable source of bioactive peptides, which are metabolically potent and have negligible adverse effects. They show promise to prevent and treat diseases associated with oxidative stress, obesity, diabetes, cancer, cardiovascular disease (especially hypertension), and neurodegenerative diseases. Given the abundance of algae, fungi and insect peptides performed in vitro or in vivo animals, further clinical studies are needed to fully establish their safety, efficacy and practical application in preventive and clinical nutrition. Additionally, social and behavioral change communication strategies would be important to increase health awareness of nutritional benefits and promote consumer acceptance of alternative protein sources.

Development of a Motivation Communication Training to Aid Diabetes-Specialist Podiatrists With Adherence Discussions.

Diabetic foot ulcers (DFUs) impact a substantial proportion of patients with diabetes, with high recurrence rates, severe complications, and significant financial burden to health care systems. Adherence to treatment advice (e.g., limiting weight-bearing activity) is low with patients reporting dissatisfaction with the way in which advice is communicated. This study aimed to address this problem via the systematic development of a motivation communication training program. The program was designed to support diabetes-specialist podiatrists in empowering patients to actively engage with treatment. The development process followed an intervention mapping approach. Needs assessment involved observations of 24 patient-practitioner consultations within a diabetes-specialist foot clinic. This informed specification of a theory of change (self-determination theory) and relevant evidence-based communication strategies (drawing from motivational interviewing). The training program was developed iteratively with changes made following feedback from five diabetic foot health care professionals. The resulting training program, consisting of six one-hour face-to-face sessions over an 8-week period, was delivered to a further six diabetes specialist podiatrists, with five participating in postprogram telephone interviews to assess acceptability. Deductive thematic analysis of interview data revealed positive aspects of the training (e.g., valuable and relevant content), ideas for improvement (e.g., online resources and context-specific video examples), the acceptability of motivation strategies, and challenges putting the strategies into practice (such as time constraints and breaking old communication habits). This study contributes to our understanding of integrating motivation principles into routine consultations and holds potential for enhancing adherence to treatment recommendations in patients living with diabetic foot ulcers.