Prevention Of Communicable Diseases Research Articles

Classification of Stroke Riskometer AppTM into low, moderate and high stroke risk range

Background. Stroke is one of the leading of the causes of disability and according to the global burden of disease (GBD) study in 2010 it is the second leading cause of death worldwide. Developing countries reported 85% global burden of stroke enduring 80 percent of death due to hemorrhagic strokes. Stroke-related hospitalization rate in India is 46 per 100,000 persons. However Stroke Riskometer App can be used to significantly improve stroke and Non- Communicable disease prevention, since it operates on latest expansions in risk allocution/communication, International guidelines on stroke and Cardio-Vascular Disease prevention. However, the app does not classify the risk individuals into low, moderate and high categories which will not create any impact over the high risk individual, therefore it calls for the need to classify the tool into low, moderate and high risk ranges. Aim. To classify the Stroke Riskometer App into low, moderate and high stroke risk ranges among adult and elderly population. Methods. Participants were 250 samples selected from Chettinad Academy of Research and Education and S.A. Poly Clinic, Chennai, for over a_period of 6 months (April 2021-September 2021) and the Stroke Riskometer questionnaire along with Framingham Stroke Profile was filled, risk percentage from both the tools were recorded using the App for each individual. Results. Frequency analysis and Chi-square tests were performed, classifying the range into < 5% as low, 6-10% as moderate and > 10% as high risk in Stroke Riskometer tool. In Chi-square test it showed n = 104 as low risk, n = 11 as moderate risk,n = 14 as high risk in both FRS and Stroke Riskometer respectively. The chi-square value is 24.224 and the significant p value is < 0.0001showing that the value is performing well with FRS score. Conclusion. Though the App was classified into ranges it need to be continually developed and validated with larger sample size, heterogenous population and robust ethnic groups.

The Sehat Ghar: An Innovation to Improve Primary Healthcare in Rural Punjab

An effective healthcare sector essentially relies on a strong primary healthcare system. The primary healthcare system governs all major aspects of preventive healthcare and family planning services including immunization, hygiene, communicable disease prevention, sanitation, etc. In addition to this, a major bottleneck limiting the quality of healthcare at secondary and tertiary health facilities is the very high patient footfall that these hospitals. The primary healthcare facilities are designed to be the first tier of facility that a patient falls onto, and hence is either treated there or referred to higher level facilities by screening and limiting patient flow to next levels. Supporting this tier hence helps reduce burden on secondary and tertiary facilities of patients that could have been treated at primary facilities and hence exponentially improve the quality of health services in these lager hospitals. The document discusses some of the major issues faced by the primary healthcare sector in Punjab. These issues were studied and analyzed in detail at South Punjab Health Department, which is an arm of the provincial health department governing 11 districts of Southern Punjab – districts where socio-economic conditions are generally much poorer than the rest of Punjab. This document discusses the initiative of Sehat Ghar, its model, potential to ensure basic health services delivery to the local population and its direct & indirect contribution to tackle major issues of primary healthcare in Punjab.

Kerala Cancer Control Strategy 2018–30: a pragmatic vision of equitable, accessible, and affordable cancer care in low-resource settings

The Indian state of Kerala has achieved remarkable success in communicable disease prevention and in maternal and child health. Over the past 30-40 years, non-communicable diseases, such as cancer, have emerged as new public health challenges. The Kerala Cancer Control Strategy provides a roadmap to address the various cancer-related challenges in a timely manner. The goals and targets set in the document will complement larger efforts to meet sustainable development goals. A State Cancer Control Board was formed, with the Minister for Health of the Government of Kerala as the chairperson and representation by administrators and oncologists from both private and public institutions. District cancer control committees are being formed in all 14 districts of Kerala under the head of district administration and with the involvement of public representatives, civil society, medical professional associations, and health-care administrators. The committees will monitor and implement the cancer control strategy. The main objective of decentralising the approach by having District Cancer Control Committees is to promote early diagnosis and ensure a treatment-care continuum. It will focus not only on current cases but also take preventive measures at the individual and societal levels, and engage the Panchayathi Raj Institutions (local self-government) to take various measures to reduce the cancer burden in the state. The Kerala Cancer Care Grid is being formed to ensure equitable access to affordable cancer detection and treatment services within 50 km of the residence of patients. This grid is envisaged as a network of different tiers of public health institutions with assistance from private health facilities. Defined responsibilities in cancer awareness, public education, early cancer detection, referral pathway, appropriate management, rehabilitation, and patient follow-up form the core of function of the Kerala Cancer Care Grid, which will ensure that standard treatment protocols are used and that costs are contained. Integrated prevention and control of cancer risk factors through citizen participation and policy support will be implemented through the District Cancer Control Committee. The Kerala Cancer Control Strategy is in the initial implementation stage. District Cancer Control Committees act as a platform for partnership with private hospitals and civil society organisations. A District Cancer Control Programme was piloted in one district and is being extended to two more districts in 2022. The programme is expected to be extended to all districts in Kerala by the end of 2022. Decentralisation of cancer care has begun with district hospitals and sub-district hospitals to provide cancer chemotherapy services. Workshops were done to bring out uniform information, education, and communication materials and treatment protocols. To streamline cancer documentation and assess cancer burden, a state cancer registry is being implemented, which would also provide longitudinal details and survival data. The Kerala Cancer Control Strategy envisages a state-wide uniform strategy for cancer control. Decentralisation of cancer care will reduce the workload of apex cancer centres, freeing resources for those with greater needs. The Kerala Cancer Care Grid has the potential to revolutionise the delivery of cancer care in the state. Other low-resource countries could adapt this model to provide optimum cancer care for their population. None.

The Effects of Health Behavior Changing Program for Systolic Blood Pressure Reduction Among Thai Buddhist Monks, Thailand.

Thai Buddhist monks' lifestyle has made them likely to get non-communicable diseases. Therefore, the Ministry of Public Health of Thailand has conducted a health behavior-changing program for non-communicable diseases prevention among Thai Buddhist monks. This study aims to examine the effectiveness of the health behavior-changing Program for Non- communicable diseases prevention among 4,786 Thai Buddhist monks who were risk group. They were on the program for 6 months. from January 1st, 2021 to June 30th, 2021. Descriptive statistics were used to describe the characteristics of the subjects and Paired t-test was used to compare the mean difference. The results showed that the health behavior-changing program can reduce Fasting Blood Sugar, Body Mass Index, Risk score, Hypertension, and Smoking scores. Therefore, this program should be used for reducing risk factors of non-communicable diseases among Thai monks in the Upper Northeast region of Thailand.

Evaluation of the knowledge toward communicable diseases prevention among health workers at In Al-Sadr Medical City in Najaf Governorate\ Iraq

Communicable diseases represent a severe burden on human life, so control and prevention are essential to maintaining the sustainability of life. Health workers are the first line of defense against these diseases. Poor knowledge and wrong attitudes of health workers can negatively affect efforts to combat infection.The study aims to evaluate the knowledge levels among health workers toward communicable diseases. Also, determine the relationship between dependent and independent variables with participants' levels of knowledge. A cross-sectional analytical study in Al-Sadr Medical City, Najaf Governorate, from mid-November 2021 to the end of June 2022. On 384 health workers who were using a randomly collected self-questionnaire, the data was collected and analyzed using a statistical program. The main results indicate that (66.1%) of the participants are females, the majority of the age group (20-26) years, half of them are married and hold a bachelor's degree, (66.4%) have less than five years of experience, and (35.9%) receive a training course, In terms of profession, (27.3)% were nurses. The results show that (57.2%) had good overall knowledge. it was found that there is a significant relationship between knowledge and training sessions, as for other socio-demographic characteristics, there is no significant association with both knowledge.

Nutrition, a Primary Prevention of Communicable Disease?

This article is a reminder that, in addition to the classic hygienic anti-epidemic measures, communicable (infectious) and non-communicable (chronic) diseases can possibly be prevented by purposefully focusing on nutritional programs. In ancient times, nor antibiotics, the only way to prevent and treat diseases was to adjust the patient’s diet. Many times over the years, nutritional health promotion has proven itself to be effective even though, as typical of the history of medicine, it has sometimes been forgotten. Even Hippocrates (460-337 BC) was aware of the importance of nutrition for health as he stated: “If you know nothing about a person’s diet, how can you understand his illness?” The authors have tried to point out the importance of nutrition, which always contains antigens that directly induce immunological memory, in both specific (adaptive) immunity and as recently demonstrated, non-specific immunity, within our largest organ of immunity, the Intestinal Lymphoid Tissue (GALT). In essence, in addition to its nutritional value, food intake could also be considered as an ongoing form of “vaccination”.

Perception of Medical Professionals from Tertiary Care Teaching Institutes towards the Specialty of Community Medicine and its Specialists amid the COVID-19 Pandemic

International Journal of Medicine and Public Health,2022,12,2,71-75.DOI:10.5530/ijmedph.2022.2.14Published:April 2022Type:Original ArticlePerception of Medical Professionals from Tertiary Care Teaching Institutes towards the Specialty of Community Medicine and its Specialists amid the COVID-19 PandemicImran Ahmed Khan, MD. Abu Bashar, Harish Chandra Tiwari, and Mahendran M Reddy Imran Ahmed Khan1, MD. Abu Bashar2,*, Harish Chandra Tiwari1, Mahendran M Reddy3 1BRD Medical College, Gorakhpur, Uttar Pradesh, INDIA. 2AIIMS, Gorakhpur, Uttar Pradesh, INDIA. 3Indian Council of Medical Research- Regional Medical Research Centre(ICMR-RMRC), Gorakhpur, Uttar Pradesh, INDIA. Abstract:Background: Community Medicine specialists play a crucial role in the prevention and control of communicable and non-communicable diseases, monitoring and surveillance, healthcare planning and management and research but the awareness about the speciality even among the medical fraternity is limited. Aim: To determine the perceptions of Medical Professionals from Tertiary care teaching institutes towards the specialty of community medicine and its specialists. Materials and Methods: This was a web based cross-sectional survey conducted in October- November, 2021 among Medical professionals of Tertiary Care Teaching Institutes in the state of Uttar Pradesh, North India using a semi structured, pretested questionnaire circulated as google forms using WhatsApp and personal email ids. Results: A total 406 participants consented and completed the survey questionnaire out of the 456 contacted eligible individuals (response rate 89.04%) of which 231 (57.0%) were males and 175 (43.0%) were females. Majority (83.0%) of the participants agreed that the ‘information and knowledge gained in Community Medicine by them would certainly help in their future medical practice” and an overwhelmingly majority (91.1%) agreed to the statement that ‘a physician can’t effectively control most infectious disease without adequate knowledge of Epidemiology’. Around 70% of the participants agreed that Community Medicine Specialists have good work life balance and 87.4% agreed that speciality of Community Medicine offers adequate scholarly and research opportunities. Further, 77.6% of the participants agreed that Community Medicine has enough opportunities for direct public contact compared to other specialty and around 64% agreed that the speciality offers the opportunity to utilize newer technologies, Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning. Around 61% of the participants agreed that COVID-19 pandemic will affect the choice of specialty among the PG aspirants. Conclusion: Majority of the Medical professionals have positive perceptions towards the speciality of Community Medicine and its specialists. The COVID-19 pandemic may be an important cause for the changing perception towards the speciality among the medical fraternity. Keywords:Community medicine, COVID-19, Medical Professionals, Pandemic, perception, SpecialityView:PDF (118.15 KB)

Social determinants of the disproportionately higher rates of COVID-19 infection among African Caribbean and Black (ACB) population: A systematic review protocol.

The challenges of identifying and eliminating racial disparities regarding the exposure, transmission, prevention, and treatment of communicable diseases within the healthcare system have been a mounting concern since the COVID-19 pandemic began. The African, Caribbean, and Black (ACB) populations in Canada represent a fast-expanding and underprivileged community, which have been previously found to have higher susceptibility to communicable diseases and lower sensitivity to intervention measures. Currently, there is insufficient evidence to adequately identify racial patterns in the prevalence and healthcare utilization among the ACB population within the context of the ongoing pandemic. Our proposed study will explore the association between the social determinants of health (SDH) and COVID-19 health outcomes in ACB populations in high-income countries (UK, US, Australia, Canada). We will explore the current evidence through a systematic review of COVID-19 pandemic literature covering the period between December 2019 and October 2020. The objectives include investigating the effect of SDH on the ACB populations’ risk to COVID-19 health outcomes, including COVID-19 infection incidence, severity of disease, hospitalization, mortality and barriers to the treatment and management of COVID-19 for Black people in Canada. In addition, this project aims to investigate the effect of COVID-19 on ACB communities in Ontario by examining the challenges that front-line healthcare workers and administrators have during this pandemic as it pertains to service provisions to ACB communities. A systematic review of original and review studies will be conducted based on the publications on eleven databases (MEDLINE, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, CINAHL, NHS EDD, Global Health, PsychInfo, PubMed, Scopus, Proquest, and Taylor and Francis Online Journals) Primary outcomes will include the rate of COVID-19 infection. The systematic review will include a meta-analysis of available quantitative data, as well as a narrative synthesis of qualitative studies. This systematic review will be among the first to report racial disparities in COVID-19 infection among the ACB population in Canada. Through synthesizing population data regarding the risk factors on various levels, the findings from this systematic review will provide recommendations for future research and evidence for clinical practitioners and social workers. Overall, a better understanding of the nature and consequences of racial disparities during the pandemic will provide policy directions for effective interventions and resilience-building in the post-pandemic era. Significance for public health Since the outbreak of the recent COVID-19 pandemic, there has been a growing concern regarding the challenges in identifying and eliminating racial disparities in exposure to transmission of communicable diseases and access to preventive and curative healthcare services. This is particularly the case for the countries that experience high numbers of immigrants, including Canada, where the racial inequality remains a major public health concern. Existing research suggests that the African, Caribbean, and Black (ACB) population in Canada represent a fast-expanding and underprivileged community previously found to have higher susceptibility to communicable diseases and lower sensitivity to intervention measures. However, currently there is no systematic research on the social determinants that underlie the disproportionately higher prevalence of COVID-19 among the ACB population. The findings of our systematic review will contribute to evidence-based policy making targeted at addressing the COVID-19 related vulnerabilities among ACB population and thereby ensuring more effective containment of the pandemic.

Personal Hygiene Practices among Selected Rural School Children in Bangladesh

Background: Proper hygiene practices play vital roles in prevention of communicable diseases and maintenance of health for children in developing countries.
 Objective: To assess the status of personal hygiene practices among the rural school children.
 Materials and method: This cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted from January to June 2014 among the children of class VIII, IX and X of Defalbari and Nagarbathan high school of Jhenaidah district, Bangladesh. A total of 240 children were selected through purposive sampling and data were collected through face to face interview with a pretested semi-structured questionnaire.
 Results: Total 240 students’ mean age was 15.36±1.69 years and 56.3% was boy. About 52.5% of the students’ monthly family income was below 10,000 taka, 42.5% were living in kacha house. About 77.1% students practiced hand washing before meal and 73.3% after using toilet. About 47.5% students had sanitary latrine in their home and 56.2% had practices of wearing shoes in toilet. About 72.9% students had daily bathing practices and 39.6% students trimmed their nail weekly. Students’ mothers’ education status had significant association with hand washing practices both before meal and after using toilet.
 Conclusion: Proper practices of personal hygiene keep young children away from many diseases and help in maintaining growth and development. Mothers’ education status was found to have significant association with students’ personal hygiene practices. So, effort should be made to aware every school going children and their parents about the benefits of regular practice of personal hygiene for a bright and healthy life.
 Delta Med Col J. Jul 2020 8(1): 28-31

COVID-19 Information in Sweden: Opinions of Immigrants with Limited Proficiency in Swedish

ABSTRACT COVID-19 has highlighted the importance of health information for prevention of communicable disease. Knowledge about groups that have high risk is important to prevent disease transmission. In Sweden, immigrants have been identified as one such group. Yet, little is known about where they have sourced information about COVID-19 and their opinions toward it. The aim of this study was to describe the COVID-19 information sources used by immigrants with limited proficiency in Swedish as well as their opinions on how comprehensive the information has been, the importance of the recommendations and their possibility to follow them. A cross-sectional survey was conducted via introductory Swedish language classes in Region Uppsala (n = 855). The results showed the immigrants were using different information sources, with the majority using school, media and social media. The immigrants’ opinions about COVID-19 information differed. Most reported they knew where to find information; however, over two-fifths reported the recommendations from the authorities should be more extensive. The majority reported it is important to follow the recommendations, whereas the possibility to follow the recommendations was more mixed. Age differences in opinions toward COVID-19 information were detected. Although the results were largely positive, there still appears to be a need for improvement in how immigrant groups with limited ability in the host country´s language are reached. Effective health communication that engages the whole nation is an important factor authorities should commit to as we face the current pandemic. This research suggests that an approach tailored by age could be helpful.

The impact of COVID-19 on routine pediatric vaccination delivery in Brazil

IntroductionChildhood vaccination rates have decreased significantly during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Brazilian immunization program, Programa Nacional de Imunização (PNI), is a model effort, achieving immunization rates comparable to high-income countries. This study aimed to evaluate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in pediatric vaccinations administered by the PNI, as a proxy of adherence to vaccinations during 2020. MethodsData on the number of vaccines administered to children under 10 years of age nationally and in each of Brazil’s five regions were extracted from Brazil’s federal health delivery database. Population adjusted monthly vaccination rates from 2015 through 2019 were determined, and autoregressive integrated moving average (ARIMA) models were used to forecast expected vaccinated rates in 2020. We compared the forecasts to reported vaccine administrations to assess adequacy of pediatric vaccine delivery during the COVID-19 pandemic. ResultsFrom January 2015 to February 2020, the average rate of vaccine administration to children was 53.4 per 100,000. After February 2020, this rate decreased to 50.4, a 9.4% drop compared to 2019 and fell outside of forecasted ranges in December 2020. In Brazil's poorest region, the North, vaccine delivery fell outside of the forecasted ranges earlier in 2020 but subsequently rebounded, meeting expected targets by the end of 2020. However, in Brazil's wealthiest South and Southeast regions, initial vaccine delivery fell and remained well below forecasted rates through the end of 2020. ConclusionIn Brazil, despite a model national pediatric vaccination program with an over 95% national coverage, vaccination rates decreased during the COVID-19 pandemic. Coordinated governmental efforts have ameliorated some of the decrease, but more efforts are needed to ensure continued protection from preventable communicable diseases for children globally.

Contemplation and interaction? An intervention in public schools to motivate the concern in hygiene and transmission of diseases

Non family health education is controversial by the different family models and is done in a contemplative way, which generates small fixation of concepts or behavioral changes and the child may have flawed personal sanitary concepts. As the school offers only a contemplative view, individual interactive experiences could pinpoint and emphasize these concepts. With this, the Institute of Tropical Medicine of the University of São Paulo and the Faculty of Medicine of the University of São Paulo, with the support of the Pro-Rectory of Extension and Culture of University of São Paulo, we constructed an interactive exhibition for students of public schools of the fundamental cycle, addressing the essential concepts of disease transmission and prevention. An initial contemplative view was offered during the waiting queue, then each individual performs experiments of interpersonal contact, transmission by fomites, variation of agents, and "contamination" is demonstrated by fluorescent lighting. The interaction was presented in 5 public schools, with intense collaboration of the students and teachers, with 1300 students participating in all experiments with more than 70% participation. Events of this type, which raise awareness about hygiene and the transmission and prevention of communicable diseases can be done interactively among students, allowing greater fixation and greater acceptance. The exposition is interactive with active participation of students in essays and revelation of landmark events, such as demonstrating interpersonal contamination at various levels of personal relationship.

MARDİN'DE 60 YAŞ ÜZERİNDEKİLERDE AŞI KARŞILIĞI - AŞI ORANINDA DÜŞÜK BİR BÖLGE/TÜRKİYE

Objective: One of the most important public health practices in the prevention of communicable diseases is vaccination. In this study, it was desired to evaluate the vaccination attitude of individuals over the age of 60 years in cities where the rate of vaccination against COVID-19 was low rate. Material and Methods: Our research was carried out by reaching 396 people over the age of 60 in MardinTurkey. A questionnaire including the positive and negative attitudes of the participants towards the vaccine was filled in by face to face interviews. Results: We found that 110 (45.8%) of the participants who have not been innoculated in the provinces where the study was conducted did not trust the vaccine. Again, it was seen that 128 (53.3%) of those who did not get inoculated were illiterate and 68 (28.3%) were primary school graduates. There were no university graduates in the group that did not receive the vaccine. When positive and negative attitudes were evaluated, it was seen that 64 (16.2%) people strongly disagree with the positive attitude, I would like to be vaccinated at the first opportunity, and 48 (12.1%) strongly disagree with the positive attitude, I think everyone should be vaccinated. When the positive attitude of I trust the studies about the vaccine was examined, it was seen that 108 (27.3%) people gave the answer of strongly disagree. Again, it was seen that 53.3% of the participants who did not get vaccinated were illiterate and 28.3% were primary school graduates. Conclusion: The high level of concern about vaccine safety needs to be addressed. Future introduction of the vaccine should address these concerns, and a properly and thoroughly tested vaccine will help win the public's trust. In addition, campaigns should be organized to target low-educational groups, and they should be informed, due to the increase in the fear of vaccination as the level of education decreases.

Similar COVID-19 incidence to the general population in people with opioid use disorder receiving integrated outpatient clinical care

IntroductionDuring the COVID-19 pandemic, limited access to health care augmented COVID-19 risk in subjects with opioid use disorder (OUD). The aim of the study was to compare COVID-19 incidence in individuals with OUD receiving continuous clinical care with that of the general population. MethodsA prospective cohort study was carried out from March 2020 to March 2021 comparing COVID-19 cumulative incidence of individuals presenting an OUD receiving integrated clinical care with that of an age-reference general population, in three public outpatient treatment centers for addiction in Barcelona, Spain. ResultsOver the study period, 366 individuals received clinical care. Mean age: 48.2±8.9 years, 280 (76.5%) were men and 283 (77.3%) native Spanish. All subjects were on opioid agonist therapy. Prevalence of communicable diseases were: HIV infection in 109 (29.8%) and hepatitis C in 46 (12.6%). Psychiatric comorbidity was present in 207 (56.6%), and 119 (32.5%) had >1 chronic medical disease. COVID-19 was diagnosed in 10 patientsa cumulative incidence of 2,732 casesx100,000 people/year (C.I.95%: 1,318–4,967). There were no differences compared to the age-general population: 2,856 casesx100,000 people/year (C.I.95%: 2,830–2,880) (p=0.81). In the bivariate analysis, hypertension (5[50.0%] vs. 53[14.9%], p=0.01) and cardiovascular chronic diseases (2 [20.0%] vs. 8 [2.2%], p=0.03) were more prevalent in patients with OUD and COVID-19. ConclusionsIndividuals with OUD who received integrated clinical care had a COVID-19 incidence comparable to the general population. Ensuring comprehensive healthcare is essential to prevent the clinical impact of COVID-19 on individuals with OUD.

Role Of Ayurveda in Prevention of Communicable Diseases

Infectious or communicable diseases can be defined as an illness caused by another living agent, or its products, that can spread from one person to another, can cause emergency situation. Ayurveda has given practical explanation about the communicable diseases in various contexts which are applicable in day-to-day life in their prevention, and cure. The modes of transmission of the Communicable diseases, relative modes of prevention, and maintenance of health with Dinacharya& Ritucharya(daily practice & Seasonal practice) are well illustrated in classics. Various modes of transmission of the communicable diseases by Touch, Inhalation, Sharing Fomites, Polluted water, Air, Soil have been explained in Ayurveda along with the symptoms seen normally which follow cough, dyspnea, vomiting, rhinorrhoea, headache, fever etc. Infectious agents are plentiful, mutate rapidly, and can become resistant to drugs if not destroyed completely. Low vaccination rates, poor nutrition, age (young and elderly), and immunosuppression, Overcrowding, poor regional design and hygiene due to poverty, Polluted drinking water, rapid climate changes, and natural disasters, can lead to conditions that allow easier transmission of disease. The first and foremost aim of Ayurveda is Prevention of diseases and next is the cure of manifested diseases for which avoidance of the causative factors is the first line of management. There are minor diversions in the management of such infective conditions in Ayurveda such as Sadvritta (good conduct), Rasayanaetc which can be effective method of prevention of communicable diseases.

Small Organisms with Big Consequences: Understanding the Microbial World Around Us

Creating a hands-on lab that conveys important information while simultaneously allowing for student autonomy can be difficult. This is particularly true for the field of microbiology, in which labs often rely on &ldquo;recipe-style&rdquo; instructions and materials that can be difficult to scale up for larger class sizes. For these reasons, microbiology concepts are often left out&nbsp;of introductory biology labs, the ramifications of which have been made apparent during the recent COVID-19 virus pandemic. Fundamental microbiology concepts, e.g., the prevention of communicable diseases, are important to teach in introductory biology classrooms &ndash; often a student&#39;s&nbsp;only exposure to biology in their academic careers &ndash;&nbsp;in order to create a healthier community as a whole. Therefore, this general biology lab introduces an active-learning microbiology lab that&nbsp;teaches&nbsp;students about the microbial world. Students are first introduced to the three major types of symbioses and apply these concepts to microbial organisms on a&nbsp;symbiotic continuum. Next, the students are given examples of mutualistic bacteria, i.e., the human microbiome, through a mini lecture prepared by the instructor. The students are then introduced to examples of parasitic/pathogenic microbes that can interfere with human health and cause relatable diseases (e.g., diarrhea, STDs, and athlete&rsquo;s foot). Students then apply this information through a short matching game before learning&nbsp;common practices used to prevent the spread of these pathogens, including an active learning exercise and video on how to wash their hands like healthcare professionals. Finally, students are asked to generate their own questions about microbes before working through a handout that guides&nbsp;the students through using the scientific method to&nbsp;address&nbsp;their questions. This exercise thus provides students with the autonomy to ask their own questions about microbes, design their own experiments, prepare growth media their own way, and present their findings in a way that is both scalable for large class sizes and reduces the burden of lab prep common for microbiology labs.&nbsp; <em>Primary image:</em>&nbsp;Microbes sampled from the iPhone of a curious individual. Fungal colonies can be seen as fuzzy, white or colorful mounds while bacteria appear as opaque, smooth streaks on the media.

A Qualitative Analysis of Local Health Departments' Experiences With Contact-Tracing Tools in Response to COVID-19.

A Qualitative Analysis of Local Health Departments' Experiences With Contact-Tracing Tools in Response to COVID-19.

Study of clinico- epidemiological profile of COVID-19 positive pregnant females in a tertiary care hospital of Kumaon region.

Introduction:Pregnant females are considered as a high-risk group for the prevention and control of various communicable diseases. Therefore, this research was undertaken to study the clinic-epidemiological profile and biochemical parameters of COVID-19-positive pregnant females in a tertiary care hospital.Methods:This hospital-based retrospective study was done on COVID-19-positive pregnant females admitted during April 2020–March 2021. A total of 139 patients were included in the study. Clinical, epidemiological, hematological, and biochemical profiles were described using frequency, percentages, mean, standard deviation using Microsoft Excel software.Results:The mean age of study participants was 25.36 ± 3.79 years, mean duration of pregnancy was 37.53 ± 3.31 weeks. The majority of the patients were asymptomatic (89.2%). Abdominal pain was the most common symptom (66.7%) among symptomatic. All patients were managed conservatively.Conclusion:The study showed the mild nature of COVID-19 among pregnant females as the majority of them pregnant were asymptomatic and few presented with mild symptoms.

PREDICTORS OF THE PREVENTION OF PRACTICE RELATED TO COMMUNICABLE DISEASE PREVENTIONS OF CHILD CAREGIVERS IN CHILD DEVELOPMENT CENTERS, UBON RATCHATHANI PROVINCE, THAILAND

A child development center is a daycare center that gathers large numbers of children in the same areas. As a result, it provides a high opportunity for infection, especially gastrointestinal and respiratory infections. Ubon Ratchathani has been a province with an increasing number of communicable disease cases. This research aimed to predict factors related to the prevention practice in communicable disease for child caregivers in child development centers, Ubon Ratchathani Province. This descriptive-analytic study was conducted between January 2018 and June 2019. The study instruments used questionnaires and in-depth interviews focusing on their prevention and control management practices of communicable disease. The survey questionnaires were for child caregivers who worked in 280 child development centers. The predictor factors were analyzed by Multiple regression analysis. The results showed the majority were female (97.8%), range of age 25- 35 years (57.7%), and with a period of performance as teachers ranging from 1-5 years (36.0%), and health workers had been trained about the communicable control disease (60.4%). The level of knowledge for communicable disease prevention was medium level with a mean score of 11.22 (S.D. = 2.03). The attitude was at a moderate level with a mean score was 2.28 (S.D. = 0.247). The management to prevention disease was good level with a mean score of 24.28 (S.D. = 3.09). On the other hand, the factor of personal characteristics as age, history of attended training, knowledge, attitude, and the preventive behaviors was associated with the communicable disease practice in child development centers was significantly predicted for 44.6% to a statistically significant ( p &lt;0.05). The child caregivers should be skilled by training, knowledge, and preparation of education media and environmental health management with caregivers of child development centers.

Community Health Workers (CHWs) to Improve Primary Health Care Services Delivery: A Case of Female Community Health Volunteers (FCHV) Program in Nepal

Community health workers (CHWs) have played a vital role in improving primary healthcare services in different parts of the world, in particular, for those services related to the prevention and control of communicable diseases, immunization services, reproductive health, maternal and child health, HIV/AIDS prevention and care and nutrition promotion. The Female Community Health Volunteers (FCHVs) program, which was introduced in 1988 in Nepal, has now reached over 51,000 FCHVs. They are key community level CHWs in Nepal and have contributed significantly in achieving several health and related outcomes and meeting several Millennium Development Goals. In such, there is also a potential and needs for engaging them to prevent and control emerging health challenges such as non-communicable diseases prevention and control and re-emerging health issues. Their effective involvement to ongoing health programs would be critical to achieving Sustainable Development Goals, agenda in particular “SDG 3 – Health and Wellbeing” by 2030.