Health Promotion Perspectives
Volume:11 Issue: 3, Aug 2021

Although it is widely accepted that coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has adversely affected the Global South’s most vulnerable refugee communities, they have received little attention. There have been gaps in testing, which is fundamental to treat and isolate patients and make data-driven decisions to protect the refugee community. Therefore, it is imperative to holistically implement policies to curtail COVID-19 in refugee camps to ensure that refugees are safe and protected from the pandemic. Processes for timely diagnosis and treatment, quick isolation and contact tracing are essential to keep refugees safe. Furthermore, it is crucial to encourage protective behaviours and raise awareness about hygiene and social prevention to dampen disease transmission. Refugees in the Global South have been disproportionately affected by the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic, facing financial hardship and social injustice throughout. Refugees in Africa have also faced threats to their security, being subjected to torture, disappearance, or even killings in their host countries. The pandemic has exposed gender inequalities, with females being the most affected, and health inequities in the refugee community in Africa. There is a need for international organizations like the African Union, United Nations (UN) agencies, non-governmental organisations (NGOs), and other stakeholders to take serious action regarding the refugee situation in Africa. Food aid for refugees in Africa should be increased as quickly as possible and refugees’ security must be guaranteed. Of equal importance, there must be justice for the death or disappearance of refugees. It is imperative to end discrimination against refugees and support the promotion of gender equity

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has subjected the mental health and wellbeing of Filipino children under drastic conditions. While children are more vulnerable to these detriments, there remains the absence of unified and comprehensive strategies in mitigating the deterioration of the mental health of Filipino children. Existing interventions focus on more general solutions that fail to acknowledge the circumstances that a Filipino child is subjected under. Moreover, these strategies also fail to address the multilayered issues faced by a lowermiddle-income country, such as the Philippines. As the mental well-being of Filipino children continues to be neglected, a subsequent and enduring mental health epidemic can only be expected for years to come.

Dental caries, as a multi-factorial problem, is prevalent among children. The aim of this review was to assess the association between dietary free sugars (DFS) consumption and dental caries in 6- to 12-year-old children in the recent longitudinal evidence.

In this systematic review, data base search was performed in PubMed, Embase, ISI Web of Science and Scopus using the keywords “diet”, “dental caries” and “school children”. We considered the articles published in English from 2004 to 2019. After duplicate removal, title, abstract, and full text of all included papers were assessed by two independent reviewers. The quality of included papers was assessed using the Newcastle-Ottawa scale.

From 2122 papers, ten longitudinal studies were included. In the included studies, the consumption of 100% juice (daily), candy (more than once a week), and soft drink and sweet drinks (at bedtime) were highly associated with caries in children. In few studies, daily consumption of water and dairy products was reported to be protective. However, some studies reported non-significant association between consumption of different sugary items and dental caries. The quality of included studies was moderate. Heterogeneity was observed in the measurement of caries outcome, and data collection tool for diet assessment, and statistical measure, which impeded the meta-analysis of data.

The methodology and results in the longitudinal studies on the association of dietary free sugar consumption and dental caries in schoolchildren were heterogeneous, which urge the need for further standard research protocols in this area.

With over 4 million deaths worldwide, the current coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic is regarded as one of the worst pandemics in history. With its wider devastating consequences, even so-called affluent countries could not provide full coverage for COVID-19 vaccines and medications to all of their citizens. Against this backdrop, the main aim of this article is to examine how Global Health Diplomacy (GHD) can play a role in prioritizing vaccine equity in the global health agenda in the fight against COVID-19. The majority of developed countries’ healthcare systems have been exposed and have reached a tipping point. After the completion of eighteen months of the pandemic, only five countries were able to produce vaccines for the treatment of COVID-19. This pandemic has divided the world into two blocs: those with vaccines, such as the United States, the United Kingdom, Russia, China, and India; and those without, such as the rest of the world. The greatest challenges are vaccine inequalities, inequities and distribution, which undermine the global economic recovery. Many poor countries are still waiting for the initial doses to be delivered to their citizens, while some rich nations are planning for booster doses. GHD plays a critical role in establishing successful global collaborations, funding mechanisms and ensuring international cooperation through the combined efforts of all stakeholders. Besides, global solidarity is necessary to lessen the wider gaps between the vaccination status of rich and poor nations. Therefore, through GHD, the vaccine gaps and inequities can be addressed to strengthen global health security and accelerate global economic recovery.

To adapt the scientific evaluation tool for the confusion evaluation of health rumors and to test this tool to the confusion evaluation of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID19)-related health rumors on Chinese online platforms during the outbreak period of COVID-19 in China.

The design of our study was systematic evaluation of COVID-19-related health rumors. Retrieved from 7 rumor-repellent platforms, rumors about COVID-19 were collected during the publication from December 1, 2019 to February 6, 2020, and their origins were traced. Researchers evaluated rumors using the confusion evaluation tool in 6 dimensions (creators, evidence selection, evidence evaluation, evidence application, backing and publication platform, conflict of interest). Items were scored using a seven-point Likert scale. The scores were converted into percentages, and the median of rumors from different sources was compared with rank sum test.

Our research included 127 rumors. Scores were converted to percentages, median and interquartile range are used to describe the data. The median score: creators 25.00% (interquartile range, IQR, 16.67-37.50%), evidence selection 27.78% (IQR, 13.89-44.44%), evidence evaluation 33.33% (IQR, 25.00-45.83%), evidence application 36.11% (IQR, 22.22- 47.22%), backing and publication platform 8.33% (IQR, 4.17-20.83%), conflict of interest 75.00% (IQR, 50.00-83.33%). Almost 40% rumors came from WeChat and the rumors with the lowest scores were concentrated on the WeChat platform. The rumors about prevention methods have relatively lower scores.

Most rumors included were not highly confusing for evaluators of this project. WeChat is the “worst-hit area” of COVID-19 related health rumors. More than half rumors focus on the description of prevention methods, which reflects the panic, anxiety and blind conformity of the public under public health emergencies.

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic warrants an immediate response. Persons with disabilities (PWDs) are one of the most vulnerable populations susceptible to marginalization. While there are existing guidelines in the Philippines that aim to assist their basic needs, a call for inclusivity in policymaking for the COVID-19 response is highly advocated. This paper aims to analyze existing policy guidelines concerning the welfare of PWDs in the country based on several policy domains.

Relevant documents were acquired through extensive search of government and nongovernment websites and news agencies. Literature included memorandums, circulars, and news bulletins in the period between January 2020 to May 2021. This study conducted a framework analysis on policies enacted by the Philippine government during the COVID-19 pandemic concerning PWDs. The framework was divided into eight areas: access to (1) information, (2) healthcare, (3) education, and (4) financial support, (5) protection from infection in residential settings, (6) reasonable accommodation, (7) consideration for disabled people facing multiple exclusions, and (8) inclusion to decision-making process.

Fifteen PWD related COVID-19 response documents from the Philippines were reviewed and analyzed. Most policies corresponded to themes related to financial support and reasonable accommodations. Most documents were limited to proposals and suggestions with only a few documents including specific details on how the program will be implemented and monitored.

The state has proven its cognizance for PWDs; however, implementation and its impact remain to be seen. The government needs to evaluate these efforts to identify gaps and barriers. A comprehensive national database should be implemented to centralize registration of PWDs, and efforts should be made to inform and educate PWDs of their rights and of existing programs. Most importantly, PWDs should be included in the discourse and decision-making process to ensure programs are acceptable and accessible.

Antenatal care (ANC) is low in developing countries, with an estimated 20% of Indonesian women not initiating ANC during the first trimester. The present study sought to determine the impact of a mentoring program on the timing of the first ANC visit.

This cluster randomized controlled trial was conducted in 3 subdistricts of the Bantul District, divided into 61 clusters per treatment arm, with a final sample size of 205 confirmed pregnant women. The mentoring program consisted of (1) health education, (2) monitoring, and (3) text-message reminders. The primary outcome was the timing of first ANC visit. A multilevel mixed-effect logistic regression model was used to measure the effect of the program on the likelihood of having an earlier first ANC visit, with statistical significance at α=0.05.

At the individual-level, the intervention group had a mean time of first ANC visit±2 days earlier than the control group (P<0.05). After adjusted for cluster and other covariates, the odds of starting the first ANC visit early (<39 days of gestation) was higher in the intervention group (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] 3.00; 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.17-7.72).

Maternal mentoring can improve the timing of the first ANC visit. This program has the potential to be adopted by health care systems in settings where there is little education on the importance of ANC. Future research could extend the length of mentorship until delivery in order to better understand the relationship between mentorship and early ANC on pregnancy outcomes.

A mediation model was proposed to explain how religiosity, religious cooping, and fear of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) explained anxiety and depression among older adults.

With the use of a cross-sectional design, the Integrated Health System was used to randomly invite 1000 older adults residing in Qazvin to participate in an online survey. Within the period of November, 2020 to January 2021, 696 older Iranian adults (mean age=69.56 years; 57.9% women) agreed to participate in the study and reported demographic information as well as measures of religiosity, fear of COVID-19, religious coping, anxiety, and depression.

Religiosity had direct effects on depression (B [SE]=-0.087 [0.037]; P=0.023) but not anxiety (B [SE]=-0.063 [0.036]; P=0.072). Moreover, both fear of COVID-19 and religious coping significantly mediated the association between religiosity and anxiety (B [SE]=-0.360 [0.035]; p=0.002) and that between religiosity and depression (B [SE]=-0.365 [0.034]; P=0.002).

During the tough time of COVID-19 pandemic, religiosity and religious coping were protectors for older adults in developing good mental. Therefore, future research is needed to examine education programs that are effective for older adults to obtain correct knowledge concerning COVID-19, including the protective COVID-19 infection behaviors. Therefore, older adults may reduce their fear via their enhanced correct knowledge concerning COVID-19.

High tibial osteotomy (HTO) is a common procedure performed for unicompartmental knee osteoarthritis (OA). Patients are increasingly using the internet to research surgical procedures to help aid decision making. Our aim was to assess the readability and quality of information available to patients online relating to HTO.

A systematic review of three search engines Google, Bing and Yahoo using the search terms “high tibial osteotomy” and “tibial osteotomy” separately was performed. The first three pages of results for each search engine were analysed. Readability was assessed using the Flesch Reading Ease Scale (FRES), Flesch-Kincaid Grade level (FKGL) and the Simple Measure of Gobbledygook formula (SMOG). Quality was assessed with the DISCERN questionnaire, JAMA benchmarks and the presence of Health on the Net Foundation Code of Conduct (HONCode).

Twenty-four webpages were included after duplicates (n=42) and exclusions (n=24). The overall readability was low, with a mean FRES of 53.2 (SD: 9.1), FKGL 10.7 (SD: 1.8), SMOG 10.4 (SD: 1.5). Quality was also low with a mean DISCERN score of 42 (SD: 12.3). None of the webpages fulfilled all of the JAMA benchmarking criteria and only 2/24 (8.3%) webpages possessed HONCode certification.

The overall online information available to patient’s considering HTO is of low readability and quality. Improving the quality and readability of patient information online will benefit informed patient decision making before HTO surgery.

The current study assessed different dietary habits, energy drinks intake, body mass index (BMI) and physical activity and associated factors among Palestinian adolescents attending marginalized schools.

A cross-sectional study targeted a random sample of 1480 students in the sixth and ninth grades attending 20 marginalized public schools in the West Bank area of the Occupied Palestinian Territories (oPt). Students were interviewed in-person by trained senior dental students about their dietary habits, physical activity, fathers’ employment and mothers’ level of education. Weight and height were measured, and BMI percentile was calculated. Descriptive statistics were generated for the study’s main variables and the dependent variables were compared by grade, gender, mothers’ level of education and father’s employment.

A total of 1282 students (98% response) completed the questionnaire. Of them, 6% were ‘underweight’ (fifth percentile or under) and 34% were ‘overweight’ or ‘obese’ (85th percentile or over). Ninth graders had more added sugar than 6th graders (P=0.002), less frequent milk consumption (P<0.001), more frequent energy drink consumption (P=0.001), and less physical activity (P<0.0001). Frequency of carbonated and sweetened drink consumption was associated with being overweight or obese (P=0.016, P=0.001). Frequency of carbonated drinks consumption was higher among children of mothers with a high school level of education or less (P<0.001). In addition, children of mothers educated to high school level or below were associated with being underweight (P=0.05)

Dietary habits and physical activity get worse between the ages of 12 and 15. Mothers’ level of education is an important factor in being overweight or underweight. Energy drink consumption among boys and milk consumption among girls are two challenges that need to be addressed urgently and adequately

The current study aimed to evaluate the psychometric properties of the Persian version of the 8-item Short-Form Health Survey (SF-8). For this purpose, we examined a large sample of the older adult in two different groups with and without diabetes using the Yazd Health Study (YaHS) data.

Using a two-stage cluster random sampling method, 1901 older adults were recruited, according to the World Health Organization (WHO) STEPwise approach to surveillance (STEPS) guidelines. To test the scale’s reliability, the internal consistency and test-retest methods were applied. The convergent validity of the entire questionnaire was evaluated by the average variance extracted (AVE) and composite reliability (CR) for each subscale. An Independent Samples t-test was used to assess the demographic differences between the study groups.

The Cronbach’s alpha coefficient for the subscales of SF-8 were measured to range between 0.85 and 0.79 (physical & mental health). The test-retest reliability coefficient of the physical component summary (PCS) and (0.97) and mental component summary (MCS) (0.98) indicated the appropriate reliability of the SF-8. The CFA-concerned results indicated that the 2‐factor model presented a good fit to the data for the explored diabetes and non-diabetes groups, as well as the total research participants [goodness of fit index (GFI)=0.99, comparative fit index (CFI)=0.992, normed fit index (NFI)=0.99, incremental fit index (IFI)=0.992, root mean square error of approximation (RMSEA)=0.056]. Values >0.5 and >0.7 for AVE and CR indicated the evidence of the convergent validity of the SF-8.

The present study was the first attempt to confirm the traditional 2-factor structure of SF-8 among a large sample of Iranian older individuals. The obtained results suggested that the Persian version of the SF-8 is a reliable and valid tool for measuring health-related quality of life (HRQoL) among Iranian older adults (including the older adult with & without diabetes).

While it is acknowledged that self-efficacy plays a significant role in understanding of consequences of occupational stress, no research has given much attention to the mediating effect of self-efficacy in the association between occupational stress and mental health (MH) problems. The aims of this study were to examine: (1) the associations between occupational stress, MH problems, and self-efficacy among nursing professionals, and (2) mediating effect of self-efficacy in the association between occupational stress and MH problems.

A multi-hospital cross-sectional survey was adopted in eight hospitals in Tabriz, Iran. 389 nursing staff were recruited through a two-stage sampling procedure. Study variables included occupational stress (Health & Safety Executive [HSE] Management Standards Revised Indicator Tool [MS–RIT]), mental health (General Health Questionnaire [GHQ–28]), and selfefficacy (General Self-Efficacy [GSE–10]). Generalised structural equation modelling (GSEM) was applied.

Occupational stress (mean±SD=109.2±13.4), poor MH (41.9%), and low selfefficacy (mean±SD=17.7±4.9) were fairly common among the participants. The results showed significant direct effect of occupational stress on MH problems (β=- 0.38, P<0.001). Indirect effect of occupational stress on MH problems through self-efficacy was not significant.

The findings highlight the role of other mechanisms or factors than self-efficacy in the association between occupational stress and MH problems that should be established in future work.

The past two decades has revealed an unprecedented increasing incidence of skin cancer within the Latinx population. Although Latino day laborers (LDLs) are at heightened risk for developing skin cancer because of the outdoor work in which they engage, there is limited research examining their intentions to engage in sun protective behaviors (SPBs). Therefore, this study sought to assess the explanatory power of the theory of planned behavior (TPB) to identify attitudinal, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control factors associated with intentions to engage in SPB among LDLs.

This cross-sectional retrospective study consists of a non-random convenience, community-based, sample of 137 LDLs residing in Mississippi and Illinois. Data were collected using a self-report survey centered on health practices and sun-protective behaviors.

Findings revealed that five significant factors shaped intentions to engage in SPBs, including barriers to engaging in SPBs (β =.30, P<0.001), benefits of engaging in SPBs (β =.27, P<0.001), education (β=0.20, P<0.01), and acculturation (β=0.18, P≤0.05). The independent variables tested in the model accounted for 42% of the change in intentions to engage in SPBs.

This study demonstrates TPB’s usefulness for predicting future intentions to engage in SPBs among LDLs. Moreover, the strongest factor associated with predicting intentions to engage in SPBs among LDLs was perceived behavioral control. Thus, since SPBs are malleable, emphasis is placed on implementing interventions for this population that promote intentions and address perceived behavioral control.

As preventive measures to curb coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) transmission, Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore had imposed web-accessible regulations where the popularity of relative internet search volume can be obtained from Google Trends (GT). This research aimed to seek the relationship between public search interest and countries’ policies, furthermore to observe whether the GT data could be utilized as a tool to make a risk communication during this pandemic.

This retrospective study used GT to analyze the relative search volume (RSV) of keywords large-scale social restrictions (Pembatasan Sosial Berskala Besar – PSBB ), Movement Control Order (MCO) or Perintah Kawalan Pergerakan (PKP) and Circuit Breaker (CB) for Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore respectively. Daily number of COVID-19 confirmed cases were collected and analyzed using Pearson correlation and time-lag with P<0.05. Every search interest peak and mobility trends changes were qualitatively analyzed.

The results exhibited the relationship between the government containment policy, the peaks of analyzed RSV keywords and the mobility trends. The containment policy has significant relationships with COVID-19 daily cases (P<0.05).

These results indicated that the government could use GT RSV as a strategy of crisis and risk communication to intervene public behavior towards the pandemic.