bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Advancing Delivery of Emergency Care in Honduras: Implementing a Triage System
Authors: Argote-Araméndiz Killiam , Yi Cristel , Juárez Sara , Melgar Fabiola , Crúz Raquel , Bautista-García Ico , Martínez-Pérez Javier , Rodlán-Córdoba María , Apolinar-Menéndez Hector 
Published: June 2023

Introduction:Overcrowding in the Emergency Room (ER) is a worldwide phenomenon affecting healthcare professionals' ability to apply life-saving interventions to critically wounded and sick patients. Implementing a routine triage system allows the early recognition and treatment of critical conditions such as polytrauma, difficulty in breathing, shock, and altered mental status. Furthermore, a triage system allows the prioritization of patients and the delivery of timely care. We describe the improvements in patient care for the critically ill through the implementation of a triage system in Hospital Escuela (HE), a 1306-bed, academic, tertiary care hospital in HondurasMethod:Demographic data was recovered through paper triage forms from January 2020 until December 2021. From January 2022 to June 2022, the data was primarily recovered from digital triage forms. The data was consolidated, analyzed, and interpreted using Microsoft Excel.Results:During the thirty-month period, there were 161,848 triage consults, with 2.7% being critically wounded and sick patients, classified “red” according to the triage system. Most cases were triaged as yellow (53%), followed by green (23.6%), and then orange (15.8%). Some triage forms (5%) did not assign classifications. One-third (33.4%) of consults were diverted from the ER to the Triage and Urgent Care Room (SATU for the acronym in Spanish). Trauma-related cases accounted for 26.2% of the consults with 3.6% of the overall being weapon wounded.Conclusion:Implementing a triage system in HE enhanced the recognition and treatment of critically wounded and sick patients. This system has improved patient flow and the use of clinical space in the ER by diverting low-acuity patients to the SATU. Multi-disciplinary collaboration among healthcare professionals has also improved and the need to create a centralized Resuscitation Room was recognized.
Humanitarian Aid in Disaster Management; A Developing Country's Experience, Nigerian Red Cross Society Lagos State Branch Perspective
Authors: Kolawole Victoria 
Published: June 2023

Introduction:Humanitarian aid is an important part of an emergency response to Disasters and crises situations. When a community or a country is hit by disasters, urgent responses are needed to save lives and provide for the basic needs of the people affected. Humanitarian actors like the Nigerian Red Cross Society, play a vital role in these urgent actions and the aid they provide is fundamental to crisis responses. Responses to humanitarian emergencies involve the mobilization of resources.The Nigerian Red Cross Society, Lagos State Branch carried out some humanitarian actions for Lagos State populace during the peak of the Covid 19 pandemic in the year 2020 and also in 2021 with the support of well meaning Nigerians, IHS, and the British Red Cross who donated, supported and sponsored the activities.The offshoot of the COVID-19 operation which subjected us to an extremely helpless corner, was the high magnitude of the most vulnerable people crying out for food in different suburbs and slums of Lagos following the State’s lockdown.Method:Humanitarian assistance was delivered based on assessed needs, and according to the humanitarian principles of humanity, neutrality, impartiality and independence, which is the fundamental principles of the Red Cross movement. The methodology of the Humanitarian Aid used includes the following:1. Rapid Assessmenta. Criteria to be usedb. Questionnaire Guidec. Checklistd. Rapid Assessment Form2. Compilation of Information obtained from the Rapid Assessment carried:3. Validation of Data4. Data Analysis5. DeliveryResults:The outcome was to limit the impact of Covid 19 and help people return to normal. The anticipated effect of the intervention on the members of the communities was achieved.Conclusion:Nigerian Red Cross Society Lagos State Branch’s humanitarian investments have been able to save lives, reduced suffering and restored human dignity.
COVID, Co-Ventilation, and Cross-contamination
Authors: McMahon Jonathan , Doukas Donald , Hanuscin Christopher , Quale John , Eason Julie , Asrat Habtamu , Bhatt Isha , Silverberg Mark , Paladino Lorenzo 
Published: June 2023

Introduction:During the COVID-19 pandemic, consideration was given to co-ventilating multiple patients on a single ventilator. Prior work had shown that this procedure was possible by ventilating four adult-size sheep for twenty-four hours, and other groups had performed this maneuver during dire circumstances. However, no investigation had examined the safety regarding cross-contamination. The purpose of our studies was to investigate if an infection could spread between individuals who were being co-ventilated.Method:Four sterile two-liter anesthesia bags were connected to a sterilized ventilator circuit to simulate the co-ventilated patients’ “lungs.” The circuit utilized Heat and Moisture Exchange filters and bacterial/viral filters, which were strategically inserted to prevent the transmission of infectious droplets. Serratia marcescens was inoculated into “lung” number one. The circuit was then run for 24 hours, after which each “lung” and three additional points in the circuit were cultured to see if S. marcescens had spread. These cultures were examined at 24 and 48 hours to assess for cross-contamination. This entire procedure was performed a total of four times.Results:S. marcescens was not identified in lungs two, three, or four or the three additional sampling sites on the expiratory limb of the tubing at 24 and 48 hours in all four trials.Conclusion:Cross-contamination between co-ventilated patients did not occur within 24 hours utilizing the described ventilator circuit configuration.
The Vaccinodrome: How to Set up the Largest Mass Vaccination Center in Europe.
Authors: Viault Benoit , Houze-Cerfon Vanessa , Zerdoud Léa , Bounes Vincent 
Published: June 2023

Introduction:Covid-19 pandemic had a massive impact on the capabilities of the healthcare system. The development of the vaccines and the setup of the vaccination program of the general population required an important coordination and organizational work, from an already worn-out system.The implementation of mass vaccination centers is known as the most efficient way of vaccinating rapidly and efficiently a large part of the population, but requires a non-negligible amount of resources. For Covid-19 vaccination, time sustainability was an important challenge to consider due to the timespan needed between boosters; unfortunately, most of the models presented up to 2020 are short duration systems.A mass vaccination center (MVC) organizational model was proposed and staffed with only two health care workers on a daily basis, with a more than 10,000 shots a day capacity over a seven-month duration.Method:The MVC was under the supervision of one medical coordinator, one nurse coordinator and one operational coordinator. Students (both in health and non-health studies) were the most important part of the human resources. Data concerning the population vaccinated, the number and the type of vaccines used were routinely recorded.Results:From March 28 to October 20, 2021, 501,714 vaccines were administered at the MVC. A mean rate of 2951 ±1804 doses was injected per day with a staff of 180 ±95 persons working every day. The peak was reached with 10,095 injections in one day. The average time spent by a patient in the MVC was 43.2 ± 15 minutes. The average time to be vaccinated was 26 ±13 minutes.Conclusion:Provided with adequate supervision, an optimized organization and adequate training, the use of a student workforce allows for the implementation of a functional, efficient, and sustainable mass vaccination center.
The Application of Information Technology in Preventing and Controlling COVID-19 Pandemic: A Bibliometric Study
Authors: Li Yue , Li Ji , Cao Chunxia , Fan Haojun 
Published: June 2023

Introduction:Information Technology has been applied to respond to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), which has attracted increasing attention. However, there is still no comprehensive bibliometrics study in the global publications on the application of Information Technology in COVID-19. This study aimed to investigate the current research status of Information Technology in preventing and controlling the COVID-19 pandemic.Method:Relevant literature published between 2020 and 2022 was downloaded from Web of Science Core Collection (WoSCC) databases. Key search terms included COVID-19, big data, artificial intelligence, internet of things, cloud computing, etc. The data elements were as follows: year, countries/territories, institutions, authors, journals, research areas and citations of publications. Statistical methods and knowledge domain maps were applied to conduct contribution and collaboration, co-occurrence and co-citation analysis using VOSviewer. COOC software was used to construct the two-mode matrix, conduct hierarchical cluster analysis of high-frequency keywords and journals, and identify keywords of bursts.Results:A total of 10,962 articles were retrieved. The most frequent country and institution were USA (2,423, 22.10%) and the University of California System (212, 1.934%), respectively. The research areas were included but not limited to computer science (2,198, 20.051%), engineering (1,421, 12.963%) and public environmental occupational health (1,032, 9.414%). Three research hotspots were identified: (i) Internet-based social and psychological surveys; (ii) Distance education, telecommuting and telemedicine; (iii) Artificial intelligence-assisted diagnosis of COVID-19 patients. The clustering results of a two-mode matrix showed that research had the most frequent interaction with health, social media and information technology. According to co-citation analysis, a total of four clusters of journals had been obtained (clinical medicine, medicine, computer science and engineering, and public health). The keywords of burst were computer-based learning, general public, student-centered learning, etc.Conclusion:Information technology has played an important role in the response to COVID-19, which belongs to the interdisciplinary field.
Impact of Early Phase DMAT Support Using Natural Disaster Support Techniques for Hospitals Experiencing COVID-19 Outbreak in Japan.
Authors: Akahoshi Kouki , Kondo Hisayoshi , Wakai Akinori , Yajima Yuichi , Matsuda Hiroki , Toyokuni Yoshiki , Koido Yuichi 
Published: June 2023

Introduction:Hospitals experiencing a COVID-19 outbreak are in a similar situation to those affected by natural disasters, with a breakdown in command and coordination, shortage of personnel and supplies, and increased stress among staff. In Japan, when a COVID-19 outbreak occurs, the first step is for the hospital or health center to respond. However, if the local authorities are unable to respond, the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare dispatch Disaster Medicine Assistance Team (DMAT) by request of the local government to facilitate early recovery. This study will examine the effectiveness of early phase support by DMAT.Method:Patients and healthcare workers in 31 hospitals supported by DMAT after an outbreak occurred between April 2020 and January 2021 were included in the study. Attack rate and case fatality rate for patients and the attack rate for healthcare workers were analyzed for each of the two groups: those that started support less than ten days after the first positive case and those that started support more than ten days after the first positive case.Results:For hospitals that started support in less than ten days, the attack rate was 27.9%, the case fatality rate was 17.4% for patients, and the attack rate for healthcare workers was 9.7%. For hospitals that took more than ten days to start support, the attack rate was 44.8%, the case fatality rate was 23.1% for patients, and the attack rate for healthcare workers was 14.3%. The attack rate (p<0.001) and case fatality rate (p=0.011) for patients and attack rate for healthcare workers (p<0.001) were significantly lower in hospitals that started support in less than ten days.Conclusion:Early intervention of DMAT support using natural disaster support techniques for hospitals experiencing an outbreak reduced the attack rate and case fatality rate for patients and healthcare workers.
Climate, Weather Extremes and Health: Latest WHO-WMO Resources and Tools for Health Emergency Managers
Authors: Borries Rosa von , Shumake-Guillemot Joy , Nairn John , Murray Virginia , Abrahams Jonathan 
Published: June 2023

Introduction:As populations worldwide are experiencing more frequent and intense weather and climate extremes, many professionals of the WADEM community are at the frontline of managing compounding and cascading impacts on physical and mental health. Vulnerable, isolated, and marginalized people are the most affected by climate and weather threats. The elderly and children faced 3.7 billion more life-threatening heatwave days in 2021 than annually in 1986-2005 increasing the need for emergency care on a large scale.Method:The World Health Organization (WHO) and World Meteorological Organization (WMO), together with partners from health agencies, climate services, academia and other sectors are collaborating to accelerate the use of climate, weather and environmental science and services for better health protection. A selection of key resources and tools will be highlighted that can be used by the WADEM community to better understand, anticipate, and manage health risks from extreme weather and climate.Results:Participants will learn about the new WHO-WMO ClimaHealth Portal, a global knowledge and action hub with huge potential for facilitating learning and action to better protect health from climate risks. Tools and resources include the Global Heat Health Information Network (GHHIN) Checklist and Technical Brief for improved heatwave preparedness and response in the context of COVID-19, and a new WHO Guidance Document on Measuring the Climate Resilience of Health Systems providing a framework and indicators for assessing and protecting health systems from climate threats.Conclusion:As extreme weather intensifies, integrated climate-informed services for the health sector including multi-hazard early warning systems and action plans, as well as strengthened partnerships between the health community and hydrometeorological services are indispensable to further restrict adverse health impacts. Accelerating the uptake and upscale of existing tools and resources is urgently needed to meet the increasing health and societal challenges caused by climate change and weather extremes.
Quarantine Facility Model of Care Toolbox
Authors: Stephens Dianne , Sheedy Angela , Vermeulen Lisa , Anderson Allan 
Published: June 2023

Introduction:The COVID-19 pandemic public health strategy to reduce community transmission in Australia included unprecedented use of quarantine facilities to separate those at risk and those with the infection from the rest of the community. No standardized approach to quarantine facilities existed resulting in different models of care emerging across the country. The Northern Territory Howard Springs Quarantine Facility was a large-scale quarantine and isolation operation which hosted over 33,000 domestic and international arrivals with zero COVID-19 transmission recorded from residents to staff for the duration of its operation. The facility was deemed the gold standard model of care and the aim of this project was to distill the important elements of that model of care into an evidence-based tool kit for future use as an open access, online resource. The toolkit was a result of intense data and information analysis including resident, staff and leadership surveys, policies and procedures and results of audits of the facility during its operation.Method:This project to develop an online, open access evidence-based toolkit forms part of the Translational Research to Improve Health Outcomes project funded by the Australian Government’s Medical Research Future Fund. The methodology included mixed methods with an underpinning grounded theory approach to analyze de-identified audit data and information from the quarantine and isolation facility operational period. Staff and leadership team surveys were conducted to explore experiences of site functions and infrastructure. A (non-experimental) descriptive design allowed collation and statistical analysis of information recognizing the variables in the data and information.Results:The toolbox includes a resident centered quarantine care model, infection, prevention and control strategies for health professionals and non-health staff, quarantine communication model and presentation of core challenges (rapid recruitment, environmental factors, workforce resilience).Conclusion:The resulting online web resource presents evidence-based core strategies and resources for implementation in future pandemics.
The Usage of a COVID-19 Contact Tracing Electronic Platform in Greece: Exploring Opportunities, Challenges, and Data on SARS-CoV-2 Infectivity.
Authors: Bistaraki Angeliki , Stefanopoulos Nikolaos , Roussos Sotirios , Sypsa Vana 
Published: June 2023

Introduction:Contact tracing is a core public health tool used to interrupt the transmission of pathogens, including SARS-CoV-2. To increase the effectiveness of contact tracing, Greek health authorities used an electronic platform to aid traditional manual contact tracing to track individuals who have come in close contact with identified COVID-19 patients.Method:Contact tracing was implemented from the beginning of the pandemic in Greece. The aim was to identify and quarantine all the contacts of confirmed cases. The electronic database was designed following all the security protocols and national regulations on the use and protection of personal data. To assess factors associated with infectivity and susceptibility to infection in this analysis, we used contact tracing data with a sampling date between October 1 to December 9, 2020.Results:During the sampling period, 29,385 laboratory-confirmed SARS-CoV-2 cases and 64,608 traced contacts were identified. A median number of two persons were traced per index case. The secondary attack rate was 17.4% (95% CI: 17.0-17.8). Contacts aged 0–11 and 12–17 years were less susceptible to infection than adults 65 years or older (odds ratio (OR) [95% CI]: 0.28 [0.26–0.32] and 0.44 [0.40–0.49], respectively). Index cases aged 65 years or older were more likely to infect their contacts than other adults or children/adolescents.Conclusion:Contact tracing is a key strategy to interrupt chains of transmission and to promote early diagnosis. The data collected in this process could be used to estimate epidemiological parameters of interest and to better understand factors associated with infection and susceptibility to infection. Precautions are necessary for individuals 65 or older as they have higher infectivity and susceptibility in contact with their peers.
The Potential Environmental Implications of Infection Control Prevention During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Waste Generation from a Level 2 Trauma Center in Maine, USA.
Authors: Klein Kelly , Saber Deborah , Trumbo Jennifer , Kakkad Astha 
Published: June 2023

Introduction:Hospital waste in the United States (US) generates 7,000 tonnes of waste daily. During the pandemic, hospitals had to increase the amount of personal protective equipment (PPE) worn by healthcare providers. The aim of this study was to compare pre and present COVID-19 waste generation amounts in comparison with hospital census and PPE purchased.Method:This research examined the solid waste generated at a level II trauma center from January 2018-December 2021. Data examined included: the amount of solid waste generated, monthly patient census, COVID-19 census, policy changes, and the amount of purchased PPE pre and during the pandemic.Results:PPE product numbers purchased varied with a noticeable increase in mask and gown ordering. The number of admitted COVID-19 patients peaked at 46. Hospital waste tonnage fluctuated but did not show a statistically significant change.Conclusion:The COVID-19 pandemic has caused hospitals to increase their PPE posture to help safeguard its employees and patients. In our hospital setting, the use of PPE increased and overall hospital census decreased. This has profound implications for not only the hospital’s revenue, but also with less census volume, there was curiously the same amount of hospital waste generated. This work needs to be continued in other healthcare PPE heavy settings, to better understand the downstream consequences of infectious diseases on responsible hospital waste management and environmental sustainability.
Bushfire and Biodiversity Disaster Risk Reduction Tool: A Community-Led Values-Based Bushfire Risk Management Project with Multi-Agency Support to Develop Strategies to Protect Biodiversity and Manage Bushfire in Upper Beaconsfield, Victoria, Australia
Authors: Spencer Caroline , Cross Suzanne , Archer Frank 
Published: June 2023

Introduction:This Australian-first project explored residents’ values about living in one of Australia’s extreme bushfire risk areas. The project team developed the Upper Beaconsfield Bushfire and Biodiversity Tool (UPB&BT) which delivers tailored local information for residents living in the area. Designed to empower residents to make informed decisions, this user-friendly, online tool visualizes a community’s devastating bushfire history, reveals residents’ values about living in this area, and provides evidence-based actions to protect biodiversity and manage bushfire fuels on private property.Method:Structured decision-making methodology informed the survey design to elicit residents’ values about biodiversity protection and bushfire risk reduction, by inviting approximately 3000 residents to complete the survey. This community-led project applied a participatory approach by inviting collaboration between government, agencies, universities, and community representatives.Results:Key results revealed 75% of respondents valued nature and lifestyle. 51% saw bushfire risk as an important factor for managing vegetation on private land, while 65% either mow or slash to manage vegetation. Synthesized data informed the content of the UPB&BT, which sourced evidence-based knowledge or specialists’ expertise to provide tailored content and actions that met residents’ diverse values. This included the consequences of chosen actions, which helps residents understand the impact of their decisions. However, results identified confusion in roles and responsibilities.Conclusion:This ground-breaking community-led, government-funded project joined with government, agencies, universities, and community representatives to develop a new bushfire and biodiversity tool to help residents understand biodiversity protection and bushfire management in their local community. Results aim to empower residents to make their own evidence-based and informed choices about managing their properties, thereby contributing to the community good. They decide what is important and identify available actions and their potential consequences. Other communities could replicate this process to localize their own disaster risk reduction strategies.