bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Making blind spots visible: the lack of race-conscious research and data in public and global health
Authors: Meudec M , Affun-Adegbulu C , Cosaert T , Verdonck T 
Published: October 2022

Abstract

In Continental Europe, race-conscious research and data (RCRD) is not adequately deployed in support of policy-making and social change to tackle health disparities. One reason is a lack of national data systems based on race in many countries, another is that researchers or policymakers are unaccustomed to taking them into account. One consequence of this for public and global health is the adoption and implementation of policies that are ostensibly race-neutral but which in fact reproduce “methodological whiteness” (Bhambra, 2017) and create or exacerbate racial health inequities. Calls to decolonise public health recognize the importance of RCRD, yet race or ethnicity as a variable in research continues to be seen as a contentious issue for a number of reasons. First, while some researchers see it as a valuable tool for addressing health inequalities or the impact of institutionalized and systemic racism on racialized/ethnic minority groups, others oppose its use on the ground that it can lead to stigmatization or racial stereotyping. Second, RCRD is often seen as too difficult to implement in practice, due to challenges of finding appropriate approaches to conceptualisation, operationalisation, data (non)collection, and interpretation. Third, many researchers fear that the use of race and ethnicity in research may be instrumentalized against minorities in ways that are sometimes difficult to anticipate. This project aims to contribute to addressing this, by building expertise for RCRD and creating a knowledge network and community of practice for researchers working in Public and Global Health in Continental Europe. The project begins by examining how RCRD is used at the Institute of Tropical Medicine Antwerp, which is located in Belgium, Europe but has research collaborations on other continents. It then continues with a scoping review on the use of RCRD to address racial and ethnic health disparities more generally across Europe.

Key messages
• Race-conscious research and data are lacking in public and global health research and policy-making, leading to racial health disparities.
• Need to develop expertise and a network of researchers in race-conscious research and data in Europe.
Maternal and perinatal health in undocumented migrants: estimating access and outcomes through HMIS
Authors: Genovese E , Cantarutti A , Corrao G , Locatelli A 
Published: October 2022

Abstract

Background
Vulnerability and inequality are exacerbated in undocumented migrants, the most invisible to health systems.

Objectives
To estimate maternal and perinatal health needs in undocumented migrants and test a methodology for systematic monitoring & evaluation.

Methods
Population-based retrospective cohort study based on routine data through maternity records and temporary registration code in a sub-national Health Management Information System.

Results
420924 deliveries including 1524 undocumented migrants having accessed maternity care through the NHS in Lombardy Region (Italy) from 2016 to 2021 were included. Demographics and social determinants: undocumented migrants were born in Europe (non-EU) (36%), Americas (30%), Africa (6%), Western Pacific (3%), South-East Asia (2%), Italy (2%), were stateless (7%); 52% had no/low schooling, 92% were unemployed and 52% non-married, compared to 15%, 20%, and 44% Italians. Obstetric history and antenatal care: 22% undocumented migrants had a previous abortion and 15% a previous cesarean delivery; 58% had ≥5 antenatal visits, 67% first ANC visit in trimester 1, 64% ≥ 2 ultrasounds incl. first in trimester 1, 6% full laboratory tests, compared to 90%, 97%, 97%, and 66% Italians. Intra-partum and perinatal care: 45% undocumented migrants delivered in a public hospital with neonatal intensive care unit; 69% had a normal delivery, 5% instrumental delivery, 10% and 27% emergency and total cesarean section; 2.6% neonates had emergency resuscitation and 49% were breastfed &lt;2h from birth. Outcomes: 81% physiological pregnancies, 2.3% severe hemorrhage, 4.8% intra-uterine growth retardation, 9.3% pre-term delivery, 17% small for gestational age, 7% low birth weight, 0.6% poor Apgar score, 3% malformations.

Conclusions
Maternal and perinatal health was poor in undocumented migrants, varying by birthplace. Social determinants, health coverage and outcomes showed vulnerability and inequality compared to the general population.

Key messages
• Tailored interventions are needed: outreach health promotion on safe motherhood and neonatal care, healthcare provider training, cultural mediation, translation, and functional language learning.
• A systematic monitoring and evaluation system needs to routinely collect, integrate, and analyze data on key indicators.
Together for better health in Germany. Towards a public health strategy
Authors: Matusall S 
Published: October 2022

Abstract

In Germany, the responsibility for public health is divided both between federal levels and between sectors, and there is no national or general strategy for public health. However, a strategy is essential for achieving the overarching goal of ensuring the best possible health for all people, including preventing and addressing significant health challenges such as pandemics and climate change.
In 2016, Zukunftsforum Public Health (Future Forum Public Health) was established with the primary goal to enhance coherence and collaboration between public health stakeholders from academia, policy and practice. According to the principle of health in all policies, it also aims to promote collaboration across federal levels and political sectors. Within the platform provided by Future Forum, the public health community agreed that a strategy was necessary for strengthening and uniting the disparate field of German public health even though no official mandate for developing a strategy existed. Thus, Future Forum launched a grassroots process to identify key elements for a strong and resilient public health system, based on the essential public health operations (EPHOs), as defined by WHO Europe. For each of the ten EPHOs, the key issues paper “Towards a Public Health Strategy - Together for Better Health in Germany” presents a description of the current situation and challenges, an introduction to the key players, a definition of the aims and objectives, and concrete proposals on how to achieve these. Through its participative nature, the process of developing the key issues itself was an important factor for strengthening the public health community. This process highlights that even where national public health strategies and structures are missing, grassroots public health movements can be effective in strengthening the public health community as well as producing a visible set of recommendations for a resilient public health system.

Key messages
• Based on WHO’s essential public health operations, Future Forum Public Health developed a key issues paper with guidelines for a resilient public health system.
• The participative process leading to the key issues paper was itself an important factor for networking and strengthening Germany’s public health community.
Problems of communication skills of GPs in Bulgaria
Authors: Vasileva B , Karcheva M 
Published: October 2022

Abstract

Problem
The effective communication between a doctor and a patient is considered to be essential, for providing high-quality medical care. A new model of cooperation and partnership which focuses on the patient is being established in the modern healthcare.

Description of the problem
Data collected by empirical study on the doctor-patient communication has been presented and analyzed based on an overview analysis of the phenomenon communication. An anonymous survey among respondents was taken in the period September 1st-30th 2018 in the region of Pleven, Bulgaria. The respondents were patients who visited their GPs during that period. The results were processed with Microsoft Office Excel 2007. The quantitative analysis was done with statistical software programs - SPSS 17.0.

Results
The respondents in the region of Pleven were 1053. It was found that the patients’ satisfaction was poor in the matter of two crucial issues: 481 (46 %) of the respondents were dissatisfied with the time that was spent for a conversation with each patient and 470 (45 %) - with the information given by the GP regarding their health condition. According to 345 of the respondents (32,8 %) GPs do not practice informed consent and it is rarely required from patients according to 317 of the respondents (30,3 %).

Lessons
The analysis shows that there are a number of flaws and unsolved problems in the doctor-patient communication. The verbal communication of the doctor is a serious problem: the ability to ask and to listen. The need of communication training for the doctors in their gradiate study and postgraduate education is evident. It is recommended that a specific training programs for communication in the primary health care should be developed and evaluated.

Key messages
• At the present time the communication skills of the general practitioner should be acknowledged and regulated as priority criteria for their overall assessment.
• It is necessary that a profound study on the barriers for effective communication between a doctor and a patient is conducted.
Understanding how organisational culture supports patient involvement in a national research agency
Authors: Cleemput I , Dauvrin M , Kohn L , Mistiaen P , Christiaens W , Léonard C 
Published: October 2022

Abstract

Background
The Belgian Health Care Knowledge Centre (KCE) formally involves stakeholders in its researches since 2012. Patients are treated as one stakeholder amongst others, but it is recognized that patient involvement (PI) requires a different approach. The success of implementing PI depends, however, on the organizational culture towards PI.

Objectives
The objective of this study was to map the PI culture at KCE in the context of the development of organization-wide supported position statements about PI.

Methods
A nominal group technique was used to measure the PI culture at KCE. Arguments for and against PI and conditions for PI in different phases of the research process were collected. A literature review and interviews fed the draft position statements, for which support was assessed by means of a two-round Delphi process.

Results
Arguments in favour of PI in research related to the relevance of the scope, expertise with data collection, bringing in fresh ideas for study design, access to survey participants, validation of data analyses, adherence to recommendations. Disadvantages and risks included the lack of scientific knowledge of involved patients, resources requirements, conflicts of interest, and heterogeneity within patient populations. Conditions for meaningful PI referred to measures mitigating the identified disadvantages. Eighteen position statements supported by KCE could be formulated.

Conclusions
The KCE culture seems predominantly positive towards PI, although attitudes vary between researchers. KCE recognizes the potential value of PI in research, but considers the level of involvement to be contingent on the topic and phase in the research process.

Key messages
• Organizational culture towards patient involvement is a driver of successful researches.
• 18 position statements supported implementation of patient involvement in a national health agency.
Citizen engagement in health policymaking: challenges and recommended solutions
Authors: Nakkash R , Abla R , Saleh R , El Jardali F 
Published: October 2022

Abstract

Background
Involving citizens in health policymaking leads to the development of policies that are tailored to their needs and enables them to exercise their right as citizens. Citizen engagement in health policymaking in low and middle-income countries (LMICs) is rarely practiced and so understanding barriers and facilitators to engagement and the factors that impede effective participation is crucial. This study aims to understand views from policy stakeholders and citizens on citizen participation in health policy making and solicit recommendations on how to improve this process in the context of Lebanon.

Methods
We conducted 29 individual in-depth interviews with stakeholders who work in fields relevant to health policy and/or have had experience in engaging citizens and four focus groups (average 8 to 10 participants each) with citizens from four municipalities in different governorates across Lebanon. Participants were purposively sampled through local Primary Healthcare Centers and municipality networks.

Results
Barriers to engagement were seen as a manifestation of a dysfunctional and top-down political system, weak culture of participation, and lack of formal processes and platforms for engagement. Citizens’ attributed lack of participation to mistrust with the political system while on the other hand, stakeholders thought that citizens lacked the needed skills for active engagement. Recommendations for improvement focused on the importance of implementing system level changes, developing contextualized citizen engagement processes, and ensuring its adoption and implementation.

Conclusions
Although participants identified many challenges to engagement, they acknowledged its value and were able to propose concrete solutions and recommendations for change. Those recommendations are useful for other LMICs of similar contexts whose mandates require participation.

Key messages
• By identifying and understanding barriers to citizen participation in health policymaking, public health professionals can work towards improving engagement.
• Strategies and methods such as implementing system level changes and developing contextualized citizen engagement processes can be applied to improve citizen participation were needed.
Political consciousness, agency and mental health. Students in the Covid 19-Pandemic
Authors: Niephaus Y , Nink T 
Published: October 2022

Abstract

Introduction
The influence of social crises in their objective quality as well as their subjective processing on health well-being has been researched many times. The loss of agency that can be observed in the course of social crises is considered to be a negative mediating factor between both variables. The Corona pandemic was also associated with a loss of options and routines for action for most of the population.

Methods
We conducted two quantitative surveys on mental health in the pandemic in spring 2020 and autumn 2021. While the first international comparative survey was conducted under the auspices of the University of Antwerp, the second was carried out at five German universities.

Results
The quantitative data show the negative impact of the pandemic on students’ mental health - CES-D 8 (0 to 24) (x¯2020=9.22, x¯2021=9.38). They also show a negative correlation between whether students’ concerns are sufficiently considered by policy makers in the pandemic and depressive symptomatology (r=-0.146, p &lt; 0.01). That is, the less satisfied students are with political measures, the lower the depressive symptomatology.

Conlusion
Against the background of the socio-psychological inequality study ‘Die Arbeitslosen von Marienthal', which is considered a classic, this connection is far less paradoxical than might initially be assumed if one interprets political awareness as a correlate of a subjectively perceived power to act, which has a positive effect on mental health. Based on this thesis, we have opted for a mixed-methods design and are conducting qualitative interviews on subjective crisis processing, the results of which we will be able to present at the conference.

Key messages
• Subjectively perceived agency reduces the health-reducing effect of social crises.
• Students are a relevant group to learn from for capacity building.
Sentinel monitoring of COVID-related daily activity in primary care practices of the canton of Vaud
Authors: Mueller Y , Auderset D , Maeder M , Schwarz J , Masserey E 
Published: October 2022

Abstract

Introduction
During the COVID pandemic, COVID-related data collected in family medicine were scarce. We aimed to monitor cantonal trends of COVID-related activity in family medicine and paediatric practices during the year 2021.

Methods
Family physicians and paediatricians established in the canton of Vaud were invited to join an ad hoc sentinel surveillance system. Online data collection was based on daily activity reports and monthly questionnaires. In particular, participants categorized daily counts of consultations and phone calls into predefined COVID-related categories.

Results
Thirty-seven practices contributed regularly to the system between March 20th and December 31st 2021. Out of 81'407 medical consultations, 4'950 (6.1%) were related to new COVID suspicions as defined by the Federal Office of Public Health, and 5'252 (6.4%) otherwise related to COVID. Depending on the week and the practice, between 5.6% and 26.5% of face-to-face consultations were COVID-related. In paediatrics, COVID-related activity corresponded mostly to new COVID suspicions (11.2% of on-site consultations), whereas among family physicians other COVID topics predominated (9.8% of face-to-face consultations), mainly questions about vaccination. Consultations for persisting COVID-related symptoms were stable at a low level throughout the year, and constituted less than 1% of all consultations. Most practices swabbed patients for SARS-CoV-2 tests, and an increasing proportion performed rapid antigenic tests over the year. In paediatrics, COVID-suspicions were not systematically tested.

Conclusions
Throughout 2021, COVID-related consultations constituted an important part of family medicine and paediatric practices’ activity in the canton of Vaud. Monitoring COVID-related activity in primary care during a pandemic documents how physicians translate recommendations into practice and provides health authorities with valuable information to guide public health action.

Key messages
• Throughout 2021, COVID-related consultations constituted an important part of family medicine and paediatric practices’ activity in the canton of Vaud.
• Monitoring COVID-related activity in primary care during a pandemic documents how physicians translate recommendations into daily practice.
Multi-drug and β-lactam resistance in Escherichia coli and food-borne pathogens
Authors: Costa M , Cardo M , Soares P , Cara d'Anjo M , Leite A 
Published: October 2022

Abstract

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is one of the top ten global public health threats facing humanity by menacing the effective use of available antimicrobials for treatment of an ever-increasing range of infections caused by bacteria. Its potential recognize the transmission to humans by contact with commensal and zoonotic resistant bacteria from animal and food sources. The aim of this study is to describe multi-drug resistance (MDR) profile in Campylobacter (n = 541), Salmonella (n = 919) and commensal Escherichia coli (n = 2777) isolated from animal and food samples between 2014 and 2019 in Portugal. Antimicrobial susceptibility testing results to fluoroquinolones/quinolones, macrolides, 3rd generation cephalosporins, polymyxins, carbapenems, penicillins, aminoglycosides, tetracyclines, sulphonamides, trimethoprim and chloramphenicol were clustered using k-modes. Clusters were described by population (broilers, broilers meat, turkeys, pigs, pig meat), AMR classification (mono/dual-resistance, MDR to 3-4, 5-6 and ≥7), β-lactamases production, sample stage (farm, slaughterhouse, processing plant, retail), season, and year. Overall, the results suggest an escalating MDR behavior from farm to post-farm stages in all bacteria, including E. coli MDR to critically important antimicrobials, and that Salmonella (fluoro)quinolones resistance may be associated with broilers. Most ESBL/AmpC producing E. coli were resistant to both C3G and C4G in isolates from animal and food samples (respectively, 77%; n = 846; and 74%; n = 188). The statistical method, K-modes, offers an overall visualization of the data with the identification of AMR profiles that have been further described using surveillance variables. Our results provide relevant information to support policy and decision making to tackle MDR in farm and post-farm stages.

Key messages
• An escalating multi drug resistance behavior from farm to post-farm stages.
• Escherichia coli multi drug resistance to critically important antimicrobials.
Burden of road traffic injuries in Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina – fifteen-year survey
Authors: Cilović-Lagarija Š , Skočibušić S , Musa S , Jogunčić A 
Published: October 2022

Abstract

Introduction
Road traffic injuries (RTI) are among the ten leading causes of death worldwide, and they are the leading cause of death among young adults aged 15-29 years. In Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (FBiH), with population of 2,1 million, around 380 people die every year and additional 11.000 get seriously injured in RTI.

Aim
The aim of this study was to investigate the incidence and fatality rate of RTI in FBiH in the period of 2006 until the end of 2020.

Methods
Data source of RTI (ICD-X) incidence and fatality rate was Statistical book for Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, which includes all injuries and deaths reported through Ministry of internal affairs. Fatality rate was calculated as number of confirmed deaths in total number of reported RTI. To compare frequencies of reported deaths Chi square test was used. YLD were calculated based on information on injury that was caused in road traffic accidents.

Results
In the last 15 years, in FBiH, total 39,455 injuries related to road traffic were reported. According to the official data, over the period 2006-2020 the peak of fatality rate (8.52% deaths among all cases with RTI) was in 2016, while it had a statistically significant decline in 2018: 6.51%; 2019: 6.35%; and 2020: 6.32% (x2=7728,584; p &lt; 0,0001). It is estimated that young adults (in the age group 30 to 39 years) injured in the road traffic accidents have 197.01 patient-years of total 881.17 years to live with disabilities just based on serious RTI in 2020.

Conclusions
RTI pose a significant burden on the health of the population in FBiH. After implementing strict laws in the year 2017, and 2018, a significant decrease of RTI was registered, including the number of deaths due to RTI (fatality rate).
This abstract is support and sponsorship by ‘BoCO-19 - The Burden of Disease due to COVID-19'. Project is coordinated/led by Robert Koch Institute and supported by the WHO Regional Office for Europe.

Key messages
• RTI are significant burden for health of population in FBH. Strict laws and stronger punishments and fees are decreasing number of RTI.
• This abstract is support and sponsorship by ‘BoCO-19 - The Burden of Disease due to COVID-19'. Project is coordinated/led by Robert Koch Institute and supported by the WHO Regional Office for Europe.