The Effect of Guidance Booklet on Discharged Mothers of Children with Respiratory Tract Infection

Aim of the study to evaluate the effect of guidance booklet on discharged mothers of children with respiratory tract infection through: Identifying mothers' needs, developing guidance booklet of discharge according to mothers' needs and evaluating the effect of guidance booklet on the mothers. Design This study was a quasi experimental design. Setting This study was conducted in El- Menoufya University Hospital (Egypt) and El-Basher Hospital (Jordan) Sample Convenience sample of 80 mothers having children suffering from respiratory tract infection (40 mothers from each setting). Tools Data were collected through an interviewing questionnaire to assess socio-demographic data for mothers and their children, mothers' knowledge about respiratory disease, importance of nutrition and fluids. Mother’s practices by asking questions concerning hygienic measures and medications and practices through observation check-list based on modified Getting Ready for Discharge Checklist regarding, temperature measurement and tap compresses for their children. Results revealed that the statistical significant improvements (P<0.01) in mother’s knowledge and practices after giving the guidance booklet in both groups. There was improvement in hand washing procedure, nutritional importance, type of fluids given and importance of medication there was a statistically significant improvement after the guidance booklet of discharge instructions in both groups. Key Terms: guidance booklet of discharge, Respiratory infection, mother

The Effect of Guidance Booklet on Discharged Mothers of Children with Respiratory Tract Infection

Aim of the study to evaluate the effect of guidance booklet on discharged mothers of children with respiratory tract infection through: Identifying mothers' needs, developing guidance booklet of discharge according to mothers' needs and evaluating the effect of guidance booklet on the mothers. Design This study was a quasi experimental design. Setting This study was conducted in El- Menoufya University Hospital (Egypt) and El-Basher Hospital (Jordan) Sample Convenience sample of 80 mothers having children suffering from respiratory tract infection (40 mothers from each setting). Tools Data were collected through an interviewing questionnaire to assess socio-demographic data for mothers and their children, mothers' knowledge about respiratory disease, importance of nutrition and fluids. Mother’s practices by asking questions concerning hygienic measures and medications and practices through observation check-list based on modified Getting Ready for Discharge Checklist regarding, temperature measurement and tap compresses for their children. Results revealed that the statistical significant improvements (P<0.01) in mother’s knowledge and practices after giving the guidance booklet in both groups. There was improvement in hand washing procedure, nutritional importance, type of fluids given and importance of medication there was a statistically significant improvement after the guidance booklet of discharge instructions in both groups. Key Terms: guidance booklet of discharge, Respiratory infection, mother

Blended Learning for Undergraduates in Nursing Profession: A Systematic Review of the Impact on Knowledge, Skills, Attitudes and Satisfaction

Abstract In higher education, e-learning is gaining more and more impact, this new kind of traditional teaching and learning can be practiced in many ways. Several studies have compared face-to-face teaching to online learning and/or blended learning in order to try to define which of the formats provides, e.g., the highest learning outcome, creates the most satisfied students or has the highest rate of course completion. However, these studies often show that teaching and learning are influenced by more than teaching format alone. The review has a special interest in professional bachelor student’s education, and it focusses on the impact of e-learning on knowledge, skills, attitudes and satisfaction of students. The findings from the research papers included in the review show that students should have e-learning courses in Learning Management System. These courses will help them understand the aims of e-learning and the benefits of using it in developing their skills in learning

Discovery of drug transporter inhibitors tied to long noncoding RNA in resistant cancer cells; a computational model -in silico- study

Chemotherapeutic resistance is a major obstacle to chemotherapeutic failure. Cancer cell resistance involves several mechanisms, including epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT), signaling pathway bypass, drug efflux activation, and impairment of drug entry. P-glycoproteins (P-gp) are an efflux transporter that pumps chemotherapeutic drugs out of cancer cells, resulting in chemotherapeutic resistance. Several types of long noncoding RNA (lncRNAs) have been identified in resistant cancer cells, including ODRUL, MALAT1, and ANRIL. The high expression level of ODRUL is related to the induction of ATP-binding cassette (ABC) gene expression, resulting in the emergence of doxorubicin resistance in osteosarcoma. lncRNAs are observed to be regulators of drug transporters in cancer cells such as MALAT1 and ANRIL. Targeting P-gp expression using natural products is a new strategy to overcome cancer cell resistance and improve the sensitivity of resistant cells toward chemotherapies. This review validates the inhibitory effects of natural products on P-gp expression and activity using in silico molecular docking. In silico analysis showed that Delphinidin and Asparagoside-f are the most significant natural product inhibitors of p-glycoprotein-1. These inhibitors can reverse multi-drug resistance and induce the sensitivity of resistant cancer cells toward chemotherapy based on in silico molecular docking. It is important to validate that pre-elementary docking can be confirmed using in vitro and in vivo experimental data

Self-medication Practices and Knowledge among Lebanese Population: A Cross-sectional Study

Self-medication (SM), practiced globally, is an important public health problem. This is the first study aiming to determine the prevalence of inappropriate usage of drugs among Lebanese patients, assess their knowledge, and identify predicting factors of potentially inappropriate drug intake. This cross-sectional prospective survey was carried out in five Lebanese governorates. A structured interview was done with patients who visited pharmacies. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 21 (SPSS Inc., Chicago, IL, USA). A multivariate logistic regression was performed to investigate factors associated with SM, which was reported by 79.1% of 930 interviewed cases. The most common symptoms warranting SM were symptoms relating to ear, nose, and throat diseases (99.0%), gastrointestinal symptoms including nausea and vomiting (75.6%), and cold and flu symptoms (60.1%). Age [adjusted odds ratio (ORa) = 1.44; 95% confidence interval (CI), 1.15–1.80; p = 0.002] and sex (ORa = 1.60; CI, 1.16–2.21; p = 0.004) significantly increased the odds of SM. Medication classes commonly consumed by respondents for SM included acetaminophen-based analgesics (48.7%) and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (24.6%). Moreover, 83.7% of respondents thought they were knowledgeable about proper dosing of the self-medicated drug (in fact, only 69.0% had adequate knowledge), and 35.5% thought they knew about side effects (assessment showed only 59.5% of them were right). Our study shows that SM is common among Lebanese adults. Hence, reinforcement of laws is necessary to improve access to adequate health care; efforts are needed to increase patients’ education regarding the health risk related to inappropriate consumption of medication

Road traffic injury in Lebanon: A prospective study to assess injury characteristics and risk factors

Background: Road traffic injury (RTI) is a significant yet poorly characterized cause of morbidity and mortality in the Middle East. This hospital-based-study examined RTI in Lebanon and provided an understanding of their characteristics. Methods: We collected prospective RTI data from three participating hospitals over 3 months using a designed tool based on Canadian CHIRPP and WHO tools. We performed logistic regression analysis to examine the relationship between contributing risk factors (age, sex) and injury types as well as the association of safety measures used (seatbelts or helmets) and body parts injured. Results: A total of 153 patients were collected. Male preponderance with 72%, with mean age 32.6 (SD = 14.9) years. RTI was highest among passengers aged 15 to 29 (48%). Motorcyclists comprised the greatest injury proportion (38%), followed by vehicle-occupants (35%), and pedestrians (25%) (P =.04). Hip injuries represented the most affected body part (48.7%), followed by head/neck (38.2%). Only 31% (n = 47) of victims applied safety measures (seatbelts or helmets). Six drivers (7%) reported cell phone use at collision. The use of safety measures was associated with a substantial reduction in head/neck injuries (P =.03), spine injuries (P =.049), and lower risk of traumatic brain injury (TBI) (P =.02). Conclusions: RTI is a major health problem in Lebanon. Safety measures, though poorly adhered to, were associated with less severe injuries, and should be further promoted via awareness campaigns and enforcement. Trauma registries are needed to assess the RTI burden and inform safety interventions and quality-of-care improvement programs. © 2021 The Authors. Health Science Reports published by Wiley Periodicals LLC

Medication Sector in Qatar: Hand in Hand Facing the Blockade

Conference agend

Search for continuous gravitational waves from known pulsars in the first part of the fourth LIGO-Virgo-KAGRA observing run

Continuous gravitational waves (CWs) emission from neutron stars carries information about their internal structure and equation of state, and it can provide tests of general relativity. We present a search for CWs from a set of 45 known pulsars in the first part of the fourth LIGO–Virgo–KAGRA observing run, known as O4a. We conducted a targeted search for each pulsar using three independent analysis methods considering single-harmonic and dual-harmonic emission models. We find no evidence of a CW signal in O4a data for both models and set upper limits on the signal amplitude and on the ellipticity, which quantifies the asymmetry in the neutron star mass distribution. For the single-harmonic emission model, 29 targets have the upper limit on the amplitude below the theoretical spin-down limit. The lowest upper limit on the amplitude is 6.4 × 10−27 for the young energetic pulsar J0537−6910, while the lowest constraint on the ellipticity is 8.8 × 10−9 for the bright nearby millisecond pulsar J0437−4715. Additionally, for a subset of 16 targets, we performed a narrowband search that is more robust regarding the emission model, with no evidence of a signal. We also found no evidence of nonstandard polarizations as predicted by the Brans–Dicke theory

The evolving SARS-CoV-2 epidemic in Africa: Insights from rapidly expanding genomic surveillance.

Investment in severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) sequencing in Africa over the past year has led to a major increase in the number of sequences that have been generated and used to track the pandemic on the continent, a number that now exceeds 100,000 genomes. Our results show an increase in the number of African countries that are able to sequence domestically and highlight that local sequencing enables faster turnaround times and more-regular routine surveillance. Despite limitations of low testing proportions, findings from this genomic surveillance study underscore the heterogeneous nature of the pandemic and illuminate the distinct dispersal dynamics of variants of concern-particularly Alpha, Beta, Delta, and Omicron-on the continent. Sustained investment for diagnostics and genomic surveillance in Africa is needed as the virus continues to evolve while the continent faces many emerging and reemerging infectious disease threats. These investments are crucial for pandemic preparedness and response and will serve the health of the continent well into the 21st century

The evolving SARS-CoV-2 epidemic in Africa: Insights from rapidly expanding genomic surveillance

INTRODUCTION Investment in Africa over the past year with regard to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) sequencing has led to a massive increase in the number of sequences, which, to date, exceeds 100,000 sequences generated to track the pandemic on the continent. These sequences have profoundly affected how public health officials in Africa have navigated the COVID-19 pandemic. RATIONALE We demonstrate how the first 100,000 SARS-CoV-2 sequences from Africa have helped monitor the epidemic on the continent, how genomic surveillance expanded over the course of the pandemic, and how we adapted our sequencing methods to deal with an evolving virus. Finally, we also examine how viral lineages have spread across the continent in a phylogeographic framework to gain insights into the underlying temporal and spatial transmission dynamics for several variants of concern (VOCs). RESULTS Our results indicate that the number of countries in Africa that can sequence the virus within their own borders is growing and that this is coupled with a shorter turnaround time from the time of sampling to sequence submission. Ongoing evolution necessitated the continual updating of primer sets, and, as a result, eight primer sets were designed in tandem with viral evolution and used to ensure effective sequencing of the virus. The pandemic unfolded through multiple waves of infection that were each driven by distinct genetic lineages, with B.1-like ancestral strains associated with the first pandemic wave of infections in 2020. Successive waves on the continent were fueled by different VOCs, with Alpha and Beta cocirculating in distinct spatial patterns during the second wave and Delta and Omicron affecting the whole continent during the third and fourth waves, respectively. Phylogeographic reconstruction points toward distinct differences in viral importation and exportation patterns associated with the Alpha, Beta, Delta, and Omicron variants and subvariants, when considering both Africa versus the rest of the world and viral dissemination within the continent. Our epidemiological and phylogenetic inferences therefore underscore the heterogeneous nature of the pandemic on the continent and highlight key insights and challenges, for instance, recognizing the limitations of low testing proportions. We also highlight the early warning capacity that genomic surveillance in Africa has had for the rest of the world with the detection of new lineages and variants, the most recent being the characterization of various Omicron subvariants. CONCLUSION Sustained investment for diagnostics and genomic surveillance in Africa is needed as the virus continues to evolve. This is important not only to help combat SARS-CoV-2 on the continent but also because it can be used as a platform to help address the many emerging and reemerging infectious disease threats in Africa. In particular, capacity building for local sequencing within countries or within the continent should be prioritized because this is generally associated with shorter turnaround times, providing the most benefit to local public health authorities tasked with pandemic response and mitigation and allowing for the fastest reaction to localized outbreaks. These investments are crucial for pandemic preparedness and response and will serve the health of the continent well into the 21st century