Suchergebnisse

AbstractBrazil has encouraged an ambitious set of policies towards the pharmaceutical industry, aiming to foster technological development while meeting health requirements. We characterise these efforts, labelled the 'Complexo Industrial da Saúde' (Health-Industry Complex, CIS), as an outcome of incremental policy change backed by the sustained efforts of public health professionals within the federal bureaucracy. As experts with a particular vision of the relationship between health, innovation and industry came to dominate key institutions, they increasingly shaped government responses to emerging challenges. Step by step, these professionals first made science and technology essential aspects of Brazil's health policy, and then merged the Ministry of Health's new focus on science, technology and health with industrial policy measures aimed at private firms. We contrast our depiction of these policy changes with a conventional view that relies on a partisan orientation of the executive.

BACKGROUND: Ensuring the current public health workforce has appropriate competencies to fulfill essential public health functions is challenging in many low- and middle-income countries. The absence of an agreed set of core competencies to provide a basis for developing and assessing knowledge, skills, abilities, and attitudes contributes to this challenge. This study aims to identify the requisite core competencies for practicing health professionals in mid-level supervisory and program management roles to effectively perform their public health responsibilities in the resource-poor setting of Uttar Pradesh (UP), India. METHODS: We used a multi-step, interactive Delphi technique to develop an agreed set of public health competencies. A narrative review of core competency frameworks and key informant interviews with human resources for health experts in India were conducted to prepare an initial list of 40 competency statements in eight domains. We then organized a day-long workshop with 22 Indian public health experts and government officials, who added to and modified the initial list. A revised list of 54 competency statements was rated on a 5-point Likert scale. Aggregate statement scores were shared with the participants, who discussed the findings. Finally, the revised list was returned to participants for an additional round of ratings. The Wilcoxon matched-pairs signed-rank test was used to identify stability between steps, and consensus was defined using the percent agreement criterion. RESULTS: Stability between the first and second Delphi scoring steps was reached in 46 of the 54 statements. By the end of the second Delphi scoring step, consensus was reached on 48 competency statements across eight domains: public health sciences, assessment and analysis, policy and program management, financial management and budgeting, partnerships and collaboration, social and cultural determinants, communication, and leadership. CONCLUSIONS: This study produced a consensus set of core competencies and domains in ...

Background The Health and Social Care Act 2012 gave councils in England responsibility for improving the health of their populations. Public health teams were transferred from the National Health Service (NHS), accompanied by a ring-fenced public health grant. This study examines the changing role of these teams within local government. Methods In-depth case study research was conducted within 10 heterogeneous councils. Initial interviews (n = 90) were carried out between October 2015 and March 2016, with follow-up interviews (n = 21) 12 months later. Interviewees included elected members, directors of public health (DsPH) and other local authority officers, plus representatives from NHS commissioners, the voluntary sector and Healthwatch. Results Councils welcomed the contribution of public health professionals, but this was balanced against competing demands for financial resources and democratic leverage. DsPH—seen by some as a 'protected species'—were relying increasingly on negotiating and networking skills to fulfil their role. Both the development of the existing specialist public health workforce and recruitment to, and development of, the future workforce were uncertain. This poses both threats and opportunities. Conclusions Currently the need for staff to retain specialist skills and maintain UKPH registration is respected. However, action is needed to address how future public health professionals operating within local government will be recruited and developed.

Objective To assess which mental health-related states of being are perceived as diseases by psychiatrists, non-psychiatric physicians, nurses, parliament members and laypeople. Design and setting A population-based, mailed survey in Finland. Participants Respondents from a random sample of 3000 laypeople, 1500 physicians, 1500 nurses and all 200 members of the parliament (MPs) of Finland. Primary outcome measures Respondents' perspectives on 20 mental health-related states of being as diseases, measuring the extent of agreement with the claim: '[This state of being] is a disease'. Results Of the 6200 people approached, we received 3259 eligible responses (53%). Two conditions (schizophrenia and autism) were considered to be diseases by at least 75% and two states (grief and homosexuality) were considered not to be diseases by at least 75% in each group. A majority (at least 50% in each group) considered seven states as diseases (anorexia, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, bulimia, depression, generalised anxiety disorder, panic disorder and personality disorder) and three not to be diseases (absence of sexual desire, premature ejaculation and transsexualism). In six states, there was a wide divergence of opinion (alcoholism, drug addiction, gambling addiction, insomnia, social anxiety disorder and work exhaustion). Psychiatrists were significantly more inclined to considering states of being as diseases relative to other groups, followed by non-psychiatric physicians, nurses, MPs and laypeople. Conclusions Respondents agreed that some conditions, such as schizophrenia and autism, are diseases and other states, such as grief and homosexuality, are not; for others, there was considerable disagreement. Psychiatrists are more inclined to consider mental health-related states of being as diseases compared with other physicians, who, in turn, are more inclined than other constituencies. Understanding notions of disease may underlie important debates in public policy and practice in areas of mental health and behaviour, and have implications for resource allocation and stigma. ; Peer reviewed

The current public health workforce may not be prepared for the challenge of implementing social marketing programs, as there is only limited training on social marketing offered by schools of public health. Therefore, training programs for working public health professionals may be warranted. An inventory of current social marketing resources revealed a variety of conferences, journals, and World Wide Web sites that either include or are devoted to social marketing. However, a survey of public health professionals who have direct responsibility for social marketing programs indicates that they use these resources in only a limited fashion. Recommendations include marketing current training resources to increase their use by working professionals, expanding the number and location of training conferences, and exploring opportunities for distance education.

This document, developed by CDC's Public Health Law Program (PHLP), presents a model set of Minimum Competencies in Public Health Emergency Law for mid-tier public health professionals. This model was prepared at the request of CDC's Office for Public Health Preparedness and Emergency Response (OPHPR) and the Association of Schools of Public Health (ASPH), and in response to the call for the development of a legal preparedness competency framework in the 2008 National Action Agenda for Public Health Legal Preparedness. ; Last Updated September 17, 2012. ; The findings and conclusions in this document are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the views of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention/the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry. ; Mode of access: World Wide Web (Acrobat .pdf file: 362.29 KB, 21 p.). ; Includes bibliographical references.

As the world prepares for the next influenza pandemic, governments have made significant funding commitments to vaccine development and antiviral stockpiling. While these are essential components to pandemic response, rapid and accurate diagnostic testing remains an often neglected cornerstone of pandemic influenza preparedness. Clinicians and Public Health Practitioners need to understand the benefits and drawbacks of different influenza tests in both seasonal and pandemic settings. Culture has been the traditional gold standard for influenza diagnosis but requires from 1–10 days to generate a positive result, compared to nucleic acid detection methods such as real time reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). Although the currently available rapid antigen detection kits can generate results in less than 30 minutes, their sensitivity is suboptimal and they are not recommended for the detection of novel influenza viruses. Until point-of-care (POC) tests are improved, PILPN recommends that the best option for pandemic influenza preparation is the enhancement of nucleic acid-based testing capabilities across Canada.

BACKGROUND: The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the important role of professionals in designing and communicating effective policies. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the level of trust in the COVID-19 national public health policy among public health professionals in Israel and its correlates during the first wave of the pandemic. METHODS: A purposive sampling of public health professionals in Israel, through professional and academic public health networks (N = 112). The survey was distributed online during May 2020. Level of trust was measured by the mean of 18 related statements using a 5-point Likert scale, where 1 means not at all and 5 means to a very high extent, and grouped as low and high trust by median (2.75). RESULTS: A moderate level of trust in policy was found among professionals (Mean: 2.84, 95% Cl: [2.70, 2.98]). The level of trust among public health physicians was somewhat lower than among researchers and other health professionals (Mean: 2.66 vs. 2.81 and 2.96, respectively, p = 0.286), with a higher proportion expressing low trust (70% vs. 51% and 38%, respectively, p < 0.05). Participants with a low compared to high level of trust in policy were less supportive of the use of Israel Security Agency tools for contact tracing (Mean = 2.21 vs. 3.17, p < 0.01), and reported lower levels of trust in the Ministry of Health (Mean = 2.52 vs. 3.91, p < 0.01). A strong positive correlation was found between the level of trust in policy and the level of trust in the Ministry of Health (rs = 0.782, p < 0.01). Most professionals (77%) rated their involvement in decision making as low or not at all, and they reported a lower level of trust in policy than those with high involvement (Mean = 2.76 vs. 3.12, p < 0.05). Regarding trust in the ability of agencies to deal with the COVID-19 crisis, respondents reported high levels of trust in the Association of Public Health Physicians (80%) and in hospitals (79%), but very low levels of trust in the Minister of Health (5%). ...

Takeaway food outlets offer limited seating and sell hot food to be consumed away from their premises. They typically serve energy-dense, nutrient-poor food. National planning guidelines in England offer the potential for local planning policies to promote healthier food environments through regulation of takeaway food outlets. Around half of English local government areas use this approach, but little is known about the process of adoption. We aimed to explore experiences and perceived success of planning policy adoption. In 2018 we recruited Planning and Public Health professionals from 16 local government areas in England and completed 26 telephone interviews. We analysed data with a thematic analysis approach. Participants felt that planning policy adoption was appropriate and can successfully regulate takeaway food outlets with the intention to improve health. They identified several facilitators and barriers towards adoption. Facilitators included internal co-operation between Planning and Public Health departments, and precedent for planning policy adoption set elsewhere. Barriers included "nanny-state" criticism, and difficulty demonstrating planning policy effectiveness. These could be considered in future guidelines to support widespread planning policy adoption.

Takeaway food outlets offer limited seating and sell hot food to be consumed away from their premises. They typically serve energy-dense, nutrient-poor food. National planning guidelines in England offer the potential for local planning policies to promote healthier food environments through regulation of takeaway food outlets. Around half of English local government areas use this approach, but little is known about the process of adoption. We aimed to explore experiences and perceived success of planning policy adoption. In 2018 we recruited Planning and Public Health professionals from 16 local government areas in England and completed 26 telephone interviews. We analysed data with a thematic analysis approach. Participants felt that planning policy adoption was appropriate and can successfully regulate takeaway food outlets with the intention to improve health. They identified several facilitators and barriers towards adoption. Facilitators included internal co-operation between Planning and Public Health departments, and precedent for planning policy adoption set elsewhere. Barriers included "nanny-state" criticism, and difficulty demonstrating planning policy effectiveness. These could be considered in future guidelines to support widespread planning policy adoption.

Takeaway food outlets offer limited seating and sell hot food to be consumed away from their premises. They typically serve energy-dense, nutrient-poor food. National planning guidelines in England offer the potential for local planning policies to promote healthier food environments through regulation of takeaway food outlets. Around half of English local government areas use this approach, but little is known about the process of adoption. We aimed to explore experiences and perceived success of planning policy adoption. In 2018 we recruited Planning and Public Health professionals from 16 local government areas in England and completed 26 telephone interviews. We analysed data with a thematic analysis approach. Participants felt that planning policy adoption was appropriate and can successfully regulate takeaway food outlets with the intention to improve health. They identified several facilitators and barriers towards adoption. Facilitators included internal co-operation between Planning and Public Health departments, and precedent for planning policy adoption set elsewhere. Barriers included "nanny-state" criticism, and difficulty demonstrating planning policy effectiveness. These could be considered in future guidelines to support widespread planning policy adoption. ; The NIHR School for Public Health Research is a partnership between the Universities of Sheffield; Bristol; Cambridge; Imperial; and University College London; The London School for Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (LSHTM); LiLaC – a collaboration between the Universities of Liverpool and Lancaster; and Fuse - The Centre for Translational Research in Public Health, a collaboration between Newcastle, Durham, Northumbria, Sunderland and Teesside Universities. This paper presents independent research funded by the National Institute for Health Research School for Public Health research (NIHR SPHR).The views expressed are those of the authors and not necessarily those of the NHS, the NIHR or the Department of Health and Social Care. JA, MW and TB are funded by the Centre for Diet and Activity Research (CEDAR), a UK Clinical Research Collaboration (UKCRC) Public Health Research Centre of Excellence. Funding from the British Heart Foundation, Cancer Research UK, Economic and Social Research Council, Medical Research Council, the National Institute for Health Research, and the Wellcome Trust, under the auspices of the UK Clinical Research Collaboration, is gratefully acknowledged.

The prevailing views on the role of public health professionals refer to professionals in the academic world, without taking into account the fact that many public health professionals are government employees. For example, the American Public Health Association states that public health professionals play an active role in communicating public health information to nonscientific audiences, such as the general population or the mass media.

Public health in the digital era is a significant aspect and important challenge for all public health professionals. Public health innovation, technology, and information are accelerating the advanced technique to improve the understanding of social, economic and political determinants of health; and these technologies are used for a population's health improvement. Today, several modified/improved technologies are used to support public health professionals to achieve the availability, affordability, inter-activity, accessibility and portability of access to health care systems of a population. Therefore, in digital 4.0 era, we as public health professionals need to improve our perspective and skill to use these advanced and suitable technologies to support our missions to maximize population health utilization and benefit. ; -