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Barcz, Anna. "Witajcie w Polocenie. Polskie konteksty walki z katastrofą na przykładzie literatury okołopowodziowej po roku 1945." Prace Kulturoznawcze 22, no. 1-2 (January 15, 2019): 129–42. http://dx.doi.org/10.19195/0860-6668.22.1-2.9.
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Welcome to the Polocene: Polish aspects of fighting with floods as exemplified in literature after 1945The aim of the article is to localise the representative examples of cultural models of behaviour and ways of adapting to the hazardous environmental changes. It is discussed on the basis of so called flood narratives in Polish literature such as Tomasz Różycki’s Bestiarium 2012 and Maciej Płaza’s Skoruń 2015. The author puts a question about the function of the polonocentric, combative model as a pattern of behaviour that emerges from these texts, as well as about the role of catholic religion in the society who cannot cope with more and more unpredictable catastrophic threats like the flood. The author concludes that this situation is culturally contextualised and results in the social inability to accept a new ecological paradigm in the space and landscape management.
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Boruszkowska, Iwona. "La mortelega grande, czyli „wielkie umieranie”. Zaraza jako katastrofa (w) wyobraźni." Konteksty Kultury 17, no. 3 (2020): 312–27. http://dx.doi.org/10.4467/23531991kk.20.024.13138.
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Artykuł omawia dwa literackie przykłady reprezentacji epidemii: libretto młodopolskiego pisarza i krytyka Karola Irzykowskiego Zaraza w Bergamo (1897) oraz utwór przedstawiciela polskiego futuryzmu – Brunona Jasieńskiego Palę Paryż (1928), które ukazują tendencje do pesymistycznego ujmowania rzeczywistości poprzez metaforę zarazy. Autorka wskazuje, iż zainteresowanie twórców chorobą i epidemią jako tematem literackim powraca w momentach przełomów i kryzysów. Narracje o zarazie, pladze czy innym powszechnym zagrożeniu będą w literaturze modernistycznej i międzywojennej reprezentowały właśnie narracje katastroficzne. Twórczość polskich modernistów i awangardzistów ujmuje bowiem całe spektrum katastroficznych tematów, nawet jeśli katastrofę zawęzić do plagi: morowa zaraza, zadżumione miasta i szalejące śmiertelne grypy goszczą na kartach literatury XIX i XX wieku. La Mortelega Grande or the “Great Mortality:” Pestilence as a Disaster for/in the Imagination The present paper discusses two examples of literary depictions of epidemics: the libretto Zaraza w Bergamo (1897) by Young Poland writer and critic Karol Irzykowski and the novel Palę Paryż (1928) by Polish futurist author Bruno Jasieński, with both works exemplifying the trend to use the metaphor of pestilence to create a pessimistic image of reality. The author points out that interest in disease and epidemic as a literary subject often grows in the times of radical change and crises. The narratives of pestilence, plague or other collective threat in modernist and interwar literature were examples of apocalyptic narratives. The output of Polish modernist and avant-garde writers encompassed the entire spectrum of catastrophic themes, even if the range of disasters was limited only to plagues: the Black Death, cities ravaged by the bubonic plague, and raging epidemics of deathly flu strains frequently featured on the pages of literary works produced in the 19th and the 20th century.
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Sławomirski, Radosław. "Znaczenie traktatu wersalskiego dla kultury polskiej. Literatura polska po 1918 roku – wybrane aspekty." Kultura Słowian Rocznik Komisji Kultury Słowian PAU 16 (2020): 129–38. http://dx.doi.org/10.4467/25439561ksr.20.008.13297.
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The Importance of the Treaty of Versailles for Polish Culture. Polish Literature After 1918 As the result of the Treaty of Versailles, Poland regains independence and Poles from the three partitions become full citizens of the Polish state. Such strong political changes had a significant influence on the culture of the reborn state. Polish culture of the 1920’s is not unified and homegeneous, which was demonstrated by literature. Various concepts of artistic activity and literary disputes appeared on its outskirts. A famous Skamander group, Cracow avantgarde, and the catastrophic philosophy represented by Witkacy are all worth mentioning. However, the element that connects these artists is that they wrote in the new political situation. Independent Poland and the changing world in which culture gains the status of a popular one, pose new challenges for the creators of culture. Culture’s task is to unite Poles. Na mocy Traktatu Wersalskiego Polska odzyskuje niepodległość i Polacy z trzech zaborów stają się pełnoprawnymi mieszkańcami państwa polskiego. Tak dalekie zmiany polityczne nie mogły pozostać obojętne dla kultury odrodzonego państwa, rozwijającej się pod zaborami w niesprzyjających dla niej warunkach, w ramach trzech różnych systemów polityczno-prawnych. Odzyskanie niepodległości przez naród polski zdjęło z twórców jego kultury obowiązek walki o wolność, pozwoliło im zrzucić z ramiom „płaszcz Konrada” i podejmować jako wiodącą – nową tematykę. Dzięki temu kultura polska lat dwudziestych ubiegłego wieku nie jest jednowymiarowa ani jednolita, czego najlepszym przykładem jest literatura. To w jej przestrzeni pojawiają się różne koncepcje działalności artystycznej i toczą spory literackie. Warto tutaj przywołać grupę pięciu poetów tworzących Skamander, krakowską awangardę, a także katastrofizm reprezentowany przez Witkacego. Jednak elementem, który łączy artystów pierwszej dekady dwudziestolecia międzywojennego jest tworzenie w nowej sytuacji politycznej. Niepodległa Polska ze zjednoczonym narodem - żyjącym ponad wiek w trzech różnych państwach zaborczych - oraz zmieniający się świat, w którym kultura zyskuje statut popularnej, stawiają nowe wyzwania przed twórcami. Jednym z ważniejszych jest zjednoczenie Polaków, w których zaborcy poprzez swoje działania próbowali wykorzenić pierwiastek polski.
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Nathan, Christopher, and Keith Hyams. "Global policymakers and catastrophic risk." Policy Sciences 55, no. 1 (December 2, 2021): 3–21. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11077-021-09444-0.
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AbstractThere is a rapidly developing literature on risks that threaten the whole of humanity, or a large part of it. Discussion is increasingly turning to how such risks can be governed. This paper arises from a study of those involved the governance of risks from emerging technologies, examining the perceptions of global catastrophic risk within the relevant global policymaking community. Those who took part were either civil servants working for the UK government, U.S. Congress, the United Nations, and the European Commission, or cognate members of civil society groups and the private sector. Analysis of interviews identified four major themes: Scepticism; Realism; Influence; and Governance outside of Government. These themes provide evidence for the value of conceptualising the governance of global catastrophic risk as a unified challenge. Furthermore, they highlight the range of agents involved in governance of emerging technology and give reason to value reforms carried out sub-nationally.
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Ataguba, John Ele-Ojo. "Reassessing catastrophic health-care payments with a Nigerian case study." Health Economics, Policy and Law 7, no. 3 (February 11, 2011): 309–26. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s1744133110000356.
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AbstractHealth financing reforms have recently received much attention in developing countries. However, out-of-pocket payments remain substantial. When such payments involve expenditures above some given proportion of household resources, they are often deemed ‘catastrophic’. The research literature on defining catastrophe leaves open a number of important questions and as a result there still exists a lack of consensus on the issue. This paper argues that there is a need to examine the question of what might constitute fair indices of catastrophic payment, which explicitly recognize diminishing marginal utility of income as reflected in some principle of vertical equity. It proposes the use of rank-dependent weights to allow variations in threshold payment levels across individuals on the income ladder. These are then applied to a Nigerian data set. It emerged that the catastrophic headcount (positive gap) obtained using a fixed threshold – weighted or not by the concentration index – is lower (higher) than that predicted by the rank-dependent threshold. More fundamentally there is a need for more research effort to take the ideas in this paper further and examine in various different contexts what a fair construct of catastrophe might look like.
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Wieczorek, Barbara. "Load Capacity of an Internal Slab-Column Connection depending on the Geometric Parameters of the Reinforcement." Advanced Materials Research 969 (June 2014): 234–40. http://dx.doi.org/10.4028/www.scientific.net/amr.969.234.
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Literature deals with a score of catastrophes of slab-column structures, where the absence of adequately constructed reinforcement resulted in an absolute destruction of the construction. This problem is not dealt with either in the Polish Standards, nor in the Eurocodes. Some suggestions concerning the prevention of such situations are to be found merely in CSA A23.3-04. Instructions concerning such a structure are also contained in ACI 318. The paper presents the results of laboratory tests performed on a simplified model of a slab-column connection. The aim of investigations was to find out at which value of the load the destruction of such a connection occurs due to a rupture of the bars above the column. In respective models the reinforcement passing above the column consisted of bars with a diameter of ø8 mm, ø12 mm or ø16 mm. The obtained results of laboratory tests and calculations permitted to determine the relations between the exerted load and the displacement of the column in time and also to determine the values of the force at which the rupture of the bars above the column had taken place.
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Mackenthun, Gesa. "Sustainable Stories: Managing Climate Change with Literature." Sustainability 13, no. 7 (April 6, 2021): 4049. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/su13074049.
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Literary and cultural texts are essential in shaping emotional and intellectual dispositions toward the human potential for a sustainable transformation of society. Due to its appeal to the human imagination and human empathy, literature can enable readers for sophisticated understandings of social and ecological justice. An overabundance of catastrophic near future scenarios largely prevents imagining the necessary transition toward a socially responsible and ecologically mindful future as a non-violent and non-disastrous process. The paper argues that transition stories that narrate the rebuilding of the world in the midst of crisis are much better instruments in bringing about a human “mindshift” (Göpel) than disaster stories. Transition stories, among them the Parable novels by Octavia Butler and Kim Stanley Robinson’s The Ministry for the Future (2020), offer feasible ideas about how to orchestrate economic and social change. The analysis of recent American, Canadian, British, and German near future novels—both adult and young adult fictions—sheds light on those aspects best suited for effecting behavioral change in recipients’ minds: exemplary ecologically sustainable characters and actions, companion quests, cooperative communities, sources of epistemological innovation and spiritual resilience, and an ethics and aesthetics of repair.
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Gupta, Mayank, Seema Rajesh Rao, Naveen Salins, Pankaj Singhai, and Krithika S. Rao. "Maggots in the Intercostal Drain: Case Report of a Rare Presentation with a Brief Review of Literature." Indian Journal of Palliative Care 27 (September 29, 2021): 439–41. http://dx.doi.org/10.25259/ijpc_428_20.
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Maggots are dipterous larvae of flies. Infestation of vertebrate animals (including humans) by maggots is termed as Myiasis. Warm and Humid climate, low socio-economic status, lack of knowledge and poor living conditions, malignant wounds predispose the cancer patients to maggot infestation in India. Apart from infestation in the wounds; oral, ophthalmic, nasal, aural, enteric, urogenital, trachea-pulmonary and rectal myiasis have been reported. Maggot infestation of the Intercostal drain (ICD) container without associated pleural myiasis is an extremely rare entity. We describe a rare case report of maggots in the ICD in a patient with metastatic chondrosarcoma femur with ICD in situ for malignant pleural effusion. Early detection and management are the keys to prevent the catastrophic complication of pleural myiasis.
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Ruberg, Elizabeth J., Tony D. Williams, and John E. Elliott. "Review of petroleum toxicity in marine reptiles." Ecotoxicology 30, no. 4 (March 16, 2021): 525–36. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10646-021-02359-9.
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AbstractWorldwide petroleum exploration and transportation continue to impact the health of the marine environment through both catastrophic and chronic spillage. Of the impacted fauna, marine reptiles are often overlooked. While marine reptiles are sensitive to xenobiotics, there is a paucity of petroleum toxicity data for these specialized fauna in peer reviewed literature. Here we review the known impacts of petroleum spillage to marine reptiles, specifically to marine turtles and iguanas with an emphasis on physiology and fitness related toxicological effects. Secondly, we recommend standardized toxicity testing on surrogate species to elucidate the mechanisms by which petroleum related mortalities occur in the field following catastrophic spillage and to better link physiological and fitness related endpoints. Finally, we propose that marine reptiles could serve as sentinel species for marine ecosystem monitoring in the case of petroleum spillage. Comprehensive petroleum toxicity data on marine reptiles is needed in order to serve as a foundation for future research with newer, unconventional crude oils of unknown toxicity such as diluted bitumen.
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Chauhan, Dr Mansi. "People of a Lost Country: Exile and Sense of Dislocation Transmitted in the Poems of Tenzin Tsundue." YMER Digital 21, no. 05 (May 9, 2022): 352–58. http://dx.doi.org/10.37896/ymer21.05/38.
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The proposed research paper seeks to study the notion of home which has been defined and redefined in various ways predominantly in diasporic, partition and exile literature as history and heritage of thousands of years linked to it and the way this association was broken. Home became a floating signifier with each literary piece penned down with angst of exile. Tenzin Tsundue, an unusual blend of an activist and a writer articulates collective consciousness of the Tibetan people in exile. The target poems published in Kora, a collection of stories and poems written by Tenzin Tsundue analyze how the word ‘exile’ is catastrophic in many ways, how excruciating it is to untie with home/nation.
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Rahman, Fazil A., Kadir Arifin, Azlan Abas, Mahfudz Mahfudz, Muhammad Basir Cyio, Muhammad Khairil, Muhammad Nur Ali, Ilyas Lampe, and Muhammad Ahsan Samad. "Sustainable Safety Management: A Safety Competencies Systematic Literature Review." Sustainability 14, no. 11 (June 5, 2022): 6885. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/su14116885.
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Title: Safety competencies: A systematic literature review. Background: Safety competency is believed to be a pillar of an organization’s safety culture and one of the safety climate dimensions. Safety competencies can be a vital point to controlling and maintaining the sustainability of safety and health in a society and organization. The sustainability of the industries’ and society’s safety relationship can be driven by the controlled hierarchy in the society and the competencies of its members. Failure to identify social sustainability indicators such as a leading competency in safety will cause a failure in the safety development program. Hence, a systematic literature review of published studies is essential for easing the dissemination of useful research findings and gaining access to future trends in safety competencies research. The review aimed to identify studies about safety competency and identified the basic safety competencies for the workforce to maintain a sustainable safety climate. Methods: This review provided a five-step approach guided by The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) 2020 statement and published systematic review framework. The studies from the past 20 years were retrieved from electronic databases such as Scopus, Science Direct, and Web of Science. The review only involved article papers, research papers, and review papers which are written in English. The quality of the review was assessed using a standard PRISMA 2020 checklist. This review is registered on the International Platform of Registered Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis Protocols (INPLASY) with registration number INPLASY202230246 and DOI number 10.37766/inplasy2022.3.0146. Findings: The unbiased and wide review produces a new, feasible alternative to a social sustainability safety index. The number of studies on safety competencies study has expanded in recent years which shows the importance of the item to sustain the safety climate. This review suggests teamwork, communication skills, and a foundation of safety knowledge as the basic safety competencies for workers based on the competencies being most discussed. The review process suggests the possibility of future research regarding safety competencies after a catastrophic event such as the COVID-19 pandemic and sustainability of industrial safety regarding human-machine integration through 4.0 Industrial Revolution era.
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Anatol, Giselle Liza. "Getting to the Root of US Healthcare Injustices through Morrison’s Root Workers." MELUS 46, no. 4 (December 1, 2021): 186–207. http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/melus/mlab053.
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Abstract Although a number of scholars have tackled the figure of the Black folk-healer in Toni Morrison’s novels, the character deserves greater attention in the present moment for the insights she provides into two contemporary catastrophes: the coronavirus pandemic and the structural racism that precipitates rampant violence against brown-skinned people in the United States. Beginning with M’Dear, the elderly woman who is brought in to treat Cholly’s Aunt Jimmy in The Bluest Eye (1970), I survey descriptions of several root workers, hoodoo practitioners, and midwives in Morrison’s fiction, including Ajax’s mother in Sula (1973) and Milkman’s aunt Pilate in Song of Solomon (1977). Morrison’s portraits of these women and their communities capture the endurance of African folk customs, the undervalued knowledge of aged members of society, and a sense of Black women’s strength beyond that of the physical, laboring, or hypersexual body. The fictional experiences of Morrison’s healers also alert readers to the very real injustices that have historically impeded the successes of African Americans—and continue to hamper them, as has been exposed during the COVID-19 crisis and public outrages over police brutality. These injustices include inequities in lifelong earning potential, education, housing, and access to healthcare. Paying closer attention to the Nobel Laureate’s root-working women makes her novels more than simply “transformative” and “empowering” for individual readers; analyzing these figures allows one to unearth important critiques of medical bias and other forms of discrimination against marginalized members of society—disparities that must be dismantled in the push for social change.
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Ruberg, E. J., J. E. Elliott, and T. D. Williams. "Review of petroleum toxicity and identifying common endpoints for future research on diluted bitumen toxicity in marine mammals." Ecotoxicology 30, no. 4 (March 24, 2021): 537–51. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10646-021-02373-x.
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AbstractLarge volumes of conventional crude oil continue to be shipped by sea from production to consumption areas across the globe. In addition, unconventional petroleum products also transverse pelagic habitats; for example, diluted bitumen from Canada’s oilsands which is shipped along the Pacific coast to the United States and Asia. Therefore, there is a continuing need to assess the toxicological consequences of chronic and catastrophic petroleum spillage on marine wildlife. Peer-reviewed literature on the toxicity of unconventional petroleum such as diluted bitumen exists for teleost fish, but not for fauna such as marine mammals. In order to inform research needs for unconventional petroleum toxicity we conducted a comprehensive literature review of conventional petroleum toxicity on marine mammals. The common endpoints observed in conventional crude oil exposures and oil spills include hematological injury, modulation of immune function and organ weight, genotoxicity, eye irritation, neurotoxicity, lung disease, adrenal dysfunction, metabolic and clinical abnormalities related to oiling of the pelage, behavioural impacts, decreased reproductive success, mortality, and population-level declines. Based on our findings and the body of literature we accessed, our recommendations for future research include: 1) improved baseline data on PAH and metals exposure in marine mammals, 2) improved pre- and post-spill data on marine mammal populations, 3) the use of surrogate mammalian models for petroleum toxicity testing, and 4) the need for empirical data on the toxicity of unconventional petroleum to marine mammals.
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Timothy, Tamunang Tamutana. "Global Policy of ‘Community of Common Destiny’ and IR4: A Robust for Multiculturalism and Humanitarian Crisis Response." Korea Association for Public Value 3 (June 30, 2022): 13–24. http://dx.doi.org/10.53581/jopv.2022.3.1.13.
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Purpose: This study explores the combine synergy of China’s concept of “Community of Common Destiny (CCD),” and the Fourth Industrial Revolution (IR4.0) in alleviating humanitarian crisis/response and multiculturalism challenges of the time. The last decade has witnessed heightened resistance against accepting migrants and refugees especially in Europe and U.S and many other countries in general, exacerbated by nationalist politicians. These challenges are multifold, ranging from failed assimilation processes, insufficient funds for humanitarian course, aids dependent oriented solutions, weak solidarity, and xenophobia… etc. all these are evidence of moral backdrop across the world. Even though tools like the “Community of Destiny” and IR4.0 can well provide tangible opportunities for a better performing humanitarian crisis/response, revolutionize the integration policies that would accommodate the varied cultures and be beneficial to all in the society, these tools are misinterpreted, less understood, applied independently to problems it cannot handle on its own, thus rendering them less productive.
Method: This study employs a qualitative approach consisting of literature review and official document analysis. Literature review consists of a comprehensive assessment of scholarly academic publications from competing perspectives in the fields of political philosophy, multiculturalism, IR4.0, international humanitarian organization websites, Business corporate blogs, Community of Common Destiny and international relations theories. The document survey is mainly related to the policy documentation/ speeches output of Chinese leaders, related international organizations, study reports, as well as media reports.
Results: The study reveals that multiculturalism (cultural integration) challenges and humanitarian crisis/ response can be alleviated if the tenets of CCD are fully incorporated with IR4.0 opportunities. To this end, the CCD and IR4.0 offers more opportunities for states and companies to recruit and manage workers at distant locations. Skilled workers can offer their services at the comfort of their homes or localities (i.e. taking work to skilled worker), offering more in-training (victim skill capacitation and job access, and construction of more professional/educational facilities), reform their employment standards to include multicultural background checks, allowing refugees and migrants to be the solution to their problems, while states enact more relaxed refugee work permit policies. Further, disaster affected communities under study must benefit from collected data and analytic results that can help improve their living standards and guard against future catastrophes. Importantly, communities should be routinely trained on first-aid disaster management techniques. With CCD in mind and employing IR4.0 opportunities, humanitarian action responses would stand a better rating in terms of time efficiency and maximization of its ever scarce resources while increasing the number of donor partners.
Conclusion: the CCD and IR4.0 are great opportunities for both humanitarian crisis/response action and declining multiculturalism. Though the CCD has been received with scepticism, the overall idea of promoting a harmonious society (community), where everyone shares equally is achievable in the IR4.0 era. Critics have pointed out that CCD’s weakness lies in the implementation and enforcement loopholes. However, the concept originality was designed as an international instrument for willing states to adhere without any coercion and function as it is the case with other international instruments such the Rome Statue where some major powers are not signatories. The CCD and IR4.0 opportunities open a new era for humanity and the world system must adapt to the changing humanism.
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Bratton, Susan Power. "THE PRECAUTIONARY PRINCIPLE AND THE BOOK OF PROVERBS: TOWARD AN ETHIC OF ECOLOGICAL PRUDENCE IN OCEAN MANAGEMENT." Worldviews: Global Religions, Culture, and Ecology 7, no. 3 (2003): 253–73. http://dx.doi.org/10.1163/156853503322709137.
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AbstractRecent catastrophes in environmental management, such as population collapses in oceanic fisheries, have led environmental activists and scholars to invoke the precautionary principle (PP). In its strong form, PP demands that no human-initiated change in an ecosystem be permitted unless it is certain it will do no harm; while, in its weak form, PP holds that if an action might be environmentally harmful, regulators may, on best evidence, limit human activities to avoid damaging ecosystem perturbations. Implementing PP, however, presents epistemological, logical and practical difficulties. This paper compares the function of PP to that of the Biblical Wisdom literature in encouraging ecological prudence, and argues that PP should be replaced by a series of guiding concepts, dealing with the limitations of ecological knowledge and the flaws in human character most likely to result in environmental disaster. The environmental cases analysed are from oceanic fisheries management.
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Domdouzis, Konstantinos, Babak Akhgar, Simon Andrews, Helen Gibson, and Laurence Hirsch. "A social media and crowdsourcing data mining system for crime prevention during and post-crisis situations." Journal of Systems and Information Technology 18, no. 4 (November 14, 2016): 364–82. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/jsit-06-2016-0039.
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Purpose A number of crisis situations, such as natural disasters, have affected the planet over the past decade. The outcomes of such disasters are catastrophic for the infrastructures of modern societies. Furthermore, after large disasters, societies come face-to-face with important issues, such as the loss of human lives, people who are missing and the increment of the criminality rate. In many occasions, they seem unprepared to face such issues. This paper aims to present an automated social media and crowdsourcing data mining system for the synchronization of the police and law enforcement agencies for the prevention of criminal activities during and post a large crisis situation. Design/methodology/approach The paper realized qualitative research in the form of a review of the literature. This review focuses on the necessity of using social media and crowdsourcing data mining techniques in combination with advanced Web technologies for the purpose of providing solutions to problems related to criminal activities caused during and after a crisis. The paper presents the ATHENA crisis management system, which uses a number of data mining techniques to collect and analyze crisis-related data from social media for the purpose of crime prevention. Findings Conclusions are drawn on the significance of social media and crowdsourcing data mining techniques for the resolution of problems related to large crisis situations with emphasis to the ATHENA system. Originality/value The paper shows how the integrated use of social media and data mining algorithms can contribute in the resolution of problems that are developed during and after a large crisis.
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Hariri-Ardebili, Mohammad Amin, and Upmanu Lall. "Superposed Natural Hazards and Pandemics: Breaking Dams, Floods, and COVID-19." Sustainability 13, no. 16 (August 4, 2021): 8713. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/su13168713.
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Within the engineering domain, safety issues are often related to engineering design and typically exclude factors such as epidemics, famine, and disease. This article provides a perspective on the reciprocal relationship and interaction between a natural hazard and a simultaneous pandemic outbreak and discusses how a catastrophic dam break, combined with the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, poses a risk to human life. The paper uses grey- and peer-reviewed literature to support the discussion and reviews fundamentals of dam safety management, potential loss of life due to a dam break, and the recent evolution in dam risk analysis to account for the COVID-19 outbreak. Conventional risk reduction recommendations, such as quick evacuation and sheltering in communal centers, are revisited in the presence of a pandemic when social distancing is recommended. This perspective manuscript aims to provide insight into the multi-hazard risk problem resulting from a concurring natural hazard and global pandemic.
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Doubova, Svetlana V., Felicia Marie Knaul, Víctor Hugo Borja-Aburto, Sebastian Garcia-Saíso, Marta Zapata-Tarres, Margot Gonzalez-Leon, Odet Sarabia-Gonzalez, Héctor Arreola-Ornelas, and Ricardo Pérez-Cuevas. "Access to paediatric cancer care treatment in Mexico: responding to health system challenges and opportunities." Health Policy and Planning 35, no. 3 (December 23, 2019): 291–301. http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/heapol/czz164.
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Abstract In Mexico, paediatric cancer is the leading cause of death for children aged 0–18 years. This study analyses the main challenges for paediatric cancer care from the perspective of three key health systems functions: stewardship, financing and service delivery. The study used a mixed methods approach comprised of: (1) a scoping literature review, (2) an analysis of 2008–18 expenditures on paediatric cancer by the Fund for Protection against Catastrophic Expenditures (FPGC) of Seguro Popular and (3) a nation-wide survey of the supply capacity of 59 Ministry of Health (MoH) and 39 Mexican Institute of Social Security (IMSS) hospitals engaged in paediatric cancer care. The study found that while Mexico has made substantial progress towards universal health coverage (UHC) for paediatric cancer treatment, serious gaps persist. FPGC funds for paediatric cancer increased from 2008 to 2011 to reach US$36 million and then declined to US$13.6 million in 2018, along with the number of covered cases. The distribution of health professionals and paediatric oncology infrastructure is uneven between MoH and IMSS hospitals and across Mexican regions. Both institutions share common barriers for continuous and co-ordinated health care and lack monitoring activities that cripple their capacity to apply uniform standards for high-quality cancer care. In conclusion, achieving universal and effective coverage of paediatric cancer treatment is a critical component of UHC for Mexico. This requires periodic and ongoing assessment of health system performance specific to paediatric cancer to identify gaps and propose strategies for continued investment and improvement of access to care and health outcomes for this important cause of premature mortality.
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Kianpour, Mazaher, Stewart J. Kowalski, and Harald Øverby. "Systematically Understanding Cybersecurity Economics: A Survey." Sustainability 13, no. 24 (December 10, 2021): 13677. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/su132413677.
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Insights in the field of cybersecurity economics empower decision makers to make informed decisions that improve their evaluation and management of situations that may lead to catastrophic consequences and threaten the sustainability of digital ecosystems. By drawing on these insights, cybersecurity practitioners have been able to respond to many complex problems that have emerged within the context of cybersecurity over the last two decades. The academic field of cybersecurity economics is highly interdisciplinary since it combines core findings and tools from disciplines such as sociology, psychology, law, political science, and computer science. This study aims to develop an extensive and consistent survey based on a literature review and publicly available reports. This review contributes by aggregating the available knowledge from 28 studies, out of a collection of 628 scholarly articles, to answer five specific research questions. The focus is how identified topics have been conceptualized and studied variously. This review shows that most of the cybersecurity economics models are transitioning from unrealistic, unverifiable, or highly simplified fundamental premises toward dynamic, stochastic, and generalizable models.
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Bhushan, Sudhanshu. "The impact of artificial intelligence and machine learning on the global economy and its implications for the hospitality sector in India." Worldwide Hospitality and Tourism Themes 13, no. 2 (June 7, 2021): 252–59. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/whatt-09-2020-0116.
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Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explore and evaluate the existing and future impact of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning on the global economy. It includes viewing the inclusion of AI in different sectors, its impact on industries, the trends of the forerunning companies that are capitalizing on AI and the idea of crystalizing exponential growth while maintaining a balance between the understanding of humans and the subsequent possibilities of AI. Design/methodology/approach This paper is based on secondary research, reviewing literature based on different industries and perspectives. Findings The global potential of AI is exponential; the development of AI should be effective. Globally, we see contrasting views, defining the consequences of AI. Hence, the balance between humans and AI, protocols and a global regulatory system needs to be established to prevent catastrophic results soon. Practical implications The benefits of AI are enormous. The rising incorporation of AI must take into consideration the basic safety fundamentals for a better future. Social implications This paper will enable readers to understand the importance of AI in the global economy, its current involvement in major industries and the subsequent need for balance in technology. Originality/value This conceptual review is by its nature and original contribution and, specifically, an interpretation for India.
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Carvalho, Sara C., Fátima Alves, Ulisses M. Azeiteiro, and Pablo A. Meira‐Cartea. "Sociocultural and educational factors in the sustainability of coastal zones." Management of Environmental Quality: An International Journal 23, no. 4 (June 8, 2012): 362–82. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/14777831211232254.
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PurposeEnvironmental threats of immediate risk in areas such as coastal zones (CZ) have aroused new trends of citizenship and participatory democracy. The purpose of this paper is to analyse elements within those trends, such as environmental culture, socio‐political context, dynamics of social associative movement and integration of local knowledge. It also aims to contribute to an overview of the opportunities and barriers found in considering socio‐cultural and educational challenges in CZ.Design/methodology/approachIn this analysis, case studies of integrated coastal management occurring worldwide were selected and reviewed, considering several nuances of socio‐economic and political contexts of CZ. Experiences of public response to coastal catastrophes such the Prestige oil spill in Spain, are also described.FindingsWhether implementing sustainable coastal management through either balanced systems (between large and small‐scale strategies) or through largely bottom‐up approaches, participation is detected as one of the main factors for a successful integrated approach. Principles such as participatory governance and social justice should be adopted in initial phases of sustainable management processes and preferably involve all of the implied actors of CZ.Originality/valueThe literature reviewed highlighted specific factors that have empirically contributed to participatory sustainability of CZ, integrating three dimensions of citizenship: education, society's dynamics and culture.
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Fucile-Sanchez, Emily, and Meri Davlasheridze. "Adjustments of Socially Vulnerable Populations in Galveston County, Texas USA Following Hurricane Ike." Sustainability 12, no. 17 (August 31, 2020): 7097. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/su12177097.
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The role of socio-demographic vulnerability to hazards is an increasingly important aspect for consideration in disaster mitigation and adaptation. This paper examines the spatial adjustments of populations to the 2008 Hurricane Ike by estimating the effects of damage on the changes of socially vulnerable populations pre- and post-Hurricane Ike. Multivariate regression models are used to understand household-level adjustments in different flood zones and inundation levels at the block-group level in Galveston county. In contrast to past literature that suggests that vulnerable populations remain or move into hazardous areas post-disaster, our results indicate that socially vulnerable populations have moved out of highly damaged areas. The tremendous investment opportunity post-disaster and the slow distribution of funds to recover public housing on Galveston Island provide potential explanation of the estimated adjustment patterns. Analyzing post disaster adjustments offers important insights into the “resilient” recovery of Galveston County post-Hurricane Ike. Our results also point to potential vulnerabilities that may arise in the future because of the change in community identity and the loss of social memory. Understanding disaster-driven changes in community make-up will help inform potential recovery trajectories from future catastrophes.
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Tseng, Yung-Ping, Yu-Chin Huang, Mei-Syuan Li, and You-Zih Jiang. "Selecting Key Resilience Indicators for Indigenous Community Using Fuzzy Delphi Method." Sustainability 14, no. 4 (February 10, 2022): 2018. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/su14042018.
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Resilience is the concept that emphasizes change and adaptation and focuses on the capacity to absorb shocks and still maintain function. How can an Indigenous community assess the resilience of the tribe when it is affected by an array of obstacles? What are the assessment factors of resilience? This study consolidated relevant literature on resilience through in-depth interviews and the Fuzzy Delphi Method (FDM) to identify the resilience indicators for Indigenous community development. It eventually identified 5 domains, 26 types, and 45 evaluation indicators. The final indicators are divided into five domains: economic, social, cultural, environmental, and policy. The social resilience indicators: “the ability to overcome obstacles”, “the ability to accept stimuli”, and “the degree of connection between tribal and external resources” were not mentioned in the past studies of resilience. For the first time, the following cultural resilience indicator was also included: “maintain the traditional ancestral teachings and respect for ancestral norms”. Finally, this study suggests that follow-up research may extend these resilience indicators and apply them to other Indigenous tribes. These 26 types of assessment will also be the factors that must be considered in the process of adaptation and reconstruction when the community is faced with emergencies or catastrophes.
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Ferreira, Alexander Cesar, Rebecca Borges, and Luiz Drude de Lacerda. "Can Sustainable Development Save Mangroves?" Sustainability 14, no. 3 (January 23, 2022): 1263. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/su14031263.
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The Earth is warming, ecosystems are being overexploited, oceans are being polluted, and thousands of species are going extinct—all fueled by the need for a permanent increase in production for more consumerism and development. “Business as usual” continues untouched, while increasing attention has been given to the “sustainable development” concept. Despite their importance as life supporting ecosystems, forests, oceans, and wetlands are being destroyed at an accelerating rate. The conservation and restoration of mangroves, for example, are also vital for the planet to face catastrophic global warming. Based on a non-systematic literature review, we address how true mangrove conservation is incompatible with so-called “sustainable development”. We turn to the urgent changes needed to avoid environmental and societal collapse, promoted by the Western economic development paradigm, and address why the sustainable development approach has failed to stop environmental degradation and protect resources for next generations. Proposed solutions involve the rejection of the capital-oriented, nature-predatory systems, degrowth, a deep transformation of our energy matrix, and a shift in our nutrition to lower levels of the food chain. These are based on a profound sense of responsibility over the planet, respecting all life forms, ecosystem dynamics, and life sustaining properties of the biosphere.
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Heleski, Camie, C. Jill Stowe, Julie Fiedler, Michael L. Peterson, Colleen Brady, Carissa Wickens, and James N. MacLeod. "Thoroughbred Racehorse Welfare through the Lens of ‘Social License to Operate—With an Emphasis on a U.S. Perspective." Sustainability 12, no. 5 (February 25, 2020): 1706. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/su12051706.
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This review addresses the question of whether Thoroughbred horse racing is sustainable in the context of current social values. A recently acknowledged framework, known as ‘Social License to Operate’ (SLO), provides us with a lens through which to view and assess racehorse welfare. In multiple surveys of the general public, the horse owning public, and university students, the primary topics of concern regarding Thoroughbred racing show considerable concordance: concern about catastrophic injuries—particularly as related to track surfaces, concern over the racing of two-year-olds, whip use by jockeys, drug/medication policies, and aftercare opportunities for retired Thoroughbred racehorses. Legitimacy of an industry, consent from industry stakeholders, and trust between the community players, are all essential to have and maintain SLO. In the current era of 24/7 global media access, and the proliferation of social media providing an interactive platform for all interested parties, a dramatic change has occurred in commentary related to racehorse welfare concerns. The situation at Santa Anita (California, USA) from late December 2018 through mid-November 2019 demonstrated just how tenuous the SLO for horse racing is. This article will provide a brief review of what ‘Social License to Operate’ is, along with a brief literature review of five of the areas of primary concern voiced by stakeholders.
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Schopp, Kerstin. "Analyzing Coping Strategies and Adaptation after Resettlement—Case Study of Ekondo Kondo, Cameroon and Ekondo Kondo Model of Adaptation." Sustainability 12, no. 22 (November 18, 2020): 9615. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/su12229615.
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This article centrally deals with the resettlement of the Cameroonian village Ekondo Kondo. In the following paper, I present resettlements as catastrophic events for the relocated populations. Research was conducted in the resettled Cameroonian village of Ekondo Kondo. The objectives of the research were to find out what kind of changes and challenges (positive and negative) people faced after relocation, whether these changes and challenges illustrated aspects of adaptation after resettlement which are lacking in the literature, and whether they could be included in the existing models of adaptation after resettlement to provide an enhanced framework for resettlement-linked projects. I demonstrate the consequences of the relocation for women and men. Whereas women developed coping strategies, adapted to the new village (site) 13 years after the relocation, and were able to emancipate themselves, men are still struggling with the relocation’s changes including threats to their former social role as hunters. These results support my argument that the existing adaptation models in the literature do not depict all key challenges the relocated populations have to go through. According to the fieldwork results, there are several adaptation processes in different key areas which do not follow one another or run homogenously but overlap and sometimes happen at the same time and on different levels. Additionally, there are significant gender specific differences which can be depicted in these key areas. Further predispositions of social groups, such as interests or experiences, can influence the processes of coping and adaptation as well. For this reason, I present and introduce the Ekondo Kondo Model of adaptation after relocation, which can be helpful both for difficult adaptation following disasters and adaptation processes when people develop fast coping strategies and get positive results.
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Wang, Siqi, Jingbo Yin, and Rafi Ullah Khan. "The Multi-State Maritime Transportation System Risk Assessment and Safety Analysis." Sustainability 12, no. 14 (July 16, 2020): 5728. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/su12145728.
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Maritime transportation has a pivotal role in the foreign trade and hence, the world’s economic growth. It augments the realization of “Maritime Silk Road” strategy. However, the catastrophic nature of the maritime accidents has posed a serious threat to life, property, and environment. Maritime transportation safety is a complex system and is prone to human, equipment, and environment-based risks. In the existing literature, the risk assessment studies aimed at the analysis of maritime traffic safety usually consider the state of system as two ultimate states—one is the normal state and the other is the complete failure state. In contrast to the conventional approaches, this study incorporates a multistate criterion for system state giving consideration to the near or partial failures also. A Markov Chain-based methodology was adopted to determine the variations in state system and define the instant at which a low probability incident transforms into a high-risk intolerable event. The analysis imparts critical time nodes that could be utilized to reduce the risk and evade accidents. This study holds practical vitality for the concerned departments to circumvent the potential dangers and devise systematic preemptive procedures before the accident takes place. The results of this study could be employed to augment safety and sustainability of maritime traffic and decrease the associated pollution.
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Ahmed, Nihal, Franklin Ore Areche, Guillermo Gomer Cotrina Cabello, Pedro David Córdova Trujillo, Adnan Ahmed Sheikh, and Mohamad G. Abiad. "Intensifying Effects of Climate Change in Food Loss: A Threat to Food Security in Turkey." Sustainability 15, no. 1 (December 26, 2022): 350. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/su15010350.
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Turkey is increasingly concerned about the effects of climate change, weather unpredictability, and severe events on agricultural production, food loss, and livelihoods. Turkey has long struggled against climate variability and catastrophic climatic events to prevent further declines in agricultural output. This study assessed the risk of climate change in Turkey from the perspective of loss in food grains and food security domain considering exposure to extreme climate events using the data from 1991 to 2019. This paper makes a theoretical contribution to the literature by identifying the relationship between food waste and food import, food prices and economic growth. It also makes an empirical contribution by administering and econometrically analyzing the impact of the loss of food grains on the aforementioned independent variables. Policy implications for the current national agriculture policy were provided using the vector auto-regression (VAR) model and derivative analysis. Food grain loss negatively correlates with food security since it increases reliance on food imports from outside. Moreover, the losses in food supplies contributes greatly to price increases. The GDP growth rate, however, was shown to be a feeble instigator. Climate change threatens food security, and the country’s progress toward sustainable development objectives is hampered in general, particularly concerning no poverty and zero hunger goals. In conclusion, climate change and its associated factors harm Turkey’s food security and economy.
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Sitinjak, Charli, Rozmi Ismail, Edward Bantu, Rizqon Fajar, and Wiyanti Fransisca Simanullang. "Study of Public Perception Toward End-of-Life Vehicles (ELV) Management in Indonesia." International Journal of Sustainable Development and Planning 17, no. 4 (July 27, 2022): 1341–47. http://dx.doi.org/10.18280/ijsdp.170431.
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An ELV is a vehicle that has reached the end of its service life or service due to age or because it is unable to be used due to a catastrophic accident and high repair costs. The current methods of destroying ELV vehicles are unregistered, disassembly, destruction, and disassembly. Each procedure must adhere to predetermined guidelines. The purpose of this study is to conduct a survey of dietary knowledge about end-of-life vehicles (ELVs) in Indonesia. As a result, the purpose of this research is to learn about ELV laws and their implementation in countries that have done so successfully, as well as to learn about public perception of ELV application in Indonesia. A literature search of ELV laws in neighboring countries was conducted, as well as a survey of 98 respondents in Jakarta, Bogor, Depok, Tangerang, and Bekasi. SPSS was used to analyze the survey results. The questions in this study were divided into four sections: respondents' backgrounds; knowledge of ELV; concerns about ELV; and ELV campaigns. The findings revealed that public awareness of the use of ELV was quite low. In general, it can be concluded that the application of ELV in Indonesia needs to be carefully studied before it is implemented in order for it to be accepted by the public. Additionally, more ELV-related campaigns are required to increase the knowledge and awareness of the Indonesian people.
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García-Ayllón, Salvador. "New Strategies to Improve Co-Management in Enclosed Coastal Seas and Wetlands Subjected to Complex Environments: Socio-Economic Analysis Applied to an International Recovery Success Case Study after an Environmental Crisis." Sustainability 11, no. 4 (February 16, 2019): 1039. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/su11041039.
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Enclosed coastal seas and wetlands are areas of high ecological value with singular fauna and flora, but several cases of environmental catastrophes in recent decades can easily be referenced in the international literature. The management of these natural territories is complex in developed countries since they are usually subjected to intense human activity with a varied catalog of activities and anthropizing features that alter the balance of the ecosystem. In this article, the concept of the Socio-Ecological System (SES) to diagnose and achieve a sustainable cohabitation between human anthropization and the natural values based on the tool of GIS participatory mapping is proposed as an innovative approach for the management and recovery of these complex areas. The article develops a comprehensive general methodology of spatial GIS diagnosis, planning, and co-management implementation between public and private stakeholders combined with economic tools such as the Willingness to Pay (WTP) and the Cost Transfer Sector (CTS). This innovative approach is applied to the Mar Menor lagoon, which is an international and successful case study of environmental recovery on the Spanish Mediterranean coast. The coastal lagoon suffered an unprecedented eutrophication crisis in 2015, but it managed to recover in the summer of 2018 without the need to implement major structural measures. In this case study, several solutions to redress the current impacts will be developed through a participatory process based on GIS mapping. Lastly, the discussion reflects the concept of self-resilience of an ecosystem based on the unexpected positive turn of the environmental crisis in the lagoon ending.
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Fredrickson, Anne, Alexandra Farren Gibson, Kari Lancaster, and Sally Nathan. "“Devil’s Lure Took All I Had”: Moral Panic and the Discursive Construction of Crystal Methamphetamine in Australian News Media." Contemporary Drug Problems 46, no. 1 (January 31, 2019): 105–21. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0091450918823340.
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Crystal methamphetamine (“ice”) has been a fixture in Australian newspapers since the early 2000s. This study explores discourses at work in constructing the ice “problem” in recent Australian media, possible implications for how people who use ice are discursively positioned, and the resulting significance for drug policy. Twenty-seven articles were selected for discourse analysis, sampled from a larger study of Australian ice-related news items. By critically engaging with sociological concepts of “moral panic” and the “risk society,” we demonstrate how three media discourses produce the subject of the “young person” as both victimized by ice and a catastrophic threat in and of themselves: (1) “ice traps and transforms youth,” (2) “ice does not discriminate,” and (3) “ice perverts sanctuary.” These discourses illustrate the tensions between the meanings of ice use and understandings of safety and risk, speaking to current anxieties in Western, neoliberal societies. Ice use is further constructed as a form of abjection, threatening traditional social boundaries and institutions. However, the agency and determinism simultaneously granted to ice the substance troubles the notion we are witnessing yet another “drug scare” that polices social behavior. Instead, we observe how these discourses mirror those in the biomedical literature, which construct ice as a uniform, agentic, and uniquely dangerous drug. With use attributed to entrapment and/or naturalized as addiction, the drug is constituted as engineering its own, always harmful, consumption. This limits conceptions of any “safer,” “rational,” or “pleasurable” forms of ice use and further justifies state intervention on its users. Overall, these discourses rationalize prohibitionist interventions around ice and singularize drug consumption as a behavior requiring institutional management.
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Ruschak, Ilga, Pilar Montesó-Curto, Lluís Rosselló, Carina Aguilar Martín, Laura Sánchez-Montesó, and Loren Toussaint. "Fibromyalgia Syndrome Pain in Men and Women: A Scoping Review." Healthcare 11, no. 2 (January 11, 2023): 223. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/healthcare11020223.
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Fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS) is a chronic musculoskeletal disorder of unknown etiology that affects up to 5.0% of the world population. It has a high female predominance, between 80 and 96%. Due to the low number of diagnosed men, research work has focused mainly on women. The extensive body of literature on sex differences in pain in the general population suggests that men and women differ in their responses to pain, with greater sensitivity to pain and a higher risk of clinical pain commonly observed among women. This review aims to: (1) determine how pain is assessed or what types of questionnaires are used, (2) examine whether there are differences in pain characteristics between men and women with FMS and (3) describe how pain is conceptualized or manifested in patients at a qualitative level. In this study, the scoping review method of articles published in the last 5 years (2016–2022) was used. Ten articles were included. The most used questionnaires and scales to assess pain were the PVAS (Pain Visual Analogue Scale) and the FIQ (Fibromyalgia Impact Questionnaire). On the other hand, five categories were obtained: (1) qualities of pain, (2) uncertainty and chaos, (3) pain as an aggravating factor, (4) adaptation to the new reality and (5) the communication of pain. It has been observed that both subjective perception and widespread pain are higher in women. Men, on the other hand, have a worse impact of the pathology, more painful experiences and more catastrophic thoughts about pain. An updated knowledge of pain in FMS and whether it differs according to sex would be beneficial for clinicians to make an earlier diagnosis and treatment and, in turn, benefit patients suffering from this chronic disease.
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Pamidimukkala, Apurva, Sharareh Kermanshachi, Nikhitha Adepu, and Elnaz Safapour. "Resilience in Water Infrastructures: A Review of Challenges and Adoption Strategies." Sustainability 13, no. 23 (November 24, 2021): 12986. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/su132312986.
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An increase in the number and strength of natural catastrophes experienced over the past few decades has accelerated the damage sustained by infrastructures. Drinking water and wastewater infrastructure systems are critical aspects of a healthy environment, and their ability to withstand disasters is vital for effective disaster response and recovery. Although numerous studies have been conducted to determine the challenges that natural disasters render to water infrastructures, few extensive examinations of these challenges have been conducted. The goal of this study, therefore, was to identify and categorize the challenges related to the resilience of drinking water and wastewater infrastructures, and to determine the strategies that most effectively minimize their unintended consequences. A comprehensive evaluation of the existing literature was conducted, and 537 publications were collected. After extensive screening, 222 publications were selected for rigorous evaluation and analysis based on the data collection methods and other criteria. A total of fifty-one (51) challenges were determined and classified, within the following five categories: environmental, technical and infrastructure, social, organizational, and financial and economic. The challenges were then ranked within each category according to their frequency of occurrence in previous research. The results reveal that climate change, aging infrastructure, lack of infrastructure capital, population growth, improper maintenance of water infrastructure, and rapid urbanization are the most frequently cited challenges. Next, 30 strategies and approaches were identified and categorized into either preventive or corrective actions, according to their implementation time. The findings of this study will help decision- and policymakers properly allocate their limited funding to enhance the robustness of their water infrastructures before, during, and after natural hazards.
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Barceló, Ernest, Katarina Dimić-Mišić, Monir Imani, Vesna Spasojević Brkić, Michael Hummel, and Patrick Gane. "Regulatory Paradigm and Challenge for Blockchain Integration of Decentralized Systems: Example—Renewable Energy Grids." Sustainability 15, no. 3 (January 31, 2023): 2571. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/su15032571.
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Nowadays, fossil fuels are used in a clearly unsustainable way that can bring potentially catastrophic consequences. Electricity is currently delivered to end users by generation and energy transmission companies. Previous research shows that the development of modern circular economy sets a need for the re-orientation of socio and economic development of decentralized systems, including energy basis. In addition to being ecological, the use of renewable energy sources also has economic significance by contributing to energy independence. Citizens, industries, local and national authorities become interconnected within emerging novel renewable energy sourcing communities, through which they establish trade of energy and, most importantly, models of investing and reshaping the distribution of renewable energy. The modern portfolio management of renewable energy networking is aiming toward decentralized systems of trade, where the consumer becomes a producer (prosumer) within the network, itself managed by users. Excess energy produced in the micro-grid nets within the over-arching national and transnational energy grid should be accounted for and managed with blockchain technology for financial and structural security. The decentralization of the energy market requires the establishment of strict norms that will regulate the market and taxation of profits arising. The extensive literature review on blockchain in the energy sector reflects a very pragmatic and narrow approach to the topic, although it is evident that the distribution of energy within the blockchain would enable economic development through reducing cost and ensuring more secure energy trade. Blockchain technology embeds the related digital codes, in which information will be visible to all, but also secured from hacking and duplicating. However, there are challenges to this paradigm, not least the energy consumption of the extensive nodal mesh required to perform the necessary protocols. This paper aims to provide an overview of the application of blockchain technology and the need for the development of the regulatory system and of potential solutions to the challenges posed. By undertaking an energy consumption analysis of blockchain implementation from first electronic principles, which has not been constructed before in the literature, this paper’s conclusion stresses the future demand for reducing energy consumption and considers the latest findings in the quantum coupling of light signals as a potential for solving the enormous ledger duplication structure problem.
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Antwi, Henry Asante, Lulin Zhou, Xinglong Xu, and Tehzeeb Mustafa. "Progressing towards Environmental Health Targets in China: An Integrative Review of Achievements in Air and Water Pollution under the “Ecological Civilisation and the Beautiful China” Dream." Sustainability 13, no. 7 (March 25, 2021): 3664. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/su13073664.
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Despite the positive effect of industrialisation on health and quality of life indicators across the globe, it is also responsible for the release of chemical toxins into the environment. Thus, the pursuit of economic development through industrialisation has equally nurtured numerous environmental disasters with accompanying catastrophic health effects. China is one of the countries with high carbon emissions, but new policy changes have resulted in massive gains in controlling environmental damage while enhancing the environment-related quality of life. This paper combines the six-step integrative review strategy with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) strategy to determine appropriate exclusion and inclusion criteria to explore the available stock of literature. We note that overall pollution in China fell by 10% between 2014 and 2019 whereas the average fine particulate matter (PM2.5) concentration of 93 micrograms per cubic meter reduced by 47% by 2019. Beijing exhibited the top 200 most polluted cities in 2019 after recording the lowest PM2.5 ever. All cities that implemented the 2012 Environmental Air Quality Standards reduced the average concentration of PM2.5 and sulfur dioxide by 42–68% by the end of 2018. Improvements in freshwater quality and a decline in water pollution levels were recorded despite increases in economic growth, urbanisation, energy use, trade openness, and agriculture, all of which are major stimulants of pollution. Deterring environmental tariff, tight ecological inspections, closing down of non-compliant producers, heavy investment in environmental control, and the ambitious five year-plan to revitalise renewable energy goals emanating from China’s ecological civilisation masterplan are responsible for these improvements in air and water pollution. China needs to work more aggressively to consolidate the gains already made in order to quicken the actualisation of the ecological civilisation and beautiful China dream.
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Denisova, E. A. "The Originality of the Comic in the Prose of Venedict Marth." Studies in Theory of Literary Plot and Narratology 15, no. 2 (2020): 407–16. http://dx.doi.org/10.25205/2410-7883-2020-2-407-416.
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Venedikt Mart is the pseudonym of the poet and writer Venedikt Nikolaevich Matveev (1895–1937). He was born and lived in Vladivostok until 1920, where he published his poems in local newspapers and magazines, published his first collections in the printing house of his father, who was a writer and local historian Nikolai Amursky (Nikolai Petrovich Matveev), (1865–1941). Venedict Mart became famous for his futuristic poems and translations of Japa- nese and Chinese poetry. The collection “At the Love Crossroads of Fads” (1922) is a clear mockery of precision culture. The reference to the long-gone culture of past centuries is comical in that V. Marth’s pretentiousness of vocabulary and immoderate hyperbolism of short stories is stronger than in any French novel created by a writer-precision. The heroes’ love explanations take an unexpected turn, in which romantic stories are resolved in a comic manner. In June 1917, in St. Petersburg on Krestovsky Island, V. Mart wrote the book “Emerald Worms”. In one of the main refrains of the text: “You smile and Your smile will remain here on Earth – in March to enchant the autumn people...”, the author’s self-irony is noticeable, since in the book “You” means “Genius of the Cosmos” who reaches Immortality – this means that his works live forever. In the phrase “You stay in March,” the author cleverly uses the fact that his pseudonym coincides with the name of the month. This game with the reader is a characteristic feature of the entire work of the writer. In V. Mart’s prose of the late 1920s – early 1930s, an educational orientation and adherence to the “state order” are visible. The 1932 story “Dere – a Water Wedding” combines several artistic directions. Some fragments of the text are stylized like a fairy tale story. V. Mart confronts this artistic direction with the literature of fact, thereby creating a comic effect through which the author expresses the catastrophic nature of the process of loss of self-identification of a small people under the influence of the “new way of life”. In the collection “At the Love Crossroads of Fads” creates a comic effect through sheer mockery of precision culture. Here V. Mart uses fabulous motives, which he will extensively use in his prose. In the book “Emerald Worms” absurdity and the author’s self-irony are the main methods of the comic. Since the end of the 1920s, being under the supervision of the police and squeezed by the censorship framework from the explicit forms of the comic, V. Mart turns to hidden irony, which is read more at the stylistic level, for example, a deliberate combination of literary genres far from each other in one work.
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Adamu, Musa, Fayez Alanazi, Yasser E. Ibrahim, Hani Alanazi, and Veerendrakumar C. Khed. "A Comprehensive Review on Sustainable Natural Fiber in Cementitious Composites: The Date Palm Fiber Case." Sustainability 14, no. 11 (May 30, 2022): 6691. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/su14116691.
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The use of natural fibers in cementitious composites continue gaining acceptability and applicability due to the shortcomings and disadvantages of synthetic fiber; this is because natural fibers have advantages of sustainability, eco-friendliness, and economy. Biodegradable natural fibers, being low density and lightweight, with typical values of strength-to-weight ratio, aspect ratio, elastic modulus, and strength, may be competitive for substituting synthetic fibers such as glass and carbon. Indeed, natural fibers are mostly non-irritating for the skin and typically pose no troubles or issues for breathing, which is not the case with many synthetic fibers. Date palm fiber (DPF) is a natural fiber obtained as waste material from a date palm tree. In many countries, with large date production, DPF is easily available as a process by-product, with a low processing cost. Being sustainable and environmentally friendly, DPF is continuously gaining acceptability as fiber material in different composites such as concrete, mortar, gypsum composites, clay composites, and bricks. Based on the most available literature reviewed, DPF reinforced composites have been found to be a good insulation material, with higher thermal properties, thereby reducing energy consumption which consequently saves the running and maintenance cost of the building. DPF reinforced composites were reported to have higher energy absorption capacity, ductility, and bending resistance, leading to delaying crack propagation and preventing catastrophic failures of structures such as beams and slabs. Additionally, due to its lower density, DPF reinforced composites have the advantage for usage in areas prone to seismic effects, and when used for buildings, the overall weight of the building is expected to reduce hence reduction in foundation cost. The major setback of using DPF in composites is the reduction in the compressive strength of the composites and the durability performance of the composites. Therefore, for effective usage of DPF in composites to derive the maximum benefits, there is a need to devise a method of mitigating its negative effects on the compressive strength and durability performance of the Composites; this is a future study that needs to be explored for better performance of DPF in cementitious and other materials composites.
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Skarżyńska, Krystyna, Beata Urbańska, and Piotr Radkiewicz. "Under or out of government control? The effects of individual mental health and political views on the attribution of responsibility for COVID-19 incidence rates." Social Psychological Bulletin 16, no. 1 (March 30, 2021). http://dx.doi.org/10.32872/spb.4395.
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The paper shows the role of mental health and political views in attributing responsibility for COVID-19 incidence rates to the government and factors beyond government control. Authors' hypotheses draw on the classic and new versions of attribution theories, on literature from political psychology about the process of blaming the government for natural catastrophes, and also on local socio-political specifics (political polarization). The empirical data used in the article come from the survey carried out on-line via a professional research panel at the turn of May and June 2020, after about three months of lockdown, and during the presidential election campaign. The research sample included 850 Polish adults (aged 18 to 84) fully diversified in terms of gender, age, and education (the sample was representative for the Polish population in terms of respondents' place of residence and the country's region). To measure attribution of responsibility, the authors developed an 8-item instrument. Half of the instrument’s items indicate government and state institutions' responsibility and half describe circumstances not related to the government. The results showed that the respondents tended to attribute more responsibility for COVID-19 effects to the government than other ("non-government") factors. In explaining the government's responsibility, political views and party preferences play an incomparably more significant role than mental health symptoms. The authors interpret these results as the effect of attitudinal and affective political polarization of Polish society.
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Szocik, Konrad, and Rakhat Abylkasymova. "Covid-19 pandemic and future global catastrophic risks as a challenge for health-care ethics." International Journal of Human Rights in Healthcare ahead-of-print, ahead-of-print (May 15, 2021). http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/ijhrh-12-2020-0107.
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Purpose Current covid-19 pandemic challenges health-care ethics. Ones of the most important challenges are medical resources allocation and a duty to treat, often addressed to medical personnel. This paper suggests that there are good reasons to rethink our health-care ethics for future global catastrophic risks. Current pandemic shows how challenging can be an issue of resources allocation even in a relatively small kind of catastrophic event such as covid-19 pandemic. In this paper, the authors show that any future existential bigger catastrophe may require new guidelines for the allocation of medical resources. The idea of assisted dying is considered as a hypothetical scenario. Design/methodology/approach This is a conceptual work based on conceptual analysis at the intersection of risk studies, health-care ethics and future studies. This study builds the argument on the assumption that the covid-19 pandemic should be treated as a sort of global catastrophic risk. Findings show that there are no such attempts in currently published peer-reviewed academic literature. This is crucial concept for the meta-analysis. This study shows why and how current pandemic can be interpreted in terms of global catastrophic risk even if, literally, covid-19 does not meet all criteria required in the risk studies to be called a global catastrophe. Findings We can expect an emergence of discriminatory selection policy which will require some actions taken by future patients like, for example, genetic engineering. But even then it is inevitable that there will still be a large number of survivors who require medical assistance, which they have no chance of receiving. This is why this study has considered the concept of assisted dying understood as an official protocol for health-care ethics and resources allocation policy in the case of emergency situations. Possibly more controversial idea discussed in this paper is an idea of assisted dying for those who cannot receive required medical help. Such procedure could be applied in a mass-scale during a global catastrophic event. Research limitations/implications Philosophers and ethicists should identify and study all possible pros and cons of this discrimination rule. As this study’s findings suggested above, a reliable point of reference is the concept of substantial human enhancement. Human enhancement as such, widely debated, should be studied in that specific context of discrimination of patients in an access to limited medical resources. Last but not least, scientific community should study the concept of assisted dying which could be applied for those survivors who have no chance of obtaining medical care. Such criteria and concepts as cost-benefit analysis, the ethics of quality of life, autonomy of patients and duty of medical personnel should be considered. Practical implications Politicians and policymakers should prepare protocols for global catastrophes where these discrimination criteria would have to be applied. The same applies to the development of medical robotics aimed at replacing human health-care personnel. We assume that this is important implication for practical policy in healthcare. Our prediction, however plausible, is not a good scenario for humanity. But given this realistic development trajectory, we should do everything possible to prevent the need for the discriminatory rules in medical care described above. Originality/value This study offers the idea of assisted dying as a health-care policy in emergency situations. The authors expect that next future global catastrophes – looking at the current pandemic only as a mild prelude – will force a radical change in moral values and medical standards. New criteria of selection and discrimination will be perceived as much more exclusivist and unfair than criteria applied today.
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Mahajan, Niharika, and Baljit Kaur. "Analysing the expenditure on childbearing: a community-based cross-sectional study in rural areas of Punjab (India)." BMC Health Services Research 21, no. 1 (January 21, 2021). http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s12913-021-06075-2.
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Abstract Background A vast array of literature has established that high maternity expenditure precludes women from accessing health services. Further, this maternity expenditure takes catastrophic form, forcing individuals or households to significantly lower their standard of living now or at some time in future. The present study analyses expenditure on childbearing in rural areas of one of the richest and top performer states on health parameters in India, namely Punjab along with examining the determinants of catastrophic expenditure. It also attempts to examine the implementation of Janani Shishu Suraksha Karyakaram (JSSK) which entitles pregnant women to free maternity services in public health facilities. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted in rural areas of Punjab involving 420 recently delivered women, who were questioned about their socio-economic attributes and expenditure incurred in the process of childbearing using face to face, semi-structured interviews. Employing logistic regression, an attempt has been made to understand the determinants of catastrophic maternity expenditure, i.e., expenditure exceeding 10% of annual household income. Results Of the 420 respondents surveyed, 96.7% reported bearing expenditure on childbearing, irrespective of the type of health facility used and 25% respondents spent catastrophically. On an average, respondents have spent US$62.87 on antenatal care, US$112.86 on delivery and US$6.55 on postnatal care. The results of multivariable analysis reveal that respondents belonging to general category (non reserve category), lower wealth quintiles and using private health facilities have higher odds of incurring catastrophic expenditure. At the same time, poor quality of care at government hospitals and inability of public health staff to provide timely treatment are the driving forces for utilizing private health facilities. Even in the presence of free maternity scheme at government hospitals, respondents on an average spent US$55.22 on availing maternity services. Conclusion The study shows that risk of bearing catastrophic expenditure and being pushed down to abject poverty is higher for respondents who are already at the bottom of wealth quintiles. The policy imperative has to swing towards upgrading the creaky health infrastructure and addressing the issues of poor accountability and corruption at government hospitals, along with thwarting unregulated expansion of private health sector.
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Colchero, M. A., R. Gómez, and S. Bautista-Arredondo. "A systematic review of the literature on the impact of the Seguro Popular." Health Research Policy and Systems 20, no. 1 (April 18, 2022). http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s12961-022-00839-w.
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Abstract Background The Seguro Popular (SP) was launched in 2004 to increase access to healthcare and reduce catastrophic expenditures among the Mexican population. To document the evidence on its effectiveness, we conducted a systematic review of impact evaluations of the SP. Methods We included papers using rigorous quasi-experimental designs to assess the effectiveness of the SP. We evaluated the quality of each study and presented the statistical significance of the effects by outcome category. Results We identified 26 papers that met the inclusion criteria. Sixteen studies that evaluated the impact of SP on financial protection found consistent and statistically significant positive effects in 55% of the 65 outcomes analyzed. Nine studies evaluating utilization of health services for the general and infant populations found effectiveness on 40% of 30 outcomes analyzed. Concerning screening services for hypertension, diabetes, and cervical and prostate cancer, we found three studies evaluating 14 outcomes and finding significant effects on 50% of them. Studies looking at the impact of SP on diabetes, hypertension, and general health care and treatment evaluated 19 outcomes and found effects on 21% of them. One study assessed five diabetes monitoring services and found positive effects on four of them. The only study on morbidity and mortality found positive results on three of the four outcomes of interest. Conclusion We found mixed evidence on the impact of SP on financial protection, healthcare utilization, morbidity and mortality. In the 26 studies included in this review, researchers found positive effects in roughly half of the outcomes and null results on the rest.
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Yuan, Qingqing, Yuxuan Wu, Furong Li, Min Yang, Dandi Chen, and Kun Zou. "Economic status and catastrophic health expenditures in China in the last decade of health reform: a systematic review and meta-analysis." BMC Health Services Research 21, no. 1 (June 24, 2021). http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s12913-021-06408-1.
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Abstract Background In order to solve the problem of “expensive medical treatment and difficult medical treatment” for patients and improve the equity of medical services, China started the health-care reform in 2009, and proposed ambitious goals of providing fair and high-quality basic medical and health services to all citizens and reducing economic burden of diseases. This study was to systematically explore the association between population economic status and incidence of catastrophic health expenditures (CHE) in mainland China in the last decade since 2009 health reform. Methods This systematic review was reported according to the standard of preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analyses (PRISMA). We systematically searched Chinese Electronic literature Database of China Journal Full Text Database, Chinese Biomedical Journal Database, Wan fang Data Resource System, VIP Database, and English literature databases of PubMed, SCI, EMbase and Cochrane Library from January 2000 to June 2020, and references of included studies. Two reviewers independently selected all reports from 2000 to 2020 for empirical studies of CHE in mainland China, extracted data and evaluated the quality of the study. We conducted meta-analysis of the incidence of CHE and subgroup analysis according to the time of the study and the economic characteristics of residents. Results Four thousand eight hundred seventy-four records were retrieved and eventually 47 studies with 151,911 participants were included. The quality scores of most of studies were beyond 4 points (91.49%). The pooled incidence of CHE of Chinese residents in the last two decades was 23.3% (95% CI: 21.1 to 25.6%). The CHE incidence increased from 2000 to 2017, then decreased over time from 2017 to 2020. From 2000 to 2020, the CHE incidence in rural areas was 25.0% (95% CI: 20.9 to 29.1%) compared to urban 20.9% (95% CI: 18.3 to 23.4%); the CHE incidence in eastern, central and western China was 25.0% (95% CI: 19.2 to 30.8%), 25.4% (95% CI: 18.4 to 32.3%), and 23.1% (95% CI: 17.9 to 28.2%), respectively; the CHE incidence was 30.9% (95% CI: 22.4 to 39.5%), 20.3% (95% CI: 17.0 to 23.6%), 19.9% (95% CI: 15.6 to 24.1%), and 23.7% (95% CI: 18.0 to 29.3%) in poverty group, low-income group, middle-income group, and high-income group, respectively. Conclusions In the past two decade, the incidence of CHE in rural areas is higher than that of urban residents; higher in central areas than in eastern, western and other regions; in poverty households than in low-income, middle-income and high-income regions. Further measures should be taken to reduce the incidence of CHE in susceptible people.
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Quintal, Carlota. "Evolution of catastrophic health expenditure in a high income country: incidence versus inequalities." International Journal for Equity in Health 18, no. 1 (September 18, 2019). http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s12939-019-1044-9.
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Abstract Background Catastrophic health expenditure (CHE) is well established as an indicator of financial protection on which there is extensive literature. However, most works analyse mainly low to middle income countries and do not address the different distributional dimensions of CHE. We argue that, besides incidence, the latter are crucial to better grasp the scope and nature of financial protection problems. Our objectives are therefore to analyse the evolution of CHE in a high income country, considering both its incidence and distribution. Methods Data are taken from the last three waves of the Portuguese Household Budget Survey conducted in 2005/2006, 2010/2011 and 2015/2016. To identify CHE, the approach adopted is capacity to pay/normative food spending, at the 40% threshold. To analyse distribution, concentration curves and indices (CI) are used and adjusted odds ratios are calculated. Results The incidence of CHE was 2.57, 1.79 and 0.46%, in 2005, 2010 and 2015, respectively. CHE became highly concentrated among the poorest (the respective CI evolved from − 0.390 in 2005 to − 0.758 in 2015) and among families with elderly people (the absolute CI evolved from 0.520 in 2005 to 0.740 in 2015). Absolute CI in geographical context also increased over time (0.354 in 2015, 0.019 in 2005). Medicines represented by far the largest share of catastrophic payments, although, in this case concentration decreased (the median share of medicines diminished from 93 to 43% over the period analysed). Contrarily, the weight of expenses incurred with consultation fees has been growing (even for General Practitioners, despite the NHS coverage of primary care). Conclusions The incidence of CHE and inequality in its distribution might progress in the same direction or not, but most importantly policy makers should pay attention to the distributional dimensions of CHE as these might provide useful insight to target households at risk. Greater concentration of CHE can actually be regarded as an opportunity for policy making, because interventions to tackle CHE become more confined. Monitoring the distribution of payments across services can also contribute to early detection of emerging (and even, unexpected) drivers of catastrophic payments.
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Rahman, Taslima, Dominic Gasbarro, and Khurshid Alam. "Financial risk protection from out-of-pocket health spending in low- and middle-income countries: a scoping review of the literature." Health Research Policy and Systems 20, no. 1 (July 29, 2022). http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s12961-022-00886-3.
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Abstract Background Financial risk protection (FRP), defined as households’ access to needed healthcare services without experiencing undue financial hardship, is a critical health systems target, particularly in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). Given the remarkable growth in FRP literature in recent times, we conducted a scoping review of the literature on FRP from out-of-pocket (OOP) health spending in LMICs. The objective was to review current knowledge, identify evidence gaps and propose future research directions. Methods We followed the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) 2020 guidelines to conduct this scoping review. We systematically searched PubMed, Scopus, ProQuest and Web of Science in July 2021 for literature published since 1 January 2015. We included empirical studies that used nationally representative data from household surveys to measure the incidence of at least one of the following indicators: catastrophic health expenditure (CHE), impoverishment, adoption of strategies to cope with OOP expenses, and forgone care for financial reasons. Our review covered 155 studies and analysed the geographical focus, data sources, methods and analytical rigour of the studies. We also examined the level of FRP by disease categories (all diseases, chronic illnesses, communicable diseases) and the effect of health insurance on FRP. Results The extant literature primarily focused on India and China as research settings. Notably, no FRP study was available on chronic illness in any low-income country (LIC) or on communicable diseases in an upper-middle-income country (UMIC). Only one study comprehensively measured FRP by examining all four indicators. Most studies assessed (lack of) FRP as CHE incidence alone (37.4%) or as CHE and impoverishment incidence (39.4%). However, the LMIC literature did not incorporate the recent methodological advances to measure CHE and impoverishment that address the limitations of conventional methods. There were also gaps in utilizing available panel data to determine the length of the lack of FRP (e.g. duration of poverty caused by OOP expenses). The current estimates of FRP varied substantially among the LMICs, with some of the poorest countries in the world experiencing similar or even lower rates of CHE and impoverishment compared with the UMICs. Also, health insurance in LMICs did not consistently offer a higher degree of FRP. Conclusion The literature to date is unable to provide a reliable representation of the actual level of protection enjoyed by the LMIC population because of the lack of comprehensive measurement of FRP indicators coupled with the use of dated methodologies. Future research in LMICs should address the shortcomings identified in this review.
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Zawudie, Addisu Bogale, Dawit Wolde Daka, Dejene Teshome, and Meskerem Seboka Ergiba. "Economic Burden of Diabetic Mellitus Among Patients on Follow-up Care in Hospitals of Southwest Shewa Zone, Central Ethiopia." BMC Health Services Research 22, no. 1 (November 23, 2022). http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s12913-022-08819-0.
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Abstract Background Diabetes has emerged as one of the most serious health issues of the twenty-first century. Diabetes and its complications expose individuals and their families to catastrophic healthcare costs, which have a severe impact on the country's economy. Though the prevalence of diabetes is rising quicker in Ethiopia, little is known about its economic impact. Hence, this study aimed to determine the total cost of diabetic mellitus and associated factors among patients attending hospitals in Southwest Shewa zone, Central Ethiopia. Methods The study was conducted among diabetes patients who were on care and treatment from September to October 2020. Direct costs were calculated using the micro-costing technique, while indirect costs were calculated using the human capital approach. The statistical significance of cost difference between the groups of patient characteristics was determined using Wilcoxon and Kruskal-Wallis mean rank sum tests, and the factors associated with a total cost of illness were identified with Generalized Linear Model (GLM). Results Out of the planned patients, 398 have responded and were included in the analysis; making a response rate of 98.5%. The mean monthly total cost of diabetic mellitus was US$ 37.7(95% CI, 23.45–51.95). Direct and indirect costs constituted 76.2% and 23.8% of the total cost, respectively. The mean direct and indirect cost of diabetic mellitus per patient per month was US$ 28.73(95% CI, 17.17–40.29) and US$ 9.50 (95% CI, 1.99–16.99) respectively. Statistical mean cost differences were observed by gender, age groups, family size, and comorbidities. The total cost of illness was associated with residence (p=0.007), family size (p=0.001), presence of co-morbidities (p=0.04), and history of ever-stopping treatments (p<0.0001). Conclusions The total cost of diabetes condition was relatively high compared to other related literatures. The medical expenditures accounted for most direct costs for diabetic patients. As a result, the government should provide sufficient resources to safeguard patients against catastrophic medical costs. Efforts should be made to enhance access to diabetes care, and the supply of diabetic medications at all levels of health facilities.
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Borde, Moges Tadesse, Robel Hussen Kabthymer, Mohammed Feyisso Shaka, and Semagn Mekonnen Abate. "The burden of household out-of-pocket healthcare expenditures in Ethiopia: a systematic review and meta-analysis." International Journal for Equity in Health 21, no. 1 (January 31, 2022). http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s12939-021-01610-3.
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Abstract Background In Ethiopia, household Out-Of-Pocket healthcare expenditure accounts for one-third of total healthcare expenditure, is one of the highest in the world, and still creates barriers and difficulties for households to healthcare access and may delay or forgo needed healthcare use. Despite the presence of a few highly dispersed and inconsistent studies, no comprehensive study was conducted. Therefore, in this systematic review and meta-analysis, we aimed at estimating the pooled estimates of the burden of household Out-Of-Pocket healthcare expenditures among Ethiopian households and identifying its determinants. Methods We systematically searched articles from PubMed / Medline and Google scholar databases and direct Google search engine without restriction on publication period. Cross-sectional and cohort articles and grey literature published in English were included. Data were extracted using Microsoft Excel. Two reviewers screened the titles, reviewed the articles for inclusion, extracted the data, and conducted a quality assessment. The third reviewer commented on the review. Articles with no abstracts or full texts, editorials, and qualitative in design were excluded. To assess quality, Joanna Briggs Critical Appraisal Tools was used. A Forest plot was used to present summary information on each article and pooled common effects. Potential heterogeneity was checked using Cochrane’s Q test and I-squared statistic. We checked publication bias using a Funnel plot. Moreover, subgroup and sensitivity analyses were performed. Meta-analysis was used for the pooled estimates using RevMan statistical software Version 5.4.1. Results In this review, a total of 27 primary articles were included (with a total sample size of 331,537 participants). Because of the presence of heterogeneity, we employed a random-effects model; therefore, the pooled burden household Out-Of-Pocket / catastrophic healthcare expenditure in Ethiopia was strongly positively associated with household economic status. The odds of facing Out-Of-Pocket / catastrophic healthcare expenditures among the poorest quintile was about three times that of the richest (AOR = 3.09, 95% CI: 1.63, 5.86) p-value < 0.001. In addition, on pooled analysis, the mean direct Out-Of-Pocket healthcare expenditures were $32 per month (95%CI: $11, $52) (SD = $45), and the mean indirect Out-of-Pocket healthcare expenditures were $15 per month (95%CI: $3, $28) (SD = $17). The mean catastrophic healthcare expenditure at 10% of threshold was also disproportionately higher: 40% (95%CI: 28, 52%) (SD = 20%). Moreover, the common coping mechanisms were a sale of household assets, support from family, or loan: 40% (95%CI: 28, 52%) (SD = 20%). Conclusion Our study revealed the evidence of inequity in financial hardship that the burden of household Out-Of-Pocket / catastrophic healthcare expenditures gap persists among Ethiopian households that is unfair and unjust. To reduce the detected disparities in seeking healthcare among Ethiopian households, national healthcare priorities should target poor households. This calls for the Ministry of Health to improve the challenges and their impact on equity and design better prepayment policies and strengthen financial protection strategies to protect more vulnerable Ethiopian households. Protocol registration The details of this protocol have been registered on the PROSPERO database with reference number ID: CRD42021255977.
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Dylan, Huw, David V. Gioe, and Elena Grossfeld. "The autocrat’s intelligence paradox: Vladimir Putin’s (mis)management of Russian strategic assessment in the Ukraine War." British Journal of Politics and International Relations, December 29, 2022, 136914812211461. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/13691481221146113.
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Autocratic leaders rely on intelligence machineries for regime and personal security. They often manage large, powerful, unaccountable organisations, which they hold close. But, despite their close relationship with - and reliance upon - intelligence, autocrats also frequently struggle to use it to enhance decision-making and foreign policy, and consequently suffer avoidable intelligence failures. This article argues that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 is illustrative of this broader, though understudied, pattern of autocratic mismanagement of strategic intelligence. The invasion was both spurred and accompanied by a catastrophic intelligence failure, the responsibility for which rests with Vladimir Putin, the arbiter of a system with limited capacity to offer dispassionate strategic assessments. His failure is characteristic of autocratic regimes assessing foreign developments, including Putin’s Soviet predecessors. This article contributes to the emerging scholarship on intelligence in autocratic regimes by examining Putin’s use of intelligence in the Ukraine War in the context of the broader literature on intelligence and decision.
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Sales, Reneepearl Kim, Joseph Oraño, Rafael Deo Estanislao, Alfredo Jose Ballesteros, and Ma Ida Faye Gomez. "Research priority-setting for human, plant, and animal virology: an online experience for the Virology Institute of the Philippines." Health Research Policy and Systems 19, no. 1 (April 29, 2021). http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s12961-021-00723-z.
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Abstract Background Viral pandemics have had catastrophic consequences on population health and economies. The Philippine government intends to establish the Virology Institute of the Philippines, one of the key areas of which will be virology research. This project aimed to develop the institute’s research agenda across the fields of human, plant, and animal virology. Methodology Key considerations for the prioritization methodology were (1) the imminent establishment of the Virology Institute of the Philippines, (2) mobility restrictions caused by the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, (3) the timeline to develop the research agenda, and (4) the need to separate the research agenda for the three fields of human, plant, and animal virology. The process was fully conducted online in four steps: stakeholder identification, soliciting research priorities, generating initial research priorities, and final prioritization consultations conducted on Zoom Pro. Results Twenty-eight participants attended three online consultations between 21 and 27 July 2020 through Zoom Pro. Participants selected the research prioritization criteria and its weights, and used these to evaluate the research priorities. The final research agenda covers topics in epidemiology, diagnostics, surveillance, biosafety, and genomics. Conclusion This initiative resulted in the first research agenda for the Virology Institute of the Philippines across the three fields of human, plant, and animal virology. An expert-driven process which places a premium on consensus-building facilitated through online platforms was the most feasible approach to develop the research agenda. This process resulted in an agenda aligned with the mandates of national research councils but leaves gaps on areas such as emerging infectious diseases. Pre-COVID-19 literature expressed apprehensions on the online medium that weakens social ties necessary for consensus. Our experience with changing the mode of consensus-building shows that users will continually adapt to technology. Online tools are currently able to address the limitations of the virtual space.
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Rognsvåg, Turid, Maren Falch Lindberg, Anners Lerdal, Jan Stubberud, Ove Furnes, Inger Holm, Kari Indrekvam, et al. "Development of an internet-delivered cognitive behavioral therapy program for use in combination with exercise therapy and education by patients at increased risk of chronic pain following total knee arthroplasty." BMC Health Services Research 21, no. 1 (October 25, 2021). http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s12913-021-07177-7.
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Abstract Background Approximately 20% of patients experience chronic pain after total knee arthroplasty (TKA). Due to the growing number of TKA procedures, this will affect an increasing number of people worldwide. Catastrophic thinking, dysfunctional illness perception, poor mental health, anxiety and depression characterize these non-improvers, and indicate that these patients may need individualized treatment using a treatment approach based on the bio-psycho-social health model. The present study developed an internet-delivered cognitive behavioral therapy (iCBT) program to be combined with exercise therapy and education for patients with knee osteoarthritis (OA) at increased risk of chronic pain after TKA. Methods The development process followed the first two phases of the UK Medical Research Council framework for complex interventions. In the development phase, the first prototype of the iCBT program was developed based on literature review, established iCBT programs and multidisciplinary workshops. The feasibility phase consisted of testing the program, interviewing users, condensing the program, and tailoring it to the patient group. A physiotherapist manual was developed and adapted to physiotherapists who will serve as mentors. Results The development process resulted in an iCBT program consisting of 10 modules with educational texts, videos and exercises related to relevant topics such as goalsetting, stress and pain, lifestyle, automatic thoughts, mindfulness, selective attention, worry and rumination. A physiotherapist manual was developed to guide the physiotherapists in supporting the patients through the program and to optimize adherence to the program. Conclusions The iCBT program is tailored to patients at risk of chronic pain following TKA, and may be useful as a supplement to surgery and/or exercise therapy. A multicentre RCT will evaluate the iCBT program in combination with an exercise therapy and education program. This novel intervention may be a valuable contribution to the treatment of OA patients at risk of chronic pain after TKA. Trial registration The RCT is pre-registered at ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT03771430 11/12/2018.
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Shahabi, Saeed, Ahmad Ahmadi Teymourlouy, Hosein Shabaninejad, Mohammad Kamali, Kamran Bagheri Lankarani, and Parviz Mojgani. "Physical rehabilitation in Iran after international sanctions: explored findings from a qualitative study." Globalization and Health 16, no. 1 (September 23, 2020). http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s12992-020-00618-8.
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Abstract Background Although the main aims of sanctions are the political and economic pressures on governments, literature has demonstrated the harsh effects of sanctions on the general public, especially on the patients, poor and disabled people. Since the international sanctions regime negatively affected almost all dimensions of Iran’s health sector, this qualitative study was conducted to investigate the situation of the physical rehabilitation sector after these sanctions. Methods This qualitative study was conducted from January 2019 to June 2019 in Iran using Skype, telephone, and face-to-face in-depth semi-structured interviews. Purposive and snowball sampling approaches were used to identify the participants. Also, framework analysis approach was applied to analyze the collected data. Results In total, 38 individuals including health policy-maker, faculty member, rehabilitation expert, Physiotherapist, Occupational therapist, and Orthotist/Prosthetist, were involved in the study. Based on our findings, a number of challenges facing the Iranian physical rehabilitation sector during the international sanctions period included: 1) socioeconomic challenges (inadequate funding, rising inflation rate, high unemployment rate, catastrophic expenditures, and inappropriate employment status of practitioners); 2) education challenges (decreased international collaboration and shortage of training devices and materials); 3) international challenges (rising issues in accessing services for patients from neighborhood countries); and 4) service delivery challenges (shortage of raw materials for producing the orthoses and prostheses, hardening of the importing the needed equipment, inappropriate infrastructures, and impossibility to use external assistance). Conclusion After international sanctions, the Iranian physical rehabilitation sector has faced considerable multifaceted challenges. Therefore, the international community must be aware of the situation and be concerned about the irreparable consequences.