Suchergebnisse

Between 2014 and 2016, the three West African countries of Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone experienced the deadliest Ebola virus disease (EVD) outbreak in sub-Saharan Africa. Two years later, a tenth epidemic recurred in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), specifically in the North Kivu and Ituri provinces, which lasted until June 2020. Though they occurred in different countries, a review of how the EVD outbreaks in Guinea, Liberia, Sierra Leone, and the DRC were handled by the respective country governments, reveal gaps in disease detection, response and action due to lack of surveillance, an EVD preparedness plan, and weak health systems. This perspective discusses the EVD outbreaks in Guinea, Liberia, Sierra Leone, and the DRC, their effects, and draws attention to gaps that need to be addressed by these countries in order to be better prepared to handle future outbreaks. Acting on the proposed recommendations will not only benefit Guinea, Liberia, Sierra Leone, and the DRC in the future, but will be of benefit to EVD susceptible countries in sub-Saharan Africa, as we live in a global community where diseases are no respecters of boundaries.

On March 11, 2020, the World Health organization declared COVID-19 a global pandemic. Following the speed with which COVID-19 spread to all parts of the world, and to contain the spread of the disease, most governments around the world, including the US, authorized unprecedented social containment measures to stem the tide. These measures among others required social distancing and the temporary physical closure of educational institutions. The Georgia State University School of Public Health, like all other institutions of higher learning, had to create distance-learning opportunities to enable students to complete the 2019–2020 academic year. The unplanned, rapid, and uncertain duration of the approach presented challenges at all academic levels. Not much information on best practices was available to guide such abrupt transitions to college education. The purpose of the study was to collect data on how the transition to distance learning impacted undergraduate and graduate students taking courses in public health at GSU. The goal was to identify student academic challenges and the unforeseen benefits of distance learning, and to use that information to inform practices that can be implemented during crises that impact university education.

Despite their adverse health effects, e-cigarette use has increased considerably among adolescents (people aged 10-19 years) in the United States. This is due to a number of factors including peer pressure, the availability of a variety of e-liquid flavors, the targeted marketing of these products to adolescents, and the belief by adolescents that e-cigarettes are less harmful to health than tobacco products. Just as traditional tobacco products, e-cigarettes have been found to be harmful to health and responsible for multiple adverse health conditions in adolescents, including inhibited growth and development, poor mental health, certain cancers, lung damage, nicotine dependency, future drug use, and social stigmatization. While the United States government realizes the harmful effects of e-cigarettes on adolescents, and although it has put in place certain policies to regulate the issue, e-cigarette use continues to be a public health problem among adolescents. This article discusses e-cigarettes, their use, risk factors, and health effects on adolescents in the US. It also proposes strategies for safeguarding adolescent health.