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Introduction: Acute gastroenteritis is a clinical syndrome often defined by increased stool frequency (eg, ≥3 loose or watery stools in 24 hours, also it is one of the most common causes of morbidity and mortality in children under 5 years in the developing world. Racecadotril is an antisecretory agent that can prevent fluid/electrolyte depletion from the bowel as a result of acute diarrhea without affecting intestinal motility. Research question or hypothesis: To investigate whether prescribing Racecadotril plus oral rehydrating solution in outpatient care helps to decrease the hospital revisit rate within 72 hours due to acute gastroenteritis in comparison with oral rehydrating solution alone. Study design: Retrospective cohort study. Methods: Pediatric patients aged 3 months to 14 years visited Al Wakra Pediatric emergency department due to acute gastroenteritis for outpatient care in the period between 1/1/2022 till 30/06/2022 were included. Case group was defined as patients who prescribed oral rehydrating solution plus Racecadotril upon their initial visit. Control group was defined as patients who prescribed only oral rehydrating solution upon their initial visit. Results: 2505 pediatric patients were included, 520 patients were enrolled in the control group, and 1985 patients were included in the case group. Most patients in both groups were 1 to 5 years old (67% in control group, and 59% in case group). The hospital revisit rate within 72 hours due to gastroenteritis was slightly less in case group 7.1% in comparison with 7.5% in control group (Relative risk 0.95, 95% CI 0.68 to 1.34). Most patients (88%) who revisited the hospital due to gastroenteritis within 72 hours showed no or mild signs of clinical dehydration in their initial visit (77% in control group, and 93% in case group) Conclusion: Racecadotril was found to have insignificant impact on hospital revisit rate in acute pediatric gastroenteritis managed at outpatient setting. (AU)
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Humanos , Masculino , Feminino , Lactente , Pré-Escolar , Criança , Gastroenterite/tratamento farmacológico , Assistência Ambulatorial , Visita a Consultório Médico , Antidiarreicos/uso terapêutico , Estudos Retrospectivos , Estudos de Coortes , Catar , Soluções para Reidratação/uso terapêutico , Antidiarreicos/efeitos adversosRESUMO
Background and objectivesPerceived stigma related to infectious diseases is of public health importance and can adversely impact patients' physical and mental health. This study aims to identify the level of perceived stigma among COVID-19 survivors in Qatar and investigate its predictors.MethodsAn analytical cross-sectional design was employed. Four hundred and four participants who had a positive COVID-19 PCR test were randomly selected from medical records. The selected participants were interviewed to collect sociodemographic and health-related information. Perceived stigma was assessed using the COVID-19 perceived stigma scale-22 (CPSS-22) that was developed by the researchers. A descriptive analysis followed by a bivariate analysis investigated possible associations between the perceived stigma levels and independent variables. A multivariable analysis was performed using logistic regression to identify any significant associations with perceived stigma. The validity and reliability of the developed tool were also tested.ResultsThe prevalence of COVID-19 perceived stigma was twenty-six percent (n = 107, 26.4%) at 95% CI [22.430.4]. Factors associated with higher COVID-19 perceived stigma were male gender, being a manual worker, non-Arabic ethnicity, low educational level, living alone, and being isolated outside the home. However, only occupation, ethnicity, and low educational level predicted COVID-19 perceived stigma in multivariable analysis. The CPSS-22 showed excellent reliability (Cronbach's alpha 0.92).ConclusionPerceived stigma was relatively common among participants. Designing programs and interventions targeting male manual workers and those of low-educational levels may assist policymakers in mitigating the stigma related to COVID-19. (AU)
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Humanos , Coronavírus Relacionado à Síndrome Respiratória Aguda Grave , Infecções por Coronavirus/epidemiologia , Estigma Social , Estereotipagem , CatarRESUMO
Background: The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) gained global attention because of its high transmissibility and the devastating impact on both clinical and economic outcomes. Pharmacists are among the front-line healthcare workers who contributed widely to COVID-19 pandemic control. We aim to evaluate knowledge and attitude of hospital pharmacists in Qatar about COVID-19. Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional web-based survey was distributed over a 2-months period. The study included pharmacists who are working in 10 different hospitals under Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC). The survey was developed based on information available at World Health Organization (WHO) website, Qatar Ministry of Health, and COVID-19 guideline created by HMC. The study was approved by HMCs institutional review board (MRC-01-20-1009). Data analysis was done using SPSS version 22. Results: A total of 187 pharmacists were included (response rate 33%). The overall level of knowledge was not affected by the participants demographics (p-value ≥0.05). Pharmacists provided more correct answers to questions related to general knowledge about COVID-19 compared to questions specificto treatment aspects of the disease. More than 50% of pharmacists were using national resources as main source of information related to COVID-19. Good health practices and attitudes regarding disease control was reported by pharmacists, including preventive measures implementation and self-isolation when needed. Around 80% of pharmacists are in favor of taking influenza vaccine and COVID-19 vaccine. (AU)
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Humanos , Masculino , Feminino , Adulto , Pessoa de Meia-Idade , Idoso , Idoso de 80 Anos ou mais , Pandemias , Infecções por Coronavirus/epidemiologia , Conhecimentos, Atitudes e Prática em Saúde , Catar , Inquéritos e Questionários , Epidemiologia Descritiva , Estudos TransversaisRESUMO
Background: Public awareness of the role of pharmacists and availability of pharmacy services in Qatar is low. As per agenda-setting theory, mass media may be contributing toward this problem by selecting and disseminating headlines and stories according their own objectives and not those of the profession. Objectives: The objective of this study was to examine the agenda set by mass media organizations in Qatar pertaining to the profession of pharmacy and to determine the frequency of professional identifiers that appear within news headlines. Methods: Publicly available news headlines published between November 2016 and November 2018 were obtained from local news websites. Thematic analysis was performed using agenda-setting theory to explore how the public's agenda was set for pharmacy practice in Qatar. Content analysis was used to determine the proportion of headlines that contained a professional identifier linking the news report to the pharmacy profession. Results: A total of 81 headlines were included in the analysis. The agenda for pharmacy practice in Qatar was set according to two themes: achievement and outreach/engagement. Achievement related to awards, use of new technologies, interprofessional education, and novel student training accomplishments. Outreach/engagement reported student and pharmacist involvement upon completion of a health awareness event. Approximately half (47%) of headlines contained a professional identifying word linking the headline to the profession of pharmacy. Conclusions: The findings of this study demonstrate that the mass media's agenda for the pharmacy profession in Qatar does not inform the public of pharmacist's services or expanded scopes of practice. Furthermore, a lack of professional identifiers within headlines likely limits the public's agenda of pharmacist roles. The pharmacy profession must work collaboratively with news media to better align the public's agenda with pharmacists' roles and services
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Humanos , Serviço de Farmácia Hospitalar/tendências , Farmacêuticos/tendências , Catar/epidemiologia , Meios de Comunicação de Massa/estatística & dados numéricos , Papel Profissional , Percepção SocialRESUMO
Objective: To evaluate Qatari pharmacists prescribing, labeling, dispensing and counseling practices in response to acute community-acquired gastroenteritis. Methods: The simulated patient method was used in this study. Thirty pharmacies in Doha were randomly selected and further randomized into two groups: Face-to-Face (n=15) vs. Telephone-call (n=15) per simulated patient; 2 simulated patients were involved. Prescribing, labeling, dispensing and counseling practices were assessed. Data analysis was performed using Mann-Whitney and chi square tests at alpha=0.05. Results: Most pharmacists prescribed and dispensed medicines (96%), including antimicrobials (43.9%), antidiarrheals (36%), antiemetics (5.1%) and antipyretics (3%). Counseling practices were poor (62.1% in the face-to-face group vs 70% in the telephone-call group did not counsel simulated patients about the dispensed medicines; p-value=0.50). In more than one-third of the encounters, at least one labeling parameter was missing. The duration of each interaction in minutes was not significantly different between the groups [median (IQR); 3(4.25) in the face-to-face group versus 2(0.25) in the telephone-call group; p-value=0.77]. No significant differences in prescribing or dispensing behaviors were present between groups (p-value>0.05). Conclusion: Qatar community pharmacists labeling, dispensing, and counseling practices were below expectation, thus urging the need for continuous professional development (AU)
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