[Italian Association of Epidemiology: How has the demographic, educational, and occupational profile of members changed in recent years]. / Associazione Italiana di Epidemiologia: com'è cambiato il profilo demografico, formativo e occupazionale dei soci e delle socie negli ultimi anni.

In recent years, the number of members of the Italian Association of Epidemiology (AIE) has increased considerably, and their profile has undergone many changes. The aim of this work is to describe the characteristics of the members, with particular attention to those who have been continuously enrolled. To evaluate these characteristics, the data from membership forms submitted to the Association and information available on the new website in the personal profile area (period 2016-2024) were used. The characteristics considered were: gender, age, education, and job position of the member, Region, and type of affiliated institution. Members with at least three registrations during the period considered, including at least one in the last three years (2022-2024), are considered continuous members.In 2024, AIE counts 557 members, of whom 340 (61.0%) are female and 182 (32.7%) are under 35 years old. This data confirms the growing trend observed since 2015, when the number of members was just above 300, considering that each year there is a quota of new members amounting to about 30%. A total of 382 members can be considered continuous. Over 90% of these members work in 8 Regions (Lazio, Piedmont, Emilia-Romagna, Lombardy, Tuscany, Veneto, Puglia, and Sicily), while the other regions are scarcely or not represented at all. Over time, and with the arrival of new members, the Association is shifting towards the academic world, while the proportion of professionals working in public health institutions has decreased. Members are overall highly educated; however, while older cohorts have predominantly a medical and biological education, younger cohorts increasingly have statistical/mathematical education. Seventy percent of the members have a permanent contract, 5% have a fixed-term contract, and 13% have an atypical contract. Precarious contracts tend to be lower among medical graduates and remain higher in other health professions and non-health-related degrees.AIE is dealing with a period of dynamism and openness, marked by the increase in the number of the members and the transformation of their occupational and educational profile. It is crucial to support and promote the ongoing positive changes, such as the wider geographic representativeness and the entry of new recruits, also facilitated by multiple activities carried out by AIE, including congresses, working groups, webinars, training courses, and collaborations with other scientific societies. At the same time, it might be useful to open a discussion on the meaning and consequences of the increase of academic members and the reduction, at least in relative terms, of individuals coming from public health. Finally, it will be necessary to approach some critical issues, such as the still poor multidisciplinarity and the persistence of job insecurity, especially among graduates in educational pathways that still do not fit into the professional profiles recognized by the NHS.

Characteristics of out-of-hospital births and perinatal outcomes: data from the Lazio Region, Italy, cross-sectional study from 2019 to 2021.

INTRODUCTION: In Italy, the primary place of birth is typically a hospital, with only a small number of women opting for an out-of-hospital setting. This study details the characteristics of midwifery care and perinatal and maternal outcomes of women who gave birth in an out-of-hospital setting in the Lazio Region, Italy, from 2019 to 2021. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was carried out. The study population included 542 healthy low-risk women who completed the process of planning an out-of-hospital birth, and excluding transfers, this resulted in a total sample of 478 women who gave birth out-of-hospital. Descriptive and inferential analyses and also a logistic regression model were performed. RESULTS: The main outcomes of the out-of-hospital deliveries were: intact perineum in 38.9% of cases, two cases of 3rd degree laceration (0.4%) and in one case (0.2%) episiotomy. Intrapartum emergencies occurred in 85 out of 478 women (17.8%) but only 10 women required a transfer to hospital after delivery. The one minute Apgar score was equal to or greater than 7 in 99.2% of cases. Exclusive breastfeeding of 96% one week after birth and 94.6% one month. Furthermore, having a previous vaginal hospital birth (adjOR 9.7; CI 95% 4.33-21.68 P<0.001) and a previous out-of-hospital birth (adjOR 24.2; CI 95% 3.23-181.48 P=0.002) was associated with the continuation of out-of-hospital birth. CONCLUSIONS: For low-risk pregnant women who have planned an out-of-hospital birth, it has been shown to be a safe, adequate, appropriate, and effective alternative.

[The protocol of the Easy-Net prospective project to improve the appropriateness of caesarean section in Calabria Region.] / Il protocollo del progetto prospettico Easy-Net per migliorare l'appropriatezza del ricorso al taglio cesareo nella Regione Calabria.

Italy is one of the European Countries with the highest caesarean section (CS) rate and large regional and local variability. In 2021, Calabria Region ranked as the third Italian region for the highest CS rate (38.5%). Calabria Region has joined the "Easy-Net" network program of Ministry of Health (NET-2016-02364191) on the evaluation of audit & feedback (A&F) interventions (Easy-Net https://easy-net.info/). The Easy-Net project is coordinated by The Department of Epidemiology of the Lazio Regional Health Service, and led for the Calabria Region by the Pugliese-Ciaccio Hospital of Catanzaro, with the Italian Ministry of Health and the Italian National Institute of Health. This project aims to reduce CS rate in Calabria Region, through A&F strategy interventions to improve perinatal care quality and maternal and neonatal outcomes. The adopted multi-strategic approach involves the use of Robson's classification to improve the appropriateness of the CS indications, and the A&F activities to identify health professionals' training needs and offer training update. This article describes the protocol of the Easy-Net WP6 study, "Prospective audit and feedback approach: efficacy in improving healthcare practice and reducing the caesarean section rate" (NET-2016-02364191-6). The project is organized in five phases which envisage the pre-intervention data collection relating to indicators of interest and staff attitudes on CS indication and A&F strategy. The 12 months of A&F interventions will be followed by the post-intervention data collection and the evaluation of appropriateness indicators and determinants. A study aimed at women is also planned to detect opinions regarding the use of CS. The study protocol was approved by the Ethics Committee of the Pugliese Ciaccio Hospital.

Breastfeeding and presence of the companion of woman's choice during COVID-19 pandemic in Italy: regional population-based routine data and best practices at birth

OBJECTIVES: to describe the monthly trend of breastfeeding during hospitalization and the presence of companion of woman's choice during labour and birth, and the key regional responders' perspective of homogeneity/heterogeneity of the presence of the support person, before, during (February-May 2020), and after the first COVID-19 pandemic wave in a few Italian Regions. DESIGN: two-phase study. SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS: data from the italian birth certificate of six Italian Regions between 01.01.2019 and 31.03.2021 were analysed. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with the key regional respondents. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: the frequency distributions of breastfeeding and the presence of companion of woman's choice were calculated as a whole and for each Region. RESULTS: the infant feeding practices experienced smaller changes during COVID-19 pandemic than the presence of the companion of woman's choice during labour and birth, from January 2019 to March 2021. The highest value of exclusive breastfeeding was recorded in September 2020 (72.1%; 95%CI 71.3-72.8) in all Regions, while the lowest was recorded in March 2021 (62.5%; 95%CI 61.5-63.4). The presence of companion of woman's choice during labour and birth decreased during the pandemic and did not return to pre-pandemic levels. The highest value of presence of father during birth was recorded in March 2019 (59.0%; 95%CI 58.2-59.8), while the lowest in April 2020 (50.0%; 95%CI 49.1-50.8). The main emerging themes were: the existence of national, regional and local indications; the facilitators (e.g., Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative implementation, strong motivation of the staff) and the critical points (e.g., inadequate analysis of the clinical-epidemiological context, inhomogeneous indications) of management of the support person presence. CONCLUSIONS: the emergency has changed the provision of health services that not always guaranteed the application of best practices. It would be desirable to work for assessing the appropriateness of the birth certificate data to collect more accurate information and to provide clinical recommendations.

Health needs and perception of health care quality among Asylum Seekers and Refugees in an Italian local health authority: A qualitative study.

Background: Migrants, Asylum Seekers and Refugees (ASRs) represent a vulnerable diversified population with increased risks of developing health problems, and in the hosting countries several barriers often hamper their access to the health services. Gathering information about ASRs' experiences and perceptions of host country health care systems may contribute to improve the quality of health care provided. The aim of this study was to explore the health needs in their bio-psycho-social meaning, and the quality of health care as perceived from the ASRs' perspective. Methods: The qualitative descriptive study was conducted as part of the Project "G-START - testing a governance model of receiving and taking care of the Asylum Seekers and Refugees." Through purposeful and snowball sampling, four Focus Groups conducted in English, Italian and French were carried out between July and August 2019, involving 50 ASRs hosted by four reception centers located on the territory pertaining to an Italian Local Health Authority covering a general population of 500.000 people. The analysis of data was categorical, and was performed using N-Vivo software. Results: The macro-categories emerged were the ASRs' bio-psycho-social health needs, including mental health, sexual and reproductive health, food and nutrition, knowledge of the health care system, need for inclusion; healthcare services access, including barriers before and after the access and the ability of the local health system to respond to existing and evolving demands; strengths of the healthcare and reception systems, and suggestions for improving them in the future. Discussion and conclusions: ASRs present vulnerabilities and specific health needs, and the health care system is not always able to guarantee access or to respond to these needs. Several obstacles have been highlighted, such as linguistic barriers and lack of cultural mediation, bureaucratic and administrative barriers, lack of knowledge of the Italian health care system. An effective reorganization of services driven by a more detailed output analysis of the target population needs, together with the use of cultural mediation, peer to peer education and support, and the training of health professionals are recommended to ensure a more accessible, equitable and effective health care system at local level.

Health Belief Model efficacy in explaining and predicting intention or uptake influenza vaccination during pregnancy.

INTRODUCTION: The influenza vaccination is a priority during pregnancy due to infection-related-outcomes. The study aim is to assess the acceptance by women of influenza vaccination during pregnancy based on Health Belief Model (HBM). METHODS: A multicentre observational study was carried out with a convenience sample of 300 respondents. RESULTS: Most women (53.7%) declared that they worried to contract influenza during pregnancy and 80.7% of them agreed that there is a risk of contracting influenza during the first months of life. Vaccine benefits (adjOR 4.3 CI 95% 1.7-10.9 p <0.01), information on vaccination (adjOR 2.6 CI 95% 1.2-5.5 p <0.01) and trust in guidelines (adjOR 3.5 CI 95% 1.6-7.3 p <0.01) are some factors associated with intent/vaccination during pregnancy. CONCLUSIONS: HBM confirms its effectiveness in explaining/predicting health behaviours. It is necessary to create trust in the vaccinations through an integrated work of health professionals to set up training programs and to provide effective health communication.

Dietary habits, lifestyle, and gestational diabetes in immigrant women: a survey in Northwestern Tuscany (Central Italy).

BACKGROUND: immigrant women diagnosed with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) have additional language and cultural obstacles in following lifestyle and dietary recommendations within a Western health care setting. OBJECTIVES: to describe: • sociodemographic characteristics and dietary and lifestyle behaviours in Italian and immigrant pregnant women who underwent a GDM screening; • any differences in these aspects among GDM Italian and immigrant women; • any differences in terms of primary maternal-neonatal outcomes among GDM and normal glucose tolerance (NGT) cohorts. DESIGN: survey. SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS: this survey was conducted in three hospitals located in Tuscany Region (Central Italy). According to a convenience sampling, an ad hoc questionnaire was administered both to Italian and immigrant women who underwent an oral glucose tolerance test. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: information about nutrition and lifestyle, medical and obstetric history, clinical and therapy data, maternal and neonatal primary outcomes was analysed. Eating habits have been investigated referring to the prudent diet, in order to also include those foods specifically consumed by the immigrant women, in addition to the Mediterranean Diet which is more widespread among Italians. RESULTS: a total of 117 Italian women (42 diagnosed with GDM) and 95 immigrant women (36 with GDM) were enrolled. Immigrant women showed lower adherence to the prudent diet compared to Italian women (p<0.05) and a broader use of unhealthy food preparation (e.g., frying; p<0.05). Primary maternal and neonatal outcomes (preterm birth, caesarean section, macrosomia) showed no statistical differences among GDM and NGT cohorts. CONCLUSIONS: even if immigrant and Italian women gained similar pregnancy outcomes, immigrant women showed lower adherence to the prudent diet at the time of GDM screening. An ethnic and tailored meal plan is needed to overcome cultural barriers in dietary recommendations during pregnancy in immigrant women.

Pregnancy outcomes in Italy during COVID-19 pandemic: a population-based cohort study.

OBJECTIVE: To compare the estimates of preterm birth (PTB; 22-36 weeks gestational age, GA) and stillbirth rates during COVID-19 pandemic in Italy with those recorded in the three previous years. DESIGN: A population-based cohort study of liveborn and stillborn infants was conducted using data from Regional Health Systems and comparing the pandemic period (March 1st , 2020-March 31st , 2021, N= 362,129) to an historical period (January 2017- February 2020, N=1,117,172). The cohort covered 84.3% of the births in Italy. METHODS: Poisson regressions were run in each Region and meta-analyses were performed centrally. We used an interrupted time series regression analysis to study the trend of preterm births from 2017 to 2021. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: The primary outcomes were PTB and stillbirths. Secondary outcomes were late PTB (32-36 weeks' GA), very PTB (<32 weeks' GA), and extremely PTB (<28 weeks' GA), overall and stratified into singleton and multiples. RESULTS: The pandemic period compared with the historical one was associated with a reduced risk for PTB (Risk Ratio: 0.91; 95% Confidence Interval, CI: 0.88, 0.93), late PTB (0.91; 0.88, 0.94), very PTB (0.88; 0.84, 0.91), and extremely PTB (0.88; 0.82, 0.95). In multiples, point estimates were not very different, but had wider CIs. No association was found for stillbirths (1.01; 0.90, 1.13). A linear decreasing trend in PTB rate was present in the historical period, with a further reduction after the lockdown. CONCLUSIONS: We demonstrated a decrease in PTB rate after the introduction of COVID-19 restriction measures, without an increase in stillbirths.

Prevalence of breastfeeding and birth practices during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic within the Italian Baby-Friendly Hospital network. What have we learned?

BACKGROUND: At the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, healthcare workers were faced with difficult decisions about maternity care practices. The evidence-based practices recommended by the WHO/UNICEF Baby Friendly Hospital Initiative (BFHI) were confirmed by Italian national guidance. AIM: To describe, in a number of facilities that are part of a national Baby-Friendly network, the adherence to some steps of BFHI standards during the COVID-19 emergency. METHODS: We conducted a cross-sectional online survey, inviting all hospitals interested in the Initiative, to fill out a semi-structured questionnaire. RESULTS: Out of the 68 participating hospitals, 30.9% were hubs and 69.1% spokes. During May 2020, 61.8% of hospitals had COVID-19 and non-COVID-19 clinical pathways, while 38.8% were only non-COVID-19. None was dedicated exclusively to COVID-19 pathways. The BFHI was effective in guaranteeing ≥80% exclusive breastfeeding, the presence of companion of mother's choice, skin-to-skin and rooming-in. The type of accreditation was associated with the presence of a companion of the mother's choice during labour (p=0.022) and with skin-to-skin (p<0.001). According to the narratives, increased interpersonal distance made interactions with mothers difficult and the absence of a birth companion was reported as a major issue. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS: The BFHI is a highly-structured, evidence-based care model. Investing in strong collaborative care approaches contributes to hospitals' preparedness.

Breastfeeding and humanitarian emergencies: the experiences of pregnant and lactating women during the earthquake in Abruzzo, Italy.

BACKGROUND: Emergencies have a great impact on infant and young child feeding. Despite the evidence, the recommended feeding practices are often not implemented in the emergency response, undermining infant and maternal health. The aim of this study was to explore the experiences of pregnant and lactating women during the earthquake emergency that occurred in L'Aquila on 6 April 2009. METHODS: The study design was qualitative descriptive. Data were collected by individual semi-structured interviews, investigating the mother's experiences of pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding, infant formula or complementary feeding during the emergency and the post emergency phase. Data analysis was categorical and was performed by using N-Vivo software. RESULTS: Six women who were pregnant at the time of the earthquake were interviewed in January 2010. In addition to the essential needs of pregnant and lactating women, such as those related to the emergency shelters conditions, the main findings emerged from this study were: the reconfiguration of relationships and the central role of partners and family support; the need of spaces for sharing experiences and practices with other mothers; the lack of breastfeeding support after the hospital discharge; the inappropriate donations and distribution of Breast Milk Substitutes. CONCLUSIONS: During and after L'Aquila earthquake, several aspects of infant and young child feeding did not comply with standard practices and recommendations. The response system appeared not always able to address the specific needs of pregnant and lactating women. It is urgent to develop management plans, policies and procedures and provide communication, sensitization, and training on infant and young child feeding at all levels and sectors of the emergency response.

Breastfeeding promotion and support: a quality improvement study.

BACKGROUND: Breastfeeding success is determined by early skin to skin contact, early initiation of breastfeeding, rooming-in, baby-led breastfeeding, creation of a favorable environment, specific training of health professionals, and continuity of care. OBJECTIVE: To investigate the women's satisfaction regarding the care and support received in the first days after childbirth. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A questionnaire of 24 items was administered to mothers before discharge, from May to September 2019 at the University Hospital of Modena. RESULTS: The predictive variables of exclusive breastfeeding were the delivery mode, age at birth and parity. The multivariate analysis showed that a high satisfaction score was associated with vaginal birth (OR=2.63, p=0.005), rooming-in during the hospitalization (OR=8.64, p<0.001), the skin to skin contact (OR=6.61, p=0.001) and the first latch-on within 1 hour after birth (OR=3.00, p=0.02). CONCLUSIONS: Mothers' satisfaction is one of the important factors of positive experience during hospital stay and of better health outcomes.

Health Belief Model efficacy in explaining and predicting intention or uptake pertussis vaccination during pregnancy.

INTRODUCTION: Pertussis is a highly contagious respiratory disease and vaccination of pregnant women seems to be the most effective strategy to prevent pertussis in infants. The aim of this study is to assess the acceptance by women of pertussis vaccination during pregnancy based on Health Belief Model (HBM) constructs. METHODS: A multicentre observational study was carried out with a convenience sample of 300 respondents. RESULTS: Most women were worried to contract or to transmit pertussis during the first months of the infant's life and perceived pertussis contracted in the first months of life as very serious. Parity appears to be a factor predicting this health behaviour, as nulliparous women tend to get more vaccinated or have a higher intention to get vaccinated (ORa 2.8 CI 95% 1.5-5.2 p<0.01). DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS: HBM is an effective tool for identifying facilitators and barriers to health behaviours. Strategies to promote vaccination during pregnancy are needed, including educational interventions and communication campaigns.

'A sleeping volcano that could erupt sooner or later'. Lived experiences of women with multiple sclerosis during childbearing age and motherhood: A phenomenological qualitative study.

INTRODUCTION: Multiple Sclerosis (MS) mainly involves women, impacting many aspects related to childbearing age and maternity. Women with MS can have healthy pregnancies and infants. Needs, challenges and concerns of women with MS should be considered in order to improve care pathway, ensuring a patient-centred approach. Therefore, the aim of this study was to explore personal experiences, expectations, fears in women with MS. METHODS: A descriptive phenomenological study, including women with MS during childbearing age, pregnancy and motherhood, carried out from January to April 2019. Women, enrolled in a MS centre with snowball sampling through healthcare network, were invited for a face-to-face or phone interview, digitally audio-recorded and fully transcribed. Two different sets of semi-structured interviews were developed (woman seeking pregnancy / pregnant woman and mother), together with an anonymous form, to collect some main sociodemographic data. Categorical data analysis, inductively and deductively, was processed by 3 different researchers, using Creswell extension to reduce subjective influences. QDA Miner qualitative text analysis software was used. RESULTS: The following 6 deductive themes emerged: 1) experience with diagnosis of MS; 2) relationship with the partner, children, and family; 3) pregnancy; 4) delivery; 5) puerperium; 6) care pathway. Experiences with diagnosis can be very different between women. Communication of MS diagnosis appears as an opportunity to strengthen emotional ties, despite sorrow and concerns. Reasons for quarrels and disagreements, both in couple and parents, were due to an overly protective and supportive attitude. Some participants reported difficulty of conceiving. Pregnancy is described as a state of wellbeing, not devoid by fears and worries. Women experienced fatigue and exhaustion especially during the second stage of labour, but spontaneous delivery is described as an empowering experience. Findings about breastfeeding confirm that healthcare professionals have a crucial role regarding initiation, duration and type of breastfeeding and often scarce education and training on the topic, together with lack of reliable scientific sources, lead to a conservative approach. Healthcare providers communication and consulting emerge as indispensable skills. CONCLUSION: The study provides a better understanding of how MS impacts women' life during childbearing age, pregnancy and motherhood. Findings support the importance of provide quality and tailored care for women with MS, according to an empathetic and patient-centred approach. Further research should be more comprehensive explorations of mothers' experiences in different cultural contexts, but also partners and offspring of women with MS.

[Pre and post natal care and new organizational models during COVID-19 pandemic: the experience of the Autonomous Province of Trento]. / Percorso Nascita e nuovi modelli organizzativi in epoca COVID-19: l'esperienza della Provincia Autonoma di Trento.

The COVID-19 pandemic had a great impact on pre and post-natal care, and, more generally, on the female population. Health services have been characterized by significant changes that have involved a review and reorganization of care pathways and clinical practices. The midwife continued to play a key role for the health of women and children, for the continuity of care and for a health-oriented approach throughout their life. The experience of the Pre and Post Natal Care of the Autonomous Province of Trento ensured the continuity of care during the pandemic thanks to the activation of a well-established Hospital-Territory network. The dedicated Case Manager Midwife allowed continuity and appropriateness of care during all phases of the birth pathway. The possibility of having the first interview electronically led to a continuous annual increase in the first interviews. In addition, for all women in the third trimester of pregnancy, the antenatal classes are organized remotely, using simple IT supports, in videoconferencing mode, maintaining homogeneous contents and objectives throughout the territory. The involvement of fathers from the early stages of pregnancy has shown the value of co-parenting even during the pandemic. This organizational model rooted in the territory and in the network of connection between the Territory and the Hospital proved to be a resource to withstand the impact of the emergency and guaranteed appropriate and timely assistance to women, fathers and the family.

Taking care of minor migrants' health: the professionals' perception and training needs.

INTRODUCTION: In Italy, minor migrants represent 21.8% of the non-EU citizens. The care of minor migrants might be challenging as this population is characterized by higher vulnerability and special needs. The study aim was to describe the perceptions on the provision of care, the bio-psycho-social needs of migrant children and the professional training needs. METHODS: The study is qualitative descriptive. In May 2019 three focus group, involving health and social professionals, cultural mediators and NGOs operators, were organized. RESULTS: The study explored different areas of the provision of care to minor migrants including bio-psycho-social needs, care provision, barriers to care and professionals' training needs. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS: The provision of care should consider the specific migration journey and narrative. In some cases healthcare is fragmented, generating obstacles to access especially in minors with lower levels of health literacy. Training plays a key role in the development of cultural competence.

Verba volant, scripta manent: breastfeeding information and health messages provided to parents in the neonatal discharge summary in the Lazio Region, Italy.

OBJECTIVE: We aimed to evaluate the contents of the neonatal discharge summary (NDS), an important communication tool that should contain evidence-based information. METHODS: A quali-quantitative study of NDSs delivered from 29 hospitals of Lazio (Italy) in 2014 and 2017 was conducted. We used content analysis to assess the written information and logistic regression to estimate the association between outcomes (compliance with the International Code, health messages, and information on neonatal screenings) and some hospital's characteristics. RESULTS: NDSs conforming to International Code were associated with low rate of C-section (p < 0.05). Hospitals belonging to Local Health Authorities (p < 0.05) and with a lower prevalence of C-section (p < 0.05) had a greater attitude to promote infant health. The year of collection was associated with information on neonatal screenings (p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: An effort is required by hospitals to reduce their level of medicalization, in clinical practice and prescriptive attitudes, which affects the NDSs delivered to parents.

Long-Term Effectiveness of an E-Learning Program in Improving Health Care Professionals' Attitudes and Practices on Breastfeeding: A 1-Year Follow-Up Study.

Introduction: In-service continuing education offers a unique opportunity to improve knowledge, skills, attitudes, and practices regarding breastfeeding. It has been shown that an online approach to in-service education is effective at improving practices and attitudes toward breastfeeding among health care professionals (HCPs) in the short term. Aim: To evaluate the long-term effectiveness of an online national program on infant nutrition for HCPs. Materials and Methods: We carried out a follow-up study using data from three time points: T0 (pretraining), T1 (immediately post-training), and T2 (1 year after training). The differences between T0, T1, and T2 were tested using repeated-measures ANOVA. Statistical analysis was performed using SPSS version 22.0. Results: The final sample was comprised of 4,582 participants, mainly women (87.4%). At T2, we observed a worsening of attitudes and practices (APs) as compared with T1, though those APs almost never reached the low levels observed at T0. The greatest changes over time concerned the use of drugs during breastfeeding (T0: 3.00 ± 1.33 versus T1: 1.74 ± 1.03 versus T2: 2.64 ± 1.35) and dietary restriction (T0: 2.77 ± 1.35 versus T1: 1.76 ± 1.12 versus T2: 2.57 ± 1.35). The differences between the means of APs at T0, T1, and T2 were significant (p < 0.01). Conclusion: This e-learning program was effective in improving APs regarding the protection, promotion, and support of breastfeeding. The improvement, higher immediately after training, decreased over time. E-learning project managers should propose strategies to facilitate the retention of knowledge related to the main training objectives.

[Interrupting the chains of transmission of COVID-19 in Italy: survey among the Prevention Departments]. / Interrompere le catene di trasmissione di COVID-19 in Italia: indagine tra i Dipartimenti di prevenzione.

BACKGROUND: the ability to implement effective preventive and control measures is rooted in public health surveillance to promptly identify and isolate contagious patients. OBJECTIVES: to describe some organizational aspects and resources involved in the control of COVID-19 pandemic. DESIGN: observational cross sectional study. SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS: a survey of methods and tools adopted by the competent service (Prevention department) in the Local public health units (LHU) of the regional Health services has been performed in May 2020. The survey collected data related to activities carried out during the month of April 2020 on the surveillance system for collection of suspected cases, their virological ascertainment, the isolation procedures and contact-tracing activities by means of an online questionnaire filled in by the public health structure of the regional health system. A convenience sample of Prevention departments was recruited. RESULTS: in 44 Prevention departments of 14 Regions/Autonomous Provinces (caring for 40% of the population residing in Italy), different services were swiftly engaged in pandemic response. Reports of suspected cases were about 3 times the number of confirmed cases in the same month. Local reporting form was used in 46% of the LHUs while a regional form was available in 42% of the Departments (in 9/14 Regions). In one fourth the forms were not always used and 2% had no forms for the reporting of suspected cases. Data were recorded in 52% of LHUs on local databases, while in 20% a regional database (in 7 Regions) had been created. A proportion of 11% did not record the data for further elaboration. The virological assessment with nasopharyngeal swabs out of the hospital setting was carried out on the average in 7 points in each LHU (median 5) and the average daily capacity was 350 (71 per 100,000) swabs. The rate of subjects newly tested during the month of April was of 893 per 100,000 new people. Data collected at the swabbing were recorded on a regional platform in 17 LHUs (39%) of 8 Regions. In 7% LHUs only positive specimens were recorded electronically. Local files were used in 27% LHUs. The interview with confirmed cases was carried out with a local questionnaire in 52% LHUs, while 14% stated that a standardized form was not used. The data collected about cases were recorded on a regional IT platform in 30% Departments (in 8 Regions) and in 41% data were registered only locally. For each confirmed case in April, a median of 4 contacts were identified. Only 13 (30%) Departments in 9 Regions have registered contact data on a regional database. Ten Departments (23%) have only hard copies, while 56% recorded data on local databases. About 5 health professionals for 100,000 resident population were involved in each LHU in each of the following activities as receiving reports of suspected cases, swabs collection, interviews of cases and contact identifications. CONCLUSIONS: the pandemic required rapidly a great organizational effort and great flexibility to increase response capacity, which now must be strengthened and maintained. Several different tools (forms and electronic files) have been developed in each LHU and used for the same surveillance operational processes with a loss in local efficiency. The inhomogeneous data collection and recording is an obstacle for further analyses and risk identifications and is a missed opportunity for the advancement of our knowledge on pandemic epidemiology analysis. In Italy, updating the pandemic response plans is the priority, at national, regional and local level, and the occasion to fill the gaps and to improve surveillance systems to the interruption of COVID-19 transmission.