How to harness the power of web scraping for medical and surgical research: An application in estimating international collaboration.

The transformative potential of web scraping in surgical research through a comprehensive analysis of its revolutionary applications and profound impact is now within reach. This manuscript unveils the pivotal role of web scraping in driving innovation, enabling more effective management of human capital dynamics, and enhancing patient outcomes in the surgical field. As an example, we demonstrate how web scraping can uncover insights into international collaboration in surgery research revealing limited collaboration between surgeons in developed and developing countries.

Cultural competency and ethical behavior for collaboration in limited-resource settings: Guidelines from the Society of University Surgeons Academic Global Surgery Committee and the Association for Academic Global Surgery.

BACKGROUND: There are an increasing number of global surgery activities worldwide. With such tremendous growth, there is a potential risk for untoward interactions between high-income country members and low-middle income country members, leading to programmatic failure, poor results, and/or low impact. METHODS: Key concepts for cultural competency and ethical behavior were generated by the Academic Global Surgery Committee of the Society for University Surgeons in collaboration with the Association for Academic Global Surgery. Both societies ensured active participation from high-income countries and low-middle income countries. RESULTS: The guidelines provide a framework for cultural competency and ethical behavior for high-income country members when collaborating with low-middle income country partners by offering recommendations for: (1) preparation for work with low-middle income countries; (2) process standardization; (3) working with the local community; (4) limits of practice; (5) patient autonomy and consent; (6) trainees; (7) potential pitfalls; and (8) gray areas. CONCLUSION: The article provides an actionable framework to address potential cultural competency and ethical behavior issues in high-income country - low-middle income country global surgery collaborations.

A Bibliometric Analysis of Artificial Intelligence Applications in Spine Care.

BACKGROUND: With the rapid development of science and technology, artificial intelligence (AI) has been widely used in the diagnosis and prognosis of various spine diseases. It has been proved that AI has a broad prospect in accurate diagnosis and treatment of spine disorders. METHODS: On May 7, 2022, the Web of Science (WOS) Core Collection database was used to identify the documents on the application of AI in the field of spine care. HistCite and VOSviewer were used for citation analysis and visualization mapping. RESULTS: A total of 693 documents were included in the final analysis. The most prolific authors were Karhade A.V. and Schwab J.H. United States was the most productive country. The leading journal was Spine. The most frequently used keyword was spinal. The most prolific institution was Northwestern University in Illinois, USA. Network visualization map showed that United States was the largest network of international cooperation. The keyword "machine learning" had the strongest total link strengths (TLS) and largest number of occurrences. The latest trends suggest that AI for the diagnosis of spine diseases may receive widespread attention in the future. CONCLUSIONS: AI has a wide range of application in the field of spine care, and an increasing number of scholars are committed to research on the use of AI in the field of spine care. Bibliometric analysis in the field of AI and spine provides an overall perspective, and the appreciation and research of these influential publications are useful for future research.

Generating political priority for alcohol policy reform: A framework to guide advocacy and research.

INTRODUCTION: While effective policies exist to reduce alcohol-related harm, political will to enact them is low in many jurisdictions. We aimed to identify key barriers and strategies for strengthening political priority for alcohol policy reform. METHODS: A framework synthesis was conducted, incorporating relevant theory, key informant interviews (n = 37) and a scoping review. Thematic analysis informed the development of a framework for understanding and influencing political priority for alcohol policy. RESULTS: Twelve barriers and 14 strategies were identified at multiple levels (global, national and local). Major barriers included neoliberal or free trade ideology, the globalised alcohol industry, limited advocate capacity and the normalisation of alcohol harms. Strategies fell into two categories: sector-specific and system change initiatives. Sector-specific strategies primarily focus on influencing policymakers and mobilising civil society. Examples include developing a clear, unified solution, coalition building and effective framing. System change initiatives target structural change to reduce the power imbalance between industry and civil society, such as restricting industry involvement in policymaking and securing sustainable funding for advocacy. A key example is establishing an international treaty, similar to the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, to support domestic policymaking. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS: Our findings provide a framework for understanding and advancing political priority for alcohol policy. The framework highlights that progress can be achieved at various levels and through diverse groups of actors. The importance of upstream drivers of policymaking was a key finding, presenting challenges for time-poor advocates, but offering potential facilitation through effective global leadership.

Migración en Venezuela, marco normativo e indicadores 2000- 2022 / Migration in Venezuela, regulatory framework and indicators 2000 - 2022

El objetivo fue describir el estado actual del marco normativo de migración, y la tendencia de indicadores de población y migración en Venezuela en el periodo 2000-2022.Métodos: Estudio descriptivo del marco normativo de migración y la tendencia de indicadores de población y migración en Venezuela. Indicadores: población total, tasa de dependencia demográfica (total, niñez, adulto mayor) y tasa de migración. Fuentes de datos: plataforma informativa salud y migración(marco normativo), Anuario estadístico de América Latina y el Caribe año 2000 al 2022 (indicadores de población).Resultados: El marco normativo de la migración en Venezuela está contenido en escasas leyes y Convenios Internacionales y regionales. La variación porcentual en la población venezolana fue descendente durante casi todo el periodo, donde se presentan incluso valores negativos para 2018-2021. La tasa anual decrecimiento poblacional, demostró un descenso constante y marcado desde el año 2000 hasta el año 2018, con altos valores negativos, luego asciende mostrando valores positivos a partir del año 2022, con un valor equivalente al año 2000. Conclusiones: El marco legal migratorio en Venezuela, es deficitario y no acorde a las necesidades de los migrantes. Los cambios ocurridos en la población venezolana de 2000 a 2022 fue debido a varios factores, siendo de gran impacto el fenómeno migratorio. La tasa de migración en Venezuela muestra tendencia negativa lo que indica que el país pierde población.

Objective Describe the current state of the regulatory framework for migration and the trend of populationand migration indicators in Venezuela for the period2000-2022. Methods: Descriptive study of the regulatory framework for migration and the trend of population andmigration indicators in Venezuela. Sample of national and international documents (regulatory framework). Indicators: total population, demographic dependency rate (total,childhood, elderly) and migration rate. Data sources: health andmigration information platform (regulatory framework) LatinAmerica and the Caribbean Statistical Yearbook 2000 to 2022(population indicators) Results: The regulatory framework formigration in Venezuela is contained in few international andregional laws and agreements. The percentage variation in the Venezuelan population was downward during almost the entireperiod, where even negative values are presented for 2018-2021.The annual rate of population growth showed a constant andmarked decrease from the year 2000 to the year 2018 with highnegative values, then it ascends showing positive values from theyear 2022 with a value equivalent to the year 2000. Conclusions:The migratory legal framework in Venezuela is deficient anddoes not meet the needs of migrants. The changes that haveoccurred in the Venezuelan population from 2000 to 2022 wasdue to several factors, the migratory phenomenon being of greatimpact. the migration rate in Venezuela shows a negative trend,which indicates that the country is losing population.

Cooperação Angola e Brasil em vários domínios da Saúde com destaque para formação de quadros

A cooperação Brasil e Angola visa fortalecer as relações entre os dois países no domínio da saúde, a partir dos recentes acordos assinados na visita do Presidente Luís Inácio da Silva em agosto. O reforço das relações bilaterais entre a República da Angola e o Brasil no setor da saúde, está direcionada na formação de profissionais. Angola visa expandir seus serviços de bancos de leite humano e tratamento de câncer.

On the relationship between oil market and European stock returns.

This paper investigates the dynamic relationship between the oil market and European stock market returns using monthly data from May 2007 to April 2022 for 27 European Union member countries. A novel approach is adopted by using the time-varying Granger causality test and the structural vector auto-regression model to examine the causal links. Empirical results reveal strong evidence of time-varying causation between the variables, considering the oil market from both the supply-side and demand-side perspectives. In light of these findings, numerous policy considerations emerge, including refining risk management strategies for investors, reformulating economic and energy policies, the potential impact on monetary policy decisions, the need for ad hoc market regulations, facilitating investor education initiatives, promoting international cooperation, and advancing the transition to sustainable energy sources.

Increasing compliance with international pandemic law: international relations and new global health agreements.

Across multiple pandemics, global health governance institutions have struggled to secure the compliance of states with international legal and political commitments, ranging from data sharing to observing WHO guidance to sharing vaccines. In response, governments are negotiating a new pandemic treaty and revising the International Health Regulations. Achieving compliance remains challenging, but international relations and international law research in areas outside of health offers insights. This Health Policy analyses international relations research on the reasons why states comply with international law, even in the absence of sanctions. Drawing on human rights, trade, finance, tobacco, and environmental law, we categorise compliance mechanisms as police patrol, fire alarm, or community organiser models. We show that, to date, current and proposed global health law incorporates only a few of the mechanisms that have shown to be effective in other areas. We offer six specific, politically feasible mechanisms for new international agreements that, together, could create compliance pressures to shift state behaviour.

International Harmonization for Cell and Gene Therapy Products.

To increase the global availability of cell and gene therapy products, international regulatory agencies engage in programs that enhance dialogue between regulators, provide opportunities for training low- and middle-income countries lacking the capacity for regulatory oversight of cell and gene therapies, and support harmonization of regulatory requirements. This chapter provides overviews of the International Pharmaceutical Regulators Programme (IPRP) Cell Therapy Working Group (CTWG) and Gene Therapy Working Group (GTWG), the International Conference on Harmonisation of Technical Requirements for Pharmaceuticals for Human Use (ICH), and the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Regulatory Harmonization Steering Committee (RHSC). Also discussed are programs between small groups of regulators referred to as "Discussion Clusters" and Parallel Scientific Advice (PSA).

International cooperation and the challenge of internet accessibility in Caribbean territories: example of a collaborative platform between the University Hospital of Martinique and Ramón González Coro Hospital in Cuba, through the French PRPH-3 program.

BACKGROUND: Martinique shares with the other Caribbean countries specific public health issues, particularly in the diagnostic and therapeutic management of cancer patients. Mutualization of human and material resources by promoting cooperation is the most appropriate response to the challenges of the health systems of the Caribbean territories. Through the French PRPH-3 program, we propose to set up a collaborative digital platform adapted to the specificities of the Caribbean to strengthen professional links and skills in oncofertility and oncosexology and reduce inequalities in access to reproductive and sexual health care for cancer patients. METHODS: Within the context of this program, we have developed of an open-source platform based on a Learning Content Management System (LCMS), with an operating system developed by UNFM for low speed internet. LO libraries have been created and interaction between trainers and learners were done in asynchronous mode. This training management platform is based on: a TCC learning system (Training, Coaching, Communities); a web-hosting with pedagogical engineering appropriate to low bandwidth; a reporting system and a responsibility for processing. RESULTS: We have carried out a flexible, multilingual and accessible digital learning strategy functionality called e-MCPPO according to low-speed internet ecosystem. In close connection with the e-learning strategy we conceived (i) a multidisciplinary team; (ii) an appropriate training program for expert health professionals and (iii) a responsive design. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION: This low-speed web-based infrastructure allows communities of experts to cooperate in creating, validating, publishing and managing academic learning content. The self-learning modules provide the digital layer for each learner to extend their skills. Learners, as well as trainers, would gradually take ownership of this platform and encourage its promotion. Innovation in this context is both technological (low-speed Internet broadcasting, free interactive software) and organizational (moderating educational resources). This collaborative digital platform is unique in its form and content. This challenge could contribute to the digital transformation of the Caribbean ecosystem for capacity building in this specifics topics.