Molecular identification of Trypanosoma theileri (Laveran, 1902) in cattle from two slaughterhouses in Ecuador and its relation with other haemotropic agents.

Trypanosoma theileri is a worldwide distributed haemoparasite that has been reported throughout the American continent in various species, including bovines, buffaloes and bats. In bovines, high incidence of T. theileri can be harmful when associated with other infections or under stress situations. There is little information on this hemoflagellate in Ecuador, which prompted the study and molecular identification of the trypanosomes collected in two slaughtering centers. Between February and April 2021, a total of 218 samples of bovine blood were collected in abattoirs located in the Andean region of Quito (n = 83) and in the coastal region, in Santo Domingo (n = 135). Quito public Slaughterhouse is the biggest in Ecuador, and for that, they receive animals from all country; on the other hand, Santo Domingo's Slaughterhouse is a small one where mainly females from the region are sacrificed and some males. The samples were evaluated using two molecular tests, the PCR cathepsin L-like (CatL) specific for T. theileri and for the positive samples, a Nested PCR that targets the ITS of the 18S gene. The corresponding PCR products were sequenced, analyzed by BLAST/NCBI and the sequences were used to build a concatenated phylogenetic tree, using the MEGA XI software. Overall, 34 out of the 218 samples, (15.6%) were positive to T. theileri by PCR CatL, resulting from 20/83 (24.1%) positives from the Quito abattoir and 14/135 (10.4%) from the Santo Domingo slaughterhouse. These prevalence rates were found to be significantly different (p = 0.006). According to the phylogenetic tree based on the CatL and ITS concatenated sequences (n = 13), the two novel Equatorial T. theileri isolates, ThI (n = 7) and ThII (n = 6) are closely related and associated to the IC, IB and IIB genotypes, present in Brazil, Venezuela and Colombia. Thirty-one out of the thirty-four T. theileri-positive bovines were co-infected with other haemotropic pathogens, Anaplasma marginale Babesia spp and T. vivax. This coinfection could be responsible for additional pathologies and harmful effects on the affected cattle. This study presents the molecular identification and genotypification of T. theileri isolated from cattle in Ecuador through the analysis of CAtL and ITS sequences, and the high frequency of coinfection of this hemoflagellate with other blood haemotropic organisms.

A Comparison of Working Conditions and Workers' Perceptions among On-Site, Telework, and Hybrid Workers in Ecuador during the COVID-19 Pandemic.

The COVID-19 pandemic has forced many companies to adopt different work modalities to ensure their operation during this period. In this study, we described and compared working conditions and perceptions among face-to-face workers, teleworkers, and hybrid workers in Ecuador. A cross-sectional study was conducted with a sample of 542 participants, using a self-report survey to assess sociodemographic data, working conditions, and workers' perceptions. Variables were described and then compared by the Chi-square test, ANOVA, and the Kruskal-Wallis test. The results indicated a higher proportion of on-site workers without higher education and in the public sector compared to the other modalities. At the same time, there was evidence of increased perceived productivity. People in the hybrid modality tended to have more than one job, earning a higher monthly salary, perceiving a decrease in productivity, an increase in daily working hours, and a lower capacity for time management. In addition, most teleworkers reported fair working conditions, a dedicated workspace, and easy adaptation to this work mode. This study builds a more in-depth understanding of how workers perceived their working conditions among work modalities for organizational decision-making because the evolution of the COVID-19 pandemic is modifying the ways of working permanently.

Procrastination during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Scoping Review.

Procrastination involves voluntarily or habitually delaying unpleasant tasks for later. It is characterized by short-term benefits and long-term costs. The COVID-19 pandemic set specific circumstances that may have influenced procrastination behavior. This scoping review identified the existing peer-reviewed literature in English or Spanish about procrastination during the COVID-19 pandemic (January 2020 to April 2021) in six electronic databases. To conduct the review, a five-step methodological framework, as well as established PRISMA guidelines, was followed. A total of 101 articles were found. After removing duplicates and reviewing the articles, only 13 were included in the review. Findings indicate that procrastination was studied mostly in academic contexts in various parts of the globe. Procrastination behavior was related to anxiety, distress, time management, self-control, and other variables. There is limited information about interventions to prevent or decrease procrastinating behaviors in the context of confinement or in the living conditions generated by the pandemic. Future research should consider how procrastination evolved during the pandemic using longitudinal methodologies. Individual differences related to procrastination also should be identified, and the evaluation of the efficacy of existing interventions is still needed. This information might help in the creation of appropriate interventions that target detrimental procrastination behaviors.

Ergonomic Risk Factors of Teleworking in Ecuador during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Cross-Sectional Study.

Due to the COVID-19 global pandemic, guidelines for people's confinement have been implemented to prevent the disease's spread. As a result of this, companies have implemented teleworking as an emerging way to work from home using information technology. This cross-sectional study was conducted in Ecuador, with a sample of 204 teleworkers in the city of Quito. The results show that the teleworkers rearranged their bedrooms to carry out their activities. The respondents in each age group stated they did not perceive more significant ailments than those experienced before beginning teleworking. The relationships between the variables were analyzed utilizing the Chi-Square test and Fisher's exact test, finding a relationship between neck ailments and age of p = 0.031 * and between arm/forearm ailments of p = 0.032 *. This study contributes to a greater understanding of the ergonomic situation of the teleworkers and provides us with information to mitigate the ergonomic risks to which they are exposed.

[Gender as a determinant of mental health and its medicalization. SESPAS Report 2020]. / El género como determinante de la salud mental y su medicalización. Informe SESPAS 2020.

Women's worse mental health has been shown using both health survey and clinical-based data. Considering that the hypothesis about a greater biological vulnerability of women is inconsistent, unequal living conditions between men and women, together with hegemonic models of hegemonic masculinity and femininity emerge as explain factors of these gender inequalities in mental health. The article shows that gender inequalities in mental health, the intersection of different axes of inequality, and the existence of a possible process of medicalization of women's mental health, by which health professionals are labeling women more frequently as depressed and anxious given similar mental health status in men and women. Prescription of psychotropic drugs is also of greater intensity in women, given equal need. This reality, moreover, seems to be unequal depending on the age and socioeconomic level of the patients. In recent years, different experiences are being developed aimed at addressing the growing medicalization of mental health from a gender perspective. Given that the phenomenon of medicalization is complex, it is necessary to act and promote changes at political-structural, cultural and health care levels that ultimately reverse gender inequalities in societies and promote non gender-biased healthcare.

El género como determinante de la salud mental y su medicalización. Informe SESPAS 2020 / Gender as a determinant of mental health and its medicalization. SESPAS Report 2020

La peor salud mental de las mujeres ha sido demostrada tanto en encuestas de salud como en estudios de base clínica. La hipótesis acerca de una mayor vulnerabilidad biológica de las mujeres es inconsistente, lo que haría que las condiciones de vida desiguales entre hombres y mujeres, junto con los modelos imperantes de masculinidad y feminidad hegemónicos, puedan estar explicando estas desigualdades de género en la salud mental. El artículo muestra la existencia de desigualdades de género en la salud mental, la relevancia de la intersección de diferentes ejes de desigualdad y un posible proceso de sobrediagnóstico y medicalización de la salud mental de las mujeres, por el cual los/las profesionales de la salud están etiquetando con más frecuencia como depresión y ansiedad estados de salud mental similares en hombres y mujeres, y prescribiendo con mayor intensidad psicofármacos a las mujeres, a igualdad de necesidad. Esta realidad, además, parece ser desigual en función de la edad y del nivel socioeconómico de los/las pacientes. En los últimos años se están desarrollando diferentes experiencias dirigidas a afrontar la creciente medicalización de la salud mental desde una perspectiva de género. En la medida en que el fenómeno de las desigualdades de género es complejo, resulta necesario actuar y promover cambios en los sectores político-estructural, cultural y asistencial, que reviertan en su conjunto en la reducción de las desigualdades de género en las sociedades y en una atención sanitaria sin sesgos de género

Women's worse mental health has been shown using both health survey and clinical-based data. Considering that the hypothesis about a greater biological vulnerability of women is inconsistent, unequal living conditions between men and women, together with hegemonic models of hegemonic masculinity and femininity emerge as explain factors of these gender inequalities in mental health. The article shows that gender inequalities in mental health, the intersection of different axes of inequality, and the existence of a possible process of medicalization of women's mental health, by which health professionals are labeling women more frequently as depressed and anxious given similar mental health status in men and women. Prescription of psychotropic drugs is also of greater intensity in women, given equal need. This reality, moreover, seems to be unequal depending on the age and socioeconomic level of the patients. In recent years, different experiences are being developed aimed at addressing the growing medicalization of mental health from a gender perspective. Given that the phenomenon of medicalization is complex, it is necessary to act and promote changes at political-structural, cultural and health care levels that ultimately reverse gender inequalities in societies and promote non gender-biased healthcare

Competencias académicas y profesionales del psicólogo / The psychologist academic and professional competences

Esta investigación tiene como objetivo identificar cuáles son las competencias académicas y profesionales de los estudiantes y egresados de Psicología de la Pontificia Universidad Javeriana Cali. Participaron 98 estudiantes matriculados en el programa académico de Psicología, que cursaban entre séptimo y décimo semestre; además, se contó con 21 psicólogos egresados de la Pontificia Universidad Javeriana de Cali. Se lograron identificar, a partir de los resultados, los niveles de autopercepción en las competencias de estudiantes y egresados a partir de los campos de acción como Clínica, Educativa, Organizacional, Investigación, Evaluación Psicológica y otras áreas. Se concluyó que la competencia de mayor relevancia tanto en estudiantes como egresados está en el área Organizacional, por la elección del campo de formación y el área de desempeño actual.

The aim of this study is to identify what are the academic and professional competences of psychology students and graduates of the Pontificia Universidad Javeriana of Cali city. The sample was 98 seventh and eighth college semester students of the psychology program and 21 graduates from the same program. The results show that the levels of self perception of competences of students and graduates were identified concerning areas such as clinical, educational, and organizational psychology, research, assessment in psychology and others. It is conclude that the more relevant competence, for students and graduates, is in the organizational area, because of the selection of the training field and the actual area of performance.