Potential of Community Volunteers in Flood Early Warning Dissemination: A Case Study of Bangladesh.

Flood early warning (FEW) is a vital component of disaster risk management and is particularly important for saving lives, developing a sustainable agro-based economy, economic stability, and the overall development of the people of Bangladesh as well as others. This study was conducted in a northern, flood-prone area of Bangladesh to investigate the potential of incorporating volunteers of the community to the Union Councils (UCs) to disseminate FEW alongside the top-down approach. Several studies have found that despite having a sophisticated flood forecasting technology, local communities are not reaping the benefits of it, as the existing dissemination system is inaccessible to most local people. Since risk communication takes place in a social context, this study investigated and thereby proposed that volunteerism, as a form of social capital or communal virtue, can potentially assist the community-based disaster management (CBDM) institutions in enhancing their capacity to reach the maximum population at times of flood risk. Therefore, it was confirmed that the trained volunteers need to be integrated into and endorsed by the national policy. In addition, this study also provides a number of recommendations connecting literature with policy documents of Bangladesh.

Knowledge, Attitude, and Practice (KAP) toward the Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) Pandemic in a Saudi Population-Based Survey.

BACKGROUND: The Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak has affected all regions and countries with varying impacts based on infection rates and the associated fatalities. This study aimed to assess knowledge, attitude, and practices (KAP) toward the COVID-19 pandemic among Saudi Arabians. METHODS: The study utilized a cross-sectional research design. Web-based questionnaires' link was sent via emails and social media and sample was 5483 respondents. Purposive sampling ensured only those participants that met the inclusion criteria. Validity and reliability were checked. RESULTS: Most respondents, 67.9%, were aged between 18 and 35 years and highest level of education university. The findings based on the study objectives indicated a high level of knowledge about COVID-19, which indicated early detection can improve treatment by 4701 (85.7%), the disease can be treated at home 84.6%, the disease can be prevented and avoided when precautions are taken 96.8%. Moreover, 37.2% of the respondents still used herbal products to prevent and treat the disease, and 72.1% indicating immediate visit the physician when there are symptoms. CONCLUSION: Promoting public knowledge about COVID-19 by the Ministry of Health is paramount in defeating this disease. Providing more education and awareness for public to comply with WHO's recommendation is recommended.

A Cross-Sectional Study on the Flood Emergency Preparedness among Healthcare Providers in Saudi Arabia.

This study used a descriptive cross-sectional methodology to measure healthcare workers' knowledge, attitudes, perceptions, and willingness to respond to a flood scenario in Saudi Arabia. A validated survey was distributed to collect data using a convenience sampling technique through multiple social media platforms. A total of 227 participants were included in this study: 52% of them were aged between 26 to 34 years, 74% were residents from Riyadh, and 52.4% worked in nursing divisions. A significant number of respondents (73.2%) had positive perceptions towards their hospitals' ability to provide an effective response to a flood, 89% were willing to report to work following a flood, and 90% of participants reported the need to develop both guidelines and training for flood disaster preparedness. Preparation and successful flood mitigation in the hospital setting requires staff that have both knowledge and training in emergency management. One way to obtain such readiness is through competency-based training, including both table-top and full-scale live exercises. Although the willingness to respond to such a flooding emergency was high among staff, the development of guidelines and educational programs is needed in order to develop the competencies and skills sets to improve disaster preparedness response and preparedness efforts.

Using gel for difficult mask ventilation on the bearded patients: a simulation-based study.

The beard is a well-known cause of difficult mask ventilation due to excessive air leaks. Various techniques have been proposed to overcome this difficulty, such as applying a gel on the mask edge. Our objective was to determine whether the gel technique will improve ventilation and to assess the comfort of the provider. A randomized crossover design was conducted to assess the efficacy of gel in a bearded simulation model. Respiratory therapists (RT) were recruited by convenience sampling to hold the mask using a two-handed technique for a two-minute ventilation session. During the session, the ventilator provided a fixed Tidal Volume (TV) of 550 mL and a respiratory rate of 12 per minute, and the simulated model measured the received volumes. We compared the median TV and number of failed ventilation attempts with or without the gel. The comfort level while using the gel was assessed with constructed questions. We recruited 74 respiratory therapists working in Riyadh city. More than half of the participants had more than 5 years experience. The median tidal volume for standard mask ventilation without the gel was 283 mL [interquartile range (IQR) 224, 327], whereas that with the gel was 467 mL [451, 478], respectively (p < 0.01). The number of successful ventilations was recorded out of 24 breaths during the 2-min ventilation period for each technique; the proportion of successful ventilations increased significantly by 65% (95% CI 51-75%, p < 0.01) with the gel. In addition, only nine participants believed the technique was not comfortable, while the remaining individuals found it comfortable or natural. In our bearded simulation model, applying the gel significantly improved ventilation without negatively affecting comfort. Further studies and education are encouraged in the field of basic airway management.

Knowledge, Attitudes, and Beliefs Regarding Drug Abuse and Misuse among Community Pharmacists in Saudi Arabia.

Background and Objective: Several over-the-counter drugs have been documented as an essential issue in the community pharmacy setting owing to their liability to abuse. Pharmacists act as a critical monitor for these concerns and evaluate the seriousness of the patients' condition. Therefore, this study aimed to assess the knowledge, attitudes, and beliefs regarding drug abuse and misuse among pharmacists at a community pharmacy in Riyadh city, Saudi Arabia. Methods: A cross-sectional study using a validated self-administered questionnaire was carried out among community pharmacists over three months April to June 2019. The survey had 25 items on the experience, knowledge, attitudes, beliefs, strategies, and opinions of participants toward drug abuse and misuse. Results: A total of 239 community pharmacists responded to the survey. About 84% of them had received training on drug misuse or abuse. The majority of community pharmacists (85.8%) would like to be provided educational programs on drug abuse in the future. Nearly all the pharmacists (94.9%) reported providing suitable advice to suspected drug misusers either in written or oral form at their pharmacies. Approximately 31% agreed or strongly agreed to dispense controlled drugs through a pharmacy. Regarding the ethical matter of selling misusers controlled drugs, 93.7% of the respondents believed that it is deceptive to offer misusers controlled medications. A comparison of knowledge and beliefs (univariate analysis) showed that the results were significant only for respondents who had graduated from Yemen (p = 0.007) and respondents who had an experience of four to six years or more (p < 0.01). Conclusion: The findings revealed that the majority of community pharmacists had been trained in recognizing drug abuse or dependence during their pharmacy college education. In addition, majority of them reported that they warned or counseled patients about the occurrence of adverse drug reactions to specific medications. However, majority of them agreed that selling controlled drugs is unethical in a community pharmacy. Thus, effective implementation of pharmaceutical rules and laws is a fundamental need in the Saudi Arabian health care system and we suggest stringent execution of the regulations by the Saudi health care authorities.