The analysis of factors affecting municipal employees' willingness to report to work during an influenza pandemic by means of the extended parallel process model (EPPM)

COVID-19 Pandemic Response Preparedness and Risk Perceptions Among Peruvian Veterinarians and Animal Care Workers

Peruvian veterinarians and animal care workers (VACW) are primary responders in the event of disasters or emergencies, yet they face unique concerns that could impede or block their essential functions in public health preparedness in comparison with VACWs in other countries. In this study, we used the Ready, Willing, and Able model via electronic survey to evaluate the perception of risks and barriers that Peruvian VACWs faced when deciding whether to continue working during the COVID-19 pandemic between July and December 2020. We used logistic regression models to evaluate associations between demographic characteristics, perceived role, and contact scores with 8 outcomes: knowledge of COVID-19; confidence in safety protocols; perceived threat; perceived job efficacy; perceived barriers; and readiness, willingness, and ability to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic. Less than 50% of respondents reported barriers to report to work during the pandemic. Respondents who reported higher contact with coworkers had an increased confidence in safety protocols (OR 5.16; 95% CI, 1.36 to 19.61) and willingness (OR 3.76; 95% CI, 1.14 to 12.47) to respond to the pandemic. Close contacts with essential workers and higher economic income were associated with higher reported knowledge of COVID-19. Respondents with higher perceived job efficacy had higher odds of reporting being ready, willing, and able to respond to COVID-19, while those who identified more barriers to report to work had lower odds of being ready, willing, and able to respond. The findings from this study, which showed differences from VACWs in the United States, can be used by individuals designing programs to improve pandemic and disaster preparedness in this essential, yet understudied and vulnerable, workforce.

Willingness to Work during Public Health Emergencies: A Systematic Literature Review

The identification of the factors underlying the willingness or lack thereof to respond to public health emergencies is paramount to informing more capable health services. The interest in this topic appears renewed with each surge of threat, either referring to natural disasters, man-made violence, or epidemic and pandemics. However, there is no systematic approach to the research patterns and related main findings concerning individual and contextual determinants. The present article contributes to this theme through a systematic literature review of a sample of 150 articles published in the last 30 years on the subject of willingness and preparedness of health professionals to deal with public health threats. Our findings show that the research is mainly phenomena and contextual driven, responding to whichever emergency threat is more salient in a given period. Geographically, research on this topic is led by USA and China, mostly solely, while European countries invest in collaborations that are more international. Universities, including health institutes and schools, and researchers at hospitals conduct most of the research on the topic. The main research areas are medicine, psychology, and psychiatry. Pandemics, including COVID-19, influenza, and natural disasters, are the phenomena gauging more attention as opposed to terrorism events and biological accidents. The specific role of health professionals within the institution, their belief in ethical duties, preparation training, and concerns regarding infection of self and family are the main variables influencing the willingness and ability to report to work in public health emergencies.

One size does NOT fit all: Understanding differences in perceived organizational support during the COVID‐19 pandemic

The COVID‐19 crisis forced organizations to radically rethink how to lead their workforce. Facing an unprecedented drop in consumer demand, business leaders struggled to balance staying financially solvent with the responsibility of supporting their employees during the crisis. Early surveys found many employees did not perceive their organizations communicated a clear plan of action; others questioned whether their employers cared about workers' health and safety. While researchers have examined perceived organizational support, studies are only now starting to examine workers' perceived support during a pandemic. The study used a mixed method design to collect quantitative and qualitative data from 949 workers during the COVID‐19 crisis. Results revealed employees working outside the home and furloughed workers perceived lower quality support than employees working remotely. While some employees recommended changes to create a safer work environment, others suggested more frequent communication and/or reassurance about job security/pay. The findings suggest leaders should recognize the nature of support workers need varies. Leaders should customize support to meet the needs of specific groups, especially essential employees working outside the home and furloughed workers. Beyond the pandemic, the results suggest organizational leaders should reexamine their approach to employee support to better prepare for future crises.

Wildfire Smoke Risk Communication Efficacy: A Content Analysis of Washington State's 2018 Statewide Smoke Event Public Health Messaging

CONTEXT

Wildfire events are increasing in prevalence and intensity in the Pacific Northwest. Effective communication of health risks and actions to reduce exposure to wildfire smoke is imperative.

OBJECTIVE

We assessed the content of wildfire smoke risk messages from government organizations and mainstream media during a major wildfire smoke event in August 2018.

DESIGN

We conducted a content analysis of wildfire smoke risk information communicated by local and state government organizations and the mainstream media.

SETTING

Eight Washington State counties during a statewide wildfire smoke event in August 2018.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE

Leveraging the Extended Parallel Process Model and information in the existing literature on wildfire smoke and health, we assessed messages for the presence of information regarding health risk, personal interventions, administrative interventions, vulnerable populations, and trusted sources of information. Summary statistics were calculated to identify common messages about recommended interventions, vulnerable populations cited, and trusted sources of public health information.

RESULTS

Of the 273 identified government and media messages on wildfire smoke, the majority (71% and 66%) contained information about health risks. However, only 46% and 33% of government and media messages contained information about personal interventions to reduce risk, and 37% and 14% of government and media messages contained information about administrative interventions to reduce risk. Less than half of government and media messages (28% and 31%) contained information specific to vulnerable populations, and 58% and 46% of government and media messages contained any reference to a trusted source of information.

CONCLUSIONS

While information about wildfire smoke and health risks was communicated during Washington's August 2018 wildfire smoke event, there remains considerable opportunity to include additional information about interventions, vulnerable populations, and trusted sources of information. We recommend several opportunities to improve and evaluate risk communication and risk reduction before, during, and after future wildfire smoke events.

It won't happen to me! Psychosocial factors influencing risk perception for respiratory infectious diseases: A scoping review

Understanding the determinants of risk perception for COVID-19 might help to promote self-preventive behaviours. This scoping review aimed to map the extent, variety and characteristics of the evidence on the possible determinants of risk perception for COVID-like diseases. PubMed, Scopus and Web of Science were searched for original, peer-reviewed English-written articles published up to March 2020 and investigating risk perception determinants for respiratory infectious diseases in adults. Titles and abstracts were screened, and full texts were analysed by the first author; when unsure, eligibility was discussed with the last author. Data were collected according to an extraction sheet developed by the first and last authors. The cross-sectional evidence covers a variety of diseases, countries and timings of testing. Mostly, questionnaires recorded socio-demographics, media exposure, trust in institutions, disease proximity and knowledge; psychological variables, including personality traits, distress and self-efficacy, were less investigated. A miscellaneous operationalization of risk perception emerged, including the likelihood of getting sick, perceived dangerousness, concerns or a combination of them. A comprehensive understanding of the substantial amount of evidence may be challenging due to methodological heterogeneity. Referring to uniform theoretical frameworks is recommended; also, longitudinal research may be implemented to probe causal relationships.

Medical Staff Work Burnout and Willingness to Work during COVID-19 Pandemic Situation in Pakistan

Medical staff is vital for helping society through a health crisis, human-made or natural disaster, and pandemic. This study aims to investigate the medical staff's work-related burnout during Covid-19 and their willingness to work when they are most needed. The cross-sectional design was used, and an online survey was conducted through snowball sampling. Sample comprised on 250 participants (male = 89 & female= 161). The study's inclusion criteria were that only those medical staff of different hospitals was approached to collect data performed inwards isolated for Covid-19 treatment corona isolation wards. Maslach burnout inventory (MBI-HSS) and willingness to work (WTW) tools were used to collect data. Descriptive and Partial least square analysis was utilized to evaluate the relationships. The Coefficient of determination or R-Square value was 0.299, which means 29.9% or 30% of the work burnout variation was due to the impact of emotional exhaustion and personal accomplishment. Perceived danger, Role Competence, Self-Efficacy, and Sense of duty significantly impacted the willingness to work. Despite the workload and perceived risk, 42.6% of participants agreed to work if their department had to need their services, while 55.2% of participants agreed to work whether their department asked them or not. Government and hospital management should adopt a proactive and positive response during the pandemic to eradicate the employee stress and adopt adequate steps to improve the willingness to work with medical staff.

Design and evaluation of a theory-based intervention of knowledge and perceptions to improve self-care amongst relatives of esophageal cancer patients: A randomised controlled trial study protocol

•

Emphasis on training programs to increase self-care behaviors.

•

The EPPM can successfully predict behavioral intention and self-care behaviors.

•

The EPPM can consider as a framework for developing educational interventions.

Background

Esophageal cancer, as one of the most unknown cancers, is largely preventable through lifestyle modifications. In this study, a theory-based intervention will be designed and evaluated on the knowledge and perceptions of relatives of patients with cancer to improve their self-care.

Methods

This research will be carried out in two phases in Golestan province, located in north of Iran. A researcher-made questionnaire will be designed based on the extended parallel process model using a detailed literature review and the panel of experts' opinions. This questionnaire will aim to investigate the levels of knowledge, perception, and practice of respondents regarding esophageal cancer. Later, a comprehensive program will be designed over esophageal cancer self-care based on the information collected from the questionnaire, the information obtained from detailed literature review, and the experts' opinions. The second phase of the study will include implementation of an educational intervention with pretest–posttest design using the intervention and control groups to measure the effectiveness of this educational program on the knowledge, perception, and practice of the patients' relatives.

Discussion

The findings will provide valuable evidences regarding the efficacy of the educational intervention and will help the participants to improve their self-care behaviours. Consequently, policy-makers and planners can use the results to set appropriate policies.