The Design and Methodology of the Ohio COVID-19 Survey

Background: Governments worldwide are balancing contrasting needs to curtail the toll that coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) takes on lives and health care systems and to preserve their economies. To support decisions, data that simultaneously measure the health status of the population and the economic impact of COVID-19 mitigation strategies are needed. In the United States, prior to the onset of COVID-19, surveys or tracking systems usually focused on public health or economic indicators, but not both. However, tracking public health and economic measures together allow policy makers and epidemiologists to understand how policy and program decisions are associated. The Ohio COVID-19 Survey (OCS) attempts to track both measures in Ohio as one of the first statewide population surveys on COVID-19. To achieve this there are several methodological challenges which need to be overcome. Methods: The OCS utilizes a representative panel offering both cross-sectional and longitudinal analyses. It targets 700 to 1000 respondents per week for a total of 12 600 to 18 000 respondents over an 18-week period. Leveraging a sample of 24 000 adult Ohioans developed from a statewide population health survey conducted in fall 2019, the OCS produces weekly economic and health measures that can be compared to baseline measures obtained before the COVID-19 pandemic began. Results: The OCS was able to quickly launch and achieve high participation (45.2%) and retention across waves. Conclusion: The OCS demonstrates how it is possible to leverage an existing health-based survey in Ohio to generate a panel which can be used to quickly track fast-breaking health issues like COVID-19

The role of chemical policy in improving supply chain knowledge and product safety

Although the US government has made important improvements in chemical management since the 1970s, these advances have not kept pace with scientific knowledge about chemical hazards. While US federal chemical policy reform is being debated for the first time since 1976, some US businesses have voluntarily sought to improve their knowledge of chemical hazards in their supply chains, and several US states, the European Union, China, and other countries have moved forward with chemical policy reforms. Until policy reforms occur in the USA, the US chemical market will continue to experience problems associated with poor information on hazardous chemicals in supply chains. These market conditions make it difficult for consumer product companies to identify hazards and create safer products. Results from interviews with consumer product company representatives demonstrate that challenges in obtaining chemical-related information exist across sectors, and information on chemical hazards and uses can be conflicting, protected by trade secrets, lost in supply chains, or nonexistent. Interview results illustrate how some consumer product companies are exceeding regulatory requirements by voluntarily restricting from their products chemicals that could harm human health or the environment. Understanding the motivations behind—and barriers to—these actions could inform efforts to modernize US chemicals policies in ways that promote effective chemical management in supply chains. Using examples from the European Union and some US states, we introduce policy suggestions that would increase knowledge, market transparency, and information flows regarding hazardous chemicals and their uses; these would support the efforts of companies to develop and market safer products

Information on Chemicals in Electronic Products : A study of needs, gaps, obstacles and solutions to provide and access information on chemicals in electronic products

Many chemicals used in the electronics sector have negative consequences for human and environmental health. These include chemicals such as lead, mercury, brominated flame retardants, halogenated flame retardants, polyvinyl chloride (PVC) and phthalates. Typical electronic waste handling practices in developing countries are detrimental to the health of workers, their environment, and their communities. There are issues associated also with formal recycling in modern facilities, and the production phase is often problematic as well, with electronics workers potentially being exposed to carcinogens and reproductive toxicants. In addition, it is becoming apparent that recycling of valuable materials must be made more efficient as the price of virgin materials, metals, and minerals increases and their availability decreases. The problems are exacerbated by the fact that there has been a rapid increase in sales of electronics in the past several years, making e-waste one of the fastest-growing waste streams today. In order to minimize any potential risks to human or environmental health, electronics stakeholders in different stages of the life cycle of electronic products need information on what chemicals are present in the products, their properties, use and potential risks. This report studies the extent to which existing information systems meet the needs of different stakeholder groups, highlights information gaps and obstacles and discusses potential solutions to optimize the flow of information on chemicals in electronics. The report is carried out within the UNEP project on Chemicals in Products

Advancing a Net Zero Urban Water Future in the United States Southwest: Governance and Policy Challenges and Future Needs

The Colorado River supplies >40 million people in the United States Southwest with their daily water supply and is unable to meet the current demands. New approaches are needed to enhance sustainability and resilience. A net zero urban water (NZUW) approach meets the needs of a given community with a locally available and sustainable water supply, without detriment to interconnected systems and the long-term water supply. Transitioning to a NZUW future will require considerable modifications to governance and policy across the Southwest and its cities specifically. We identify five areas of governance and policy challenges: diversified water sources and sinks; planning, design, and operation; monitoring and enforcement; coordination; and addressing equity and justice. Four case study cities are investigated: Albuquerque, Denver, Los Angeles, and Tucson. Across these cities, the policy priorities include supporting potable water reuse, coordinating policies across jurisdictions for alternative water sources, addressing equity and justice, developing and incentivizing water conservation plans, and making aquifer storage and recovery projects easier and more economical to pursue. We conclude that a NZUW transition in the Southwest faces considerable governance and policy challenges, but moving cities toward this goal is crucial

Application of systematic reviews in speech-and-language therapy

Background: Systematic reviews are increasingly being carried out in speech-and-language therapy and are used by practitioners, service commissioners, policy-makers and researchers to inform decision-making, as the body of evidence available about speech-and-language therapy grows. Although systematic reviewing is developing to incorporate new methods of review and synthesis, there are currently limitations in the use of some types of systematic reviews within speech-and-language therapy. Aims: The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of the steps involved in the systematic review process and the range of options available. It highlights some challenges to using this process in speech-and-language therapy, with examples based in part on the authors' experiences of involvement in two systematic reviews. A number of developments in systematic review methodology will be outlined and several new approaches to reviewing, both within and outside of speech-and-language therapy, are introduced. These include realist synthesis, evidence-based practice briefs, speech BITE™ and the journal Evidence-Based Communication Assessment and Intervention. Main contribution: This paper highlights some of the current benefits and limitations of systematic reviews in speech-and-language therapy. It will facilitate readers to use and carry out systematic reviews in the speech-and-language therapy field. Conclusions: Systematic reviews are useful in speech-and-language therapy, but awareness of their limitations is important to practitioners, commissioners, policy-makers and researchers. New developments may further increase the benefits of systematic reviews