Market based approaches for food safety and animal health interventions in smallholder pig systems: the case of Vietnam

Food safety and animal health concerns place rising burdens on smallholder pig production in Viet Nam, both in terms of negatively affecting livelihoods and profitability as well as reducing consumer confidence in pork. While reducing the incidence of pig disease and improving the safety of pork products are potentially important public goods, it is critical to take into account the tradeoffs between improved animal health and food safety outcomes and their associated costs

Rapid integrated assessment of food safety and nutrition related to pork consumption of regular consumers and mothers with young children in Vietnam

Pork is the most common and widely consumed meat product in Vietnam. The study aimed to assess nutrition and food safety risks and opportunities associated with pork value chains in Vietnam. Twenty-nine focus group discussions (FGD) were conducted in Hung Yen and Nghe An provinces with 164 participants who were both regular pork consumers and mothers with young children. In each province, three districts were selected, and in each district we selected one commune. To assess the quality of pork, we took 30 swab samples of pig carcasses at slaughterhouses, 90 pork samples at slaughterhouses and markets and analysed all samples for total bacterial count (TBC), coliforms, water holding capacity and pH. The results showed that pork was the main livestock product consumed and women are responsible for buying and preparing food for daily meals. Pork was the main animal sourced food (ASF) for Vietnamese consumers, for 50–60% of ASF. There was little knowledge of zoonotic diseases. The findings suggest further studies to address consumers’ concern on chemical contamination. Most market pork samples were not within the allowable range of limits standards of Vietnam for bacterial contamination: 90% of samples were above the official permissible limit for TBC and 98% did not meet standards for coliforms. Fifty percent of samples had acceptable pH but only 5% had acceptable water holding capacity. There were no significant differences in pork quality between intensifying Hung Yen and traditional Nghe An provinces, although there was a tendency for samples from Hung Yen to have better compliance. This rapid assessment revealed considerable interest and knowledge on pork nutrition and safety and found some behavioural but few quality and safety differences between traditional and intensifying systems. This indicated marketed pork is of low quality and safety, and a lack of support to consumers in making good choices

Associations of Underlying Health Conditions With Anxiety and Depression Among Outpatients: Modification Effects of Suspected COVID-19 Symptoms, Health-Related and Preventive Behaviors

Objectives: We explored the association of underlying health conditions (UHC) with depression and anxiety, and examined the modification effects of suspected COVID-19 symptoms (S-COVID-19-S), health-related behaviors (HB), and preventive behaviors (PB).Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted on 8,291 outpatients aged 18–85 years, in 18 hospitals and health centers across Vietnam from 14th February to May 31, 2020. We collected the data regarding participant's characteristics, UHC, HB, PB, depression, and anxiety.Results: People with UHC had higher odds of depression (OR = 2.11; p < 0.001) and anxiety (OR = 2.86; p < 0.001) than those without UHC. The odds of depression and anxiety were significantly higher for those with UHC and S-COVID-19-S (p < 0.001); and were significantly lower for those had UHC and interacted with “unchanged/more” physical activity (p < 0.001), or “unchanged/more” drinking (p < 0.001 for only anxiety), or “unchanged/healthier” eating (p < 0.001), and high PB score (p < 0.001), as compared to those without UHC and without S-COVID-19-S, “never/stopped/less” physical activity, drinking, “less healthy” eating, and low PB score, respectively.Conclusion: S-COVID-19-S worsen psychological health in patients with UHC. Physical activity, drinking, healthier eating, and high PB score were protective factors

Evidence-based practice in neonatal health: knowledge among primary health care staff in northern Viet Nam

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>An estimated four million deaths occur each year among children in the neonatal period. Current evidence-based interventions could prevent a large proportion of these deaths. However, health care workers involved in neonatal care need to have knowledge regarding such practices before being able to put them into action.</p> <p>The aim of this survey was to assess the knowledge of primary health care practitioners regarding basic, evidence-based procedures in neonatal care in a Vietnamese province. A further aim was to investigate whether differences in level of knowledge were linked to certain characteristics of community health centres, such as access to national guidelines in reproductive health care, number of assisted deliveries and geographical location.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>This cross-sectional survey was completed within a baseline study preparing for an intervention study on knowledge translation (Implementing knowledge into practice for improved neonatal survival: a community-based trial in Quang Ninh province, Viet Nam, the NeoKIP project, ISRCTN44599712). Sixteen multiple-choice questions from five basic areas of evidence-based practice in neonatal care were distributed to 155 community health centres in 12 districts in a Vietnamese province, reaching 412 primary health care workers.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>All health care workers approached for the survey responded. Overall, they achieved 60% of the maximum score of the questionnaire. Staff level of knowledge on evidence-based practice was linked to the geographical location of the CHC, but not to access to the national guidelines or the number of deliveries at the community level. Two separated geographical areas were identified with differences in staff level of knowledge and concurrent differences in neonatal survival, antenatal care and postnatal home visits.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>We have identified a complex pattern of associations between knowledge, geography, demographic factors and neonatal outcomes. Primary health care staff knowledge regarding neonatal health is scarce. This is a factor that is possible to influence and should be considered in future efforts for improving the neonatal health situation in Viet Nam.</p

Socializing One Health: an innovative strategy to investigate social and behavioral risks of emerging viral threats

In an effort to strengthen global capacity to prevent, detect, and control infectious diseases in animals and people, the United States Agency for International Development’s (USAID) Emerging Pandemic Threats (EPT) PREDICT project funded development of regional, national, and local One Health capacities for early disease detection, rapid response, disease control, and risk reduction. From the outset, the EPT approach was inclusive of social science research methods designed to understand the contexts and behaviors of communities living and working at human-animal-environment interfaces considered high-risk for virus emergence. Using qualitative and quantitative approaches, PREDICT behavioral research aimed to identify and assess a range of socio-cultural behaviors that could be influential in zoonotic disease emergence, amplification, and transmission. This broad approach to behavioral risk characterization enabled us to identify and characterize human activities that could be linked to the transmission dynamics of new and emerging viruses. This paper provides a discussion of implementation of a social science approach within a zoonotic surveillance framework. We conducted in-depth ethnographic interviews and focus groups to better understand the individual- and community-level knowledge, attitudes, and practices that potentially put participants at risk for zoonotic disease transmission from the animals they live and work with, across 6 interface domains. When we asked highly-exposed individuals (ie. bushmeat hunters, wildlife or guano farmers) about the risk they perceived in their occupational activities, most did not perceive it to be risky, whether because it was normalized by years (or generations) of doing such an activity, or due to lack of information about potential risks. Integrating the social sciences allows investigations of the specific human activities that are hypothesized to drive disease emergence, amplification, and transmission, in order to better substantiate behavioral disease drivers, along with the social dimensions of infection and transmission dynamics. Understanding these dynamics is critical to achieving health security--the protection from threats to health-- which requires investments in both collective and individual health security. Involving behavioral sciences into zoonotic disease surveillance allowed us to push toward fuller community integration and engagement and toward dialogue and implementation of recommendations for disease prevention and improved health security

Market based approaches for food safety and animal health interventions in smallholder pig systems: the case of Vietnam

Food safety and animal health concerns place rising burdens on smallholder pig production in Viet Nam, both in terms of negatively affecting livelihoods and profitability as well as reducing consumer confidence in pork. While reducing the incidence of pig disease and improving the safety of pork products are potentially important public goods, it is critical to take into account the tradeoffs between improved animal health and food safety outcomes and their associated costs.</p

Advanced Fabrication and Application of Pineapple Aerogels from Agricultural Waste

10.1080/10667857.2019.1688537Materials Technology3511-12807-81

Health Literacy and Preventive Behaviors Modify the Association between Pre-Existing Health Conditions and Suspected COVID-19 Symptoms: A Multi-Institutional Survey

People with pre-existing health conditions (PEHC) are vulnerable to viral infection while health literacy (HL) and preventive behaviors (PB) have been shown to benefit people during the COVID-19 pandemic. The aim of this study was to examine the association between PEHC and suspected COVID-19 symptoms (S-COVID-19-S), and to investigate the modification effect of HL and PB. A cross-sectional study was conducted on 8291 participants visiting outpatient departments at 18 hospitals and health centers across Vietnam from 14 February to 31 May 2020. Data were collected regarding participant&rsquo;s characteristics, HL, PB, PEHC, and S-COVID-19-S. Regression models were used for analyzing the associations. Results showed that people with PEHC had a 3.38 times higher likelihood of having S-COVID-19-S (odds ratio, OR, 3.38; 95% confidence interval, 95% CI, 3.01, 3.79; p &lt; 0.001). In comparison to participants without PEHC and with the lowest HL score, those with PEHC and one HL score increment had a 7% lower likelihood of having S-COVID-19-S (OR, 0.93; 95% CI, 0.92, 0.94; p &lt; 0.001). In comparison to participants without PEHC and not adhering to mask wearing, those with PEHC and adhering to mask wearing had a 77% lower likelihood of having S-COVID-19-S (OR, 0.23; 95% CI, 0.16, 0.32; p &lt; 0.001). Higher HL and adherence to mask wearing can protect people from having S-COVID-19-S, especially in those with PEHC

The associations of suspected covid-19 symptoms with anxiety and depression as modified by hemodialysis dietary knowledge: A multi-dialysis center study

[[abstract]]During the COVID-19 pandemic, it is essential to evaluate hemodialysis patients’ dietary knowledge, especially among those with COVID-19 related symptoms, in order to identify appropriate strategies in managing their mental health. The study’s purposes were to test the psychometric properties of the hemodialysis dietary knowledge (HDK) scale, and to investigate the modifying impact of HDK on the associations of suspected COVID-19 symptoms (S-COVID-19-S) with anxiety and depression among hemodialysis patients. A cross-sectional study was conducted from July 2020 to March 2021 at eight hospitals across Vietnam. Data of 875 hemodialysis patients were analyzed, including socio-demographic, anxiety (the generalized anxiety disorder scale, GAD-7), depression (the patient health questionnaire, PHQ-9), S-COVID-19-S, HDK, health literacy, and digital healthy diet literacy. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and logistic regression models were used to analyze the data. The HDK scale demonstrates the satisfactory construct validity with good model fit (Goodness of Fit Index, GFI = 0.96; Adjusted Goodness of Fit Index, AGFI = 0.90; Standardized Root Mean Square Residual, SRMR = 0.05; Root Mean Square Error of Approximation, RMSEA = 0.09; Normed Fit Index, NFI = 0.96; Comparative Fit Index, CFI = 0.96, and Parsimony goodness of Fit Index, PGFI = 0.43), criterion validity (as correlated with HL (r = 0.22, p < 0.01) and DDL (r = 0.19, p < 0.01), and reliability (Cronbach alpha = 0.70)). In the multivariate analysis, S-COVID-19-S was associated with a higher likelihood of anxiety (odds ratio, OR, 20.76; 95% confidence interval, 95%CI, 8.85, 48.70; p < 0.001) and depression (OR, 12.95; 95%CI, 6.67, 25.14, p < 0.001). A higher HDK score was associated with a lower likelihood of anxiety (OR, 0.70; 95%CI, 0.64, 0.77; p < 0.001) and depression (OR, 0.72; 95%CI, 0.66, 0.79; p < 0.001). In the interaction analysis, the negative impacts of S-COVID-19-S on anxiety and depression were mitigated by higher HDK scores (p < 0.001). In conclusion, HDK is a valid and reliable tool to measure dietary knowledge in hemodialysis patients. Higher HDK scores potentially protect patients with S-COVID-19-S from anxiety and depression during the pandemic