Intense spawning aggregation of ragged sea hare, Bursatella leachii Blainville, 1817 in Netravathi estuary

Large aggregations of a single species of sea hares were observed during a regular clam survey on 3rd February 2022, in the estuarine stretches of river Netravathi in Mangalore. The 15 x 15 cm quadrants were used to count the egg mass found in the intertidal area of the estuary. Samples of sea hare entangled in gillnets were collected and brought to lab for further analysis with with number of organisms entangled in each panel was documented. Measurements were taken to the nearest 0.1 mm using digital vernier calliper and total body weight was noted to the nearest 0.1 g with an electronic weighing balance. A semi-structured interview was also conducted with the fishers of the region during field visit to record the extend of menace created by the organism

State law mandates for reporting of healthcare-associated Clostridium difficile infections in hospitals.

US state and territorial laws were reviewed to identify Clostridium difficile infection reporting mandates. Twenty states require reporting either under state law or by incorporating federal Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services\u27 reporting requirements. Although state law mandates are more common, the incorporation of federal reporting requirements has been increasing

An Update on the Surveillance of Livestock Diseases and Antimicrobial Use in Sierra Leone in 2021-An Operational Research Study.

In Sierra Leone, in 2020, a study by the Livestock and Veterinary Services Division (Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry) on the surveillance system of animal diseases and antimicrobial use found poor reporting. Of the expected weekly districts reports, <1% were received and only three of the 15 districts had submitted reports occasionally between 2016 and 2019. Following this, staff-capacity-building on reporting was undertaken. In 2021, we reassessed the improvement in reporting and used the reports to describe livestock diseases and antimicrobials utilized in their treatment. Between March and October 2021, 88% of expected weekly reports from all 15 districts were received. There were minor deficiencies in completeness and consistency in the terminology used for reporting animal disease and antimicrobials. Available reports showed that 25% of the livestock had an infectious disease, and a quarter of the sick animals had received an antimicrobial drug. Most animals received antimicrobials belonging to World Organization for Animal Health's "veterinary critically important" category (77%) and World Health Organization's "critically" (17%) and "highly important" (60%) categories for human health. These indicate a significant improvement in the animal health surveillance system and highlight the need for enhanced antimicrobial stewardship to prevent misuse of antimicrobials that are significant in animal and human health

Beaching of pneumatophores of Blue button jellyfish

Jellyfish are zooplanktonic organisms commonly found in coastal and offshore water of all oceans in the world. The true jellyfish are the planktonic stages of three cnidarian classes: the Hydrozoa, the Scyphozoa, and the Cubozoa. The occurrence of jellyfish blooms, beach stranding as well as interference with fisheries is reported from various parts of the world. Spatiotemporal dynamics of jellyfish are highly variable, and irregular blooms or stranding of jellyfish make it difficult to predict. Mass beaching of pneumatophore of blue button jelly was observed in the beaches of Dakshina Kannada during the second week of September 2020

State Mandated Reporting of Healthcare-Associated Infections in the United States: Trends Over Time

Over the past decade, most US states and territories began mandating that acute care hospitals report health care–associated infections (HAIs) to their departments of health. Trends in state HAI law enactment and data submission requirements were determined through systematic legal review; state HAI coordinators were contacted to confirm collected data. As of January 31, 2013, 37 US states and territories (71%) had adopted laws requiring HAI data submission, most of which were enacted and became effective in 2006 and 2007. Most states with HAI laws required reporting of central line–associated bloodstream infections in adult intensive care units (92%), and about half required reporting of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus and Clostridium difficile infections (54% and 51%, respectively). Overall, data submission requirements were found to vary across states. Considering the facility and state resources needed to comply with HAI reporting mandates, future studies should focus on whether these laws have had the desired impact of reducing infection rates

Operational Gaps in Implementing the COVID-19 Case Investigation and Contact Tracing in Madhesh Province of Nepal, May–July 2021

In Nepal, case investigation and contact tracing (CICT) was adopted as an important public health measure to reduce COVID-19 transmission. In this study, we assessed the performance of CICT in Madhesh Province of Nepal against national benchmarks, using routine programmatic data reported by district CICT teams. Between May and July 2021, 17,943 COVID-19 cases were declared in the province, among which case investigation was performed for 30% (95% CI: 29.6–31.0%) within 24 h (against 80% benchmark). As a result of case investigations, 6067 contacts were identified (3 contacts per 10 cases), of which 40% were traced and tested for SARS-CoV-2 infection (against 100% benchmark). About 60% of the contacts tested positive. At most 14% (95% CI: 13.1% to 14.9%) of traced contacts underwent a 14-day follow-up assessment (against 100% benchmark). We found the performance of the CICT program in Madhesh Province to be sub-optimal and call for corrective measures to strengthen CICT in the province and the country at large. Similar studies with wider geographical scope and longer time frames are needed to identify and address deficiencies in data recording and reporting systems for COVID-19, in low- and middle-income countries like Nepal and others

Feasibility, enablers and challenges of using timeliness metrics for household contact tracing and TB preventive therapy in Pakistan

Introduction: Screening household contacts of TB patients and providing TB preventive therapy (TPT) is a key intervention to end the TB epidemic. Global and timely implementation of TPT in household contacts, however, is dismal. We adapted the 7-1-7 timeliness metric designed to evaluate and respond to infectious disease outbreaks or pandemics, and assessed the feasibility, enablers and challenges of implementing this metric for screening and management of household contacts of index patients with bacteriologically-confirmed pulmonary TB in Karachi city, Pakistan.Methods: We conducted an explanatory mixed methods study with a quantitative component (cohort design) followed by a qualitative component (descriptive design with focus group discussions).Results: From January-June 2023, 92% of 450 index patients had their household contacts line-listed within seven days of initiating anti-TB treatment ( first 7 ). In 84% of 1342 household contacts, screening outcomes were ascertained within one day of line-listing ( next 1 ). In 35% of 256 household contacts eligible for further evaluation by a medical officer (aged ≤5 years or with chest symptoms), anti-tuberculosis treatment, TPT or a decision for no drugs was made within seven days of symptom screening ( second 7 ). The principal reason for not starting anti-tuberculosis treatment or TPT was failure to consult a medical officer: only 129(50%) of 256 contacts consulted a medical officer. Reasons for poor performance in the second 7 component included travel costs to see a medical officer, loss of daily earnings and fear of a TB diagnosis. Field staff reported that timeliness metrics motivated them to take prompt action in household contact screening and TPT provision and they suggested these be included in national guidelines.Conclusions: Field staff found 7-1-7 timeliness metrics to be feasible and useful. Integration of these metrics into national guidelines could improve timeliness of diagnosis, treatment and prevention of TB within households of index patients

Primary Health Care System Strengthening Project in Sri Lanka: Status and Challenges with Human Resources, Information Systems, Drugs and Laboratory Services

A Primary Healthcare-System-Strengthening Project (PSSP) is implemented by the Ministry of Health, Sri Lanka, with funding support from the World Bank for providing quality care through primary medical care institutions (PMCIs). We used an explanatory mixed-methods study to assess progress and challenges in human resources, drug availability, laboratory services and the health management information system (HMIS) at PMCIs. We conducted a checklist-based assessment followed by in-depth interviews of healthcare workers in one PMCI each in all nine provinces. All PMCIs had medical/nursing officers, but data entry operators (44%) and laboratory technicians (33%) were mostly not available. Existing staff were assigned additional responsibilities in PSSP, decreasing their motivation and efficiency. While 11/18 (61%) essential drugs were available in all PMCIs, buffer stocks were not maintained in >50% due to poor supply chain management and storage infrastructure. Only 6/14 (43%) essential laboratory investigations were available in >50% of PMCIs, non-availability was due to shortages of reagents/consumables and lack of sample collection–transportation system. The HMIS was installed in PMCIs but its usage was sub-optimal due to perceived lack of utility, few trained operators and poor internet connectivity. The PSSP needs to address these bottlenecks as a priority to ensure sustainability and successful scale-up