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Poor domestic response to pandemic undermining UK’s global health announcements, experts say

October 12, 2020

U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson addressing the U.N. General Assembly. Photo by: Andrew Parsons / No 10 Downing Street / CC BY-NC-ND

LONDON — As the U.K. seeks to expand its role as a global health leader under Prime Minister Boris Johnson, it is being undermined by a poor domestic public health response to the COVID-19 pandemic, according to experts.

The U.K. government has made a number of recent high-profile global health announcements. These have centered on increasing funding to the World Health Organization, along with calling for the agency’s reform, and joining the COVAX scheme for an equitable coronavirus vaccine, pledging to donate up to £571 million. Earlier this year, the U.K. was a leading donor to Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance and the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations.

UK Aid Tracker

Keep up to date on key issues surrounding U.K. aid, including the new FCDO, the future of the

Transgenders who experience stigma are more likely to have poor mental health outcomes

October 12, 2020

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Reviewed by Emily Henderson, B.Sc.Oct 12 2020

A University of Waikato study has found that transgender people who have experienced stigma, including harassment, violence, and discrimination because of their identity are much more likely to have poor mental health outcomes.

Based on the responses of 1,178 people who completed a national Aotearoa/New Zealand survey, the findings published in the International Journal of Transgender Health, also show that over half (51%) of transgender people had been discriminated against for being transgender.

A team of experts from Waikato, and the University of Otago, assessed the results of the 2018 ‘Counting Ourselves’ survey – a nationwide community-based questionnaire of transgender people living in Aotearoa/New Zealand.

Specifically, the team analysed the extent that stigma and discriminatory experiences alongside protective factors such as the support of friends, family, neighbours and communities, are related to the mental health of transgender people in Aotearoa/New Zealand.

Transgender people who experience discrimination likelier to have poor mental health

October 11, 2020

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A University of Waikato study has found that transgender people who have experienced stigma, including harassment, violence, and discrimination because of their identity are much more likely to have poor mental health outcomes.

Based on the responses of 1,178 people who completed a national Aotearoa/New Zealand survey, the findings published in the International Journal of Transgender Health, also show that over half (51%) of transgender people had been discriminated against for being transgender.

A team of experts from Waikato, and the University of Otago, assessed the results of the 2018 ‘Counting Ourselves’ survey – a nationwide community-based questionnaire of transgender people living in Aotearoa/New Zealand.

Specifically, the team analysed the extent that stigma and discriminatory experiences alongside protective factors such as the support of friends, family, neighbours and communities, are related to the mental health of transgender people in Aotearoa/New Zealand.

Their results show that 23% of transgender people

‘Poor health’ and screen time on different devices: What is the link?

October 10, 2020

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A recent study has found associations between the time we spend in front of some devices and certain negative health outcomes.

New research has found links between the amount of time that people spend in front of some screened devices and various negative health outcomes.

The study findings, which appear in the journal BMC Public Health, lay the groundwork for future research to explore these associations in more detail.

Throughout the 20th century, television spread across the globe, becoming an important part of many people’s lives.

Significant amounts of research have explored the associations between watching TV for prolonged periods of time and various health outcomes.

For example, scientists have found links have between significant TV watching and obesity and type 2 diabetes, as well as abnormal glucose metabolism.

Part of the explanation for these links lies in the association between prolonged periods of time spent in front of

The U.S. Cities Most Vulnerable to COVID-19 and Poor Mental Health | Cities

October 9, 2020

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For many Americans, the novel coronavirus outbreak has seemed to stretch on for an eternity. Nationwide lockdowns in the spring prompted white collar employees to work from home, often forcing them to simultaneously juggle family and professional responsibilities. And although certain states have eased more restrictions than others, school districts remain shuttered throughout the country. Thousands of working parents are still without respite. Meanwhile, front-line workers without the luxury to work from home continue to put their lives at risk.

Just prior to World Mental Health Day on Oct. 10, the Surgo Foundation, a Washington, D.C.-based think tank, and Mental Health America, a nonprofit dedicated to addressing the needs of those living with mental illness, published a report highlighting 13 American cities that they say are especially vulnerable to the twin crises of COVID-19 and steep declines in mental health.

Their study evaluated cities based on the percentage of residents

‘Wherever the need is, we serve,’ says chief of health center that treats Durham’s poor :: WRAL.com

October 7, 2020

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By Sarah Krueger, WRAL Durham reporter

Durham, N.C. — A packed parking lot is a daily sight at Lincoln Community Health Center in Durham, which for half a century has been trying to provide the city’s neediest residents with the health care many others take for granted.

“We’re always busy, yes,” said Dr. Howard Eisenson, Lincoln’s chief medical officer. “There’s a great deal of demand for our services, and it’s good that we’re here.”

Started when what is now Duke Regional Hospital opened to replace two segregated hospitals – whites-only Watts Hospital and Lincoln Hospital for Black residents – the health center on Fayetteville Street provides an option for people without transportation to obtain care in their neighborhood.

Lincoln sees about 35,000 patients a year, “probably in the neighborhood of 140,000 patient visits a year,” Eisenson said.

The center provides a range of medical services for both children and

AHA News: People in Poor Heart Health More Likely to Give Their Doctors Low Marks | Health News

October 1, 2020

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(HealthDay)

THURSDAY, Oct. 1, 2020 (American Heart Association News) — People with poor heart health have worse perceptions of their patient-doctor relationship, according to a new study that also found overall cardiovascular health is worsening in the U.S.

The research, published Thursday in the Journal of the American Heart Association, sought to shed light on cardiovascular health and how it squares with people’s impression of their health and their health care experience.

The study looked at data from 2006 to 2015 among 177,421 adults without known cardiovascular disease. First, researchers measured their cardiovascular health by weighing six risk factors: smoking status, physical activity, weight, high blood pressure, diabetes and blood lipid levels, including cholesterol.

They found 11.5% had poor cardiovascular health, a number that rose over the 10-year time frame regardless of age, gender, race or income.

“No matter how you slice it or dice it, we found cardiovascular health

Push to bring coronavirus vaccines to the poor faces trouble

October 1, 2020

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LONDON (AP) — An ambitious humanitarian project to deliver coronavirus vaccines to the world’s poorest people is facing potential shortages of money, cargo planes, refrigeration and vaccines themselves — and running into skepticism even from some of those it’s intended to help most.

In one of the biggest obstacles, rich countries have locked up most of the world’s potential vaccine supply through 2021, and the U.S. and others have refused to join the project, called Covax.

“The supply of vaccines is not going to be there in the near term, and the money also isn’t there,” warned Rohit Malpani, a public health consultant who previously worked for Doctors Without Borders.

Covax was conceived as a way of giving countries access to coronavirus vaccines regardless of their wealth.

It is being led by the World Health Organization, a U.N. agency; Gavi, a public-private alliance, funded in part by the Bill &

Poor Mental Health For Executives Isn’t Just A Work-Life Balance Issue

October 1, 2020

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Part of Kathy Caprino’s series “Supporting Today’s Workforce”

Work-life balance has become even more elusive today

Getty Images/iStockphoto

As we’ve read in so many headlines in the past several months, the mental health of professionals and executives has taken a strong hit since the pandemic began. In one recent study by health insurer Bupa Global, for instance, nearly eight out of 10 corporate executives have experienced poor mental health during the coronavirus crisis, prompting a number of them to re-evaluate and improve work-life balance.

But is work-life imbalance alone that the culprit? In my career, executive and leadership coaching work, I am seeing so many professionals who are struggling emotionally, physically and mentally in new ways that they are unsure how to address. While some of these challenges are indeed related to work-life balance difficulties, much of what is being experienced emotionally is about more than “balance.” It’s about fear,

Older people suffered poor mental health over worries about food while shielding

September 30, 2020

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Older people who were advised to shield at the start of the pandemic suffered high levels of depression and anxiety over worries about food and essentials, a new study has found.

The research, co-led by UCL, shows that the increase in poor mental health was not related to reduced social contacts, but due to higher levels of worry about obtaining food and other essentials, and less physical activity and sleep.

It was around the time when supermarkets were dealing with empty shelves due to panic-buying and customers faced delays in getting a time slot for deliveries.

This prompted supermarkets to prioritise slots for deliveries for people in the shielding group, who were also entitled to food parcels.

The study found 60% of older people instructed to shield were strictly isolating in April and May, staying at home and trying to limit face-to-face contact.

Severe depression and anxiety symptoms were twice