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Journal of Environmental Management Jun 2024Environmental Social and Governance (ESG) has emerged as a sensitive issue, attracting the attention of a large audience that could not be ignored. Government bodies...
Environmental Social and Governance (ESG) has emerged as a sensitive issue, attracting the attention of a large audience that could not be ignored. Government bodies continue to pass regulations mandating organizations to comply with ESG principles. However, many organizations have had unsatisfactory results while promoting sustainability ideals due to various challenges. To achieve ESG goals, the present study offers a thorough framework for ESG implementation across organizations based on the critical success factor (CSF) theory and the opinions of diverse stakeholders. Following a literature review and brainstorming with ESG experts and academicians, a survey questionnaire was sent to 400 respondents to evaluate the 20 factors identified as 'super-set' CSFs for ESG implementation. This paper represents a novel attempt in ESG research as it conducts a survey supported by exploratory factor analysis (EFA). The interactions between the significant CSFs were studied by employing total interpretative structural modeling (TISM) and fuzzy MICMAC approach. ESG implementation is found to be highly driven by firm characteristics, earnings quality, and environmental performance, which can be argued to be the fundamental determinants of ESG implementation. According to these findings, organizations' leadership should (1) focus on effectively structuring firms' attributes to swiftly operate the ESG implementation framework, (2) ensure consistent business earnings that signal improved future performance, and (3) continuously monitor and assess their environmental performance. These efforts should be supported by engaging with diverse stakeholder groups, each playing its respective role in ESG implementation. Consequently, ESG implementation across organizations is anticipated to accelerate with thoughtful organizational coordination, strategic planning, and compliance with authoritative policies. However, rather than solely focusing on creating ESG disclosure laws, policymakers should also focus on creating better ESG outcomes through effective ESG implementation. Therefore, this research offers valuable insights into improving ESG practices, which facilitates the adoption of mandatory ESG disclosure regulations.
PubMed: 38944955
DOI: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2024.121583 -
Japanese Journal of Infectious Diseases Jun 2024An active epidemiological investigation of COVID-19 cases in the Setagaya ward of Tokyo revealed that household transmission was the main route of infection spread. This...
An analysis of factors contributing to household transmission of COVID-19-using data from active epidemiological investigations performed in the Setagaya ward of Tokyo, Japan.
An active epidemiological investigation of COVID-19 cases in the Setagaya ward of Tokyo revealed that household transmission was the main route of infection spread. This study aimed to identify the factors affecting household transmission in patients diagnosed with COVID-19 and their cohabitants, during the wild type virus (December 2020) and alpha variant epidemic (May 2021). Index case factors significantly associated with household transmission for both wild type (WT) and alpha variant (AV), were at least 3 days from onset to diagnosis (WT: risk ratio [RR] 1.44, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.16-1.79/AV: RR 1.66, CI 1.32-2.08), and a household size of three or more people (WT: RR 1.37, CI 1.10-1.72/AV: RR 1.29, CI 1.05-1.59). There were also significant differences in age ≥ 65 (RR 2.39, CI 1.26-4.54) and symptomatic at diagnosis (RR 3.05, CI 1.22-7.63) in index cases of WT. Among cohabitants, factors associated with household transmission for both strains were being the spouse/partner of the index case (WT: RR 1.68, CI 1.21-1.82/AV: RR 1.97, CI 1.59-2.43) and at least 3 days from onset to diagnosis of the index case (WT: RR 1.48, CI 1.34-2.10/ AV: RR 1.86, CI1.52-2.28). Early diagnosis and isolation are effective for preventing household transmission.
PubMed: 38945861
DOI: 10.7883/yoken.JJID.2023.342 -
Yakugaku Zasshi : Journal of the... 2024In Japan, influenza vaccination is offered to children and pregnant women at clinics or hospitals as an elective, self-funded treatment, as the vaccination is not...
In Japan, influenza vaccination is offered to children and pregnant women at clinics or hospitals as an elective, self-funded treatment, as the vaccination is not included in the national vaccination subsidy program. However, some Japanese municipalities offer a discretionary subsidy for seasonal influenza vaccination of children and pregnant women as a local policy. We identified these local subsidy programs during 2019/2020 seasonal influenza season by conducting a cross-sectional survey across Japan. Out of a total of 1741 municipalities, responses were received from 1732; therefore, the response rate was 99.5%. The local influenza vaccine subsidy programs for children were offered in 45.7%, and for pregnant women in 10.2%, of Japanese municipalities. This is the first survey of subsidy programs for pregnant women. While policy diffusion of subsidy programs for children was observed during the 9 years since a previous study, such programs for pregnant women remain limited. Despite many municipalities having subsidy programs, we found that their provision still remains limited when viewed as a whole.
Topics: Humans; Japan; Female; Pregnancy; Influenza Vaccines; Influenza, Human; Cross-Sectional Studies; Child; Vaccination; Seasons; Immunization Programs; Cities; Financing, Government; East Asian People
PubMed: 38945849
DOI: 10.1248/yakushi.24-00032 -
The International Journal on Drug Policy Jun 2024Inspired by Giommoni's assessment of the Cunningham precursor control scholarship, we propose two concepts to help drug policy scholars think through the mechanisms that...
Inspired by Giommoni's assessment of the Cunningham precursor control scholarship, we propose two concepts to help drug policy scholars think through the mechanisms that operate when market participants are faced with a change in precursor availability. The first is the concept of restrictive deterrence, that emphasizes risks mitigation strategies such as looking into changes in the frequency, methods, markets that may occur after different types of interventions. While restrictive deterrence is an improvement over current approaches in thinking through adaptations, it falls short in its narrower focus on the individual, rather than organizations or the market as a collective. The concept of resilience is then proposed as alternative that allows scholars to elaborate specific hypotheses and assess both organizations and markets based on their capacity to anticipate, cope, adapt and ultimately recover from disruptions. We finish by providing a reading of the Cunningham and colleagues precursor control papers with the resilience framework in mind, showing that many of the elements were already present in their work.
PubMed: 38945754
DOI: 10.1016/j.drugpo.2024.104500 -
Science Bulletin May 2024Climate change is increasing the frequency and intensity of heatwaves, raising concerns about their detrimental effects on air quality. However, a role for...
Climate change is increasing the frequency and intensity of heatwaves, raising concerns about their detrimental effects on air quality. However, a role for heatwave-human-environment interactions in air pollution exacerbation has not been established. In the summer of 2022, record-breaking heatwaves struck China and Europe. In this study, we use integrated observational data and machine learning to elucidate the formation mechanism underlying one of the most severe ozone pollution seasons on record in central eastern China, an area that encompasses approximately half of China's total population and sown land. Our findings reveal that the worsened ozone and nitrogen dioxide pollution resulted from a mismatch between energy demand and supply, which was driven by both heatwaves and energy policy-related factors. The observed adverse heatwave-energy-environment feedback loop highlights the need for the diversification of clean energy sources, more resilient energy structures and power policies, and further emission control to confront the escalating climate challenge in the future.
PubMed: 38945745
DOI: 10.1016/j.scib.2024.05.018 -
Public Health Jun 2024To estimate the health and economic burden of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) attributed to alcohol consumption in 2019 for the Brazilian Unified Health System (SUS)...
OBJECTIVE
To estimate the health and economic burden of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) attributed to alcohol consumption in 2019 for the Brazilian Unified Health System (SUS) stratified by states.
STUDY DESIGN
Observational, descriptive, and ecological study.
METHODS
We used population attributable fractions (PAFs) of NCDs due to alcohol consumption from the Global Burden of Disease study. We applied the PAFs to the costs of hospitalizations and outpatient procedures of medium to high complexity paid by SUS for each outcome, obtained from official databases. We also calculated the disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) and mortality caused by alcohol-related NCDs. We converted the costs into international dollars (Int$) using the purchasing parity power in 2019.
RESULTS
Alcohol-related NCDs accounted for 8.48% of deaths and 7.0% of DALYs among men, and 1.33% of deaths and 1.6% of DALYs among women. The main diseases were substance use, digestive, and neoplastic diseases. The SUS spent Int$202.0 million on alcohol-related NCDs, mostly on hospitalizations. The highest health burden was observed in the states of the Northeast region, and the highest expenses in the states from the South. The burden and cost values varied by sex, age group, and state.
CONCLUSION
The study showed that alcohol consumption has a significant impact on Brazilian population morbidity and mortality and SUS expenditures, especially among men. These results can support policies for the prevention and control of alcohol consumption and health promotion at the subnational level, prioritizing strategies that are more appropriate to local realities.
PubMed: 38944900
DOI: 10.1016/j.puhe.2024.05.014 -
Ethics & Human Research 2024A leading concern about single IRB (sIRB) review for multisite studies, as is now required by federal policies, is whether and how sIRBs consider local context in their... (Review)
Review
A leading concern about single IRB (sIRB) review for multisite studies, as is now required by federal policies, is whether and how sIRBs consider local context in their review. While several types of local context considerations have been proposed, there is no shared agreement among those charged with the ethics oversight of human subjects research as to the goals and content of local context review, nor the types of research studies for which sIRB review might be inappropriate. Through a scoping review of published scholarship, public comments, and federal guidance documents, we identified five assumed goals for local context review: protecting the rights and welfare of local participants; ensuring compliance with applicable laws and policies; assessing feasibility; promoting the quality of research; and promoting procedural justice. While a variety of content was proposed to be relevant, it was largely grouped into four domains: population/participant-level characteristics; investigator and research team characteristics; institution-level characteristics; and state and local laws. Proposed characteristics for exclusion from sIRB requirements reflected both protection- and efficiency-based concerns. These findings can inform ongoing efforts to assess the implications of policies mandating sIRB review, and when exceptions to those policies might be appropriate.
Topics: Humans; Ethics Committees, Research; Ethics, Research; Human Experimentation
PubMed: 38944885
DOI: 10.1002/eahr.500215 -
Adult Pneumococcal Vaccination in Ghana: Current Status and Future Recommendations - Expert Opinion.West African Journal of Medicine Apr 2024Vaccination programs have proven successful in the prevention and control of infectious diseases among children on a global scale, but the majority of adult populations...
Vaccination programs have proven successful in the prevention and control of infectious diseases among children on a global scale, but the majority of adult populations remain unvaccinated. immunocompromised adults as well as older adults aged low-income countries as Streptococcus pneumoniae infections are associated with substantial morbidity and mortality among 65 years and above. Despite the introduction of pneumococcal conjugate vaccines (PCVs), the burden of vaccine-type serotypes remains high in there are no clear policies for adult vaccination. As per the Global Burden of Disease 2019 report, about 120,000 individuals aged 70 years and older died as a result of LRTIs) in sub-Saharan Africa. A medical advisory board meeting was conducted in April 2022 to discuss the burden of pneumococcal diseases in adults, the current status of policies and practices of adult vaccination, unmet needs, and challenges in Ghana. This expert opinion paper outlines the pneumococcal epidemiology and burden of disease in Ghana, as well as the rationale for adult pneumococcal vaccination. It also highlights the potential barriers to adult vaccination and offers recommendations to overcome these obstacles and enhance vaccine acceptance in Ghana.
Topics: Humans; Pneumococcal Vaccines; Ghana; Pneumococcal Infections; Adult; Vaccination; Aged; Vaccines, Conjugate; Streptococcus pneumoniae; Immunization Programs; Expert Testimony
PubMed: 38944877
DOI: No ID Found -
Journal of Gastrointestinal and Liver... Jun 2024Chronic liver diseases belong to the most common diseases worldwide and are associated with increased morbidity and mortality. Although more than one in three adults are...
BACKGROUND AND AIMS
Chronic liver diseases belong to the most common diseases worldwide and are associated with increased morbidity and mortality. Although more than one in three adults are estimated to have metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD), awareness of this condition is low amongst the general public, health care professionals and policy makers. However, meaningful knowledge transfer is essential for raising awareness and improving prevention and treatment. This study set out to investigate the use of the major internet search engine to understand how knowledge transfer has evolved by analyzing liver-related searches trends.
METHODS
We investigated Google search trends by measuring the number of hits relating to liver diseases between 2004 and 2021 in seven languages and European countries but also worldwide. All analyses were performed in R using the R Google trends package gtrendsR.
RESULTS
We found that interest in MASLD [formerly non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD)] has generally increased over time, but that interest in metabolic associated steatohepatitis (MASH) - the most severe form of MASLD - has decreased. Interest in viral hepatitis C has decreased, whereas the number of queries regarding viral hepatitis B have been stable but dominated by interest in vaccination for it. Recent medical developments (in viral hepatitis) did not lead to a noticeable change in overall search behavior. Users preferred searching using their native language and less complex medical terms and acronyms (e.g., fatty liver instead of NAFLD).
CONCLUSIONS
In the last two decades, Google search trends have followed the general development in the field of hepatology. Searches were dominated by non-experts and are not being rapidly influenced by novel scientific developments. Also, users preferred search terms in their native languages rather than English and tended to avoid complex medical search terms. Awareness and communication strategies around MASLD should consider these preferences when addressing the general public.
Topics: Humans; Europe; Search Engine; Liver Diseases; Internet; Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease; Information Seeking Behavior; Consumer Health Information
PubMed: 38944876
DOI: 10.15403/jgld-5477 -
Journal of Gastrointestinal and Liver... Jun 2024Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a significant public health issue, with an increasing incidence and prevalence and a high incidence-to-mortality ratio. The prognosis...
BACKGROUND AND AIMS
Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a significant public health issue, with an increasing incidence and prevalence and a high incidence-to-mortality ratio. The prognosis of HCC depends on two competing factors, tumor burden and underlying liver disease severity, encompassed in the Barcelona Clinic Liver Cancer (BCLC) classification. To assess HCC staging and the way staging affects eligibility for treatment at the time of the first diagnosis in Romania in the setting of opportunistic diagnosis, in the absence of a national HCC screening policy.
METHODS
Data regarding HCC staging, underlying liver disease, and eligibility for treatment at the time of diagnosis was analyzed using a prospectively maintained multicentric database, which included patients from the five largest tertiary care hepatology units in the country between June 2016 and February 2020.
RESULTS
A consecutive series of 477 patients was included. The distribution within BCLC classes was as follows: very early (0) 7.1%, early (A) 34.3%, intermediate (B) 19.4%, advanced (C) 14.2%, terminal (D) 24.7%. At the time of the diagnosis, 198 (41.5%) were eligible for a curative intent treatment, while 359 (75.2%) were eligible for a disease-modifying therapy. 228 patients (47.8%) had decompensated liver disease at the time of diagnosis, the most common decompensating event being ascites (78.1%).
CONCLUSIONS
A large proportion of HCC cases are diagnosed at the time of a decompensating event, severely restricting the therapeutic potential. Proactive diagnostic strategies should be implemented to improve the rate of actionable diagnosis.
Topics: Humans; Carcinoma, Hepatocellular; Liver Neoplasms; Romania; Male; Neoplasm Staging; Female; Middle Aged; Aged; Adult; Aged, 80 and over; Databases, Factual; Retrospective Studies
PubMed: 38944873
DOI: 10.15403/jgld-5414