:: Journal Watch
The Sentinel will track key peer-reviewed journals which address a broad range of interests in human rights, humanitarian response, health and development. It is not intended to be exhaustive. We will add to those monitored below as we encounter relevant content and upon recommendation from readers. We selectively provide full text of abstracts and other content but note that successful access to some of the articles and other content may require subscription or other access arrangement unique to the publisher. Please suggest additional journals you feel warrant coverage.

American Journal of Infection Control
November 2016 Volume 44, Issue 11, p1197-1430, e183-e282
http://www.ajicjournal.org/current

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Major Articles
Social media as a tool for antimicrobial stewardship
Jennifer Pisano, Natasha Pettit, Allison Bartlett, Palak Bhagat, Zhe Han, Chuanhong Liao, Emily Landon
p1231–1236
Published in issue: November 01 2016

National surveillance of health care–associated infections in Egypt: Developing a sustainable program in a resource-limited country
Maha Talaat, Mona El-Shokry, Jehan El-Kholy, Ghada Ismail, Sara Kotb, Soad Hafez, Ehab Attia, Fernanda C. Lessa
p1296–1301
Published online: June 20, 2016
Open Access

Brief Reports
How will the MMR universal mass vaccination change the epidemiologic pattern of mumps? A 2012 Italian serosurvey
Silvio Tafuri, Maria Serena Gallone, Angela Maria Vittoria Larocca, Cinzia Germinario
p1420–1421
Published online: May 2, 2016

American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene
November 2016; 95 (5)
http://www.ajtmh.org/content/current

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Perspective Pieces
Partnerships that Facilitate a Refugee’s Journey to Wellbeing
Nina Marano, Abbey E. Wojno, William M. Stauffer, Michelle Weinberg, Alexander Klosovsky, J. Daniel Ballew, Sharmila Shetty, Susan Cookson, Patricia Walker, and Martin S. Cetron
Am J Trop Med Hyg 2016 95:985-987; Published online October 10, 2016, doi:10.4269/ajtmh.16-0657
Abstract
The current global refugee crisis involves 65.3 million persons who have been displaced from their homes or countries of origin. While escaping immediate harm may be their first priority, displaced people go on to face numerous health risks, including trauma and injuries, malnutrition, infectious diseases, exacerbation of existing chronic diseases, and mental health conditions. This crisis highlights the importance of building capacity among health-care providers, scientists, and laboratorians to understand and respond to the health needs of refugees. The November 2016 American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene (ASTMH) conference in Atlanta will feature an interactive exhibit entitled “The Refugee Journey to Wellbeing” and three symposia about refugee health. The symposia will focus on tropical disease challenges in refugee populations, careers in refugee health, and recent experiences of governmental agencies and nongovernmental organizations in responding to the global refugee crisis. We invite ASTMH attendees to attend the exhibit and symposia and consider contributions they could make to improve refugee health through tropical disease research or clinical endeavors

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An Outbreak of Fearsome Photos and Headlines: Ebola and Local Newspapers in West Africa
Eric S. Halsey Am J Trop Med Hyg 2016 95:988-992; Published online July 25, 2016, doi:10.4269/ajtmh.16-0245
OPEN ACCESS ARTICLE

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Dengue Dynamics and Vaccine Cost-Effectiveness Analysis in the Philippines
Eunha Shim
Am J Trop Med Hyg 2016 95:1137-1147; Published online September 6, 2016, doi:10.4269/ajtmh.16-0194
Abstract
Dengue is one of the most problematic vector-borne diseases in the Philippines, with an estimated 842,867 cases resulting in medical costs of $345 million U.S. dollars annually. In December 2015, the first dengue vaccine, known as chimeric yellow fever virus–dengue virus tetravalent dengue vaccine, was approved for use in the Philippines and is given to children 9 years of age. To estimate the cost-effectiveness of dengue vaccination in the Philippines, we developed an age-structured model of dengue transmission and vaccination. Using our model, we compared two vaccination scenarios entailing routine vaccination programs both with and without catch-up vaccination. Our results indicate that the higher the cost of vaccination, the less cost-effective the dengue vaccination program. With the current dengue vaccination program that vaccinates children 9 years of age, dengue vaccination is cost-effective for vaccination costs up to $70 from a health-care perspective and up to $75 from a societal perspective. Under a favorable scenario consisting of 1 year of catch-up vaccinations that target children 9–15 years of age, followed by regular vaccination of 9-year-old children, vaccination is cost-effective at costs up to $72 from a health-care perspective and up to $78 from a societal perspective. In general, dengue vaccination is expected to reduce the incidence of both dengue fever and dengue hemorrhagic fever /dengue shock syndrome. Our results demonstrate that even at relatively low vaccine efficacies, age-targeted vaccination may still be cost-effective provided the vaccination cost is sufficiently low.

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Herd Protection from Drinking Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene Interventions
James A. Fuller and
Joseph N. S. Eisenberg
Am J Trop Med Hyg 2016 95:1201-1210; Published online September 6, 2016, doi:10.4269/ajtmh.15-0677
Abstract
Herd immunity arises when a communicable disease is less able to propagate because a substantial portion of the population is immune. Nonimmunizing interventions, such as insecticide-treated bednets and deworming drugs, have shown similar herd-protective effects. Less is known about the herd protection from drinking water, sanitation, and hand hygiene (WASH) interventions. We first constructed a transmission model to illustrate mechanisms through which different WASH interventions may provide herd protection. We then conducted an extensive review of the literature to assess the validity of the model results and identify current gaps in research. The model suggests that herd protection accounts for a substantial portion of the total protection provided by WASH interventions. However, both the literature and the model suggest that sanitation interventions in particular are the most likely to provide herd protection, since they reduce environmental contamination. Many studies fail to account for these indirect effects and thus underestimate the total impact an intervention may have. Although cluster-randomized trials of WASH interventions have reported the total or overall efficacy of WASH interventions, they have not quantified the role of herd protection. Just as it does in immunization policy, understanding the role of herd protection from WASH interventions can help inform coverage targets and strategies that indirectly protect those that are unable to be reached by WASH campaigns. Toward this end, studies are needed to confirm the differential role that herd protection plays across the WASH interventions suggested by our transmission model.

BMC Infectious Diseases
http://www.biomedcentral.com/bmcinfectdis/content
(Accessed 5 November 2016)

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Research article
Prevalence and epidemiology of meningococcal carriage in Southern Ethiopia prior to implementation of MenAfriVac, a conjugate vaccine
Neisseria meningitidis colonizes humans and transmits mainly by asymptomatic carriage. We sought to determine the prevalence and epidemiology of meningococcal carriage in Ethiopia prio…
Guro K. Bårnes, Paul A. Kristiansen, Demissew Beyene, Bereket Workalemahu, Paulos Fissiha, Behailu Merdekios, Jon Bohlin, Marie-Pierre Préziosi, Abraham Aseffa and Dominique A. Caugant
BMC Infectious Diseases 2016 16:639
Published on: 4 November 2016

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Review
Alternative pre-approved and novel therapies for the treatment of anthrax
Bacillus anthracis, the causative agent of anthrax, is a spore forming and toxin producing rod-shaped bacterium that is classified as a category A bioterror agent. This pathogenic micr...
Breanne M. Head, Ethan Rubinstein and Adrienne F. A. Meyers
BMC Infectious Diseases 2016 16:621
Published on: 3 November 2016

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Research article
Using the 4 pillars™ practice transformation program to increase adult influenza vaccination and reduce missed opportunities in a randomized cluster trial
An evidence-based, step-by-step guide, the 4 Pillars™ Practice Transformation Program, was the foundation of an intervention to increase adult immunizations in primary care and was tested in a randomized contr…
Chyongchiou J. Lin, Mary Patricia Nowalk, Valory N. Pavlik, Anthony E. Brown, Song Zhang, Jonathan M. Raviotta, Krissy K. Moehling, Mary Hawk, Edmund M. Ricci, Donald B. Middleton, Suchita Patel, Jeannette E. South-Paul and Richard K. Zimmerman
BMC Infectious Diseases 2016 16:623
Published on: 3 November 2016

BMC Medical Ethics
http://www.biomedcentral.com/bmcmedethics/content
(Accessed 5 November 2016)

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Debate
Autonomy of the child in the South African context: is a 12 year old of sufficient maturity to consent to medical treatment?
Wandile Ganya, Sharon Kling and Keymanthri Moodley
Published on: 2 November 2016
Abstract
Background
A child is a developing person with evolving capacities that include autonomy, mental (decisional) capacity and capacity to assume responsibility. Hence, children are entitled to participatory (autonomy) rights in South Africa as observed in the Children’s Act 38 of 2005. According to section 129 of the Act a child may consent to his or her own medical treatment provided that he or she is over the age of 12 years and is of sufficient maturity and decisional capacity to understand the various implications of the treatment including the risks and benefits thereof. However, the Act does not provide a definition for what qualifies as ‘sufficient maturity’ nor does it stipulate how health professionals ought to assess the decisional capacity of a child. In addition, South Africa is a culturally diverse country. The Western liberal notion of autonomy may not necessarily find equal prominence in the mores of people with a different worldview. Hence we demonstrate a few salient comparisons between legal liberal moral theory and African communitarianism as pertinent to the autonomy of the child.
Discussion
Children are rights-holders by virtue of their humanity. Their dignity as individual human persons affords them the entitlement to human rights as contemplated under the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa. However, contrary to the traditional Western notion of individual autonomous persons African societies hold a communalistic notion of person hence there is less regard for individual autonomy and rights with more emphasis on the communal good and maintaining the continuity of relationships and interdependencies shared within a community. A child considered in this view is not regarded as a full person. This implies that decisions concerning the child, including consent to medical treatment are discussed and determined by the community to which the child belongs. Lastly, in this article, we draw on the notion of capacity for responsibility to produce a pragmatic definition of sufficient maturity.
Conclusion
It seems reasonable to suggest a move away from a general legal age of consent for medical treatment toward more individualised, context-specific approaches in determining the maturity of a child patient to consent to medical treatment. Perhaps, decision-making with respect to consent to the medical treatment of a child belonging to a traditional African community where the notion of a person is embedded in communitarianism ought to involve the child’s parents/guardians/caregivers where possible provided that the best interests of the child are awarded priority.

BMC Medicine

(Accessed 5 November 2016)

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Research article
The emerging threat of pre-extensively drug-resistant tuberculosis in West Africa: preparing for large-scale tuberculosis research and drug resistance surveillance
Drug-resistant tuberculosis (TB) is a global public health problem. Adequate management requires baseline drug-resistance prevalence data. In West Africa, due to a poor laboratory infrastructure and inadequate…
Florian Gehre, Jacob Otu, Lindsay Kendall, Audrey Forson, Awewura Kwara, Samuel Kudzawu, Aderemi O. Kehinde, Oludele Adebiyi, Kayode Salako, Ignatius Baldeh, Aisha Jallow, Mamadou Jallow, Anoumou Dagnra, Kodjo Dissé, Essosimna A. Kadanga, Emmanuel Oni Idigbe…
BMC Medicine 2016 14:160
Published on: 3 November 2016

BMC Public Health
http://bmcpublichealth.biomedcentral.com/articles
(Accessed 5 November 2016)

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Research article
What explains gender inequalities in HIV/AIDS prevalence in sub-Saharan Africa? Evidence from the demographic and health surveys
Women are disproportionally affected by human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)/acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). The determinants of gender inequality in HIV/AIDS may vary acro...
Drissa Sia, Yentéma Onadja, Mohammad Hajizadeh, S. Jody Heymann, Timothy F. Brewer and Arijit Nandi
BMC Public Health 2016 16:1136
Published on: 3 November 2016

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Research article
Health literacy: the missing link in improving the health of Somali immigrant women in Oslo
Existing studies report a positive association between inadequate health literacy and immigrant’s adverse health outcomes. Despite substantial research on this topic among immigrants, little is known about the…
Abdi A. Gele, Kjell Sverre Pettersen, Liv Elin Torheim and Bernadette Kumar
BMC Public Health 2016 16:1134
Published on: 3 November 2016

Bulletin of the World Health Organization
Volume 94, Number 11, November 2016, 785-860
http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/94/11/en/

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EDITORIALS
Research on community-based health workers is needed to achieve the sustainable development goals
Dermot Maher & Giorgio Cometto
http://dx.doi.org/10.2471/BLT.16.185918

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Elimination of mother-to-child transmission of HIV and syphilis in Cuba and Thailand
Naoko Ishikawa, Lori Newman, Melanie Taylor, Shaffiq Essajee, Razia Pendse & Massimo Ghidinelli
http://dx.doi.org/10.2471/BLT.16.185033

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RESEARCH
Inequalities in full immunization coverage: trends in low- and middle-income countries
María Clara Restrepo-Méndez, Aluísio JD Barros, Kerry LM Wong, Hope L Johnson, George Pariyo, Giovanny VA França, Fernando C Wehrmeister & Cesar G Victora
http://dx.doi.org/10.2471/BLT.15.162172
Abstract
Objective
To investigate disparities in full immunization coverage across and within 86 low- and middle-income countries.
Methods
In May 2015, using data from the most recent Demographic and Health Surveys and Multiple Indicator Cluster Surveys, we investigated inequalities in full immunization coverage – i.e. one dose of bacille Calmette-Guérin vaccine, one dose of measles vaccine, three doses of vaccine against diphtheria, pertussis and tetanus and three doses of polio vaccine – in 86 low- or middle-income countries. We then investigated temporal trends in the level and inequality of such coverage in eight of the countries.
Findings
In each of the World Health Organization’s regions, it appeared that about 56–69% of eligible children in the low- and middle-income countries had received full immunization. However, within each region, the mean recorded level of such coverage varied greatly. In the African Region, for example, it varied from 11.4% in Chad to 90.3% in Rwanda. We detected pro-rich inequality in such coverage in 45 of the 83 countries for which the relevant data were available and pro-urban inequality in 35 of the 86 study countries. Among the countries in which we investigated coverage trends, Madagascar and Mozambique appeared to have made the greatest progress in improving levels of full immunization coverage over the last two decades, particularly among the poorest quintiles of their populations.
Conclusion
Most low- and middle-income countries are affected by pro-rich and pro-urban inequalities in full immunization coverage that are not apparent when only national mean values of such coverage are reported.

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Research
Hepatitis B immunization for indigenous adults, Australia
Andre Louis Wattiaux, J Kevin Yin, Frank Beard, Steve Wesselingh, Benjamin Cowie, James Ward & Kristine Macartney
http://dx.doi.org/10.2471/BLT.16.169524
Abstract
Objective
To quantify the disparity in incidence of hepatitis B between indigenous and non-indigenous people in Australia, and to estimate the potential impact of a hepatitis B immunization programme targeting non-immune indigenous adults.
Methods
Using national data on persons with newly acquired hepatitis B disease notified between 2005 and 2012, we estimated incident infection rates and rate ratios comparing indigenous and non-indigenous people, with adjustments for underreporting. The potential impact of a hepatitis B immunization programme targeting non-immune indigenous adults was projected using a Markov chain Monte Carlo simulation model.
Findings
Of the 54 522 persons with hepatitis B disease notified between 1 January 2005 and 31 December 2012, 1953 infections were newly acquired. Acute hepatitis B infection notification rates were significantly higher for indigenous than non-indigenous Australians. The rates per 100 000 population for all ages were 3.6 (156/4 368 511) and 1.1 (1797/168 449 302) for indigenous and non-indigenous people respectively. The rate ratio of age-standardized notifications was 4.0 (95% confidence interval: 3.7–4.3). If 50% of non-immune indigenous adults (20% of all indigenous adults) were vaccinated over a 10-year programme a projected 527–549 new cases of acute hepatitis B would be prevented.
Conclusion
There continues to be significant health inequity between indigenous and non-indigenous Australians in relation to vaccine-preventable hepatitis B disease. An immunization programme targeting indigenous Australian adults could have considerable impact in terms of cases of acute hepatitis B prevented, with a relatively low number needed to vaccinate to prevent each case.

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POLICY & PRACTICE
Dengue vaccine: local decisions, global consequences
Hugo López-Gatell, Celia M Alpuche-Aranda, José I Santos-Preciado & Mauricio Hernández-Ávila
http://dx.doi.org/10.2471/BLT.15.168765
Abstract
As new vaccines against diseases that are prevalent in low- and middle-income countries gradually become available, national health authorities are presented with new regulatory and policy challenges. The use of CYD-TDV – a chimeric tetravalent, live-attenuated dengue vaccine – was recently approved in five countries. Although promising for public health, this vaccine has only partial and heterogeneous efficacy and may have substantial adverse effects. In trials, children who were aged 2–5 years when first given CYD-TDV were seven times more likely to be hospitalized for dengue, in the third year post-vaccination, than their counterparts in the control group. As it has not been clarified whether this adverse effect is only a function of age or is determined by dengue serostatus, doubts have been cast over the long-term safety of this vaccine in seronegative individuals of any age. Any deployment of the vaccine, which should be very cautious and only considered after a rigorous evaluation of the vaccine’s risk–benefit ratio in explicit national and subnational scenarios, needs to be followed by a long-term assessment of the vaccine’s effects. Furthermore, any implementation of dengue vaccines must not weaken the political and financial support of preventive measures that can simultaneously limit the impacts of dengue and several other mosquito-borne pathogens.

Conflict and Health
http://www.conflictandhealth.com/
[Accessed 5 November 2016]

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Research
Community based system dynamic as an approach for understanding and acting on messy problems: a case study for global mental health intervention in Afghanistan
Jean-Francois Trani, Ellis Ballard, Parul Bakhshi and Peter Hovmand
Published on: 2 November 2016

Ethics & International Affairs
Fall 2016 (Issue 30.3)
https://www.ethicsandinternationalaffairs.org/2016/fall-2016-issue-30-3/

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ESSAYS
Climate Contributions and the Paris Agreement: Fairness and Equity in a Bottom-Up Architecture
Nicholas Chan
[Initial text]
Ethical questions of fairness, responsibility, and burden-sharing have always been central to the international politics of climate change and efforts to construct an effective intergovernmental response to this problem. The conclusion of the Paris Agreement last December, lauded by the media, governments, and civil society around the world, is the most recent such effort, following the collapse of negotiations six years prior at the 2009 Copenhagen conference. The shape and form of the Paris Agreement, however, represents a radically different governance structure to its predecessor, the Kyoto Protocol, reorienting the international regime toward a “bottom-up” structure, emphasizing national flexibility in order to ensure broader participation. In doing so, the Paris Agreement also provides a different answer to the question of what constitutes a fair and equitable response to climate change…

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Features
Self-Interest and the Distant Vulnerable
Luke Glanville | September 15, 2016
[Initial text]
What interests do states have in assisting and protecting vulnerable populations beyond their borders? Today, confronted as we are with civil wars, mass atrocities, and humanitarian catastrophes that have cost the lives of hundreds of thousands of civilians and generated the displacement of sixty million more, this question is as urgent as it has ever been. It is also one that is answered in a variety of ways.
Narrow interpretations of nationalism and realism tend to insist that states have no interests in assisting the distant vulnerable. A narrow nationalism claims that a state should never risk blood and treasure for the sake of vulnerable outsiders…

Globalization and Health
http://www.globalizationandhealth.com/
[Accessed 5 November 2016]

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Research
Assessment of the scope and practice of evaluation among medical donation programs
Alisa M. Jenny, Meng Li, Elizabeth Ashbourne, Myron Aldrink, Christine Funk and Andy Stergachis
Globalization and Health 2016 12:69
Published on: 4 November 2016
Abstract
Background
Medical donation programs for drugs, other medical products, training and other supportive services can improve access to essential medicines in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) and provide emergency and disaster relief. The scope and extent to which medical donation programs evaluate their impact on recipients and health systems is not well documented.
Methods
We conducted a survey of the member organizations of the Partnership for Quality Medical Donations (PQMD), a global alliance of non-profit and corporate organizations, to identify evaluations conducted in conjunction with donation programs.
Results
Twenty-five out of the 36 PQMD organizations that were members at the time of the survey participated in the study, for a response rate of 69 %. PQMD members provided information on 34 of their major medical donation programs. Half of the donation programs reported conducting trainings as a part of their donation program. Twenty-six (76 %) programs reported that they conduct routine monitoring of their donation programs. Less than 30 % of donation programs were evaluated for their impact on health. Lack of technical staff and lack of funding were reported as key barriers to conducting impact evaluations.
Conclusions
Member organizations of PQMD provide a broad range of medical donations, targeting a wide range of public health issues and events. While some level of monitoring and evaluation was conducted in nearly 80 % of the donation programs, a program’s impact was infrequently evaluated. Opportunities exist to develop consistent metrics for medical donation programs, develop a common framework for impact evaluations, and advocate for data collection and analysis plans that collect meaningful metrics.

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Research
The challenge of bridging the gap between researchers and policy makers: experiences of a Health Policy Research Group in engaging policy makers to support evidence informed policy making in Nigeria
Benjamin Uzochukwu, Obinna Onwujekwe, Chinyere Mbachu, Chinenye Okwuosa, Enyi Etiaba, Monica E. Nyström and Lucy Gilson
Globalization and Health 2016 12:67
Published on: 4 November 2016
Abstract
Background
Getting research into policy and practice (GRIPP) is a process of going from research evidence to decisions and action. To integrate research findings into the policy making process and to communicate research findings to policymakers is a key challenge world-wide. This paper reports the experiences of a research group in a Nigerian university when seeking to ‘do’ GRIPP, and the important features and challenges of this process within the African context.
Methods
In-depth interviews were conducted with nine purposively selected policy makers in various organizations and six researchers from the universities and research institute in a Nigerian who had been involved in 15 selected joint studies/projects with Health Policy Research Group (HPRG). The interviews explored their understanding and experience of the methods and processes used by the HPRG to generate research questions and research results; their involvement in the process and whether the methods were perceived as effective in relation to influencing policy and practice and factors that influenced the uptake of research results.
Results
The results are represented in a model with the four GRIPP strategies found: i) stakeholders’ request for evidence to support the use of certain strategies or to scale up health interventions; ii) policymakers and stakeholders seeking evidence from researchers; iii) involving stakeholders in designing research objectives and throughout the research process; and iv) facilitating policy maker-researcher engagement in finding best ways of using research findings to influence policy and practice and to actively disseminate research findings to relevant stakeholders and policymakers.
The challenges to research utilization in health policy found were to address the capacity of policy makers to demand and to uptake research, the communication gap between researchers, donors and policymakers, the management of the political process of GRIPP, the lack of willingness of some policy makers to use research, the limited research funding and the resistance to change.
Conclusions
Country based Health Policy and Systems Research groups can influence domestic policy makers if appropriate strategies are employed. The model presented gives some direction to potential strategies for getting research into policy and practice in the health care sector in Nigeria and elsewhere.

Infectious Diseases of Poverty
http://www.idpjournal.com/content
[Accessed 5 November 2016]
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Scoping Review
Alternatives to currently used antimalarial drugs: in search of a magic bullet
Malaria is a major cause of morbidity and mortality in many African countries and parts of Asia and South America. Novel approaches to combating the disease have emerged in recent years and several drug candid…
Akshaya Srikanth Bhagavathula, Asim Ahmed Elnour and Abdulla Shehab
Infectious Diseases of Poverty 2016 5:103
Published on: 4 November 2016

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Research Article
Assessment of the response to cholera outbreaks in two districts in Ghana
Despite recurring outbreaks of cholera in Ghana, very little has been reported on assessments of outbreak response activities undertaken in affected areas. This study assessed the response activities undertake...
Sally-Ann Ohene, Wisdom Klenyuie and Mark Sarpeh
Infectious Diseases of Poverty 2016 5:99
Published on: 2 November 2016

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Research Article
Tuberculosis care strategies and their economic consequences for patients: the missing link to end tuberculosis
While investment in the development of Tuberculosis (TB) treatment strategies is essential, it cannot be assumed that the strategies are affordable for TB patients living in countries with high economic constr…
Belete Getahun, Moges Wubie, Getiye Dejenu and Tsegahun Manyazewal
Infectious Diseases of Poverty 2016 5:93
Published on: 1 November 2016

Intervention – Journal of Mental Health and Psychological Support in Conflict Affected Areas
November 2016 – Volume 14 – Issue 3
http://journals.lww.com/interventionjnl/pages/currenttoc.aspx

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Special Section
Mainstreaming psychosocial approaches and principles in ‘other’ sectors
Introduction to Special section: mainstreaming psychosocial approaches and principles into ‘other’ sectors
Horn, Rebecca; Besselink, Djoen; Tankink, Marian

Articles
The integration of livelihood support and mental health and psychosocial wellbeing for populations who have been subject to severe stressors
Schininá, Guglielmo; Babcock, Elisabeth; Nadelman, Rachel; Walsh, James Sonam; Willhoite, Ann; Willman, Alys
Abstract
This article aims to promote the integration of mental health and psychosocial support into livelihood programmes, presenting existing research within behavioural economics, humanitarian and economic fields that support the need and effectiveness of such integration. It presents examples of mental health and psychosocial support integration into livelihood programmes put in place by a grass roots organisation in the USA and the largest development institution in the world, the World Bank Group, respectively. While these initiatives took place within organisational, socio-economic and political environments that significantly differ from those where most humanitarian programmes take place, a series of best practices, processes and approaches that could be considered within humanitarian settings are highlighted in the conclusions.

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Mainstreaming mental health and psychosocial support in camp coordination and camp management. The experience of the International Organization for Migration in the north east of Nigeria and South Sudan
Schininá, Guglielmo; Nunes, Nuno; Birot, Pauline; Giardinelli, Luana; Kios, Gladys
Abstract
This article examines the efforts of the International Organization for Migration to mainstream mental health and psychosocial considerations into camp coordination and camp management, through capacity building and provision of direct psychosocial support. It focusses on the activities carried out by the International Organization for Migration in South Sudan, in the Protection of Civilians Areas, and in the north east of Nigeria, with the aim to identify relevant challenges and best practices.

JAMA
November 1, 2016, Vol 316, No. 17, Pages 1731-1838
http://jama.jamanetwork.com/issue.aspx

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Research Letter
Tdap Vaccination During Pregnancy and Microcephaly and Other Structural Birth Defects in Offspring
Malini DeSilva, MD, MPH; Gabriela Vazquez-Benitez, PhD; James D. Nordin, MD, MPH; et al.
JAMA. 2016;316(17):1823-1825. doi:10.1001/jama.2016.14432
This cohort study uses Vaccine Safety Datalink data to examine associations between maternal Tdap vaccination and structural birth defects in offspring.
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Editorial
November 1, 2016
Mental Illness, Release From Prison, and Social Context
Jeffrey Swanson, PhD1
JAMA. 2016;316(17):1771-1772. doi:10.1001/jama.2016.12434
Zheng Chang, PhD; Paul Lichtenstein, PhD; Niklas Långström, MD; Henrik Larsson, PhD; Seena Fazel, MD
[Initial text]
Revolving in and out of prisons and jails is no way to recover from a devastating disease like schizophrenia—but that is the challenge facing too many people with serious mental illnesses. In addition to complex health needs that often include substance misuse and medical comorbidities, mentally ill individuals who reenter the community from prison are at risk for unemployment, homelessness, and criminal recidivism.1 What role does treatment with psychotropic medications have in improving outcomes for this population?…

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Original Investigation
November 1, 2016
Association Between Prescription of Major Psychotropic Medications and Violent Reoffending After Prison Release
JAMA. 2016;316(17):1798-1807. doi:10.1001/jama.2016.15380
Zheng Chang, PhD1,2; Paul Lichtenstein, PhD1; Niklas Långström, MD1,3; et al Henrik Larsson, PhD1,4; Seena Fazel, MD2
Author Affiliations
Key Points
Question
Is the use of psychotropic medications associated with a lower risk of reoffending for violent crime among released prisoners?
Findings
In this cohort study of 22 275 released prisoners, 3 classes of psychotropic medications (antipsychotics, psychostimulants, and medications used for addictive disorders) were associated with statistically significant hazard ratios (0.58, 0.62, and 0.48, respectively) of violent reoffending.
Meaning
Evidence-based provision of psychotropic medications to released prisoners was associated with lower risk of reoffending.

Abstract
Importance
Individuals released from prison have high rates of violent reoffending, and there is uncertainty about whether pharmacological treatments reduce reoffending risk.
Objective
To investigate the associations between major classes of psychotropic medications and violent reoffending.
Design, Setting, and Participants
This cohort study included all released prisoners in Sweden from July 1, 2005, to December 31, 2010, through linkage of population-based registers. Rates of violent reoffending during medicated periods were compared with rates during nonmedicated periods using within-individual analyses. Follow-up ended December 31, 2013.
Exposures Periods with or without dispensed prescription of psychotropic medications (antipsychotics, antidepressants, psychostimulants, drugs used in addictive disorders, and antiepileptic drugs) after prison release. Prison-based psychological treatments were investigated as a secondary exposure.
Main Outcomes and Measures
Violent crime after release from prison.
Results
The cohort included 22,275 released prisoners (mean [SD] age, 38 [13] years; 91.9% male). During follow-up (median, 4.6 years; interquartile range, 3.0-6.4 years), 4031 individuals (18.1%) had 5653 violent reoffenses. The within-individual hazard ratio (HR) associated with dispensed antipsychotics was 0.58 (95% CI, 0.39-0.88), based on 100 events in 1596 person-years during medicated periods and 1044 events in 11 026 person-years during nonmedicated periods, equating to a risk difference of 39.7 (95% CI, 11.3-57.7) fewer violent reoffenses per 1000 person-years. The within-individual HR associated with dispensed psychostimulants was 0.62 (95% CI, 0.40-0.98), based on 94 events in 1648 person-years during medicated periods and 513 events in 4553 person-years during nonmedicated periods, equating to a risk difference of 42.8 (95% CI, 2.2-67.6) fewer violent reoffenses per 1000 person-years. The within-individual HR associated with dispensed drugs for addictive disorders was 0.48 (95% CI, 0.23-0.97), based on 46 events in 1168 person-years during medicated periods and 1103 events in 15,725 person-years during nonmedicated periods, equating to a risk difference of 36.4 (95% CI, 2.1-54.0) fewer violent reoffenses per 1000 person-years. In contrast, antidepressants and antiepileptics were not significantly associated with violent reoffending rates (HR = 1.09 [95% CI, 0.83-1.43] and 1.14 [95% CI, 0.79-1.65], respectively). The most common prison-based program was psychological treatments for substance abuse, associated with an HR of 0.75 (95% CI, 0.63-0.89), which equated to a risk difference of 23.2 (95% CI, 10.3-34.1) fewer violent reoffenses per 1000 person-years.
Conclusions and Relevance
Among released prisoners in Sweden, rates of violent reoffending were lower during periods when individiduals were dispensed antipsychotics, psychostimulants, and drugs for addictive disorders, compared with periods in which they were not dispensed these medications. Further research is needed to understand the causal nature of this association.

Journal of Community Health
Volume 41, Issue 6, December 2016
http://link.springer.com/journal/10900/41/6/page/1
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Original Paper
Community Gardens for Refugee and Immigrant Communities as a Means of Health Promotion
Kari A. Hartwig, Meghan Mason

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Original Paper
Caregiving on the Hopi Reservation: Findings from the 2012 Hopi Survey of Cancer and Chronic Disease
Felina M. Cordova, Robin B. Harris…

Journal of Epidemiology & Community Health
November 2016, Volume 70, Issue 11
http://jech.bmj.com/content/current

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Research report
Socioeconomic inequalities in a 16-year longitudinal measurement of successful ageing
Almar A L Kok, Marja J Aartsen, Dorly J H Deeg, Martijn Huisman
J Epidemiol Community Health 2016;70:1106-1113 Published Online First: 17 May 2016 doi:10.1136/jech-2015-206938

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Research report
Education, material condition and physical functioning trajectories in middle-aged and older adults in Central and Eastern Europe: a cross-country comparison
Yaoyue Hu, Hynek Pikhart, Andrzej Pająk, Růžena Kubínová, Sofia Malyutina, Agnieszka Besala,
Anne Peasey, Michael Marmot, Martin Bobak
J Epidemiol Community Health 2016;70:1128-1135 Published Online First: 18 May 2016 doi:10.1136/jech-2015-206548

Journal of Health Care for the Poor and Underserved (JHCPU)
Volume 27, Number 4, November 2016
https://muse.jhu.edu/issue/35214

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Original Papers
How Should We Treat the Vulnerable?: Qualitative Study of Authoritative Ethics Documents
pp. 1656-1673
Ivana Zagorac
Abstract
The aim of this study is to explore what actual guidance is provided by authoritative ethics documents regarding the recognition and protection of the vulnerable. The documents included in this analysis are the Belmont Report, the Declaration of Helsinki, The Council for International Organizations of Medical Sciences (CIOMS) Guidelines, and the UNESCO Universal Declaration on Bioethics and Human Rights, including its supplementary report on vulnerability. A qualitative analysis of these documents was conducted in light of three questions: what is vulnerability, who are the vulnerable, and how should the vulnerable be protected? The results show significant differences among the documents regarding the first two questions. None of the documents provides any guidance on the third question (how to protect the vulnerable). These results suggest a great discrepancy between the acknowledged importance of the concept of vulnerability and a general understanding of the scope, content, and practical implications of vulnerability.

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Brief Communications
Pneumococcal Vaccination in Low-Income Latinos: An Unexpected Trend in Oregon Community Health Centers
pp. 1733-1744
John Heintzman, Steffani R. Bailey, Stuart Cowburn, Eve Dexter, Joseph Carroll, Miguel Marino
Abstract:
Background. In cross-sectional studies, Latino and Spanish-speaking U.S. residents age 65 and over are less likely to receive pneumococcal vaccination than non-Hispanic Whites.
Methods. We performed a time-to-event, cohort analysis, in 23 Oregon community health centers of low-income patients who turned 65 in the study period (2009–2013; n = 1,248). The outcome measure was receipt of PPSV-23 in the study period by race / ethnicity, preferred language, and insurance status.
Results. Insured Latino patients were more likely to receive PPSV-23 than insured non-Hispanic Whites (HR = 2.05, p < .001). Uninsured Latino seniors showed no difference from insured non-Hispanic Whites in PPSV-23 receipt (HR = 1.26, p = .381) unless they averaged fewer than one clinic visit yearly (HR = 1.80, p = .001).
Conclusions. Low-income Latino seniors in Oregon community health centers were immunized against pneumococcus more frequently than insured non-Hispanic Whites, although this finding was mitigated in Latinos without insurance. This finding needs further research in order to reduce adult immunization disparities in the society at large.

Journal of Infectious Diseases
Volume 214 Issue 10 November 15, 2016
http://jid.oxfordjournals.org/content/current

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EDITORIAL COMMENTARIES
Challenges Remain for Influenza Vaccination of Children
J Infect Dis. (2016) 214 (10): 1470-1472 doi:10.1093/infdis/jiw384
Kathryn M. Edwards and Wendy A. Keitel
Extract
Over the past decades, multiple active surveillance and observational studies have demonstrated the major impact of influenza on children and underscored the need for effective vaccines [1–4]. Since 2009, annual influenza vaccination has been recommended for all children ≥6 months of age in the United States [5]. Extensive studies in children have been conducted over the years with both inactivated influenza vaccines (IIV) and live attenuated influenza vaccines (LAIV). Influenza hemagglutination inhibition (HAI) antibody responses are considered to be the gold standard for assessing IIV immunogenicity and serve as the basis for their licensure. Although achievement of HAI antibody titers of ≥40 (putative protective titer) was associated with a 50% reduction in the occurrence of influenza [6, 7], others have proposed that the protective HAI titer is much higher [8]. Furthermore, there can be variability in HAI assay results among laboratories [9]. Cell-mediated immune (CMI) responses have been less well characterized, and no CMI correlate of protection (COP) has been proposed.’

In this issue of The Journal of Infectious Diseases, Reber et al report detailed humoral and CMI responses in 50 children ages 9–14 years after receipt of the 2010–2011 seasonal IIV [10]. In the previous year, 38% of the participants had received influenza vaccine (10% received LAIV and 28% received IIV), and 32% had been immunized with monovalent 2009 pandemic influenza A(H1N1) vaccine. Which vaccine(s) the children had received previously was not noted in the article, and their impact on subsequent immune responses was not assessed because of small sample size. HAI antibody responses were assayed against influenza virus antigens included in both the 2009–2010 and 2010–2011 vaccines, as well as the …

Journal of Medical Ethics
November 2016, Volume 42, Issue 11
http://jme.bmj.com/content/current

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Brief report
Ethical issues and best practice in clinically based genomic research: Exeter Stakeholders Meeting Report
D Carrieri, C Bewshea, G Walker, T Ahmad, W Bowen, A Hall, S Kelly, on behalf of the 7th of October 2015 Exeter Stakeholders Meeting
J Med Ethics 2016;42:695-697 Published Online First: 27 September 2016 doi:10.1136/medethics-2016-103530
Abstract
Current guidelines on consenting individuals to participate in genomic research are diverse. This creates problems for participants and also for researchers, particularly for clinicians who provide both clinical care and research to their patients. A group of 14 stakeholders met on 7 October 2015 in Exeter to discuss the ethical issues and the best practice arising in clinically based genomic research, with particular emphasis on the issue of returning results to study participants/patients in light of research findings affecting research and clinical practices. The group was deliberately multidisciplinary to ensure that a diversity of views was represented. This report outlines the main ethical issues, areas of best practice and principles underlying ethical clinically based genomic research discussed during the meeting. The main point emerging from the discussion is that ethical principles, rather than being formulaic, should guide researchers/clinicians to identify who the main stakeholders are to consult with for a specific project and to incorporate their voices/views strategically throughout the lifecycle of each project. We believe that the mix of principles and practical guidelines outlined in this report can contribute to current debates on how to conduct ethical clinically based genomic research.

The Lancet
Nov 05, 2016 Volume 388 Number 10057 p2209-2322 e12
http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/issue/current

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Editorial
After Bolam: what’s the future for patient consent?
The Lancet
Published: 05 November 2016
“Patients are now widely regarded as persons holding rights, rather than as the passive recipients of the care of the medical profession”, declared the UK Supreme Court in the case of Montgomery vs Lanarkshire Health Board in 2015, affirming the patient as a subject and not simply the object of medical care. Before Montgomery, whether doctors reasonably communicated risks to patients about potential procedures was judged by reference to a responsible body of medical opinion (Bolam test), in line with the paternalistic model of medicine. Since Montgomery, what makes a risk material for a doctor to tell their patient about are the circumstances, views, and values of the individual patient, rather than the opinion of the medical profession.

In response to this renewed emphasis on patients’ rights to self-determination, the Royal College of Surgeons has released new guidance to help surgeons and other health-care professionals to obtain and document consent. Recognising that it is not enough to simply substitute expert opinion with an exhaustive list of potential risks and benefits, the guidance advocates for “supported decision-making”, with a focus on tailoring discussions to individual patients.

Considerable practical challenges loom large, not least of which is time. The guidance states that to determine the content of discussions around risk, doctors should take time to get to know their patients. These discussions need to take place long enough before planned interventions so patients have enough time to reflect, and in particularly complex or potentially life changing scenarios might need to take place over several sessions.

To deal with the new time pressures that this approach will involve, the guidance recommends surgeons raise the issue with their hospital management. But surely, to enable real patient-centred decision making to take root, we must do more than simply tell already time-pressed doctors to find yet more time. Such changes will require cultural and administrative reform at the institutional level. If we want to support patient choice and autonomy, then we must empower our medical professionals with the resources they need to make it happen.

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Series
Maternal Health
Drivers of maternity care in high-income countries: can health systems support woman-centred care?
Dorothy Shaw, Jeanne-Marie Guise, Neel Shah, Kristina Gemzell-Danielsson, KS Joseph, Barbara Levy, Fontayne Wong, Susannah Woodd, Elliott K Main

Maternal Health
Next generation maternal health: external shocks and health-system innovations
Margaret E Kruk, Stephanie Kujawski, Cheryl A Moyer, Richard M Adanu, Kaosar Afsana, Jessica Cohen, Amanda Glassman, Alain Labrique, K Srinath Reddy, Gavin Yamey

Maternal Health
Quality maternity care for every woman, everywhere: a call to action
Marjorie Koblinsky, Cheryl A Moyer, Clara Calvert, James Campbell, Oona M R Campbell, Andrea B Feigl, Wendy J Graham, Laurel Hatt, Steve Hodgins, Zoe Matthews, Lori McDougall, Allisyn C Moran, Allyala K Nandakumar, Ana Langer
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