BMC Medicine
http://www.biomedcentral.com/bmcmed/content
(Accessed 19 March 2016)

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Commentary
Open Access
Reporting transparency: making the ethical mandate explicit
Stuart G. Nicholls, Sinéad M. Langan, Eric I. Benchimol and David Moher
BMC Medicine201614:44
DOI: 10.1186/s12916-016-0587-5
Published: 16 March 2016
Abstract
Improving the transparency and quality of reporting in biomedical research is considered ethically important; yet, this is often based on practical reasons such as the facilitation of peer review. Surprisingly, there has been little explicit discussion regarding the ethical obligations that underpin reporting guidelines. In this commentary, we suggest a number of ethical drivers for the improved reporting of research. These ethical drivers relate to researcher integrity as well as to the benefits derived from improved reporting such as the fair use of resources, minimizing risk of harms, and maximizing benefits. Despite their undoubted benefit to reporting completeness, questions remain regarding the extent to which reporting guidelines can influence processes beyond publication, including researcher integrity or the uptake of scientific research findings into policy or practice. Thus, we consider investigation on the effects of reporting guidelines an important step in providing evidence of their benefits.

BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth
http://www.biomedcentral.com/bmcpregnancychildbirth/content
(Accessed 19 March 2016)

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Research article
A systematic review to examine the evidence regarding discussions by midwives, with women, around their options for where to give birth
Discussion of place of birth is important for women and maternity services, yet the detail, content and delivery of these discussions are unclear.
Catherine Henshall, Beck Taylor and Sara Kenyon
BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth 2016 16:53
Published on: 14 March 2016

British Medical Journal
19 March 2016 (vol 352, issue 8049)
http://www.bmj.com/content/352/8049

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Research Update
Refugee migration and risk of schizophrenia and other non-affective psychoses: cohort study of 1.3 million people in Sweden
BMJ 2016; 352 :i1030 (Published 15 March 2016)
Anna-Clara Hollander, postdoctoral researcher1, Henrik Dal, statistician2, Glyn Lewis, professor of psychiatric epidemiology3, Cecilia Magnusson, professor of public health epidemiology1 2, James B Kirkbride, Sir Henry Dale fellow3, Christina Dalman, professor of psychiatric epidemiology1 2
Abstract
Objective To determine whether refugees are at elevated risk of schizophrenia and other non-affective psychotic disorders, relative to non-refugee migrants from similar regions of origin and the Swedish-born population.
Design Cohort study of people living in Sweden, born after 1 January 1984 and followed from their 14th birthday or arrival in Sweden, if later, until diagnosis of a non-affective psychotic disorder, emigration, death, or 31 December 2011.
Setting Linked Swedish national register data.
Participants 1 347 790 people, including people born in Sweden to two Swedish-born parents (1 191 004; 88.4%), refugees (24 123; 1.8%), and non-refugee migrants (132 663; 9.8%) from four major refugee generating regions: the Middle East and north Africa, sub-Saharan Africa, Asia, and Eastern Europe and Russia.
Main outcome measures Cox regression analysis was used to estimate adjusted hazard ratios for non-affective psychotic disorders by refugee status and region of origin, controlling for age at risk, sex, disposable income, and population density.
Results 3704 cases of non-affective psychotic disorder were identified during 8.9 million person years of follow-up. The crude incidence rate was 38.5 (95% confidence interval 37.2 to 39.9) per 100 000 person years in the Swedish-born population, 80.4 (72.7 to 88.9) per 100 000 person years in non-refugee migrants, and 126.4 (103.1 to 154.8) per 100 000 person years in refugees. Refugees were at increased risk of psychosis compared with both the Swedish-born population (adjusted hazard ratio 2.9, 95% confidence interval 2.3 to 3.6) and non-refugee migrants (1.7, 1.3 to 2.1) after adjustment for confounders. The increased rate in refugees compared with non-refugee migrants was more pronounced in men (likelihood ratio test for interaction χ2 (df=2) z=13.5; P=0.001) and was present for refugees from all regions except sub-Saharan Africa. Both refugees and non-refugee migrants from sub-Saharan Africa had similarly high rates relative to the Swedish-born population.
Conclusions Refugees face an increased risk of schizophrenia and other non-affective psychotic disorders compared with non-refugee migrants from similar regions of origin and the native-born Swedish population. Clinicians and health service planners in refugee receiving countries should be aware of a raised risk of psychosis in addition to other mental and physical health inequalities experienced by refugees.

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Editorials
Non-affective psychosis in refugees
BMJ 2016; 352 :i1279 (Published 15 March 2016)
Cornelius Katona, medical director
Risk is exacerbated by adverse experiences after arrival, including detention, unemployment, and racism
[Initial text]
In 2015, 244 million people (3.3% of the world’s population) lived outside their country of origin. This represents an increase of 39% since 2000.1 2 The decision to migrate may be made for economic betterment or (in the case of “refugees”) to escape war, persecution, or natural disaster. Such motives are not of course mutually exclusive. Substantial evidence shows that the risk of non-affective psychosis is increased (by a factor of about 2.5) in migrants compared with the indigenous population.3

In a linked paper (doi:10.1136/bmj.i1030), Hollander and colleagues argue that this increase is due predominantly to exposure to psychosocial adversities.4 They used national register data to carry out a cohort study of more than 1.3 million people in Sweden, in which risk of non-affective psychosis was compared not only between people born in Sweden and migrants to Sweden but also between refugees and non-refugees within the migrant group. They hypothesised that, because of their increased vulnerability to psychosocial adversity, incidence of non-affective psychosis would be particularly high in the refugee group. The study was restricted to relatively young people (born in 1984 or later). Follow-up was to the end of 2011 or to emigration, death, or a diagnosis of non-affective psychosis. The authors’ primary hypothesis was confirmed: incidence rates for non-affective psychosis were 385 per million in those born in Sweden, 804 per million in non-refugee migrants, and 1264 per million in refugees…

Eurosurveillance
Volume 21, Issue 11, 17 March 2016
http://www.eurosurveillance.org/Public/Articles/Archives.aspx?PublicationId=11678

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Rapid Communications
Measles outbreak in a refugee settlement in Calais, France: January to February 2016
by G Jones, S Haeghebaert, B Merlin, D Antona, N Simon, M Elmouden, F Battist, M Janssens, K Wyndels, P Chaud
Abstract
We report a measles outbreak in a refugee settlement in Calais, France, between 5 January and 11 February 2016. In total, 13 confirmed measles cases were identified among migrants, healthcare workers in hospital and volunteers working on site. A large scale vaccination campaign was carried out in the settlement within two weeks of outbreak notification. In total, 60% of the estimated target population of 3,500 refugees was vaccinated during the week-long campaign.

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Research Articles
Risk assessment, risk management and risk-based monitoring following a reported accidental release of poliovirus in Belgium, September to November 2014
by E Duizer, S Rutjes, A Husman, J Schijven
Abstract
On 6 September 2014, the accidental release of 1013 infectious wild poliovirus type 3 (WPV3) particles by a vaccine production plant in Belgium was reported. WPV3 was released into the sewage system and discharged directly to a wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) and subsequently into rivers that flowed to the Western Scheldt and the North Sea. No poliovirus was detected in samples from the WWTP, surface waters, mussels or sewage from the Netherlands. Quantitative microbial risk assessment (QMRA) showed that the infection risks resulting from swimming in Belgium waters were above 50% for several days and that the infection risk by consuming shellfish harvested in the eastern part of the Western Scheldt warranted a shellfish cooking advice. We conclude that the reported release of WPV3 has neither resulted in detectable levels of poliovirus in any of the samples nor in poliovirus circulation in the Netherlands. This QMRA showed that relevant data on water flows were not readily available and that prior assumptions on dilution factors were overestimated. A QMRA should have been performed by all vaccine production facilities before starting up large-scale culture of WPV to be able to implement effective interventions when an accident happens.

Genocide Studies International
Volume 10, Issue 1, Spring 2016
http://www.utpjournals.press/toc/gsi/current

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Articles
State Strength, Non-State Actors, and the Guatemalan Genocide: Comparative Lessons
Frederick M. Shepherd
Frederick M. Shepherd is professor at Samford University, and is the author of Christianity and Human Rights: Christians and the Struggle for Global Justice (Lexington, 2009). He has been affiliated with the Holocaust Education Foundation, the US Holocaust Memorial and Museum, and was part of the Resisting the Path to Genocide Research Cluster at the University of Southern California.
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3138/gsi.10.1.06
Abstract
This article focuses on the Guatemalan genocide—which has been labeled “acts of genocide” by the United Nations—in the context of the Guatemalan state’s weakness in mobilizing people and resources for its genocidal project. State planners were able to brutalize the indigenous population, especially during the early 1980s. But at the same time, the state showed extraordinary weakness in basic state functions such as taxing and military mobilization. The article links these failures to a more general state absence of “infrastructural capacity,” and to the strength of powerful non-state forces originating inside and outside of Guatemalan national borders. The article concludes with comparative lessons from other genocides—notably the Holocaust and Rwanda—marked by state strength in the areas of mobilizing people and resources.

Health Affairs
March 2016; Volume 35, Issue 3
http://content.healthaffairs.org/content/current
Issue Focus: Physicians, Prescription Drugs, ACOs & More

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Global Health
Evaluation Of A Maternal Health Program In Uganda And Zambia Finds Mixed Results On Quality Of Care And Satisfaction
Margaret E. Kruk, Daniel Vail, Katherine Austin-Evelyn, Lynn Atuyambe, Dana Greeson, Karen Ann Grépin, Simon P. S. Kibira, Mubiana Macwan’gi, Tsitsi B. Masvawure, Miriam Rabkin, Emma Sacks, Joseph Simbaya, and Sandro Galea
Health Aff March 2016 35:510-519; doi:10.1377/hlthaff.2015.0902
Abstract
Saving Mothers, Giving Life is a multidonor program designed to reduce maternal mortality in Uganda and Zambia. We used a quasi-random research design to evaluate its effects on provider obstetric knowledge, clinical confidence, and job satisfaction, and on patients’ receipt of services, perceived quality, and satisfaction. Study participants were 1,267 health workers and 2,488 female patients. Providers’ knowledge was significantly higher in Ugandan and Zambian intervention districts than in comparison districts, and in Uganda there were similar positive differences for providers’ clinical confidence and job satisfaction. Patients in Ugandan intervention facilities were more likely to give high ratings for equipment availability, providers’ knowledge and communication skills, and care quality, among other factors, than patients in comparison facilities. There were fewer differences between Zambian intervention and comparison facilities. Country differences likely reflect differing intensity of program implementation and the more favorable geography of intervention districts in Uganda than in Zambia. National investments in the health system and provider training and the identification of intervention components most associated with improved performance will be required for scaling up and sustaining the program.

Health Research Policy and Systems
http://www.health-policy-systems.com/content
[Accessed 19 March 2016]

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Review
How to meet the demand for good quality renal dialysis as part of universal health coverage in resource-limited settings?
It is very challenging for resource-limited settings to introduce universal health coverage (UHC), particularly regarding the inclusion of high-cost renal dialysis as part of the UHC benefit package.
Yot Teerawattananon, Alia Luz, Songyot Pilasant, Suteenoot Tangsathitkulchai, Sarocha Chootipongchaivat, Nattha Tritasavit, Inthira Yamabhai and Sripen Tantivess
Health Research Policy and Systems 2016 14:21
Published on: 18 March 2016

Review
Evidence for Health I: Producing evidence for improving health and reducing inequities
In an ideal world, researchers and decision-makers would be involved from the outset in co-producing evidence, with local health needs assessments informing the research agenda and research evidence informing …
Anne Andermann, Tikki Pang, John N Newton, Adrian Davis and Ulysses Panisset
Health Research Policy and Systems 2016 14:18
Published on: 14 March 2016

Review
Evidence for Health II: Overcoming barriers to using evidence in policy and practice
Even the highest quality evidence will have little impact unless it is incorporated into decision-making for health. It is therefore critical to overcome the many barriers to using evidence in decision-making,…
Anne Andermann, Tikki Pang, John N. Newton, Adrian Davis and Ulysses Panisset
Health Research Policy and Systems 2016 14:17
Published on: 14 March 2016

Review
Evidence for Health III: Making evidence-informed decisions that integrate values and context
Making evidence-informed decisions with the aim of improving the health of individuals or populations can be facilitated by using a systematic approach. While a number of algorithms already exist,
Anne Andermann, Tikki Pang, John N Newton, Adrian Davis and Ulysses Panisset
Health Research Policy and Systems 2016 14:16
Published on: 14 March 2016

Human Vaccines & Immunotherapeutics (formerly Human Vaccines)
Volume 12, Issue 2, 2016
http://www.tandfonline.com/toc/khvi20/current

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Reviews
The potential impact of pneumococcal conjugate vaccine in Africa: Considerations and early lessons learned from the South African experience
DOI:10.1080/21645515.2015.1084450
Shabir A Madhi & Marta C Nunes
pages 314-325
Abstract
The introduction of pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV) into the South African public immunization program since 2009 adopted a novel vaccination schedule of 3 doses at 6, 14 and 40 weeks of age. Over the past 5 y it has been shown that infant PCV immunization in South Africa is effective in reducing the burden of invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD) among HIV-infected and HIV-uninfected children. Furthermore, indirect protection of unvaccinated age-groups (including high risk groups such as HIV-infected adults) against IPD was demonstrated despite the absence of any substantial catch-up campaign of older children. This indirect effect against IPD is corroborated by the temporal reduction in vaccine-serotype colonization among age-groups targeted for PCV immunization as well as unvaccinated HIV-infected and HIV-uninfected adults, which was evident within 2 y of PCV introduction into the immunization program. Vaccine effectiveness has also been demonstrated in children against presumed bacterial pneumonia. The evaluation of the impact of PCV in South Africa, however, remains incomplete. The knowledge gaps remaining include the evaluation of PCV on the incidence of all-cause pneumonia hospitalization among vaccinated and unvaccinated age-groups. Furthermore, ongoing surveillance is required to determine whether there is ongoing replacement disease by non-vaccine serotypes, which could offset the early gains associated with the immunization program in the country.

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Review
Prevention of pneumococcal infections during mass gathering
DOI:10.1080/21645515.2015.1058456
Jaffar A Al-Tawfiq & Ziad A Memish
pages 326-330
Abstract
The interest in mass gathering and its implications has been increasing due to globalization and international travel. The potential occurrence of infectious disease outbreaks during mass gathering is most feared. In this context, respiratory tract infections are of great concern due to crowding in a limited space which facilitates and magnifies the potential of disease spread among attendees. Pneumococcal disease is best described among pilgrims to Makkah and vaccination is one of the methods for the prevention of this disease. Pneumonia was described in a mass gathering with a prevalence of 4.8/100,000 pilgrims and contributes to 15–39% of hospitalizations. Various studies showed that 7–37% of pilgrims are 65 y of age or older. The uptake of pneumococcal vaccine among pilgrims is low at 5%. There is no available data to make strong recommendations for S. pneumoniae vaccination of all pilgrims, it is important that a high risk population receive the indicated vaccination. We reviewed the available literature on the burden of pneumococcal infections during mass gathering and evaluate the available literature on pneumococcal vaccinations for attendees of mass gathering.

Review
Theory and strategy for Pneumococcal vaccines in the elderly
DOI:10.1080/21645515.2015.1075678
Ho Namkoong, Makoto Ishii, Yohei Funatsu, Yoshifumi Kimizuka, Kazuma Yagi, Takahiro Asami, Takanori Asakura, Shoji Suzuki, Testuro Kamo, Hiroshi Fujiwara, Sadatomo Tasaka, Tomoko Betsuyaku & Naoki Hasegawa
pages 336-343
Open access
Abstract
Pneumonia is the fourth-leading cause of death globally, and Streptococcus pneumoniae is the most important causative pathogen. Because the incidence of pneumococcal diseases is likely to increase with the aging society, we should determine an optimal strategy for pneumococcal vaccination. While consensus indicates that 23-valent pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine prevents invasive pneumococcal diseases (IPD), its effects on community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) remain controversial. Recently, a 13-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV13) was released. The latest clinical study (CAPiTA study) showed that PCV13 reduced vaccine-type CAP and IPD. Based on these results, the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices recommended initial vaccination with PCV13 for the elderly. Scientific evidence regarding immunosenescence is needed to determine a more ideal vaccination strategy for the elderly with impaired innate and adaptive immunity. Continuing research on the cost effectiveness of new vaccine strategies considering constantly changing epidemiology is also warranted.

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Short Report
Low vaccine coverage among children born to HIV infected women in Niamey, Niger
DOI:10.1080/21645515.2015.1069451
Hyppolite Kuekou Tchidjou, Maria Fenicia Vescio, Martin Sanou Sobze, Animata Souleyman, Paola Stefanelli, Adalbert Mbabia, Ide Moussa, Bruno Gentile, Vittorio Colizzi & Giovanni Rezza
pages 540-544
Abstract
Background: The effect of mother’s HIV-status on child vaccination is an important public health issue in countries with high HIV prevalence. We conducted a study in a primary healthcare center located in Niamey, the capital of Niger, which offers free of charge services to HIV positive and/or underprivileged mothers, with the aim of assessing: 1) vaccination coverage for children 0–36 months old, born to HIV-infected mothers, and 2) the impact of maternal HIV status on child vaccination. Methods: Mothers of children less than 36 months old attending the center were interviewed, to collect information on vaccines administered to their child, and family’s socio-demographic characteristics. Results: Overall, 502 children were investigated. Children of HIV-seropositive mothers were less likely to receive follow up vaccinations for Diphtheria-Tetanus-Pertussis (DTP) than those of HIV-seronegative mothers, with a prevalence ratio (PR) of 2.03 (95%CI: 1.58–2.61). Children born to HIV-seropositive mothers were less likely to miss vaccination for MMR than those born to HIV negative mothers, with a RR of 0.46 (95%CI: 0.30–0.72). Conclusions: Vaccine coverage among children born to HIV infected mothers was rather low. It is important to favor access to vaccination programs in this population.

Journal of Health Care for the Poor and Underserved (JHCPU)
Volume 27, Number 1, February 2016 Supplement
https://muse.jhu.edu/journals/journal_of_health_care_for_the_poor_and_underserved/toc/hpu.27.1A.html

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Editorial Special Issue Journal of Health Care for Poor and Underserved, Indigenous Oral Health
Lisa M Jamieson
[Excerpt]
It is a privilege to introduce the Journal of Health Care for Poor and Underserved’s first issue focussing on Indigenous Oral Health. Papers for this special issue were selected from a suite of presentations made at the first International Indigenous Oral Health Conference held in Adelaide, Australia, in August 2014. This conference (and in turn, the papers in this issue) emerged from the many requests over the years for there to be a specific research meeting focussing on the oral health of Indigenous populations at an international level. The conference hosted over 100 representatives from 25 organizations and nine countries worldwide.

The World Health Organisation estimates that 370 million people at an international level identify as being Indigenous, coming from over 70 different countries. Indigenous people have rich cultures and a wide range of religions, languages, traditions, and histories. According to the WHO definition, a group is considered Indigenous if they have a historical continuity pre- and post-colonisation; strong ties to land; separate social, economic, and political systems; their own languages, culture, and spiritual connections; are a minority population in their own country; and if they if they aim to continue the way of their ancestors as a distinctive community. Many Indigenous people have a holistic understanding of health—one where health encompasses individuals, communities, and spirituality. However, across the globe, Indigenous populations are some of the most disadvantaged populations in terms of health.

An overarching theme of both the conference and papers in this special issue is that oral health is a fundamental human right. Regrettably, Indigenous populations throughout the world, almost without exception, experience worse oral health than their non-Indigenous counterparts. Both the inequities and inequalities in oral health between Indigenous and non-Indigenous groups appear to be widening, with the disparities most apparent among children.

The principles of the Association of Clinicians for the Underserved (for which the Journal of Health Care for Poor and Underserved is the official journal) are well-aligned with Indigenous Oral Health Conference principles, namely:
:: All members of society, Indigenous and non-Indigenous should have access to affordable quality dental health care.
:: Valuing and supporting trans-disciplinary oral health care. [End Page vi]
:: Dental health care delivered by culturally-competent, community-responsive professionals.
:: Oral health clinicians who care for underserved populations, including Indigenous populations, need to be nurtured and supported in their efforts, because of the unique stresses and personal challenges involved in their work.
:: Competent oral clinical practice requires a specialised body of knowledge and skills when working with underserved groups such as Indigenous populations (skills not traditionally addressed in professional dental school curricula).
:: Population-based research is essential for the improvement of the oral health status of all underserved populations, including Indigenous populations.

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[Special Issue consists of 3 Commentaries; 3 Reports from the Field; 11 Original Papers]

Journal of Immigrant & Refugee Studies
Volume 14, Issue 1, 2016
http://www.tandfonline.com/toc/wimm20/current

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Articles
Mental Health of Undocumented Immigrant Adults in the United States: A Systematic Review of Methodology and Findings
DOI:10.1080/15562948.2014.998849
L. M. Garcini, K. E. Murray, A. Zhou, E. A. Klonoff, M. G. Myers & J. P. Elder
pages 1-25
Abstract
This study systematically reviewed the methodology and findings of 24 peer-reviewed studies on psychosocial risk factors associated with the mental health of undocumented immigrants (UIs) in the United States. Of these studies, 14 included quantitative data and 13 were qualitative. The most common recruitment methods were snowball techniques, and most studies used convenience samples of recent UI Latinos. The method of assessing legal status varied, including current versus retrospective undocumented status. Psychological distress, depression, anxiety, and substance use/abuse were identified as prevalent themes. Studies with enhanced methodological rigor are needed.

JAMA
March 15, 2016, Vol 315, No. 11
http://jama.jamanetwork.com/issue.aspx

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Viewpoint
Innovations in Health Care Delivery
Does the Country of Origin Matter in Health Care Innovation Diffusion?
Matthew Harris, DPhil, MBBS, FFPH; Yasser Bhatti, DPhil, MSc, MoT, MSc, BEng; Ara Darzi, OM, KBE, PC, FRS, FMedSci
This Viewpoint discusses the need to examine how perceptions of the country of origin may of health care innovations proposed for US settings may influence diffusion of these innovations.

There is no shortage of US health care research centers advocating the adoption of innovations from other countries. The Institute for Healthcare Improvement (Boston, MA), the Commonwealth Fund (New York, NY), Innovations in Health at Duke University (Durham, NC), and the Network for Excellence in Healthcare Innovation (Cambridge, MA) are all promoting innovations from low-, middle-, and high-income countries for potential adoption into the United States. However, does it matter to patients if a proposed innovation is from India, rather than from, say, Sweden; or from Rwanda, rather than from, say, the United Kingdom? Very little is known about whether and how the country of origin of a proposed innovation matters in its diffusion…

Nature
Volume 531 Number 7594 pp275-408 17 March 2016
http://www.nature.com/nature/current_issue.html

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Supplement
Outlook: Urban health and well-being
With more than half of the world’s population already living in cities and further growth expected, the health of urban dwellers is crucial to global well-being. This Nature Outlook explores some of the obstacles to a healthy, happy urban life – and the development of strategies to overcome them.
Free full access [Sponsored]
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Urban health and well-being
Richard Hodson
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The rise of the urbanite
Stephanie Pain
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Mobility: The urban downshift
Sarah DeWeerdt
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Flooding: Water potential
James M. Gaines
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Green space: A natural high
Natasha Gilbert
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Stress: The privilege of health
Amy Maxmen
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Perspective: City farming needs monitoring
Andrew A. Meharg
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Disease: Poverty and pathogens
Michael Eisenstein
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Policy: Urban physics
Kevin Pollock

PLOS Currents: Disasters
http://currents.plos.org/disasters/
[Accessed 19 March 2016]

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A Comparative Analysis of Disaster Risk, Vulnerability and Resilience Composite Indicators
March 14, 2016 · Research Article
Abstract
Introduction: In the past decade significant attention has been given to the development of tools that attempt to measure the vulnerability, risk or resilience of communities to disasters. Particular attention has been given to the development of composite indices to quantify these concepts mirroring their deployment in other fields such as sustainable development. Whilst some authors have published reviews of disaster vulnerability, risk and resilience composite indicator methodologies, these have been of a limited nature. This paper seeks to dramatically expand these efforts by analysing 106 composite indicator methodologies to understand the breadth and depth of practice.
Methods: An extensive search of the academic and grey literature was undertaken for composite indicator and scorecard methodologies that addressed multiple/all hazards; included social and economic aspects of risk, vulnerability or resilience; were sub-national in scope; explained the method and variables used; focussed on the present-day; and, had been tested or implemented. Information on the index construction, geographic areas of application, variables used and other relevant data was collected and analysed.
Results: Substantial variety in construction practices of composite indicators of risk, vulnerability and resilience were found. Five key approaches were identified in the literature, with the use of hierarchical or deductive indices being the most common. Typically variables were chosen by experts, came from existing statistical datasets and were combined by simple addition with equal weights. A minimum of 2 variables and a maximum of 235 were used, although approximately two thirds of methodologies used less than 40 variables. The 106 methodologies used 2298 unique variables, the most frequently used being common statistical variables such as population density and unemployment rate. Classification of variables found that on average 34% of the variables used in each methodology related to the social environment, 25% to the disaster environment, 20% to the economic environment, 13% to the built environment, 6% to the natural environment and 3% were other indices. However variables specifically measuring action to mitigate or prepare for disasters only comprised 12%, on average, of the total number of variables in each index. Only 19% of methodologies employed any sensitivity or uncertainty analysis and in only a single case was this comprehensive.
Discussion: A number of potential limitations of the present state of practice and how these might impact on decision makers are discussed. In particular the limited deployment of sensitivity and uncertainty analysis and the low use of direct measures of disaster risk, vulnerability and resilience could significantly limit the quality and reliability of existing methodologies. Recommendations for improvements to indicator development and use are made, as well as suggested future research directions to enhance the theoretical and empirical knowledge base for composite indicator development.

PLoS Currents: Outbreaks
http://currents.plos.org/outbreaks/
(Accessed 19 March 2016)

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On the Seasonal Occurrence and Abundance of the Zika Virus Vector Mosquito Aedes Aegypti in the Contiguous United States
March 16, 2016 · Research Article
Abstract
Introduction: An ongoing Zika virus pandemic in Latin America and the Caribbean has raised concerns that travel-related introduction of Zika virus could initiate local transmission in the United States (U.S.) by its primary vector, the mosquito Aedes aegypti.
Methods: We employed meteorologically driven models for 2006-2015 to simulate the potential seasonal abundance of adult Aedes aegypti for fifty cities within or near the margins of its known U.S. range. Mosquito abundance results were analyzed alongside travel and socioeconomic factors that are proxies of viral introduction and vulnerability to human-vector contact.
Results: Meteorological conditions are largely unsuitable for Aedes aegypti over the U.S. during winter months (December-March), except in southern Florida and south Texas where comparatively warm conditions can sustain low-to-moderate potential mosquito abundance. Meteorological conditions are suitable for Aedes aegypti across all fifty cities during peak summer months (July-September), though the mosquito has not been documented in all cities. Simulations indicate the highest mosquito abundance occurs in the Southeast and south Texas where locally acquired cases of Aedes-transmitted viruses have been reported previously. Cities in southern Florida and south Texas are at the nexus of high seasonal suitability for Aedes aegypti and strong potential for travel-related virus introduction. Higher poverty rates in cities along the U.S.-Mexico border may correlate with factors that increase human exposure to Aedes aegypti.
Discussion: Our results can inform baseline risk for local Zika virus transmission in the U.S. and the optimal timing of vector control activities, and underscore the need for enhanced surveillance for Aedes mosquitoes and Aedes-transmitted viruses.

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Unintended Pregnancies in Brazil – A Challenge for the Recommendation to Delay Pregnancy Due to Zika
March 16, 2016 · Discussion
Abstract
Because of the potential link between the ongoing Zika virus outbreak and a surge in the number of cases of congenital microcephaly, officials in Latin America have recommended that women postpone pregnancy until this association is firmly established or the outbreak subsides. However, in all these countries a large proportion of babies are still born out of unplanned pregnancies. Teenage girls are particularly at high risk, as they often lack access to preventive contraception methods, or the knowledge to use them appropriately. To gauge the magnitude of the barriers preventing the implementation of such a recommendation in Brazil, the country so far most affected by the Zika epidemic, we evaluated pregnancy rates in teenage girls, and their spatial heterogeneity in the country, in recent years (2012-2014). Nearly 20% of children born in Brazil today (~560,000 live births) are by teenage mothers. Birth incidence is far higher in the tropical and poorer northern states. However, in absolute terms most births occur in the populous southeastern states, matching to a large extent the geographic distribution of dengue (an indicator of suitable climatic and sociodemographic conditions for the circulation of Aedes mosquitoes). These findings indicate that recommendation to delay pregnancy will leave over half a million pregnant adolescents in Brazil vulnerable to infection every year if not accompanied by effective education and real access to prevention.

PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases
http://www.plosntds.org/
(Accessed 19 March 2016)

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Editorial
The Zika Pandemic – A Perfect Storm?
Philip K. Russell
| published 18 Mar 2016 | PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases
10.1371/journal.pntd.0004589

Research Article
Is Dengue Vector Control Deficient in Effectiveness or Evidence?: Systematic Review and Meta-analysis
Leigh R. Bowman, Sarah Donegan, Philip J. McCall
| published 17 Mar 2016 | PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases
10.1371/journal.pntd.0004551

PNAS – Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
http://www.pnas.org/content/early/
(Accessed 19 March 2016)

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High-seas fish wars generate marine reserves
Guillermo E. Herreraa, Holly V. Moellerb, and Michael G. Neubertb,1
Author Affiliations
Edited by Alan Hastings, University of California, Davis, CA, and approved January 29, 2016 (received for review September 17, 2015)
Significance
Marine reserves—areas where fishing is prohibited—have been implemented to conserve fish stocks and their habitats. They have been established in near-shore fisheries, where a single state (or “sole owner”) regulates the distribution of fishing effort. Modeling has shown that, under some conditions, the sole owner may also use closed areas to maximize sustainable profit. Here, we show that reserves may also play a role in fisheries management on the high seas, where a limited number of states compete in a noncooperative fishing game. Our theoretical analysis complements recent empirical studies of high-seas protected areas and is relevant in other management contexts characterized by a limited number of harvesters.

Abstract
The effective management of marine fisheries is an ongoing challenge at the intersection of biology, economics, and policy. One way in which fish stocks—and their habitats—can be protected is through the establishment of marine reserves, areas that are closed to fishing. Although the potential economic benefits of such reserves have been shown for single-owner fisheries, their implementation quickly becomes complicated when more than one noncooperating harvester is involved in fishery management, which is the case on the high seas. How do multiple self-interested actors distribute their fishing effort to maximize their individual economic gains in the presence of others? Here, we use a game theoretic model to compare the effort distributions of multiple noncooperating harvesters with the effort distributions in the benchmark sole owner and open access cases. In addition to comparing aggregate rent, stock size, and fishing effort, we focus on the occurrence, size, and location of marine reserves. We show that marine reserves are a component of many noncooperative Cournot–Nash equilibria. Furthermore, as the number of harvesters increases, (i) both total unfished area and the size of binding reserves (those that actually constrain behavior) may increase, although the latter eventually asymptotically decreases; (ii) total rents and stock size both decline; and (iii) aggregate effort used (i.e., employment) can either increase or decrease, perhaps nonmonotonically.

Prehospital & Disaster Medicine
Volume 31 – Issue 02 – April 2016
https://journals.cambridge.org/action/displayIssue?jid=PDM&tab=currentissue

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Editorial
Zika Virus Association with Microcephaly: The Power for Population Statistics to Identify Public Health Emergencies
Samuel J. Stratton
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/S1049023X16000170
Published online: 04 March 2016
[No abstract]

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Original Research
An Assessment of Collaboration and Disasters: A Hospital Perspective
Sabrina A. Adelainea1 c1, Kimberly Shoafa2 and Caitlin Harveya1
a1 University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), Fielding School of Public Health, Los Angeles, California USA
a2 University of Utah, Division of Public Health, Salt Lake City, Utah USA
Abstract
Introduction There is no standard guidance for strategies for hospitals to use to coordinate with other agencies during a disaster.
Hypothesis/Problem This study analyzes successful strategies and barriers encountered by hospitals across the nation in coordinating and collaborating with other response agencies.
Methods Quantitative and qualitative data were collected from a web-based study from 577 acute care hospitals sampled from the 2013 American Hospital Association (AHA) database. The results were analyzed using descriptive statistics.
Results The most common barriers to collaboration are related to finances, ability to communicate, and personnel.

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Vaccination Against Seasonal or Pandemic Influenza in Emergency Medical Services
Alexandre Moser, Cédric Mabire, Olivier Hugli, Victor Dorribo, Giorgio Zanetti, Catherine Lazor-Blanchet and Pierre-Nicolas Carron
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/S1049023X16000121
Published online: 09 February 2016
Abstract
Introduction Influenza is a major concern for Emergency Medical Services (EMS); EMS workers’ (EMS-Ws) vaccination rates remain low despite promotion. Determinants of vaccination for seasonal influenza (SI) or pandemic influenza (PI) are unknown in this setting.
Hypothesis The influence of the H1N1 pandemic on EMS-W vaccination rates, differences between SI and PI vaccination rates, and the vaccination determinants were investigated.
Methods A survey was conducted in 2011 involving 65 Swiss EMS-Ws. Socio-professional data, self-declared SI/PI vaccination status, and motives for vaccine refusal or acceptation were collected.
Results Response rate was 95%. The EMS-Ws were predominantly male (n=45; 73%), in good health (87%), with a mean age of 36 (SD=7.7) years. Seventy-four percent had more than six years of work experience. Self-declared vaccination rates were 40% for both SI and PI (PI+/SI+), 19% for PI only (PI+/SI-), 1.6% for SI only (PI-/SI+), and 39% were not vaccinated against either (PI-/SI-). Women’s vaccination rates specifically were lower in all categories but the difference was not statistically significant. During the previous three years, 92% of PI+/SI+ EMS-Ws received at least one SI vaccination; it was 8.3% in the case of PI-/SI- (P=.001) and 25% for PI+/SI- (P=.001). During the pandemic, SI vaccination rate increased from 26% during the preceding year to 42% (P=.001). Thirty percent of the PI+/SI+ EMS-Ws declared that they would not get vaccination next year, while this proportion was null for the PI-/SI- and PI+/SI- groups. Altruism and discomfort induced by the surgical mask required were the main motivations to get vaccinated against PI. Factors limiting PI or SI vaccination included the option to wear a mask, avoidance of medication, fear of adverse effects, and concerns about safety and effectiveness.
Conclusion Average vaccination rate in this study’s EMS-Ws was below recommended values, particularly for women. Previous vaccination status was a significant determinant of PI and future vaccinations. The new mask policy seemed to play a dual role, and its net impact is probably limited. This population could be divided in three groups: favorable to all vaccinations; against all, even in a pandemic context; and ambivalent with a “pandemic effect.” These results suggest a consistent vaccination pattern, only altered by exceptional circumstances.

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International Consensus on Key Concepts and Data Definitions for Mass-gathering Health: Process and Progress
Sheila A. Turris, Malinda Steenkamp, Adam Lund, Alison Hutton, Jamie Ranse, Ron Bowles, Katherine Arbuthnott, Olga Anikeeva and Paul Arbon
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/S1049023X1600011X
Published online: 04 February 2016
Abstract
Mass gatherings (MGs) occur worldwide on any given day, yet mass-gathering health (MGH) is a relatively new field of scientific inquiry. As the science underpinning the study of MGH continues to develop, there will be increasing opportunities to improve health and safety of those attending events. The emerging body of MG literature demonstrates considerable variation in the collection and reporting of data. This complicates comparison across settings and limits the value and utility of these reported data. Standardization of data points and/or reporting in relation to events would aid in creating a robust evidence base from which governments, researchers, clinicians, and event planners could benefit. Moving towards international consensus on any topic is a complex undertaking. This report describes a collaborative initiative to develop consensus on key concepts and data definitions for a MGH “Minimum Data Set.” This report makes transparent the process undertaken, demonstrates a pragmatic way of managing international collaboration, and proposes a number of steps for progressing international consensus. The process included correspondence through a journal, face-to-face meetings at a conference, then a four-day working meeting; virtual meetings over a two-year period supported by online project management tools; consultation with an international group of MGH researchers via an online Delphi process; and a workshop delivered at the 19thWorld Congress on Disaster and Emergency Medicine held in Cape Town, South Africa in April 2015. This resulted in an agreement by workshop participants that there is a need for international consensus on key concepts and data definitions.

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Special Reports
Research and Evaluations of the Health Aspects of Disasters, Part VI: Interventional Research and the Disaster Logic Model
Marvin L. Birnbaum, Elaine K. Daily, Ann P. O’Rourke and Jennifer Kushner
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/S1049023X16000017

Research and Evaluations of the Health Aspects of Disasters, Part VII: The Relief/Recovery Framework
Marvin L. Birnbaum, Elaine K. Daily and Ann P. O’Rourke
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/S1049023X16000029

Public Health Reports
Volume 131 , Issue Number 2 March/April 2016
http://www.publichealthreports.org/issuecontents.cfm?Volume=131&Issue=2

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Articles
Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting in the United States: Updated Estimates of Women and Girls at Risk, 2012
Howard Goldberg, PhD / Paul Stupp, PhD / Ekwutosi Okoroh, MD / Ghenet Besera, MPH / David Goodman, PhD, MS / Isabella Danel, MD
ABSTRACT
Objectives. In 1996, the U.S. Congress passed legislation making female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C) illegal in the United States. CDC published the first estimates of the number of women and girls at risk for FGM/C in 1997. Since 2012, various constituencies have again raised concerns about the practice in the United States. We updated an earlier estimate of the number of women and girls in the United States who were at risk for FGM/C or its consequences.
Methods. We estimated the number of women and girls who were at risk for undergoing FGM/C or its consequences in 2012 by applying country-specific prevalence of FGM/C to the estimated number of women and girls living in the United States who were born in that country or who lived with a parent born in that country.
Results. Approximately 513,000 women and girls in the United States were at risk for FGM/C or its consequences in 2012, which was more than three times higher than the earlier estimate, based on 1990 data. The increase in the number of women and girls younger than 18 years of age at risk for FGM/C was more than four times that of previous estimates.
Conclusion. The estimated increase was wholly a result of rapid growth in the number of immigrants from FGM/C-practicing countries living in the United States and not from increases in FGM/C prevalence in those countries. Scien¬tifically valid information regarding whether women or their daughters have actually undergone FGM/C and related information that can contribute to efforts to prevent the practice in the United States and provide needed health services to women who have undergone FGM/C are needed.

Qualitative Health Research
April 2016; 26 (5)
http://qhr.sagepub.com/content/current
Special Issue: Qualitative Contributions to Quantitative Inquiry

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Commentary
Adding Qualitative and Mixed Methods Research to Health Intervention Studies: Interacting With Differences
R. Burke Johnson and Judith Schoonenboom
Qual Health Res April 2016 26: 587-602, first published on December 9, 2015 doi:10.1177/1049732315617479
Abstract
The purpose of this article is to explain how to improve intervention designs, such as randomized controlled trials (RCTs), in health science research using a process philosophy and theory known as dialectical pluralism (DP). DP views reality as plural and uses dialectical, dialogical, and hermeneutical approaches to knowledge construction. Using DP and its “both/and” logic, and its attempt to produce new creative syntheses, researchers on heterogeneous teams can better dialogue with qualitative and mixed methods approaches, concepts, paradigms, methodologies, and methods to improve their intervention research studies. The concept of reflexivity is utilized but is expanded when it is a component of DP. Examples of strategies for identifying, inviting, and creating divergence and integrative strategies for producing strong mixed methods intervention studies are provided and illustrated using real-life examples.

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Essential Qualitative Inquiry in the Development of a Cancer Literacy Measure for Immigrant Women
Lydia P. Buki, Barbara W. K. Yee, Kari A. Weiterschan, and Emaan N. Lehardy
Qual Health Res April 2016 26: 640-648, first published on December 1, 2015 doi:10.1177/1049732315616621
Abstract
In this article, we describe the development of a comprehensive measure of breast and cervical cancer literacy for immigrant populations. To our knowledge, this is the first attempt to use a health literacy framework in this endeavor. Using qualitative strategies, we (a) developed an understanding of the experiences of Mexican and Filipina immigrant women with low health literacy through individual interviews, (b) conducted focus groups to obtain feedback from experts and participants to determine the adequacy of items included in the measure, and (c) refined the set of items to create an empirically based measure. The final measure included 129 items that assess beliefs, attitudes, knowledge, emotions, and contextual factors related to breast and cervical cancer. Processes for adapting the measure for use with other immigrant groups are discussed.

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General Articles
Subjective Experience and Resources for Coping With Stigma in People With a Diagnosis of Schizophrenia: An Intersectional Approach
Jazmín Mora-Rios, Miriam Ortega-Ortega, and Guillermina Natera
Qual Health Res April 2016 26: 697-711, first published on February 10, 2015 doi:10.1177/1049732315570118
Abstract
In this study, we investigate the subjective experience of a group of individuals, diagnosed with schizophrenia, undergoing outpatient treatment in four psychiatric clinics in Mexico City. Our objective is to use the paradigm of intersectionality to explore the most common forms of stigma and discrimination faced by people with this illness, as well as the coping resources they employ. The major contribution of this study is its use of in-depth interviews and thematic analysis of the information obtained to identify the importance of sociocultural aspects of participants’ experience of their illness. Schizophrenia, for them, was a problem of “nerves,” whose origins were linked to magical or religious elements they attributed to their illness and which influenced their response to it. This resignification was useful to participants as a coping resource; it helped them find meaning and significance in their experience of the illness.

Reproductive Health
http://www.reproductive-health-journal.com/content
[Accessed 19 March 2016]

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Research
Engaging with community-based public and private mid-level providers for promoting the use of modern contraceptive methods in rural Pakistan: results from two innovative birth spacing interventions
Syed Khurram Azmat, Waqas Hameed, Hasan Bin Hamza, Ghulam Mustafa, Muhammad Ishaque, Ghazunfer Abbas, Omar Farooq Khan, Jamshaid Asghar, Erik Munroe, Safdar Ali, Wajahat Hussain, Sajid Ali, Aftab Ahmed, Moazzam Ali and Marleen Temmerman
Published on: 17 March 2016