BACKGROUND: Demographic changes, such as an increase in older adults, present a challenge to the healthcare service\'s current capacity. Moreover, the need for healthcare personnel is rising, while the availability of labour is dwindling, leading to a potential workforce shortage. To address some of these challenges, enhanced collaboration between home-based healthcare frontline workers, service users, and next of kin is a necessity. The trust model is an organisational model where home-based healthcare services are organised into smaller interdisciplinary teams aiming to tailor the services in collaboration with service-users and their next of kin\'. This study explores how the next of kin and frontline workers perceive and perform involvement in making decisions regarding tailoring the services for the users of home-based healthcare services organised after the trust model.
METHODS: Four in-depth interviews and 32 observations were conducted, and thematic analysis was employed to identify meaningful patterns across the datasets.
RESULTS: The results are presented as two themes: (i) unspoken expectations and (ii) situational participation. The results highlight the complex nature of next-of-kin involvement and shared decision making, raising questions about meeting expectations, evaluating available resources, and developing sustainable involvement processes.
CONCLUSIONS: This study indicates that despite of an interdisciplinary organisational model aiming for shared decision making as the trust model, the involvement of next of kin continues to be a challenge for frontline workers in home-based healthcare services. It also points to the importance of transparent communication and how it is deemed essential for clarifying implicit expectations.

BACKGROUND: Vaccination is among the most important public health tools for preventing the harm caused by communicable diseases. This was particularly true in the case of COVID-19 vaccination during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, no vaccine is 100% effective, and all carry the risk of breakthrough infection in vaccinated individuals.
METHODS: This longitudinal observational study was done on COVID-19-vaccinated individuals at a vaccination site in a tertiary care hospital. The study participants were categorized into the general community, frontline workers, and healthcare workers and were followed up during the study period from June 2021 to May 2022 post-vaccination. They were interviewed by telephone regarding adverse effects and breakthrough infections post-vaccination during the second and third wave of the COVID-19 pandemic in India. Incidence of breakthrough infection was calculated in all three categories after they received their first, second, and booster doses of vaccination.
RESULTS: Fever was the most common adverse effect among all the categories of participants after the first and second doses. Incidence of breakthrough infection after the second dose of vaccination among frontline workers (RR: 5.7, 95% CI: 0.7-44.2) and healthcare workers (RR: 18.9, 95% CI: 2.6-138.6) was observed to be higher compared to the general community, but no such difference was observed among the three categories after the first dose of vaccination.
CONCLUSIONS: The incidence of breakthrough infection was found to be the highest in healthcare workers, followed by frontline workers compared to the general community, justifying their work profile and the risk associated with it.

OBJECTIVE: With the soaring rise in popularity of social media platforms in recent decades, the use of website posts for the expression of work-related views has also increased. Despite websites being extensively used, there has been no examination of the views and concerns expressed by frontline workers through website posts. The present research aims to contribute to the \"voice literature\" first by evaluating how frontline workers utilize anonymous media platforms to express their views and work-related concerns and, second, by demonstrating how anonymous voice systems can encourage frontline health workers in providing feedback and dissatisfaction.
METHODS: The study utilizes the thematic analysis method to analyze the content of posts by psychologists on a collaborative consultation website administrated by Israel\'s Ministry of Health, discussing their perceptions of work-related concerns.
RESULTS: The analysis identified three work-related themes through the employees\' voices. These include insufficient support from management, conflicts and excessive occupational demands. The workers expressed their apprehension with regard to organizational pressures, deficient budget allocations, excessive workloads, lack of recognition and work-life imbalances.
CONCLUSIONS: The application of thematic analysis method to anonymous open-public data should be viewed as an effective, affordable, genuine and unique research method for data analysis. Anonymous platforms can generate unique insights that may not be possible through traditional means. This can provide practitioners with a comprehensive understanding of various issues and challenges and be a useful tool for identifying shortcomings within health settings.

Although COVID-19 vaccination has been widely considered as an important remedy to confront COVID-19, people remain hesitant to take it. The objective of this study was to assess the moderation effects of demographic characteristics on the relationship between forms of misinformation and COVID-19 vaccine uptake hesitancy among frontline workers in Dar es Salaam and Dodoma, Tanzania. Using a sample of 200 respondents, it assessed the differences in ratings on misinformation regarding COVID-19 vaccine based on respondents\' demographics. The study used a Five-point Likert scale questionnaire distributed through snowball sampling to frontline workers from Dar es Salaam and Dodoma regions. Data was analyzed using binary logistic regression. It was found that the forms of misinformation revealed were manipulated imposters, satire, fabricated contents and false contents with their connection, which they influenced COVID-19 hesitancy significantly. With exception of age, that significantly moderated hesitancy, this study uncovers that, sex and education level moderated insignificantly in predicting those who are misinformed; misinformed individuals are not any less educated or not based on one\'s sex, different than individuals who are informed. The study informs policy makers on devising appropriate strategies to promote COVID-19 vaccination uptake among the different contextual demographic variables. Promotion of information, media and health literacy to the general public should be considered to deter spreading of vaccine-related misinformation.

Background  The COVID-19 pandemic has been difficult for all healthcare providers. Nurses in Indian hospitals are at risk for mental health consequences of COVID-19-related stress. The study aimed to evaluate the mental health responses of Indian nurses working during the COVID-19 pandemic.  Method The study was carried out during the COVID-19 pandemic from November 2020 to February 2021. Frontline nurses (n=387) working in both government and private sectors were recruited from four hospital centers across Mangalore, India. Nurses were selected based on specific inclusion criteria, including active duty within wards and intensive care units designated for COVID-19 care or suspected cases of SARS-CoV-2 infection. Recruitment and data collection were facilitated by medical residents using a mix of physical and electronic survey methods. Results Nurses within the private sector with low personal protective equipment (PPE) security experienced heightened anxiety. Somatic symptoms were incrementally related to mental health depending on the workplace setting; private sector staff reported greater depression symptoms compared to those in government-run hospitals. Self-efficacy buffered against depression outcomes only in nurses within the private sector working within non-COVID units. Conclusions This study\'s findings showed differential responses to the stress of COVID-19 based on the setting. Future studies should further explore the factors associated with such differences. Somatic symptoms can be indicators of mental health adversity. Early detection and supportive interventions need to be taken into account.

This study evaluated the immune response to vaccination against COVID-19 in 534 healthcare frontline workers in Vilnius, Lithuania. The incidence of COVID-19 was reduced significantly after vaccination started in the healthcare sector. SARS-CoV-2 antibodies were detected in groups V-VII and this level of antibodies was found to be effective in preventing COVID-19. Sustained immune response was achieved after two vaccination doses, which remained stable for up to 6 months. After the booster dose, antibody levels remained high for an additional 12 months. Although SARS-CoV-2 antibody levels decreased after 6 months, even lower levels of antibodies provided protection against the Delta strain. The booster dose distributed the antibody titer in the high-level antibody groups, offering maximum protection at 12 months. However, even individuals with high antibody titers were observed to contract COVID-19 after vaccination with a booster dose and 6 months in the presence of the Omicron strain. Unfortunately, high levels of antibodies did not provide protection against the new strain of COVID-19 (the Omicron variant), posing a risk of infection. When comparing the antibody titer of vaccinated participants without COVID-19 and those with COVID-19, the change in antibodies after vaccination was significantly lower in infected participants. Individuals with comorbidities and specific conditions had lower antibody levels.

BACKGROUND: Despite considerable investment in maternal-child programs in Canada, there has been little positive impact on the health of Indigenous mothers and their children. The reasons for this are unclear and there is a need to identify how such programs can be successfully implemented. Community input is essential for successful programs; however, it is unclear what the contributions of frontline workers have been in the health program process, i.e., program development, delivery, and evaluation. Based on these identified gaps, this scoping review aimed to: (1) identify factors of success and barriers to successful Indigenous maternal-child community health programs for mothers and their children aged 0-6 years; and (2) explore how frontline workers are included in the program process.
METHODS: This scoping review was completed using the Arksey and O\'Malley framework, informed by Levac et al. Four data bases (Medline, CINAHL, Embase, and Scopus), grey literature, and reference lists were searched for relevant materials from 1990-2019. Data was extracted from included articles and analysed using descriptive statistics, thematic analysis with the Braun and Clarke framework, and a Principal Component Analysis.
RESULTS: Forty-five peer-reviewed and grey articles were included in the review. Factors of program success included: relationship building; cultural inclusion; knowledge transmission styles; community collaboration; client-centred approaches; Indigenous staff; and operational considerations. Barriers included: impacts of colonization; power structure and governance; client and community barriers to program access; physical and geographical challenges; lack of staff; and operational deficits. Frontline workers were found to have a role in program delivery (n = 45) and development (n = 25). Few (n = 6) had a role in program evaluation.
CONCLUSIONS: Although a better understanding of the frontline worker role in maternal-child health programs was obtained from the review, in a large proportion of literature the authors could not determine if the role went beyond program delivery. In addition, no direct input from frontline workers and their perspectives on program success or barriers were identified, suggesting areas to explore in future research. This review\'s findings have been applied to inform a community-based participatory research project and may also help improve the development, delivery, and evaluation of Indigenous maternal-child health programs.

The issue of communications in the public space, and in particular, in the workplace, became critical in the early stages of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic and was exacerbated by the stress of the drastic transformation of the organization of work, the speed with which new information was being made available, and the constant fear of being infected or developing a more severe or even fatal form of the disease. Although effective communication is the key to fighting a pandemic, some business sectors were more vulnerable and affected than others, and the individuals in particular socio-demographic and economic categories were proportionately more affected by the number of infections and hospitalizations, and by the number of deaths. Therefore, the aim of this article is to present data related to issues faced by essential workers interacting with the public and their employers to mitigate the contagion of SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) at work.
Following the constructivist paradigm, an interpretative qualitative design was used to conduct one-on-one interviews with precarious/low-wage, public-contact workers (N = 40), managers (N = 16), and key informants (N = 16) on topics related to their work environments in the context of COVID-19 prevention.
This article has highlighted some aspects of communication in the workplace essential to preventing COVID-19 outbreaks (e.g., access to information in a context of fast-changing instructions, language proficiency, transparency and confidentiality in the workplace, access to clear guidelines). The impact of poor pre-pandemic working relations on crisis management in the workplace also emerged.
This study reminds us of the need to develop targeted, tailored messages that, while not providing all the answers, maintain dialog and transparency in workplaces.

OBJECTIVE: To compare the difference between the growth and developmental status of the children who were residing in the area where Inclusive Early Childhood Development (IECD) project was being implemented and who had received interventions through trained Anganwadi workers (Frontline workers) under Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) scheme with the children who had not received the Inclusive ECD project interventions.
METHODS: It was a mixed method cohort study, nested in an ongoing project in a medical college in which Inclusive ECD was used as an intervention through International Guide for Monitoring Child Development (GMCD) which is a tool for both monitoring and assessment with the help of existing government structures and personnel such as Anganwadi workers, Anganwadi supervisors and their contact points with communities. A sample of 200 children was selected; 100 each from intervention group (IECD cohort) and comparison group (Usual care cohort) and were followed till the child became 2 y of age.
RESULTS: IECD intervention showed statistically significant effect on weight (p = 0.04) and height (p = 0.03) of the IECD cohort. Overall developmental assessment showed that the identified developmental issues (Concerns + Delays) were approximately half in IECD cohort (9.67% + 5.37% = 15.04%) as compared to usual care cohort (17.20% + 11.82% = 29.02%). The results from binomial logistic regression performed for developmental outcomes were statistically significant (p = 0.04) suggesting that children with IECD intervention have lower odds of developing developmental issues.
CONCLUSIONS: The study indicates that it is possible to implement IECD interventions through frontline workers, which significantly improves the growth and development of the children.

India\'s Covid-19 vaccination campaign engaged frontline workers (FLWs) to encourage vaccination among vulnerable segments of society. The FLWs report encountering a variety of barriers to vaccination and are often unsuccessful despite multiple visits to the same person. This cross-sectional study aims to pinpoint which of these barriers drive vaccine hesitancy among these segments, to help streamline vaccine communication, including FLW training, to better safeguard the population.
Trained field enumerators contacted 893 individuals from five states across India and collected self-reported assessments of fifteen vaccination barriers (identified through discussions with FLWs), current vaccination status and future vaccination intentions, and covariates (demographics/comorbidities). Factor analysis of the fifteen barriers yielded two factors, one relating to fear of vaccine adverse effects and a second focused on peripheral concerns regarding the vaccine. The covariates significantly associated with current vaccination status were combined under a latent class regime to yield three cluster types (health access, financial strength, and demographics). The primary analysis examined the effect of the two barrier factors, the covariate clusters, and comorbidity, on current vaccination status and future vaccine intentions.
Fear of vaccine adverse effects was the primary driver of vaccine hesitancy; peripheral concerns frequently mentioned by the FLWs had no impact. Although cluster membership and the presence of comorbidities predicted vaccine uptake, neither of them materially altered the effect of fear of vaccine adverse effects with the following exception: fear of adverse effects was not associated with vaccination status among young Muslim men.
Subject to limitations, these results indicate that interventions to decrease vaccine hesitancy should focus primarily on fear associated with vaccines rather than spend resources trying to address peripheral concerns.