BACKGROUND: Using facility dogs during police investigative interviews is a recent practice in Canada. While the common use of this intervention is decidedly an indicator of sympathy capital, its utility in this context is relatively unknown and no study has specifically evaluated the effect of using facility dogs on children\'s collaboration during investigative interviews.
OBJECTIVE: This study compares police investigative interviews conducted in the presence of a service dog (n = 46) to those without (n = 45) to examine the effects of the presence of and interactions with a dog on children\'s reluctance.
METHODS: The interviews were done with children aged 3 to 15 years and were coded for children\'s reluctance, their physical interactions with and comments about the dog, as well as for investigator\'s verbal support.
RESULTS: No significant group differences were found in terms of children\'s overall reluctance (p = 0.700), though the children accompanied by a dog showed significantly more digression (p = 0.008). Among the children who were accompanied by a dog, those who interacted with the dog more frequently (p = 0.035) and who made more comments about the dog (p < 0.001) showed more signs of reluctance, even after accounting for child age and investigator support. No association was observed between children\'s reluctance and the total duration of dog-child physical interactions (p = 0.097).
CONCLUSIONS: This study contributes to an enhanced understanding of the usefulness of facility dogs and the factors that influence children\'s reluctance during investigative interviews.

OBJECTIVE: In Erbil, Iraq, the reluctance of young adults to engage with psychiatric services is influenced by a complex array of barriers, including stigma-related, attitudinal, and instrumental factors that hinder effective mental healthcare access. This study aimed to identify these specific barriers to accessing psychiatric care among young adults in Erbil.
METHODS: The study utilized a cross-sectional online survey conducted between April 5th and May 1st, 2024. Data collection was carried out through purposive sampling and involved a comprehensive questionnaire. Electronic informed consent was obtained from all participants before they started the survey, which collected demographic data and utilized the Barriers to Access to Care Evaluation (BACE v3) tool. Statistical analysis was conducted using SPSS version 27 (IBM Corp., Armonk, NY). Descriptive statistics (frequency and percentage) were used for categorical data, while the mean and standard deviation characterized continuous variables. Chi-square tests, including Fisher\'s exact test and odds ratio (OR), were used to analyze categorical data, with a significance level set at p < 0.05.
RESULTS: A total of 407 participants were enrolled in the study. The study highlighted several barriers to mental health care. Stigma-related barriers were significant, with participants fearing being seen as weak (mean score = 2.14, SD = 0.96) and concerns about being labeled \"crazy\" (mean score = 1.80, SD = 1.19). Regarding attitudinal barriers, there was a notable preference for dealing with issues independently (mean score = 2.04, SD = 0.98) and a tendency toward resolving problems without professional help (mean score = 1.88, SD = 0.98). Additionally, instrumental barriers were identified, including the rare availability of culturally diverse mental health professionals (mean score = 1.78, SD = 1.09) and practical difficulties such as arranging transportation to appointments (mean score = 0.61, SD = 0.87).
CONCLUSIONS: The study demonstrated that young adults in Erbil face significant stigma and attitudinal and instrumental barriers to accessing psychiatric care. In response to these findings, it is recommended for the government to prioritize mental health awareness, actively destigmatize mental health issues, and improve service accessibility to foster a supportive care environment. Additionally, mental health professionals and educational institutions should collaborate to provide targeted support programs and resources for young adults.

BACKGROUND: The COVID-19 pandemic highlights vaccination\'s critical role in reducing morbidity and mortality, depending on public attitude. This study aims to identify the estimates of COVID-19 vaccine acceptance in pregnant and lactating women, as well as associated potential factors.
METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted between August and September 2021, through an online survey and with a paper survey distributed in gynecology and pediatric clinics. Pregnant and breastfeeding women aged 18 years and above were recruited. The attitude scale was created specifically for evaluating attitudes towards the COVID-19 vaccine.
RESULTS: In total, 207 women participated, with 132 breastfeeding, 74 pregnant and 1 experiencing both conditions. Of these, one hundred and twenty women (58%) considered themselves at risk for COVID-19 infection. In addition, 51.7% (n = 107) of women expressed the intent to receive the vaccine once available. A multivariable linear regression was conducted taking the COVID-19 vaccination attitude scale as a dependent variable. The results revealed an R-squared value of 0.558, indicating that approximately 55.8% of the variance in the attitude scale was accounted for by the included predictors. The results showed that preventive measures (ß=2.25, 95% Confidence Interval (CI) [1.02; 3.48], p < 0.001), preference for vaccines made in Europe and America (ß=1.23; 95% CI [0.69-1.77], p < 0.001), protect yourself for getting sick (ß=4.22, 95% Confidence Interval (CI) [2.83; 5.61], p < 0.001) and belief in the importance of vaccination for themselves and their baby (ß=3.49; 95% CI [2.01; 4.98], p < 0.001) were associated with a positive attitude towards vaccination. Conversely, experiencing a previous bad reaction to a vaccine (ß= -1.35; 95% CI [0.85-1.85], p < 0.001) and concerns regarding COVID-19 vaccine safety (ß= -4.09; 95% CI [-5.98; -2.21], p < 0.001) were associated with a negative attitude towards vaccination.
CONCLUSIONS: Our findings reveal that COVID-19 vaccine acceptability among pregnant and breastfeeding women, amidst the pandemic was insufficient to meet community immunity. The identified reasons for vaccine reluctance, notably concerns about safety for both personal health and the health of their pregnancy or newborns, along with insufficient information about the vaccine, underscore the pressing need to address these factors to improve immunization rates.

Denial and rumors are two major obstacles impairing the implementation of activities in response to the Ebola virus disease (EVD) epidemic. This study investigated the roles of denial and rumors, among other challenges, in complicating the response to the EVD outbreak in the North Kivu and Ituri provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. A total of 800 randomly selected respondents were surveyed using a structured questionnaire. In-depth interviews were conducted with 17 community religious and opinion leaders, as well as Ebola survivors. Furthermore, 20 focus group discussions were conducted with adult and youth male and female participants, and health care workers. The results revealed that the existence of the disease is widely denied by many, including political leaders, village chiefs, neighborhood chiefs, street chiefs, avenue chiefs, and members of the general population. These individuals generally consider the EVD to be the result of a misbehavior or a curse; consequently, the general population, including community members, teachers, and even health care professionals, refuse to comply with the authorities\' strategies to fight the epidemic. Rumors are another obstacle in response efforts. Rumors pertaining to the denial of the existence of the EVD, as well as the epidemic, Ebola treatment centers, hospitals, vaccines, and safe and dignified burials have been identified. Rumors about the EVD and the response, spread by clerics, traditional therapists, men, and women, including healthcare professionals in focus group discussions, portrayed the EVD as an invention, as if the virus had been created. The response to the EVD has been marked by these two constraints, which have often hindered the involvement of community members in the fight against the disease.

UNASSIGNED: The global COVID-19 pandemic has deeply impacted health systems, emphasizing the need for effective vaccination campaigns. However, vaccine hesitancy, particularly among healthcare workers, challenges achieving comprehensive immunization coverage. The primary objective of this study is to elucidate the factors influencing COVID-19 vaccine uptake among healthcare workers at an Algerian University Teaching Hospital.
UNASSIGNED: A cross-sectional survey was conducted at the University Teaching Hospital of Oran, Algeria, from February 17 to April 11, 2022. We investigated factors associated with COVID-19 vaccine uptake among 196 hospital staff members, including 98 physicians and 98 nurses. Factors independently associated with vaccination were identified using a multivariable logistic regression analysis, and adjusted odds ratios with 95% confidence intervals were provided.
UNASSIGNED: The COVID-19 vaccination rate among HCWs was 32.1%. Several factors were significantly associated with COVID-19 vaccination in the multivariable analysis. These include the belief that even healthy individuals should be vaccinated against COVID-19 (aOR = 3.13; 95% CI: 1.13-8.63), the perception that comprehensive vaccination coverage against COVID-19 could support the healthcare system in future epidemics (aOR = 4.15; 95% CI: 1.68-10.23), endorsement of mandatory COVID-19 vaccination (aOR = 4.37; 95% CI: 1.42-13.45), and adherence to all recommended vaccines for HCWs or compliance with the recommended immunization schedules for their children (aOR = 4.75; 95% CI: 1.47-15.36).
UNASSIGNED: This study highlights key beliefs influencing COVID-19 vaccine uptake among healthcare workers, including the necessity of vaccinating healthy individuals, the perceived importance of comprehensive vaccination in supporting the healthcare system during future epidemics, agreement with mandatory vaccination policies, and adherence to recommended vaccine schedules.

The COVID-19 pandemic that originated in Wuhan, China in December 2019 results in respiratory and gastrointestinal infections. Elderly patients are at high risk. Preventive measures like avoiding contact with COVID-19 patients and wearing N95 masks can contribute to reducing the risk of infection, but vaccination remains crucial.
A cross-sectional survey-based study was conducted among the elderly population (≥ 50 years) in Pakistan. A 16-items questionnaire explored the socio-demographic profile of the participants, including questions about their age, gender, etc. The other sections included questions regarding vaccine registration, vaccine acceptance, and hesitation and fears towards vaccines. The items were developed to collect the data on the basis of the Likert scale.
There was a total of 3059 respondents. The majority of the participants (n = 2726, 89.1%) were aged below 70 years, while 10.9% (n = 333) were aged above 70 years. Many participants (47.1%) expressed their concerns about the efficacy of COVID-19 vaccine booster dose. Despite their willingness to vaccinate with the cOVID-19 vaccine, 24.7% female participants expressed concerns related to the safety of the vaccine. Among all the respondents, 23.1% participants had no concerns about the cOVID-19 vaccine booster dose. The study identified a reluctance and lack of confidence in the efficiency of the COVID-19 booster dose.
The alarming situation is rigidity towards vaccination among the elderly population. Necessary measures must be taken by the health department of Pakistan to manage this reluctant behavior and increase confidence on the efficiency of the COVID-19 booster dose.

OBJECTIVE: Esophagogastroduodenoscopy is considered the gold standard in assessing the severity of injury to the gastrointestinal tract following corrosive ingestion. Zargar\'s endoscopic grading of injury helps in prognostication as well as guiding management. Since the major burden of cases lies in resource-limited settings, the availability of endoscopic evaluation is a limiting factor. Hence, it is prudent to develop bedside tools that can be used as screening tools to identify patients at high risk of mortality and complications so that timely referrals and judicious utilization of resources can be made. Literature in this regard is limited and published studies have shown that clinical features fail to predict the severity of injury. We aimed our study to find the role of Drooling, Reluctance, Oropharynx, Others, and Leukocytosis (DROOL) score as a predictor of mortality and complications following acute corrosive ingestion.
METHODS: This was a diagnostic accuracy study conducted in the emergency department (ED) of a tertiary care hospital in North India. We screened all cases of acute corrosive ingestion presented to our ED. We collected the data on demographic profile, clinical features, investigations, endoscopy findings, treatment, and DROOL score. We followed patients for up to 12 weeks for outcomes including mortality and complications.
RESULTS: We studied 79 patients of acute corrosive ingestion. The median age was 26 years with a female predominance. Nausea, vomiting, and pain abdomen were the common symptoms. The median DROOL score was 4. The majority of our patients had normal to Zargar grade 1 injury to the stomach and esophagus. Out of 79 patients, 27 patients developed some complications. The overall mortality up to 12 weeks was 10%. The receiver operating characteristics (ROC) analysis was performed, and the area under the ROC (AUROC) curve of Zargar classification in predicting overall complications was 0.909 (96% confidence interval [CI]: 0.842-0.975) and it was 0.775 (95% CI: 0.553-1.000) in predicting mortality. The AUROC of DROOL score in predicting overall complications was 0.932 (95% CI: 0.877-0.987) and the AUROC of DROOL score in predicting mortality was 0.864 (95% CI: 0.758-0.970). The ROC analysis showed that a DROOL score ≤4 has a sensitivity of 96.2% and a specificity of 77.8% in predicting overall complications. Similarly, DROOL score ≤5 has a sensitivity of 81.7% and a specificity of 62.5% in predicting the development of mortality. Delong test showed that there was no statistically significant difference in Zargar versus DROOL score in terms of prediction of mortality and overall complications (P > 0.05).
CONCLUSIONS: DROOL score is comparable to Zargar score in identifying patients at high risk of mortality and complications. Hence, DROOL score can be used for risk stratification of patients presenting with corrosive ingestion.

Those who refuse immunizations are risks to the public health. Others who are vaccine reluctant are also problematic because they may reinforce the uncertainties of others and refuse vaccines in the future. Common to the multiple, complex causes of vaccine reluctance and refusal is the fact that many have little knowledge about microbiology, infectious diseases, or public health. Consequently, it is not surprising that many have questions about vaccines, find making vaccine decisions difficult, and are vulnerable to vaccine misinformation. Therefore, improving the knowledge of consumers about these biologic sciences would seem to be essential to begin addressing vaccine reluctance and refusal. This would be most effective if it were accomplished before they need to begin to make vaccine decisions.

Context: Patients with serious illness and their caregivers often face challenging decisions. When faced with these decisions, patients and caregivers may display signs of ambivalence and reluctance toward end-of-life decision making. Methods: We recruited 22 palliative care clinicians to participate in a communication coaching study. Clinicians audio recorded four of their palliative care encounters with adult patients and family caregivers. A team of 5 coders used inductive coding methods to create a codebook and then coded instances of patients and caregivers expressing ambivalence and reluctance. They also coded when the decision-making process was initiated and whether a decision was made. The group coded 76 encounters, and 10% (n = 8) of those encounters were double coded to assess inter-rater reliability. Results: We found that ambivalence occurred in 82% (n = 62) of the encounters, while reluctance occurred in 75% (n = 57) of the encounters. The overall prevalence of either was 89% (n = 67). The presence of ambivalence was negatively associated with a decision being made once initiated (r = -0.29, p = 0.06). Conclusion: We found that coders can reliably identify patient and caregiver reluctance and ambivalence. Further, reluctance and ambivalence occur frequently in palliative care encounters. When patients and caregivers have ambivalence, decision making might be hampered.

Vaccine hesitancy is a barrier to improving childhood vaccination rates in Canada, but the scope of this problem is unclear due to inconsistent measurement of vaccine uptake indicators. Using 2017 data from a Canadian national vaccine coverage survey, this study analyzed the impact of demographics and parental knowledge, attitudes and beliefs (KAB) on vaccine decisions (refusal, delay and reluctance) in parents of 2-year-old children who had received at least one vaccine. The findings show that 16.8% had refused a vaccine, specifically influenza (73%), rotavirus (13%) and varicella (9%); female parents or those from Quebec or the Territories more likely to refuse. 12.8% were reluctant to accept a vaccine, usually influenza (34%), MMR (21%) and varicella (19%), but eventually accepted them upon advice from a health care provider. 13.1% had delayed a vaccine, usually because their child had health issues (54%) or was too young (18.6%) and was predicted by five or six person households. Recent immigration to Canada decreased likelihood of refusal, delay, or reluctance; however, after 10 years in Canada, these parents were as likely to refuse or be reluctant as parents born in Canada. Poor KAB increased likelihood of refusal and delay by 5 times, and reluctance by 15 times, while moderate KAB increased likelihood of refusal (OR 1.6), delay (OR 2.3) and reluctance (OR 3.6). Future research into vaccine decisions by female and/or single parents, and predictors of vaccine KAB would provide valuable information and help protect our children from vaccine preventable diseases.