Impulse Buying in Live Stream Based on the Stimulus-Organism-Response Framework

Live stream commerce is the most effective method for online marketing and sales. The Malaysian government implementation of movement control order (MCO) and social distancing during the Covid-19 pandemic had a significant impact on consumer purchasing behaviour and ways of conducting business. Hence, this research aims to examine the factors which influence Malaysian consumers' impulse buying in live stream commerce. The Stimulus Organism Response Framework (SOR) is used to assess stimuli (live streamer attractiveness, expertise, scarcity, and promotion) that impact reactions (perceived enjoyment, urge to buy, and arousal) and subsequently influence response behaviour (live stream impulse buying). The total of 385 questionnaires were disseminated during the implementation of MCO 2.0 in 2021. The findings demonstrated that all hypotheses were significant. Perceived enjoyment, arousal, and urge to buy are associated with impulse buying in live stream. This study provides a deeper insight and identifies the key variables that influence live stream impulse buying in Malaysia. The findings would help businesses and marketers to formulate effective marketing strategies and to fill research gaps relating to live stream commerce. © 2022 Authors. All rights reserved.

Fit testing and comfort evaluation of prophylactic dressing use for healthcare workers under N95/P2 respirators in one health service district in Australia.

BACKGROUND: This study evaluated the use of prophylactic dressings (silicone foam, silicone tape, hydrocolloid) under N95/P2 respirators to determine which dressings fit successfully. AIM: The aim was to develop a health service protocol for one state in Australia. METHODS: Data were collected during August and September 2021 as part of the Respiratory Protection Programme on 600 health workers using three types of prophylactic dressings. Five different types of respirators were used. Participant healthcare workers rated comfort on a four-point Likert scale. RESULTS: Successful fit was achieved by 63.6% of the respirator-dressing combinations. The best-performing respirator-dressing combination was the Trident® respirator with dressing Mepilex® Lite silicone foam (90.2% pass rate). High pass rates were found in the Trident® respirator with Mepilex® Border Lite with SofSicure silicone tape (79.1%); the 3M™ 1860 respirator with Mepilex® Border Lite with SofSicure silicone tape (74%); and the BSN orange duckbill respirator with Mepilex® Lite silicone foam (69.8%). The poorest-performing combination was the BYD™ respirator with Mepilex® Border Lite with SofSicure silicone tape (25.9% pass rate). Uncorrected chi-squared tests for association revealed significant associations between dressing type and outcome (P=0.004) and respirator type and outcome (P<0.001). Most respondents (82%) found the dressing combination markedly comfortable. CONCLUSIONS: When using prophylactic dressings under N95/P2 respirators, it is necessary to perform a fit test. In this study Trident® respirators had the highest probability of successful fit, while BYD™ respirators had the lowest. Combining Trident® respirators with Mepilex® Lite dressing was optimal. Most participants reported greater comfort with the dressings under the respirators.

Using Machine Learning to Predict Place-Based Risks for Staphylococcus aureus Infections in Children

Background: Community-onset Staphylococcus aureus (CO-S. aureus) pediatric infections, methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) and methicillin-susceptible S. aureus (MSSA) continue to contribute to the burden of infections seen in the ambulatory setting in the US. Individual risk factors have been identified, but place-based factors and specific geographic locality have not been well-studied. The purpose of this study is to predict place-based factors that contribute to the spread of CO-S. aureus in a major urban area using maximum entropy (MaxEnt), a machine learning technique. Methods: Electronic medical records from two pediatric hospitals (2002 to 2016) were retrospectively reviewed. Inclusion criteria: a confirmed S. aureus infection within 48 hours of hospital admission (CO-S. aureus), < 19 years old, and a geo-referenced address within Atlanta's metropolitan statistical area (MSA). Fourteen place-based factors, at the US Census block group level, were included in the MaxEnt models: < 18 years old, Caucasian, African American, ethnicity, poverty, education attainment, crowding, daycare, kindergarten enrollment, distance to K-12 school, distance to a children's hospital, distance to a daycare center, and population density. A total of four models (CO-MRSA early, CO-MSSA early, CO-MRSA later, and CO-MSSA later) were run using the MaxEnt software. For each model, 75% and 25% of data was randomly assigned to training and testing groups, respectively. Models were assessed by jack-knife tests. Results: 16,124 records met eligibility criteria for MaxEnt models. The training Area Under the Curve (AUC) ranged from 0.771 to 0.837 and the test AUC ranged from 0.769 to 0.804. Population density had the highest contribution in predicting CO-MRSA and CO-MSSA locations, which was confirmed by jack-knife tests. Conclusion: By applying MaxEnt to pediatric CO-S. aureus infections in the Atlanta MSA, it was found that higher risks of CO-S. aureus infections may exist in more densely populated areas. MaxEnt can be utilized to identify potential future areas of CO-MRSA and CO-MSSA infections based on estimated or predicted changes to the place-based factors used to build these models. Disclosures: Lilly Immergluck, MD, MS, GSK: Clinical Trial- PI;Merck: Vaccine Trial Site- serve as PI;Moderna: Board Member;Novavax: Part of CoVID-19 Phase 3 Trial through US Covid Prevention Network.

The Long-Term Aspirations of Rohingya Refugees’ Families in Malaysia

The Rohingya refugees have often viewed Malaysia as open, although Malaysia is a non-signatory of the 1951 Refugees Convention and its 1967 Protocol. Hence, the number of Rohingya refugees in Malaysia had increased to more than 180000 in 2021. A fundamental problem with managing refugees in Malaysia is that there is no real policy in place and thus no real idea of how many, who, and where they are. Every year, less than one percent of the refugees have been successfully sent to a third country worldwide. The current situation has prevented the refugee resettlement matter in Malaysia from being resolved quickly;instead, it takes years and even decades for a small outcome, often without any apparent end. One of the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic is that the resettlement releases to third countries worldwide decreased sharply in 2020 due to international travelling had to be stopped. Every year, less than 5 percent of the world's refugees will receive a place in a third country (UNHCR Malaysia, 2021). Therefore, it is essential to understand Rohingya refugees' long-term aspirations to prepare them for the future. The right policy is needed to prepare the refugees to resettle in a third country or eventually return to Myanmar. Therefore, this paper explores the Rohingya refugees' future aspirations and resettlement plans based on qualitative data through semi-structured interviews. This research carried out in-depth qualitative interviews with 10 Rohingya refugees currently living in Malaysia and six Rohingya refugees who have already resettled in a third country and used to stay in Malaysia as their transit country. This research discovered nine livelihood aspirations, three community aspirations, and two-family aspirations shared by the respondents. This study also found that almost all respondents aspire to resettle in a third country in the long run, but the delay in getting resettlement leaves them no choice, but to remain in Malaysia. Hence, this paper concludes that policymakers need to construct settlement programmes to help Rohingya refugees and asylums while they are still in Malaysia and prepare them to settle in the third country eventually. © 2018 Malaysian Consumer and Family.

Rapid evidence reviews to inform COVID-19 treatment guidelines in South Africa

Introduction/ Background: In March 2020, the South African National Essential Medicines List Committee established a multidisciplinary expert panel to review emerging evidence for COVID-19 medicines quickly and systematically. Recommendations inform National Department of Health COVID-19 guidelines. We describe implementation of this rapid review mechanism and the impact of recommendations on medicines utilisation. Methods: A protocol was developed for conducting rapid reviews, including the formulation of pre-specified review question, search of at least 2 databases, data extraction and synthesis, evidence appraisal, and summarising key findings and recommendations (PROSPERO registration: CRD42021286710). The COVID-nma initiative was engaged, using global evidence syntheses, adapted to local context. National Surveillance Centre medicines procurement data were analysed, monitoring the impact of the guidelines on medicine use. Pre-pandemic medicine use (2019) was compared to pandemic use (2020), as a ratio of utilisation per 1000 uninsured population for corticosteroids, azithromycin, colchicine, and vitamin C. Results: To date the committee have reviewed 26 medicines (for treatment and prevention of COVID-19) by conducting 52 rapid reviews (including updates and evidence summaries). Review of aggregate procurement data showed that utilisation of corticosteroids (that is recommended for hospitalised COVID-19 patients on oxygen), increased 1.6-fold across all 9 South African provinces. Colchicine and azithromycin (not recommended to treat COVID-19) use did not change. However, use of vitamin C (not recommended) increased 2.2-fold. Impact: A generic rapid review protocol using GRADE principles and an explicit evidence-to-decision framework promoted adaptation of global evidence to develop robust and transparent guidelines. Medicines utilisation data, though, suggests that investment is needed to strengthen guideline implementation. Conclusion: Through extensive collaboration, the Department of Health managed therapeutic uncertainty by developing and implementing a rapid, robust, and transparent evidence-informed approach. However, the impact on clinical practice is uncertain, highlighting the need for more intensive investigation of patient-level prescribing data and engagement with healthcare providers.

Meta-analytic magic, ivermectin, and socially responsible reporting.

Some clinicians prescribe ivermectin for COVID-19 despite a lack of support from any credible South African professional body. They argue that when faced by clinical urgency, weak signals of efficacy should trigger action if harm is unlikely. Several recent reviews found an apparent mortality benefit by including studies at high risk of bias and with active rather than placebo controls. If these studies are discounted, the pooled mortality effect is no longer statistically significant, and evidence of benefit is very weak. Relying on this evidence could cause clinical harm if used to justify vaccine hesitancy. Clinicians remain responsible for ensuring that guidance they follow is both legitimate and reliable. In the ivermectin debate, evidence-based medicine (EBM) principles have largely been ignored under the guise thatin a pandemic the 'rules are different', probably to the detriment of vulnerable patients and certainly to the detriment of the profession's image. Medical schools and professional interest groups are responsible for transforming EBM from a taught but seldom-used tool into a process of lifelong learning, promoting a consistent call for evidence-based and unconflicted debate integral to clinical practice.

Coarse-Grained Modeling of Coronavirus Spike Proteins and ACE2 Receptors

We developed coarse-grained models of spike proteins in SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus and angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) receptor proteins to study the endocytosis of a whole coronavirus under physiologically relevant spatial and temporal scales. We first conducted all-atom explicit-solvent molecular dynamics simulations of the recently characterized structures of spike and ACE2 proteins. We then established coarse-grained models using the shape-based coarse-graining approach based on the protein crystal structures and extracted the force field parameters from the all-atom simulation trajectories. To further analyze the coarse-grained models, we carried out normal mode analysis of the coarse-grained models to refine the force field parameters by matching the fluctuations of the internal coordinates with the original all-atom simulations. Finally, we demonstrated the capability of these coarse-grained models by simulating the endocytosis of a whole coronavirus through the host cell membrane. We embedded the coarse-grained models of spikes on the surface of the virus envelope and anchored ACE2 receptors on the host cell membrane, which is modeled using a one-particle-thick lipid bilayer model. The coarse-grained simulations show the spike proteins adopt bent configurations due to their unique flexibility during their interaction with the ACE2 receptors, which makes it easier for them to attach to the host cell membrane than rigid spikes. © Copyright © 2021 Leong, Voleti and Peng.

Pressure injury prevention for COVID-19 patients in a prone position

Prone positioning is a method used to manage ventilator-associated lung injury and promote oxygenation in severe acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). With the COVID-19 pandemic and ever-increasing numbers of patients presenting with clinical pictures of ARDS, critical care practice guidelines and governing bodies are recommending prone positioning for adult patients with ARDS related to severe COVID-19 infection. Complications associated with prone positioning in critical care have the potential to cause patient morbidity. Common complications with prone positioning include the development of pressure injuries (PIs) on the forehead, chest, pelvis, chin, shoulders, genitalia, iliac crest and knees. Ocular damage and musculoskeletal issues may also occur. These complications are largely avoidable by implementing appropriate interventions. This article summarises current best practice and literature on interventions to reduce skin injury and other complications associated with prone positioning of COVID-19 patients with ARDS.

Essential medicine selection during the COVID-19 pandemic: Enabling access in uncharted territory

The COVID-19 pandemic requires urgent decisions regarding treatment policy in the face of rapidly evolving evidence. In response, the South African Essential Medicines List Committee established a subcommittee to systematically review and appraise emerging evidence, within very short timelines, in order to inform the National Department of Health COVID-19 treatment guidelines. To date, the subcommittee has reviewed 14 potential treatments, and made recommendations based on local context, feasibility, resource requirements and equity. Here we describe the rapid review and evidence-to-decision process, using remdesivir and dexamethasone as examples. Our experience is that conducting rapid reviews is a practical and efficient way to address medicine policy questions under pandemic conditions.

Essential medicine selection during the COVID-19 pandemic: Enabling access in uncharted territory

The COVID-19 pandemic requires urgent decisions regarding treatment policy in the face of rapidly evolving evidence. In response, the South African Essential Medicines List Committee established a subcommittee to systematically review and appraise emerging evidence, within very short timelines, in order to inform the National Department of Health COVID-19 treatment guidelines. To date, the subcommittee has reviewed 14 potential treatments, and made recommendations based on local context, feasibility, resource requirements and equity. Here we describe the rapid review and evidence-to-decision process, using remdesivir and dexamethasone as examples. Our experience is that conducting rapid reviews is a practical and efficient way to address medicine policy questions under pandemic conditions.