Public Health Preparedness in the Era of Weather Modification and Climate Engineering.

The use of technological and chemical means aiming to achieve favorable weather conditions or reduce the risk of weather extremes is known as Weather Modification (WM). The United States of America, the People's Republic of China, Thailand, the United Arab Emirates, and Europe have employed WM in an effort to prevent hurricanes and storms, control precipitations, mitigate deforestation and drought, and enhance agriculture. Recently, the use of WM has been expanded toward decreasing air pollution and creating favorable weather conditions for major political and athletic events. The increasing significance and use of WM call for consideration upon its positive and negative effects on human health, close collaboration among health experts and WM decision makers, and relevant public health emergency contingency planning.

Migration and newborn screening: time to build on the European Asylum, Integration and Migration Fund?

PURPOSE: The authors discuss the need for newborn screening in the context of the migration policy of the European Union, and particularly, the European Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund. METHODS: The authors searched scholarly databases (Pubmed, Scopus, Google scholar) and grey literature (LexEuropa, Policy reports) to identify original peer-reviewed research examining the migration to the European Union and the provision of healthcare to infants born to refugees and immigrant mothers. Resources in language different from English, French, German and Greek were not taken into consideration. RESULTS: Every year, a large number of refugees and immigrants from sub-Saharan Africa and Middle East countries travel to and enter in Europe. It has been estimated that two thirds of those seeking asylum are women and children. Many of these children have been born on the way to Europe or in migrant camps. Essential newborns' health screening is not accessible in most cases. Congenital conditions such as hypothyroidism and phenylketonuria may remain untreated, and once these infants are diagnosed, the organic damage could be irreversible. Prolonged necessary hospitalisation might be out of consideration at a time when clinics and hospitals are overstrained with COVID-19 patients. CONCLUSIONS: It is essential to ensure that newborn screening will be performed in a timely and evidence-based manner as well as that the information will be communicated between hospitals and within countries' health networks. In order to achieve these goals interdisciplinary and international technical and logistical collaboration are required.

Spiritual Health and the COVID-19 Pandemic: Impacts on Orthodox Christianity Devotion Practices, Rituals, and Religious Pilgrimages.

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on multiple aspects of physical and social health, including spiritual and religious dimensions, has been discussed not only by numerous theologians, scientists, and politicians, but also by millions of believers of all faiths worldwide. The pandemic seems to have exerted a significant impact on religious practices. Massive gatherings of devoted and faithful people have been strongly discouraged and even openly banned. Prominent religious festivals and pilgrimages that have been conflated by the media with other "mega-spreader events" are incessantly canceled to mitigate the pandemic and alleviate the burden of COVID-19 on the healthcare system. The impact of the pandemic on Catholic or Muslim religious tourism has been extensively described in peer-reviewed and gray literature. However, observant members of the Orthodox Christianity faith have also experienced the constrictive prohibitions for gathering at and worshiping in shrines, churches, and monasteries. Among the manifestations of devotion that the pandemic has interfered with are the attendance to public worship spaces for the celebration of rites and ceremonies, like the celebration of Orthodox Easter. Expressions of reverent devotion including the kissing of crosses and icons as well as the sacrament of Holy Communion may have also been considered a motive of concern as these holy objects and the spoon used might act as fomites in the dissemination of the virus. Visitation of holy places has been also hampered by the pandemic. The most important centers of pilgrimage for Orthodox Christianity are Mount Athos and Jerusalem, as well as the Shrine of Panagia Evangelistria in the Island of Tinos, Greece. Authorities have halted almost completely the arrival of visitors to these sites. This paper aims at elaborating on the impact that the COVID-19 pandemic has had on social manifestations of religiosity and therefore taking a toll on the spiritual health of believers who have deeply rooted religious convictions and are strongly attached to Church tradition. This analysis closes with the provision of specific suggestions for the care, support, and healing of the impacted or splintered spiritual health of the believers who cannot participate in expressions of devotion, such as pilgrimages and religious tourism because of personal and public health concern, such as the COVID-19 pandemic.