Impact of COVID-19 on Mental Health of Oncology Health Care Workers and Interdisciplinary Collaboration: Results of Surveys in 2021 and 2022

Introduction:The 2019 coronavirus pandemic has caused serious health crises around the world such as psychological reactions of health workers. The way we work (stress, anxiety, and psychological problems) and the activities assigned to pharmacists, such as vaccination, have changed. So, we conducted a survey to investigate their psychophysical well-being and the influence of vaccination on the daily work of pharmacists. Method(s):The survey (translated into 9 languages and distributed online) on mental health was sent to all ESOP members in March 2021 and February 2022 and on vaccination in December 2020, March 2021, and February 2022. The data were analyzed using Excel (Microsoft Office 2016, Microsoft, Redmond, WA) and basic descriptive statistics. Result(s):Over 800 colleagues from different health areas and 62 countries took part in the survey. As a result of poor mental health and increased workload as a consequence of the pandemic, it was observed in 30% (2021) and 15% (2022) of respondents, while increased cooperation among healthcare workers was observed in 65% of responders. In the vaccination survey, less than half of the professionals surveyed were directly involved in the vaccination process, conducted mainly in hospitals at first and then in other centers to increase coverage, such as "Community Pharmacy." For the first time, there have been reports of pharmacists authorized to administer vaccines in some countries. Conclusion(s):With the spread of the virus, the increased workload has affected the mental health of health workers. Although a slight improvement from 2022 vs 2021 was observed, there is a need now to work on improving mental health of health care workers, to protect/care about them, and also to ensure that they will not leave the profession to ensure health care for patients with cancer and COVID-19 (and in general to all patients). Vaccination was an opportunity for the pharmacist to play a more active role that reinforces the value of pharmaceutical practice.Copyright © 2023 Lippincott Williams and Wilkins. All rights reserved.

A narrative review on drug development for the management of antimicrobial- resistant infection crisis in Japan: the past, present, and future.

INTRODUCTION: Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a major threat to global health requiring continuous development of new antimicrobial agents. Antimicrobial research and development (R&D) should be promoted in the pharmaceutical industry and academia to ensure sustainable patient access to new treatment options and reduce the global AMR burden. AREAS COVERED: This review describes the historical challenges in novel antimicrobial drug development in Japan, current national efforts to promote the development, and proposals to effectively manage future AMR pandemics. Literature searches were performed in the PubMed database (from inception to January 2022). EXPERT OPINION: R&D activities in the antimicrobial space in Japan have been insufficient due to multiple factors, including unfavorable cost-profit balance and differences in regulatory requirements between Japan and Western countries. However, the situation is improving with the implementation of the Japanese AMR action plan, drug R&D programs led by the Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development, and efforts of regulatory agencies in the United States, Europe, and Japan in aligning and expediting the clinical development process. Further actions during the interpandemic period will strengthen antimicrobial R&D, including international and interdisciplinary collaboration, continued funding and investment with the national government's leadership, and fostering of new-generation academic research leaders.PLAINLANGUAGE SUMMARYEvery year, many people suffer and die of antimicrobial-resistant infections worldwide. New treatment options are required to tackle antimicrobial-resistant infections; however, pharmaceutical companies have not been very active in developing antimicrobial agents in the last two decades. This was mainly due to the difficulty in discovering new and effective compounds and insufficient funds being spent on drug discovery. In addition, differences in drug development requirements between the United States (US), Europe, and Japan have made it difficult for Japanese pharmaceutical companies to develop antimicrobial agents that can be used in all regions in a timely manner. In the last decade, several measures have been taken to re-activate antimicrobial research and development in the pharmaceutical industry, as well as in academia, in Japan. These measures include a national action plan to combat antimicrobial-resistant infections and research support programs led by the Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development. Regulatory authorities in the US, Europe, and Japan have initiated efforts to expedite the development of drugs to treat infections. Moreover, pathways for accelerated regulatory review have been established to reduce the time taken for new drugs to be approved, and this has already been applied to several new anti-infective drugs. To combat the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, the development of novel vaccines and antiviral drugs has been accelerated with unprecedented speed. Additional actions, such as international research collaboration programs and investment in new antimicrobial development, may help promote antimicrobial research and development activities in Japan.

Health for All: A Report of the 2020 Association of American Medical Colleges Learn Serve Lead Meeting.

Learn Serve Lead (LSL) is the signature annual conference of the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC), which focuses on the most pressing issues facing American medical practice and education. Unsurprisingly, the recent AAMC LSL conference at the end of 2020 centered on the multifaceted impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and racial inequity upon the medical community. At the LSL meeting, national leaders, practicing physicians from diverse specialties, and medical trainees discussed the impact of these challenges and ongoing strategies to overcome them. These efforts paralleled the AAMC mission areas of community collaborations, medical education, clinical care, and research. Additionally, this focus aligns with the ACR's core purpose: to serve patients and society by empowering members to advance the practice, science, and professions of radiological care. ACR is a member of the AAMC Council of Faculty and Academic Society and seeks to collaborate with other medical specialties to promote interdisciplinary collaboration, contribute to medical education, and voice the value of medical imaging for patient care. We summarize the major insights of this interdisciplinary conference and present tailored recommendations for applying these insights specifically within the radiology community. In addition, we review the parallels between the ACR and the AAMC strategic plans.

The University of Alabama at Birmingham COVID-19 Collaborative Outcomes Research Enterprise: Developing an institutional learning health system in response to the global pandemic.

Introduction: As a local response to the COVID-19 global pandemic, the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) established the UAB COVID-19 Collaborative Outcomes Research Enterprise (CORE), an institutional learning health system (LHS) to achieve an integrated health services outcomes and research response. Methods: We developed a network of expertise and capabilities to rapidly develop and deploy an institutional-level interdisciplinary LHS. Based upon a scoping review of the literature and the Knowledge to Action Framework, we adopted a LHS framework identifying contributors and components necessary to developing a system within and between the university academic and medical centers. We used social network analysis to examine the emergence of informal work patterns and diversified network capabilities based on the LHS framework. Results: This experience report details three principal characteristics of the UAB COVID-19 CORE LHS development: (a) identifying network contributors and components; (b) building the institutional network; and (c) diversifying network capabilities. Contributors and committees were identified from seven components of LHS: (a) collaborative and executive leadership committee, (b) research coordinating committee, (c) oversight and ethics committee, (d) thematic scientific working groups, (e) programmatic working groups, (f) informatics capabilities, and (g) patient advisory groups. Evolving from the topical interests of the initial CORE participants, scientific working groups emerged to support the learning system network. Programmatic working groups were charged with developing a comprehensive and mutually accessible COVID-19 database. Discussion: Our LHS framework allowed for effective integration of multiple academic and medical centers into a cohesive institutional-level learning system. Network analysis indicated diversity of institutional disciplines, professional rank, and topical focus pertaining to COVID-19, with each center leveraging existing institutional responsibilities to minimize gaps in network capabilities. Conclusion: Incorporating an adapted LHS framework designed for academic medical centers served as a foundational resource supporting further institutional-level efforts to develop agile and responsive learning networks.

Collaboration of Child Protective Services and Early Childhood Educators: Enhancing the Well-Being of Children in Need.

This paper examines the role of interprofessional collaboration in the identification and reporting of a child in need. Such collaboration is especially important in the context of the global pandemic caused by the novel Coronavirus disease of 2019, known as COVID-19. The child protection system must have the capacity and resources to respond to increased demands during this time, and early childhood educators serve as an essential link for child protective services in identifying and reporting a child in need. As an effective system to accomplish these two aims requires a working collaboration among its participants, Bronstein's interdisciplinary collaboration model was used as a framework to interpret this practice. A small-scale qualitative study was conducted that included principals of nursery schools and child protection workers from one region in Estonia. Findings indicate that effective collaboration was believed to require communication and ongoing systematic relationship building. Collaboration in practice varied, as principals reported a high turnover rate for the child protection workers, which hindered the development of a working relationship and support for the process of noticing and thereby identifying a child in need. In contrast, child protection workers assessed collaboration more positively, recognizing the need to have a supportive system in place for nursery schools. Both groups of collaborators acknowledged the need to train teachers, particularly to conduct joint training exercises to foster a common understanding of the child in need and of the intervention process itself.