Pharmacist: A Healthcare Professional Serving as Frontline Warrior Completely Overlooked

During the tough times of SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19), the pharmacy professionals played a significant role by providing their services at various working stations and levels including hospitals, private clinics, community pharmacies, nursing homes, pharmaceutical industries, CROs and various health care programmes. However, the services provided by pharmacists were seldom mentioned and the professionals were not recognized as first line health care professional. The media, authorities and even general public have failed to appreciate the efforts of the pharmacy professionals as a part of essential healthcare team during the disaster. This review is focussed upon the contributions of pharmacists in patient care, healthcare services, patient care and well-being of the public during the COVID-19 pandemic. The various important tasks and roles played by pharmacist are described in the literature which have highly contributed towards a safer and healthier world. We hope that after going through the review and after having the idea about the roles and responsibilities that the pharmacist has played during COVID-19 will change the perspective of the people and the efforts of pharma professionals will be appreciated and recognized.Copyright © The Authors.

English teacher well-being in the face of the pandemic: An investigation in the southeast of Nigeria

Teaching has become a profession frequently characterized by high levels of stress and low professional well-being. However, being a language teacher triggers its own unique challenges, considering the emotional labor and pedagogical demands of language teaching and learning given their typical heavy workloads, time pressures, and difficulties juggling roles. As such, there is an increasing need for teacher well-being in language teaching. This is because teacher well-being plays a critical role in the ability of language teachers at all levels of teaching to build positive relationships with learners, teach creatively, and manage discipline problems, and it also contributes to heightening learners' level of achievement. When teachers enjoy well-being, they are able to teach to the best of their abilities. However, responses to the COVID-19 pandemic created a long list of new stressors for teachers. Thus, it has become inevitable for teachers, especially language teachers to begin exploring and engaging in self-care to cope with these stressors. This chapter takes a look at language teachers' experiences of stress and their well-being in order to cast light on how teachers experience stress on a daily basis, in what contexts, and how they are able to recover from experiences of stress. Research data were generated through 3 instruments administered to 6 teachers. The most stressful experiences reported by teachers were workload, and other teaching-related stressors such as blurred times between home and work, loss of control over personal decisions, the stress of online teaching, irregular working hours, and finances. Teachers reported being more worried about the health of others than their own, a realistic fear heightened by the disproportionate danger COVID-19 poses for their health. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved)

Using Project ECHO to Keep Professionals Well at Work: Individual and Organizational Outcomes.

OBJECTIVE: The toll of COVID-19 stress on the mental health of the workforce has been well-documented. The present study examined the use of the Project ECHO framework to provide practices and resources on stress management and emotion regulation to increase individual and organizational health and well-being. METHODS: Three independent ECHOs were designed and conducted over an 18-month period. Data was collected on the implementation of new learning and comparisons of organizational efforts toward being more secondary trauma responsive from baseline to post initiative, using cloud-based survey methods. RESULTS: Findings suggest that the use of micro-interventions at the organizational level improved over time in the areas of resilience-building and policy-making, and that individuals were actively integrating skills related to managing their stress. CONCLUSIONS: Lessons learned adapting and implementing ECHO strategies in the midst of a pandemic are offered, as well as how to cultivate wellness champions in the workforce.

Covid-19 Impact on the Health of Portuguese Teachers

Objective: The purpose of this study is to understand the impact of Covid-19 pandemic on the physical and mental health of Portuguese teachers. Method(s): The sample consists of 1779 Portuguese teachers (1423 female and 356 male);58% (n=1029) over 50 years of age;72.7% (n= 1293) with more than 21 years of service;and 48.1% (n= 856) teaching 3rd cycle/secondary school. We studied the distribution of responses for the variables: professional wellbeing, exhaustion, cognitive problems, musculoskeletal dysfunctions and voice disorders, and performed an analysis of variance (ANOVA), followed by Bonferroni post-hoc test (p<.05), according to gender, age, years of service and teaching level. Result(s): 13.6% of the teachers reported feeling ill-being during the performance of their professional activity;85.6% exhaustion;74% musculoskeletal disorders;68.9% cognitive problems;and 59.7% voice disorders. The results according to gender, age, years of service show significant differences in all health dimensions (p<.05), except for teaching level for musculoskeletal disorders (F=.982, p=.427). In all health dimensions, the most significant differences occurred in the groups of teachers aged 20-21 years and 56-70 years;length of service between 0-5 years and those of more than 21 years;and the teaching level between 1st cycle and special education, with the exception of professional well-being where the greatest difference was reported between preschool and 3rd cycle/secondary teachers (95% CI ].9076;4.6364[;p=.000). Conclusion(s): The Covid-19 pandemic has worsened teachers' health status and professional well-being. The impact of these results on the quality of teaching should be the focus of future studies.

Palliative recommendation in the emergency room during the first COVID-19 wave: What are the benefits? A study among emergency physicians

At Paris’ Saint-Louis hospital, the collaboration and organisation of the ER teams and those from the palliative care units was completely transformed, at least for a time, by the brutal arrival of SARS-CoV-2. Faced with the necessity of the moment, and initiated by the mobile palliative care team, the absence of structured exchanges of information was replaced with a daily briefing within the ER hospitalisation unit, with the aim of anticipating a possible request to quantify any patients requiring evaluation and palliative care on-site, as well as accompanying the ER doctors and other medical staff present. Beyond describing the patients taken into care under this system, and the benefits in terms of palliative care, a qualitative study conducted with ER doctors allowed us to evaluate the real and perceived benefits, and to conclude that a greater presence of the mobile accompaniment and palliative care team at ER allows for better use of their resources and a subsequent modification of the care pipeline for certain patients. This work shows the fundamental contribution that a mobile palliative care team can make in receiving and treating ER patients, while also improving the experience of the teams faced daily with individuals at the end of their lives. However, it also brings to light a patent lack of palliative care culture in ER services, as well as the absence of a reflex to make use of this type of expertise systematically, despite the benefits being universally acknowledged, opening the way for the joint development of veritable palliative care for acute cases. © 2022 Elsevier Masson SAS En matière de collaboration entre les équipes d'urgences et celles de soins palliatifs de l'hôpital Saint-Louis (AP–HP, Paris), l'irruption brutale du SARS-CoV-2 et ses conséquences sur l'afflux de patients et l'organisation des soins ont, pour un temps au moins, changé la donne. Contraints par la nécessité du moment, et sous l'impulsion de l’équipe mobile de soins palliatifs, l'absence d’échanges structurés a fait place à un échange quotidien au sein de l'unité d'hospitalisation des urgences afin d'anticiper un éventuel appel, de recenser sur place les patients pouvant bénéficier d'un avis et d'une prise en charge palliatifs, mais également d'accompagner les urgentistes et les soignants présents. Au-delà de la description des patients ainsi pris en charge et du bénéfice en termes de prise en charge palliative, une étude qualitative réalisée auprès des urgentistes nous permet d’évaluer le bénéfice réel et ressenti et d'affirmer qu'une présence renforcée de l'EMASP aux urgences permet une meilleure utilisation de ces ressources et une modification subséquente du parcours de certains patients. Ce travail met en évidence la contribution fondamentale que peut apporter une équipe mobile de soins palliatifs à la prise en charge des patients aux urgences et au mieux-être d’équipes quotidiennement confrontées à la fin de vie. Il fait néanmoins apparaître un défaut patent de culture palliative aux urgences ainsi qu'un manque de réflexe de recours à ce type d'expertise alors que les bénéfices en sont unanimement reconnus, et ouvre ainsi la porte au développement conjoint d'une véritable médecine palliative de l'aigu. © 2022 Elsevier Masson SAS

The yESTRO mentoring program and a report from a mentee

The ESTRO vision statement for 2030 is “Radiation Oncology. Optimal Health for All, Together”. It is becoming increasingly clear that optimal health for all should include the health of caregivers, too. This is exemplified by the high level of burnout amongst radiation oncology professionals across the disciplines, as published recently by Franco et al. (1) Sadly, the COVID pandemic has had a negative impact on mental health of these professionals. (2) The young ESTRO committee (yESTRO) has aligned its activities to the ESTRO vision by setting up an ESTRO mentoring program in order to increase professional well-being for its young members. Mentorship benefits both mentor and the mentee. A review on mentorship in the medical field reported it to have an ‘important influence on personal development, career guidance, career choice, and research productivity, including publication and grant success’. (3) For mentors the benefits lie in enhancement of knowledge, leadership skills, educational skills and increased job satisfaction. With the yESTRO mentoring pilot program, yESTRO specifically aims to satisfy unmet needs for mentorship among young ESTRO members. Fifteen young members were selected as mentees based on their curriculum and personal motivation. The program had its official kickoff at ESTRO 2021 in Madrid with an onsite and an online speed dating session between mentors and mentees. Matches were made and mentor-mentee couples committed to meet at least every three months for the duration of one year. We will present the mid-term evaluation of the pilot at ESTRO 2022. The final evaluation takes place one year after the program started, after which it will be decided whether the program will continue. Yet the ambition of yESTRO is larger. This session will also provide practical advice for those considering to set up a mentoring program at their own institute. Or those seeking a mentor. In this ambition, we will be helped by the experiences shared by Daniel Portik, one of the mentees in the yESTRO mentoring program pilot.

Avis palliatifs aux urgences durant la première vague covid-19 : quels bénéfices?Une étude auprès des urgentistes

Résumé En matière de collaboration entre les équipes d’urgences et celles de soins palliatifs de l’hôpital Saint-Louis (AP-HP, Paris), l’irruption brutale du SARS-CoV-2 et ses conséquences sur l’afflux de patients et l’organisation des soins ont, pour un temps au moins, changé la donne. Contraints par la nécessité du moment, et sous l’impulsion de l’équipe mobile de soins palliatifs, l’absence d’échanges structurés a fait place à un échange quotidien au sein de l’unité d’hospitalisation des urgences afin d’anticiper un éventuel appel, de recenser sur place les patients pouvant bénéficier d’un avis et d’une prise en charge palliatifs, mais également d’accompagner les urgentistes et les soignants présents. Au-delà de la description des patients ainsi pris en charge et du bénéfice en termes de prise en charge palliative, une étude qualitative réalisée auprès des urgentistes nous permet d’évaluer le bénéfice réel et ressenti et d’affirmer qu’une présence renforcée de l’EMASP aux urgences permet une meilleure utilisation de ces ressources et une modification subséquente du parcours de certains patients. Ce travail met en évidence la contribution fondamentale que peut apporter une équipe mobile de soins palliatifs à la prise en charge des patients aux urgences et au mieux-être d’équipes quotidiennement confrontées à la fin de vie. Il fait néanmoins apparaitre un défaut patent de culture palliative aux urgences ainsi qu’un manque de réflexe de recours à ce type d’expertise alors que les bénéfices en sont unanimement reconnus, et ouvre ainsi la porte au développement conjoint d’une véritable médecine palliative de l’aigu. Summary At Paris' Saint-Louis hospital, the collaboration and organisation of the ER teams and those from the palliative care units was completely transformed, at least for a time, by the brutal arrival of SARS-CoV-2. Faced with the necessity of the moment, and initiated by the mobile palliative care team, the absence of structured exchanges of information was replaced with a daily briefing within the ER hospitalisation unit, with the aim of anticipating a possible request to quantify any patients requiring evaluation and palliative care on-site, as well as accompanying the ER doctors and other medical staff present. Beyond describing the patients taken into care under this system, and the benefits in terms of palliative care, a qualitative study conducted with ER doctors allowed us to evaluate the real and perceived benefits, and to conclude that a greater presence of the mobile accompaniment and palliative care team at ER allows for better use of their resources and a subsequent modification of the care pipeline for certain patients. This work shows the fundamental contribution that a mobile palliative care team can make in receiving and treating ER patients, while also improving the experience of the teams faced daily with individuals at the end of their lives. However, it also brings to light a patent lack of palliative care culture in ER services, as well as the absence of a reflex to make use of this type of expertise systematically, despite the benefits being universally acknowledged, opening the way for the joint development of veritable palliative care for acute cases.

The real impact of COVID-19 on community pharmacy professionals as part of the primary health care frontier workforce in Spain

Context: Spain was at the epicenter of the pandemic. Health centers across Spanish territory were not able to respond to non-emergency enquiries, leaving community pharmacies as the first point of patient's contact. Aims: To investigate the impact of COVID-19 on the mental and physical health of community pharmacy teams across Spain. Methods: A cross-sectional observational study was performed with community pharmacy professionals throughout Spain. A questionnaire designed by our collaborator from the United Kingdom was adapted to the Spanish population and launched between October 2020 and February 2021. Results: A total of 98 participants responded to the questionnaire. The survey showed an 80% increase in workload. The pandemic had negatively impacted the well-being of community pharmacy professionals. The survey indicated a national shortage of medicines and personal protective equipment across Spain, particularly during the first peak. To adapt to this pandora's box of COVID-19, 96% of the pharmacies changed their settings to improve patients and staff's safety. Most of these changes were self-financed by the pharmacy owner. The pharmacists kept up to date with information released from the pharmacists' college, General Pharmaceutical Council and the Spanish Society of Community Pharmacists. The Public domain purchased more (79%) immune booster supplements. Conclusions: Community pharmacy professionals have faced tremendous mental, physical and professional pressure in providing adequate personal protective equipment and medication supply to their communities. They have provided more pharmaceutical services during the crisis, although they have not been recognized as essential workers by the healthcare system.

Sustaining Workforce Well-being: A Model for Supporting System Resilience During the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Professional well-being in health care is critical to the success of academic medical centers inpatient care, educating trainees, serving communities, and pursuing research missions. The COVID-19 pandemic, caused by SARS-COV-2, has stretched health care teams and individuals in unique ways, leading to high levels of persistent stress with concern for longer term mental health implications. The pandemic is a catalyst to grow and strengthen support for those who work in health professions. Using one academic health center as a model, this paper reviews how professional well-being can be approached comprehensively at a system level while considering the needs of diverse employees during a time of increased need. This ramping up of services has the opportunity to build community and support a trajectory of post traumatic growth.