ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: The COVID-19 pandemic led to approximately half of the working population in the United Kingdom being unable to work temporarily. This study aims to understand the employment needs and experiences of people with multiple sclerosis (MS) in the UK during this period. METHODS: Multiple methods were used, including an online survey and follow-up interviews with people with MS who were employed prior to the start of the pandemic restrictions in March 2020. RESULTS: The online survey was completed by 101 eligible participants and we interviewed 15 of them for qualitative data in the follow-up. Survey data indicated that the work experience of people with MS improved during the pandemic because they were allowed to work from home. However, participants experienced increased feelings of anxiety and loneliness. From the interviews, we extracted 5 themes: (1) the benefits of working from home; (2) the challenges of working during the COVID-19 pandemic; (3) the relevance of managers; (4) returning to "normal"; and (5) the need for vocational support. CONCLUSIONS: The pandemic showed that MS symptom management was improved by work flexibility (eg, working from home, breaks, flexible working hours); for people with MS, these accommodations improved both their ability to work and their self-perceived productivity. Future research should explore the support needs of people with MS who work remotely and determine whether pandemic-influenced work accommodations are sustainable over time.
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Sheep scab is considered an endemic disease of great welfare and economic significance in the UK. METHOD: This paper provides an up-to-date assessment of the impact of Sheep Scab (Scotland) Order 2010 on sheep scab notifications in Scotland between 1 January 2014 and 31 December 2019, using data collected by the APHA. RESULTS: In total, 564 sheep scab notifications were reported from 503 unique holdings, of which 44 holdings (8.7%) reported more than one incident. The number of notifications did not differ between years, with 81, 84, 93, 101, 109 and 97 notifications recorded in 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018 and 2019, respectively: representing an average annual notification prevalence of 0.63% (1/159 flocks/year). A total of 413/564 records documented how notifications were resolved, with macrocyclic lactone and organophosphate treatments accounting for 79.6% and 20.4% of resolutions, respectively. CONCLUSION: Our results suggest that the Order has facilitated the notification of sheep scab in Scotland (including trends and preferred methods of resolution), allowed industry and government to identify previously unidentified potentially free areas as well as recurrent incidents on sheep farms, and start to understand better the geographical and temporal nature of scab outbreaks. However, concerns remain about a potential lack of engagement, evidenced by the low notification prevalence and stagnant annual notification rates.
