The Relationship between Customers and Community Pharmacies during the COVID-19 (SARS-CoV-2) Pandemic: A Survey from Italy.
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ABSTRACT:
SUBMITTER: Baratta F
PROVIDER: S-EPMC8470071 | biostudies-literature |
REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature
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Project description:BACKGROUND:Community pharmacies provide an important healthcare service, which is broadly established, and constitutes the preferred and initial contact for members of the community. The significant value of community pharmacies was further highlighted during the COVID-19 pandemic crisis. OBJECTIVE:The assessment of community pharmacies preparedness for the COVID-19 pandemic. METHODS:A cross-sectional interview survey of 1018 community pharmacies working in four regions of Egypt (South, East, Centre, and North). Data collection was conducted from 8-19 April 2020. RESULTS:Availability of personal protective equipment (PPE) and medication was better than alcohol (70% conc.). Home delivery services were available in 49.1% of pharmacies. Infection control measures covering interactions between staff were in place in up to 99.5% of pharmacies. Conversely, there was less frequent availability of contactless payment (29.1%), hand sanitizers (62.1%) or masks (86.5%) for customer use, or a separate area for patients with suspected COVID-19 (64%). Verbal customer education (90.4%) was used preferably to written (81.3%). Despite high clinical knowledge and awareness (97.6%-99.2%), only 8.8% of pharmacists had reported suspected COVID-19 cases, however this varied significantly with pharmacist demographics (geographic region P < 0.001; pandemic training p < 0.001; position p = 0.019; age p = 0.046). CONCLUSIONS:Government and policymakers strive to mitigate the shortage of PPE and medication. More attention should be given to infection control measures around interactions between staff and customers to ensure community pharmacists are fit and able to provide continuity in their important role. Educating customers using regularly-updated posters, banners or signs will contribute to decreasing contact with patients, and reducing the number and duration of visits to the pharmacy. Pandemic preparedness of community pharmacists must also extend to reporting procedures. By avoiding under-reporting or over-reporting, community pharmacists will contribute to accurate monitoring of the national spread of infection.
| S-EPMC7211678 | biostudies-literature
Project description:COVID-19 has had a significant impact on health care systems, including drug use. The present study aimed to evaluate the patterns of community supply of antimicrobials from community pharmacies during the COVID-19 pandemic in five cities of Russia. In a cross-sectional study, a random sample of pharmacies reported all episodes of antimicrobials supply during a one-week period. Patterns of supply (age and gender of customer, drug name and formulation, prescription availability, indication, etc.) were analyzed. Altogether, 71 pharmacies took part in the study and 5270 encounters were recorded. In total, 4.2% of visits resulted in supply of more than one antimicrobial agent and 5.2% were for parenteral formulations. The rate of prescription-based purchase in participated cities varied from 40.5 to 99.1%. Systemic antibiotics and antivirals accounted for the majority of supplies (60.5 and 26.3%, respectively). Upper respiratory tract infections were reported as the indication for antimicrobials usage in 36.9% of cases, followed by skin and soft tissue infections (12.1%) and urinary tract infections (8.7%); COVID-19 accounted for 8.4% of all supplies. Amoxicillin with clavulanic acid, azithromycin and amoxicillin were indicated as the top three antimicrobials purchased for upper respiratory tract infections, and azithromycin, umifenovir and levofloxacin were the top three for COVID-19. In general, a high rate of drugs dispensing without prescription was revealed. Antibiotics for systemic use remained the most common antimicrobials, whereas presumably viral upper respiratory tract infections were the main reason for their purchase. COVID-19 infection itself was responsible for a small proportion of the supply of antimicrobial agents, but systemic antibiotics accounted for more than a half of supplies.
| S-EPMC9137661 | biostudies-literature
Project description:ACE2 on epithelial cells is the SARS-CoV-2 entry receptor. Single-cell RNA-sequencing data derived from two COVID-19 cohorts revealed that MAP4K3/GLK-positive epithelial cells were increased in patients. SARS-CoV-2-induced GLK overexpression in epithelial cells correlated with COVID-19 severity and vesicle secretion. GLK overexpression induced the epithelial cell-derived exosomes containing ACE2; the GLK-induced exosomes transported ACE2 proteins to recipient cells, facilitating pseudovirus infection. Consistently, ACE2 proteins were increased in the serum exosomes from another COVID-19 cohort. Remarkably, SARS-CoV-2 spike protein stimulated GLK, and GLK stabilized ACE2 in epithelial cells. Mechanistically, GLK phosphorylated ACE2 at two serine residues (Ser776, Ser783), leading to dissociation of ACE2 from its E3 ligase UBR4. Reduction of UBR4-induced Lys48-linked ubiquitination at three lysine residues (Lys26, Lys112, Lys114) of ACE2 prevented its degradation. Furthermore, SARS-CoV-2 pseudovirus or live virus infection in humanized ACE2 mice induced GLK and ACE2 protein levels, as well as ACE2-containing exosomes. Collectively, ACE2 stabilization by SARS-CoV-2-induced MAP4K3/GLK may contribute to the pathogenesis of COVID-19.
| S-SCDT-EMM-2022-15904 | biostudies-other
Project description:The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) established the National Diabetes Prevention Program (NDPP) to prevent type 2 diabetes using an evidence-based lifestyle intervention program provided by community- and health care-based organizations, including community pharmacies. This study aimed to characterize CDC-recognized community pharmacies offering NDPP and determine the impact of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic on program delivery. A list of CDC-recognized community pharmacies offering NDPP was obtained from the CDC Registry of Recognized Programs on September 19, 2020. A 23-question cross-sectional survey was created to obtain information about program inception, delivery, recruitment, enrollment, program evaluation, reimbursement, and the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Each pharmacy was contacted via telephone using a standardized script and invited to complete the survey over the phone or online. A follow-up e-mail was then sent approximately 2 weeks later to pharmacies that had not responded. A total of 73 community pharmacies were identified in the CDC registry. Of the 64 eligible community pharmacies, 42% (n = 27) completed the survey. Most community pharmacies offering NDPP were in the Southeastern (41%) and Midwestern (22%) regions of the United States. A majority were independent pharmacies (78%) and had "pending" CDC recognition status (74%). Program delivery primarily occurred in the pharmacy (48%) or in a hybrid model (26%). Most programs were not submitting reimbursement claims (74%) and did not charge participants (82%). Nearly two-thirds of pharmacies (63%) strongly agreed that COVID-19 had significantly affected their programs, yet most (67%) continued to offer NDPP during the pandemic. To our knowledge, this is the first characterization of CDC-recognized community pharmacies providing NDPP. Best practices for implementing NDPP at community pharmacies warrant further exploration and models to ensure long-term sustainability. COVID-19 affected most community pharmacies providing NDPP, but the majority continued to offer NDPP during the pandemic.
| S-EPMC8968123 | biostudies-literature
Project description:OBJECTIVE:This online cross-sectional survey assesses the signs/symptoms, the protective measures taken and the awareness and risk perception regarding COVID-19 among Italian dental hygienists. All Italian dental hygienists were invited to participate. The ad hoc online questionnaire was divided into four domains: personal data, protective measures (-before patient arrival; -in the waiting room; -in the operating room) and PPE, awareness and risk perception. RESULTS:Two-thousand-seven-hundred-ninety-eight subjects participated. Only 0.25% of the sample was positive to the virus. Sense of fatigue (8.19%), headache (7.81%) and sore throat (7.32%) were the most common symptoms. A statistically significant trend across the areas with a different prevalence of COVID-19 was observed related to the number of signs/symptoms (areas z?=?6.38 p <?0.01). Overall, 90.55% of the sample used protective glasses or visor, 90.10% disposable gloves and 82.80% surgical mask. Regarding the confidence to avoid the infection, a statistically significant difference was found among dental hygienists belonging to the 3 years-professional-experiences groups who worked in the high COVID-19 prevalence area. The findings of this survey show that Italian dental hygienists have modified their working habits according to the professional risk related to the current pandemic and they seem correctly prepared to face the risk of a SARS-CoV-2 infection.
| S-EPMC7602333 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BackgroundSpeculation on benefits and harms of prescription, over-the-counter and complementary medications has been widespread during the SARS-CoV-2 (or COVID-19) pandemic. This community-based survey assessed self-reported changes in medications including those stopped, started, or if access had been impacted.MethodsA survey was collected via Research Electronic Data Capture (REDCap). The survey was advertised in the community through social media, email lists, websites, and post-cards. Survey responses were collected between 5/21/2020 and 6/24/2020. Variables included demographic characteristics such as age, sex, race, marital status, education, employment, income, and community type. Questions related to medication changes included: "Have you started any medication due to COVID-19?", "Have you stopped any medication due to COVID-19?" and "Have you had issues getting your prescription medications?". Respondents aged 50 years or older were included.ResultsThere were N = 1397 responses of which 1169 were older adults ≥50 years-old. Of these, 1141 responded to the medication changes survey questions and 28 had missing responses and were excluded from the survey sample for this analysis. Among these, 31 (2.7%) reported a medication change included 5 (0.4%) reported stopping a medication, 18 (1.6%) reported starting a medication, and 8 (0.7%) reported trouble obtaining medications. Medications started included mostly vitamins or other supplements including zinc (n = 9), vitamin C (6), and other supplements (3). Among prescription medications, antidepressants and anti-anxiety medications (4) were reported as well as aspirin (1), losartan (1), and low dose naltrexone (1). One respondent reported unidentified homeopathy. There were no significant differences between those with medication changes and those with none.ConclusionsIn this community-based survey sample of over one thousand older adults, only a small percentage (2.7%; n = 31) reported any changes to medications during the pandemic. As essential workers during this crisis, pharmacists have played a critical role in providing medication information and continued access.
| S-EPMC7659512 | biostudies-literature
Project description:COVID-19 pandemic raised a debate regarding the role of airborne transmission. Information regarding virus-laden aerosol concentrations is still scarce in community indoors and what are the risks for general public and the efficiency of restriction policies. This work investigates, for the first time in Italy, the presence of SARS-CoV-2 RNA in air samples collected in different community indoors (one train station, two food markets, one canteen, one shopping centre, one hair salon, and one pharmacy) in three Italian cities: metropolitan city of Venice (NE of Italy), Bologna (central Italy), and Lecce (SE of Italy). Air samples were collected during the maximum spread of the second wave of pandemic in Italy (November and December 2020). All collected samples tested negative for the presence of SARS-CoV-2, using both real-time RT-PCR and ddPCR, and no significant differences were observed comparing samples taken with and without customers. Modelling average concentrations, using influx of customers' data and local epidemiological information, indicated low values (i.e. < 0.8 copies m-3 when cotton facemasks are used and even lower for surgical facemasks). The results, even if with some limitations, suggest that the restrictive policies enforced could effectively reduce the risk of airborne transmissions in the community indoor investigated, providing that physical distance is respected.
| S-EPMC8486635 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Wastewater-based viral surveillance was proposed as a promising approach to monitor the circulation of SARS-CoV-2 in the general population. The aim of this study was to develop an analytical method to detect SARS-CoV-2 RNA in urban wastewater, and apply it to follow the trends of epidemic in the framework of a surveillance network in the Lombardy region (Northern Italy). This area was the first hotspot of COVID-19 in Europe and was severely affected. Composite 24 h samples were collected weekly in eight cities from end-March to mid-June 2020 (first peak of the pandemic). The method developed and optimized, involved virus concentration using PEG centrifugation, and one-step real-time RT-PCR for analysis. SARS-CoV-2 RNA was identified in 65 (61%) out of 107 samples, and the viral concentrations (up to 2.1 E + 05 copies/L) were highest in March-April. By mid-June, wastewater samples tested negative in all the cities corresponding to the very low number of cases recorded in the same period. Viral loads were calculated considering the wastewater daily flow rate and the population served by each wastewater treatment plant, and were used for inter- city comparison. The highest viral loads were found in Brembate, Ranica and Lodi corresponding to the hotspots of the first peak of pandemic. The pattern of decrease of SARS-CoV-2 in wastewater was closely comparable to the decline of active COVID-19 cases in the population, reflecting the effect of lock-down. This study tested wastewater surveillance of SARS-CoV-2 to follow the pandemic trends in one of most affected areas worldwide, demonstrating that it can integrate ongoing virological surveillance of COVID-19, providing information from both symptomatic and asymptomatic individuals, and monitoring the effect of health interventions.
| S-EPMC8497959 | biostudies-literature
Project description:The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), also known as coronavirus disease (COVID-19), is a major pandemic challenging health care systems around the world. The optimal management of patients infected with COVID-19 is still unclear, although the consensus is moving toward the need of a biphasic approach. During the first phase of the disease (from onset of the symptoms up to 7-10 days) viral-induced effects are prominent, with the opportunity to institute antiviral therapy. In the second inflammatory phase of the disease, immunosuppressive strategies (for example with glucocorticoids or anticytokine drugs) may be considered. This latter stage is characterized by the development of progressive lung involvement with increasing oxygen requirements and occasionally signs of the hemophagocytic syndrome. The management of the disease in patients with kidney disease is even more challenging, especially in those who are immunosuppressed or with severe comorbidities. Here we present the therapeutic approach used in Brescia (Italy) for managing patients infected with COVID-19 who underwent kidney transplantation and are receiving hemodialysis. Furthermore, we provide some clinical and physiopathological background, as well as preliminary outcome data of our cohort, to better clarify the pathogenesis of the disease and clinical management.
| S-EPMC7128395 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Few information on virus contagion at the beginning of the covid-19 pandemic led to severe restrictions in the dental and forensic activity in Italy, the introduction of procedural guidelines and implementation of preventive measures. A specific survey on Italian forensic odontologists (FOds) activity was conducted to investigate the COVD-19 pandemic impact on daily practices, the preventive measures adopted to manage the risks of contagion procedures performed on living and dead people and the possible peculiar cases that required the intervention of a medical examiner. A total of 122 FOds answered, mostly males over 46 years coming from northern Italy. The results highlight the lack of specific guidelines for the procedures on living people compared to those on the dead but the regulations for the daily clinical practice resulted more than sufficient: in fact, more than 80% of FOds adopted the preventive and safety measures provided for dental practices. The forensic activity significantly decreased during the initial period (more than 75%) and gradually normalized to pre-pandemic numbers in approximately 50% of cases after the implementation of the vaccination campaign. 13 cases of occupational contagion have been reported, most of them (more than 85%) in northern and central Italy. In two cases members of the dental staff sued the employer for responsibility in the contagion. The decrease of the overall ID activity during the pandemic time can be more likely attributed to the of the dental data than the real impact of the pandemic regulations. The use of telematic tools, such as teleconferences, for many procedures proved to be an important resource useful for application even in post-pandemic times.
| S-EPMC9988697 | biostudies-literature