Skilled birth attendance is critical to reduce infant and maternal mortality. Health development plans and strategies, especially in developing countries, consider equity in access to maternal health care services as a priority. This study aimed to measure and analyze the inequality in the use of skilled birth attendance services in Mauritania. The study identifies the inequality determinants and explores its changes over the period 2007–2015. The concentration curve, concentration index, decomposition of the concentration index, and Oaxaca-type decomposition technique were performed to measure socioeconomically-based inequalities in skilled birth attendance services utilization, and to identify the contribution of different determinants to such inequality as well as the changes in inequality overtime using data from Mauritania Multiple Indicator Cluster Surveys (MICS) 2007 and 2015. The concentration index for skilled birth attendance services use dropped from 0.6324 (p < 0.001) in 2007 to 0.5852 (p < 0.001) in 2015. Prenatal care, household wealth level, and rural−urban residence contributed most to socioeconomic inequality. The concentration index decomposition and the Oaxaca-type decomposition revealed that changes in prenatal care and rural−urban residence contributed positively to lower inequality, but household economic status had an opposite contribution. Clearly, the pro-rich inequality in skilled birth attendance is high in Mauritania, despite a slight decrease during the study period. Policy actions on eliminating geographical and socioeconomic inequalities should target increased access to skilled birth attendance. Multisectoral policy action is needed to improve social determinants of health and to remove health system bottlenecks. This will include the socioeconomic empowerment of women and girls, while enhancing the availability and affordability of reproductive and maternal health commodities. This policy action can be achieved through improving the availability of obstetric service providers in rural areas; ensuring better distribution and quality of health infrastructure, particularly health posts and health centers; and, ensuring user fees removal for equitable, efficient, and sustainable financial protection in line with the universal health coverage objectives. Full article

The healthcare sector throughout the world is identified for its outsized carbon footprint. Despite the mounting importance of employees’ pro-environmental behavior (PEB) for decarbonization, the role of PEB in a healthcare context was less emphasized previously, especially in a developing country context. To address this knowledge gap, the current work was carried out to examine the relationship between a hospital’s corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives and PEB with the mediating effect of environmental-specific transformational leadership (ESTL). At the same time, the conditional indirect effect of altruistic values (AV) was also considered in the above relationship. The data were collected through a questionnaire by employing a paper-pencil method from the hospital employees (n = 293). By considering the structural equation modeling, the hypothesized relationships were validated. The results indicated that CSR directly (β1 = 0.411) and indirectly, via ESTL, (β4 = 0.194) influenced the PEB of employees. It was also realized that A.V produced a conditional indirect effect in this relationship (β5 = 0.268). This work tends to help a hospital to improve its environmental footprint through CSR and ESTL. Moreover, the current work also highlights the role of employees’ values (e.g., A.V) to guide the environment-specific behavior of employees. Full article

Working Memory (WM) is a short-term memory for processing and storing information. When investigating WM mechanisms using Electroencephalogram (EEG), its rhythmic synchronization properties inevitably become one of the focal features. To further leverage these features for better improve WM task performance, this paper uses a novel algorithm: Weight K-order propagation number (WKPN) to locate important brain nodes and their coupling characteristic in different frequency bands while subjects are proceeding French word retaining tasks, which is an intriguing but original experiment paradigm. Based on this approach, we investigated the node importance of PLV brain networks under different memory loads and found that the connectivity between frontal and parieto-occipital lobes in theta and beta frequency bands enhanced with increasing memory load. We used the node importance of the brain network as a feature vector of the SVM to classify different memory load states, and the highest classification accuracy of 95% is obtained in the beta band. Compared to the Weight degree centrality (WDC) and Weight Page Rank (WPR) algorithm, the SVM with the node importance of the brain network as the feature vector calculated by the WKPN algorithm has higher classification accuracy and shorter running time. It is concluded that the algorithm can effectively spot active central hubs so that researchers can later put more energy to study these areas where active hubs lie in such as placing Transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS). Full article

Schizophrenia is one of the most stigmatized mental disorders. In 2014, schizophrenia was renamed in Mandarin in Taiwan, from the old name of “mind-splitting disease” to new name “disorder with dysfunction of thought and perception”, in an attempt to reduce the stigmatization of schizophrenia. This cross-sectional study aimed to investigate the effects of renaming schizophrenia on its stigma in nursing students. We examined the public stigma, self-stigma, and social distance associated with schizophrenia and compared them before and after the renaming. Basic demographic data and previous contact experience were collected, and participants completed a modified Attribution Questionnaire, the Perceived Psychiatric Stigma Scale, and modified Social Distance Scale. The final sample comprised 99 participants. Assessment revealed that the renaming significantly reduced public stigma, self-stigma, and social distance. Regarding the old and new names for schizophrenia, the fourth-year nursing students scored significantly higher on public stigma and self-stigma than did the first-year students. Personal exposure to individuals diagnosed with mental disorders reduced public stigma toward schizophrenia. The study findings suggest that the renaming of schizophrenia reduced its associated stigma. Providing accurate information, instruction by qualified tutors, as well as exposure to patients in acute exacerbation in hospital settings and recovered patients in the community are important. Further studies with longitudinal design, participants from diverse backgrounds, and larger sample sizes to investigate the effect of renaming on the stigma toward schizophrenia are warranted. Full article

In the wake of a large burden of silicosis and tuberculosis among ex-miners from the South African gold mining industry, several programmes have been engaged in examining and compensating those at risk of these diseases. Availability of a database from one such programme, the Q(h)ubeka Trust, provided an opportunity to examine the accuracy of length of service in predicting compensable silicosis, and the concordance between self-reported employment and that officially recorded. Compensable silicosis was determined by expert panels, with ILO profusion ≥1/0 as the threshold for compensability. Age, officially recorded and self-reported years of service, and years since first and last service of 3146 claimants for compensable silicosis were analysed. Self-reported and recorded service were moderately correlated (R = 0.66, 95% confidence interval 0.64–0.68), with a Bland–Altman plot showing no systematic bias. There was reasonably high agreement with 75% of the differences being less than two years. Logistic regression and receiver operating characteristic curve analysis were used to test prediction of compensable silicosis. There was little predictive difference between length of service on its own and a model adjusting for length of service, age, and years since last exposure. Predictive accuracy was moderate, with significant potential misclassification. Twenty percent of claimants with compensable silicosis had a length of service <10 years; in almost all these claims, the interval between last exposure and the claim was 10 years or more. In conclusion, self-reported service length in the absence of an official service record could be accepted in claims with compatible clinical findings. Length of service offers, at best, moderate predictive capability for silicosis. Relatively short service compensable silicosis, when combined with at least 10 years since last exposure, was not uncommon. Full article

While athletes have high exposures to air pollutants due to their increased breathing rates, sport governing bodies have little guidance to support events scheduling or protect stadium users. A key limitation for this is the lack of hyper-local, high time-resolved air quality data representative of exposures in stadia. This work aimed to evaluate whether air quality sensors can describe ambient air quality in Athletics stadia. Sensing nodes were deployed in 6 stadia in major cities around the globe, monitoring NO₂, O₃, NO, PM₁₀, PM_2.5, PM₁, CO, ambient temperature, and relative humidity. Results demonstrated that the interpretation of hourly pollutant patterns, in combination with self-organising maps (SOMs), enabled the interpretation of probable emission sources (e.g., vehicular traffic) and of atmospheric processes (e.g., local vs. regional O formation). The ratios between PM size fractions provided insights into potential emission sources (e.g., local dust re-suspension) which may help design mitigation strategies. The high resolution of the data facilitated identifying optimal periods of the day and year for scheduling athletic trainings and/or competitions. Provided that the necessary data quality checks are applied, sensors can support stadium operators in providing athlete communities with recommendations to minimise exposure and provide guidance for event scheduling. Full article

Excessive screen time interferes with the health and development of children. However, the screen time situation among Malaysian children remains poorly understood. This study aims to identify the prevalence and determinants of excessive screen time among children under five years in Selangor, Malaysia, using the latest World Health Organization guidelines. In this cross-sectional study, 489 parent–child dyads were randomly selected from nine government health clinics in Petaling district, Selangor. Total screen time and factors were assessed using validated self-administered questionnaires and analysed using multiple logistic regression. The overall prevalence of excessive screen time was 91.4% with a median of 3.00 h. The majority of children utilized television (66%), followed by handheld devices (30%) and computers (4%). Determinants of screen time identified were Malay ethnicity, (aOR 3.56, 95% CI 1.65–7.68), parental age of ≥30 years (aOR 3.12, 95% CI 1.58–6.16), parental screen time >2 h a day (aOR 2.42, 95% CI 1.24–4.73), moderate self-efficacy to influence a child’s physical activity (aOR 2.29, 95% CI 1.01–5.20) and the positive perception on the influence of screen time on a child’s cognitive wellbeing (aOR 1.15, 95% CI 1.01–1.32). Parents play an important role in determining their child’s screen time. Future interventions should focus on addressing parental determinants to ensure age-appropriate screen time. Full article

Positive Psychology has been devoted to enhancing well-being within organizations during the first two decades of the current millennium. Unfortunately, little data is available on current assessment related to positive psychology practices in the workplace. Therefore, to assess organizational well-being in a valid and reliable way, a new scale has been created and validated by the Institute for Wellbeing and Happiness at Tecmilenio University in Mexico: the BEAT Questionnaire whose main contribution to previous models is the element of meaningful work. EFA and CFA were carried out to determine and confirm the scale’s structure; internal consistency tests were performed too; additionally, convergence with measures of engagement, labor resources, and worker relations were also confirmed, and discriminant validity was tested by comparing associations with job search intentions and negative relationships in the workplace, yielding an instrument with four clearly defined latent dimensions, composed by 24 highly consistent items, convergent with three other valid and reliable scales. All procedures complied with statistical requirements, delivering a valid and reliable instrument for measuring well-being in the workplace. Full article

Background: Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is associated with a higher risk of chronic kidney disease (CKD). This study investigates the relationship among HCV, CKD, and understudied confounders, such as unhealthy behaviors and metabolic disturbances. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted as part of a community health promotion program in an HCV endemic area of Taiwan from June to December 2019. Multivariable logistic regression analyses adjusted for demographic and clinical characteristics were performed to investigate the association between CKD and HCV seropositivity. Results: Of 2387 participants who underwent health check-ups, the mean age was 64.1 years old; females predominated (63.2%), and 306 (12.8%) subjects were seropositive for HCV. CKD, defined as a lower estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) was associated with unhealthy dietary habits, metabolic syndrome, and HCV. Less frequent exercise, higher waist circumference (WC) and HbA1c all affected risk of CKD; HCV increased risk of CKD by 44% compared to non-HCV (OR 1.44, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.05–1.98) in the multivariable analysis. In the HCV group, lower eGFR was also significantly associated with the severity of metabolic syndrome (MetS) (median eGFR was 86.4, 77.1, and 64.5 mL/min/1.73 m² for individuals with three and five MetS components, respectively). Conclusions: Beyond metabolic disturbance and irregular exercise, HCV seropositivity is independently associated with CKD in a community survey. Healthy lifestyle promotion might protect against renal function decline in HCV; however, the mechanisms underlying the association need further large-scale investigation. Full article

Cardiopulmonary exercise testing (CPET) is the method of choice to assess aerobic fitness. Previous research was ambiguous as to whether treadmill (TE) and cycle ergometry (CE) results are transferrable or different between testing modalities in triathletes. The aim of this paper was to investigate the differences in HR and VO₂ at maximum exertion between TE and CE, at anaerobic threshold (AT) and respiratory compensation point (RCP) and evaluate their association with body fat (BF), fat-free mass (FFM) and body mass index (BMI). In total, 143 adult (n = 18 female), Caucasian triathletes had both Tr and CE CPET performed. The male group was divided into <40 years (n = 80) and >40 years (n = 45). Females were aged between 18 and 46 years. Body composition was measured with bioelectrical impedance before tests. Differences were evaluated using paired t-tests, and associations were evaluated in males using multiple linear regression (MLR). Significant differences were found in VO₂ and HR at maximum exertion, at AT and at RCP between CE and TE testing, in both males and females. VO_2AT was 38.8 (±4.6) mL/kg/min in TE vs. 32.8 (±5.4) in CE in males and 36.0 (±3.6) vs. 32.1 (±3.8) in females (p < 0.001). HR_AT was 149 (±10) bpm in TE vs. 136 (±11) in CE in males and 156 (±7) vs. 146 (±11) in females (p < 0.001). VO₂max was 52 (±6) mL/kg/min vs. 49 (±7) in CE in males and 45.3 (±4.9) in Tr vs. 43.9 (±5.2) in females (p < 0.001). HRmax was 183 (±10) bpm in TE vs. 177 (±10) in CE in males and 183 (±9) vs. 179 (±10) in females (p < 0.001). MLR showed that BMI, BF and FFM are significantly associated with differences in HR and VO₂ at maximum, AT and RCP in males aged >40. Both tests should be used independently to achieve optimal fitness assessments and further training planning. Full article

Following the emergence of social, environmental, and public health issues, this study analysed the determinants of nascent social entrepreneurial behaviour. This research investigated the effects of empathy and prior experience with social problems on nascent social entrepreneurial behaviour through social entrepreneurial self-efficacy, outcome expectations of social entrepreneurship, and perceived social support. Through utilising the quantitative survey method, this study gathered a total of 560 valid responses, comprising 258 Chinese respondents and 302 Taiwanese respondents. Outcome expectations and perceived social support positively influenced nascent social entrepreneurial behaviour for the Chinese sample, whereas social entrepreneurial self-efficacy and perceived social support positively influenced nascent social entrepreneurial behaviour for the Taiwanese sample. This research enriches the existing literature by taking account of social entrepreneurial behaviour, instead of merely analysing social entrepreneurial intentions. Full article

Psychosocial consequences of the coronavirus pandemic are severe for health care workers due to their higher levels of exposure. Nurses often experience tremendous psychological pressure as a result of their workload in a high-risk environment. The purpose of this study was to determine the impact of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic on the psychosocial burden and job satisfaction of nurses employed in long-term care. One hundred thirty-eight nurses employed in long-term care participated in the study. The respondents were 96.4% female and 3.6% male. The mean age of the respondents was 53.99 (standard deviation—4.01). The study was conducted between February and June 2021. The research tool was a standardized psychosocial risk scale questionnaire, which is a scientifically validated diagnostic tool with high reliability and accuracy coefficients. The primary tests used during the statistical analyses were non-parametric Mann–Whitney U (for two samples) and Kruskal–Wallis (for more than two samples) tests for assessing differences. During these analyses, in addition to standard statistical significance, appropriate p-values were calculated using the Monte Carlo method. Correlations between ordinal or quantitative variables were made using Spearman’s rho coefficient. The results obtained allow us to conclude that the respondents rated the characteristics present in the workplace that constitute psychosocial risks at an average level. Emotional commitment and continuance-type commitment to the respondents’ job position were also at a medium level. Respondents’ self-rated ability to work for nurses employed in long-term care during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic and commitment to patient care was high at 4.0 and 4.18, with a maximum of 5 points. Full article

Much research has attested to the benefits of intergenerational programs (IGPs) for older and younger participants, but there is a lack of understanding about what motivates them to participate and to persevere. We conducted structured interviews with 83 older (mean age = 77) and 96 younger (mean age = 23) participants who participated in 13 IGPs in Israel, some involving specific topics, and some providing assistance to older adults. Using a mixed-methods approach, we analyzed differences in motivation across generations and program types and compared initial and ongoing motivation to participate. We found differences regarding motivation by age group and program type: Among older participants, interest in the specific subject was a more prevalent motivation in topic-focused groups, while receiving support was more common in assistance groups. Among young persons, motivations relating to obligation, such as receipt of a financial scholarship, and the wish to help others were the most prevalent motivators. Ongoing motivation was often explained by positive intergenerational relationships and enjoyment. For older adults, offering more diverse topic-focused activities may motivate greater participation. For young adults, integrating IGPs within more and different settings, and promoting IGPs as opportunities to help others are potential motivators. Full article

(1) Background: As smartphones have become more widely used, they have become an appealing tool for health-related functions. For dermatology alone, hundreds of applications (apps) are available to download for both patients and providers. (2) Methods: The Google Play Store and Apple App Store were searched from the United States using dermatology-related terms. Apps were categorized based on description, and the number of reviews, download cost, target audience, and use of AI were recorded. The top apps from each category by number of reviews were reported. Additionally, literature on the benefits and limitations of using smartphones for dermatology were reviewed. (3) Results: A total of 632 apps were included in the study: 395 (62.5%) were marketed towards patients, 203 (32.1%) towards providers, and 34 (5.4%) towards both; 265 (41.9%) were available only on the Google Play Store, 146 (23.1%) only on the Apple App Store, and 221 (35.0%) were available on both; and 595 (94.1%) were free to download and 37 (5.9%) had a cost to download, ranging from USD 0.99 to USD 349.99 (median USD 37.49). A total of 99 apps (15.7%) reported the use of artificial intelligence. (4) Conclusions: Although there are many benefits of using smartphones for dermatology, lack of regulation and high-quality evidence supporting the efficacy and accuracy of apps hinders their potential. Full article

With the continuous emergence of new technologies and the adaptation of smart systems in transportation, motorcyclist driving behaviour plays an important role in the transition towards intelligent transportation systems (ITS). Studying motorcyclist driving behaviour requires accurate models with accurate and complete datasets for better road safety and traffic management. As accuracy is needed in modelling, motorcyclist driving behaviour analyses can be performed using sensors that collect driving behaviour characteristics during real-time experiments. This review article systematically investigates the literature on motorcyclist driving behaviour to present many findings related to the issues, problems, challenges, and research gaps that have existed over the last 10 years (2011–2021). A number of digital databases (i.e., IEEE Xplore^®, ScienceDirect, Scopus, and Web of Science) were searched and explored to collect reliable peer-reviewed articles. Out of the 2214 collected articles, only 174 articles formed the final set of articles used in the analysis of the motorcyclist research area. The filtration process consisted of two stages that were implemented on the collected articles. Inclusion criteria were the core of the first stage of the filtration process keeping articles only if they were a study or review written in English or were articles that mainly incorporated the driving style of motorcyclists. The second phase of the filtration process is based on more rules for article inclusion. The criteria of inclusion for the second phase of filtration examined the deployment of motorcyclist driver behaviour characterisation procedures using a real-time-based data acquisition system (DAS) or a questionnaire. The final number of articles was divided into three main groups: reviews (7/174), experimental studies (41/174), and social studies-based articles (126/174). This taxonomy of the literature was developed to group the literature into articles with similar types of experimental conditions. Recommendation topics are also presented to enable and enhance the pace of the development in this research area. Research gaps are presented by implementing a substantial analysis of the previously proposed methodologies. The analysis mainly identified the gaps in the development of data acquisition systems, model accuracy, and data types incorporated in the proposed models. Finally, research directions towards ITS are provided by exploring key topics necessary in the advancement of this research area. Full article