Primary care nurses' experiences of how the mass media influence frontline healthcare in the UK

Experiences Using Media Health Claims to Teach Evidence-Based Practice to Healthcare Students: A Mixed Methods Study

Background

A multifaceted and interactive teaching approach is recommended for achieving proficiency in evidence-based practice, with critical thinking considered vital for connecting theory and practice. In this context, we advocate the strategic use of health claims in media to promote critical thinking and provide an accessible entry point to evidence-based practice for early-stage university healthcare students.

Method

We conducted a convergent mixed methods study, including a cross-sectional survey with structured and open-ended questions as well as focus group interviews, at the Faculty of Health Sciences, Oslo Metropolitan University, during the 2020-2021 academic year. Participants were bachelor's students in bioengineering, physiotherapy, social education, and occupational therapy. We employed a blended learning approach, combining digital learning resources, teaching in critical assessment of health claims and evidence-based practice, and a concurrent group exam assignment centered around health news. The outcome measures included students' experiences integrating health claims into evidence-based practice teaching and their experiences with teaching approaches, including the group exam.

Results

Out of 446 participants, 136 (30.5%) responded to the structured questions in the survey. In response to the open-ended questions within the survey, 109 (80.1%) of the respondents shared positive experiences about the course, while 98 (72%) suggested improvements. Additionally, 25 students participated in focus group interviews. Synthesizing the results, we found that students viewed the inclusion of health claim assessment as a useful entry point for learning evidence-based practice. In addition, both the blended learning design and the group exam were identified as contributors to a positive perception of learning outcomes from the course.

Conclusions

Integrating critical reflection on media health claims into evidence-based practice education, alongside a blended learning approach and a group exam, may be beneficial for educating bachelor's healthcare students. However, further rigorous study designs are needed to assess the effect of the course on learning outcomes.

Registration

DOI 10.5281/zenodo.6985449.

Analyzing Predictive Factors for the Media's Impact on the Nursing Profession

Introduction: Mass media play a crucial role not only in informing the public but also in shaping public perception, educating, and enhancing the visibility of various professions, including nursing. Despite being the most populous healthcare profession, nursing remains underrepresented in media coverage. This imbalance affects the social status of the nursing profession and its public perception. Methods: This cross-sectional study utilized a validated questionnaire with high internal reliability (Cronbach's alpha coefficients) to assess nurses' perceptions of the media's role in society and the nursing profession. Data were collected from 203 participants using an online survey employing the snowball sampling method. Statistical analyses included Welch ANOVA, t-tests, and hierarchical regression to predict the importance of media education. Results: Participants demonstrated positive perceptions of the media's societal influence but identified a lack of adequate representation of nurses. Younger nurses and those with higher education levels emphasized the need for media education. Regression analysis revealed that perceptions of the media's power and self-assessed media competencies were significant predictors of valuing media education. Conclusions: The findings highlight the need for integrating media literacy training into nursing education to enhance professional visibility and public engagement. This can empower nurses to actively contribute to shaping their professional image and addressing public misconceptions. Future research should expand the sample size and explore diverse healthcare settings to validate these findings.

Perception of Heart Attack Risk Factors and Their Complications Among the Adult Population in the Eastern Region of Saudi Arabia

Background Among the young population, many have risk factors that are nonmodifiable, modifiable, or both, increasing their chances of developing cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) and/or experiencing a heart attack later in life. Knowledge of both risk factors has a major role in preventing CVD by encouraging screening and applying the necessary lifestyle modifications. This study aims to assess the knowledge of risk factors and complications associated with heart attacks among individuals in the early adulthood age group. Methodology This descriptive cross-sectional study encompassed residents of the Eastern Region who met the specified inclusion criteria. Data were collected and recorded on a structured questionnaire regarding their demographic information, current risk factors, and knowledge of cardiovascular risk factors and complications. The questionnaire was distributed in hard copy among schools, colleges, and primary healthcare centers. The statistical analysis was carried out using IBM SPSS Statistics for Windows, Version 26.0 (IBM Corp., Armonk, NY). The results were presented in tables as percentages and frequencies for all variables, and the scores were presented as mean and standard deviation.  Results Among the 334 participants, the average overall score was 15.47 out of 28. The participants exhibited varying levels of knowledge across different aspects of the risk factors. The correct response rate ranged from as high as 84.4% (282) to as low as 41.6% (139) in the assessment of risk factors items. The majority of the participants showed a good understanding of the preventive measures, such as exercise and weight reduction. However, 43.4% (145) of participants reported not participating in physical activity and 29.1% (97) had a body mass index of 25 and above. Conclusions The outcome of this study suggests that there's a need for structured educational programs in schools and public health campaigns. The general public must have a reliable source of information rather than the mass media and false information read from social media.

Critical discourse analysis on the influence of media commentary on fatal fetal anomaly in Ireland

Fatal Fetal Anomaly (FFA) has generated international media attention as termination of pregnancy (TOP) for FFA was legislated for, for the first time in Ireland. Media offers an insight into what health-related information is available to the public and how it is presented to them. The aim of this study was to examine how information related to FFA, TOP for FFA and perinatal palliative care (PPC) were framed in Irish published media. A critical discourse analysis, which examines the relations between discourse and social and cultural phenomena was implemented. Habermasian's framework facilitated an objective analysis of the text, to facilitate interpretation and understanding of socially produced meanings. A broadsheet and journal were chosen. Dated from 2012 to 2017, 129 articles were identified. Themes of personification of the unborn, human rights and power and politics were embedded in the discourse, creating political influence to sway perceptions and views. Terminology were chosen by different ideological perspectives to create varying contexts and support arguments. PPC was suppressed within the published media. This study highlights misrepresentations in the information delivered to the public and suggests the need for healthcare professionals to expand their media literacy and develop these skills with their patients.

Potential of UK and US newspapers for shaping patients' knowledge and perceptions about antidiabetic medicines: a content analysis

Background

Information about how newspapers portray antidiabetic medicines to readers is lacking. This study investigated the reporting on antidiabetic medicines in the most widely circulated newspapers published in the United Kingdom (UK) and the United States (US) over a 10-year period.

Methods

The Nexis UK database was used to identify and select relevant articles. Systematic content analysis of the articles which met the inclusion criteria (articles of any format that contained reference to antidiabetic medicines) within the highest circulated newspapers in the UK and US between 2009 and 2018 was conducted. Inter-rater reliability of coding was established using a 10% sample of the identified articles.

Results

A total of 560 (369 UK and 191 US) relevant newspaper articles were retrieved. In the UK, the number of relevant articles showed a slightly increasing trend over the study period, while in the US, article numbers declined over the study period. Safety/risk of antidiabetic medicines was the most frequent theme covered by the articles (34.6%). Over one-third of the newspaper articles were written from a clinical perspective (37.7%). Insulin was the most commonly discussed class of antidiabetic medicine (23.1%). Control of blood sugar levels (53.1%) and side effects/toxicity (92.7%) were the most frequently reported benefit and risk of antidiabetic medicines, respectively. The most frequently reported organ systems harmed by antidiabetic medicines were the cardiovascular, endocrine and gastrointestinal systems. The UK newspapers were more likely to report the benefits of antidiabetic medicines (p = 0.005), while the US articles were more likely to report on harms/risks (p = 0.001). The majority of relevant articles (91.8%) were judged as having a balanced judgement, while 8.2% of the articles were rated as exaggerated.

Conclusions

This study has revealed that antidiabetic medicines are indeed reported on by UK and US newspapers. As media portrayal has the potential to negatively or positively influence patients’ views of their medication for diabetes, healthcare professionals should check on patients’ beliefs and knowledge about their medication and proactively provide objective and balanced information (including promotion of medication adherence).

Enhancing satisfaction and respect for health care personnel: a mixed-methods case study of a community-based intervention

Health care personnel (HCP) face violence as a result of lack of satisfaction and respect among community members. It is imperative for HCP to engage in social work by involving communities for enhancing satisfaction and respect for them. This study attempted to provide insight on this phenomenon by using a mixed-methods concurrent embedded approach. Communities were selected based on modified Solomon four-group design from Karachi in southern province and from three cities of northern province, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa of Pakistan. Focus group discussions and in-depth interviews took place for formulating the quantitative tool. Six hundred pretests were done prior to introducing low-cost community-based interventions followed by 601 posttests. We found increased levels of satisfaction in both provinces, whereas level of respect increased significantly in Karachi in the southern province only. Qualitative interviews revealed the important role played by media and religious leaders. These findings suggest that satisfaction and respect for HCP can be enhanced through community support, involvement of religious leaders, and effective media campaigns.

Effect of media messages on health-promoting lifestyle of acute coronary syndrome patients: A randomized clinical trial

BACKGROUND

Patient education is a key factor in promoting the health of people with acute coronary syndrome (ACS), and the effective use of technology can play an important role in this regard. This study aimed to determine the effectiveness of education using media messages on the lifestyle of patients with ACS.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

The present clinical trial was conducted on 91 cases with ACS admitted to the cardiac ward of Afshar Hospital in Yazd, Iran, during 2018-2019, who were randomly assigned to control and intervention groups. The former only was provided with routine training before discharge, while the latter, in addition to routine training before discharge, received education on social networking and sending text/visual messages. At baseline and 3 months after the intervention, the Walker's Lifestyle Questionnaire was completed. The independent t-test, paired t-test, and Chi-square test were employed for data analysis.

RESULTS

The average lifestyle value of the intervention group was significantly higher compared with the control group after the intervention (P < 0.001). Moreover, the lifestyle score was significantly different pre- and post-intervention in the intervention group (P < 0.001).

CONCLUSIONS

Education using media messages is useful to promote the lifestyle in cases with ACS, which seems effective in planning the follow-up for these patients.

Judicial judgment and media sensation of violence against medical staff in China: A fuzzy set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA)

INTRODUCTION

Violence against medical staff has been prevalent in China over the past two decades. Although Chinese authorities have released many laws and regulations to protect medical staff from violence since 2011, the legal approach alone is unlikely to resolve this complex issue. In particular, several cases of violence against medical staff in China have caused great media sensation.

METHOD

This paper proposes an integrated model that combines the environmental stimuli theory, broken windows theory, and rational choice theory. It adopts the fuzzy set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA) to untangle the causal relationship between violence against medical staff, media sensation, and judicial judgment. We examined reports of medical violence on media and news websites from January 1, 2010, to January 31, 2020, and selected 50 cases with detailed information for this study.

RESULTS

The results show that each condition is not sufficient for the absence of judicial judgment, but when combined, they are conducive to the outcome. The conditions of hospital level, medical cost, and media sensation play important roles. The providers, patients, and environmental factors are indicators of inadequate or lack of judicial judgment, which corresponds to previous expectations.

CONCLUSIONS

The integrated model greatly enriches the extant theories and literature, and also yields implications for preventing violence against medical staff in China. We suggest that sustainable and innovative healthcare reform should be initiated. For example, public hospitals should remain the cornerstone of national public health security. Medical staff in public hospitals must be regarded as "civil servants". Therefore, the current legal system should be improved. The media should objectively report events concerning medical staff and improve public healthcare knowledge.

It Takes Two to Tango: Public Attitudes Toward Prevention of Workplace Violence Against Health Care Staff: A Mixed-Methods Study

Workplace violence (WPV) directed toward health care staff by patients and their relatives has become one of the major problems faced by health care systems around the world. Incidences of WPV have increased over the past decade, crossing borders and cultures and creating a worrisome global phenomenon. To date, most of the research has examined health care workers' perceptions of strategies that might prevent violence. Although the public, as prospective patients, has a central role in this state of affairs, little is known about public attitudes to prevention of violence in health care settings. In light of this, the current mixed-methods study aimed to explore public attitudes toward appropriate preventive and punitive measures that should be employed to diminish the occurrence of WPV incidents in health care settings. Five hundred sixty Jewish Israeli individuals participated in the study. Quantitative findings indicate the public's overall agreement and positive attitudes toward preventive and punitive measures aimed at reducing WPV against health care staff. Qualitative findings revealed two main themes: "focusing on the staff" by improving their work conditions, training them to deal with violence, and providing a sense of security, as well as "focusing on the public" by teaching tolerance, raising awareness of zero tolerance to violence, and punitive measures. The Israeli public believes that to deal with the problem of violence in the health care system, it is necessary to act simultaneously on two levels: health staff and the health care system, and the general public. In view of these findings, we recommend that policy makers address this issue by adopting preventive measures, such as increasing the number of health care personnel, workshops for the staff on dealing with violence, campaigns against violence in health care settings, and enforcing appropriate punitive measures against attackers.

Women's attitudes to the use of AI image readers: a case study from a national breast screening programme

Background

Researchers and developers are evaluating the use of mammogram readers that use artificial intelligence (AI) in clinical settings.

Objectives

This study examines the attitudes of women, both current and future users of breast screening, towards the use of AI in mammogram reading.

Methods

We used a cross-sectional, mixed methods study design with data from the survey responses and focus groups. We researched in four National Health Service hospitals in England. There we approached female workers over the age of 18 years and their immediate friends and family. We collected 4096 responses.

Results

Through descriptive statistical analysis, we learnt that women of screening age (≥50 years) were less likely than women under screening age to use technology apps for healthcare advice (likelihood ratio=0.85, 95% CI 0.82 to 0.89, p<0.001). They were also less likely than women under screening age to agree that AI can have a positive effect on society (likelihood ratio=0.89, 95% CI 0.84 to 0.95, p<0.001). However, they were more likely to feel positive about AI used to read mammograms (likelihood ratio=1.09, 95% CI 1.02 to 1.17, p=0.009).

Discussion and Conclusions

Women of screening age are ready to accept the use of AI in breast screening but are less likely to use other AI-based health applications. A large number of women are undecided, or had mixed views, about the use of AI generally and they remain to be convinced that it can be trusted.

Medicine, media and the law: The effect on training in obstetrics and gynaecology

The inextricable link between medicine and the legal profession has flourished in the 21st century, with countless newspaper articles and social media content on medical cases visible at every juncture. This is particularly true in the speciality of obstetrics and gynaecology, with one of the highest rates of litigation of all medical specialities. We aimed to evaluate the influence of media and the legal environment on the career of trainees in obstetrics and gynaecology. Under the auspices of the Irish national training body, we distributed a 26-item questionnaire to doctors-in-training (DIT) working in obstetrics and gynaecology in the Republic of Ireland. Descriptive statistics and Chi-squared analyses were performed on the anonymised data. 151 DIT responded to the questionnaire, with a response rate of 86.2 % (sample size = 175). The majority were female (79.9 %, n = 121), Irish (85.5 %, n = 106) and had no children (67.0 %, n = 83). 86.7 % (n = 131) felt that the media did not have a positive impact on patients receiving care, and, further, unfairly represented the speciality (94.1 %; n = 142). Additionally, DIT felt that medico-legal issues had a negative impact on issues such as retention and recruitment. These two areas were implicated in over three quarters of DIT considering leaving the speciality. This study demonstrates that DIT perceive media scrutiny and litigation to have a negative effect on the speciality of obstetrics and gynaecology. Further support integrated into specialist training, is needed to ensure that trainees are adequately equipped to deal with both mainstream and social media as well as interactions they may have with the legal profession as they progress through their career.

Look who's talking now: Cancer in primary care on Twitter. An observational study

Background

Twitter is a microblogging platform that helps share information. It is a dynamic tool that has been embraced by many user types including consumers and healthcare professionals (HCPs). Currently, there are no data on how cancer in primary care features on Twitter.

Aim

To explore the type of users and information shared about cancer in primary care on Twitter.

Design & setting

A descriptive exploratory study took place of publicly available Twitter data.

Method

Tweets were searched between July 2015 and June 2017 for ‘GP’, ‘general practice’, ‘primary care’, or ‘general practitioner’ in conjunction with ‘cancer’. A 20% random sample was coded for geographic location, user type, type of tweet, and theme. Tweet sentiment was analysed using R package sentimentr. Content that gained traction was compared by combining original tweets, retweets, favourites, and duration.

Results

There were a total of 3413 tweets from 1611 users in 44 countries. Consumers were the largest user group followed by health organisations, healthcare professionals, and the media. The most common theme across user types was diagnostic delay. Other themes that emerged included cancer screening, symptom awareness, and early diagnosis. Consumers published more negative tweets, particularly in relation to diagnostic delay. Health organisations focused on symptom awareness and screening. Over half of media tweets were stories that featured delayed diagnosis or screening.

Conclusion

A broad range of users engage with Twitter to share information about cancer in primary care. Content is different between user groups, but diagnostic delay and symptom awareness are common themes. Healthcare and professional organisations may need to consider approaches to counter negative messages about diagnostic delay.

Medical social workers as mediators between patients, physicians, and the court: the case of former ringworm patients

Facilitating benefit and resource acquisition to assist clients is a major responsibility of medical social workers, requiring them to have a thorough knowledge of community resources, legislation, and regulations. The aim of the current study was to examine knowledge of the Law for Compensation of Scalp Ringworm Victims and ringworm-related irradiation damage among 101 social workers employed in diverse healthcare settings in Israel. We found that 65.3% of the social workers were aware of the law, but only 40.6% were aware of the health effects of scalp ringworm irradiation. Media coverage and clients who underwent scalp ringworm irradiation were social workers' major sources of knowledge. Working with former ringworm patients had the strongest association with knowledge of the law and of ringworm-related irradiation damage. Results highlight the important contribution of exposure to clients' experiences and knowledge to expand social workers' knowledge of health issues.

Understanding sciatica: illness and treatment beliefs in a lumbar radicular pain population. A qualitative interview study

BACKGROUND

Several pathological processes contribute to lumbar radicular pain (LRP), commonly known as sciatica. It is not known how patients rationalise the experience of sciatica or understand the diagnosis. Providing clinicians with a better understanding of how patients conceptualise sciatica will help them to tailor information for patients on the management and treatment of the condition.

AIM

To understand patients' beliefs regarding their illness following a diagnosis of LRP, how these beliefs were developed, and the impact of illness beliefs on treatment beliefs.

DESIGN & SETTING

Qualitative interview study from a single NHS musculoskeletal interface service (in Wales, UK).

METHOD

Thirteen patients recently diagnosed with LRP were consecutively recruited. Individual semi-structured interviews were recorded and transcribed. Data were analysed using a thematic approach.

RESULTS

Four main themes were generated: (1) the illness experience (2) the concept of sciatica, (3) treatment beliefs, and (4) the desire for credible information.

CONCLUSION

The diagnosis of LRP is often communicated and understood within a compressive conceptual illness identity. Explaining symptoms with a compressive pathological model is easily understood by patients but may not accurately reflect the spectrum of pathological processes known to contribute to radicular pain. This model appears to inform patient beliefs about treatments. Clinicians should take care to fully explain the pathology prior to shared decision-making with patients.

Impact of adverse media reporting on public perceptions of the doctor-patient relationship in China: an analysis with propensity score matching method

OBJECTIVES

Numerous studies indicate that the doctor-patient relationship in China is facing serious challenges. This study examined the impact of China Central Television's negative coverage of high medicines prices on both doctors' and patients' opinions of the doctor-patient relationship.

SETTING

Data were collected in a national survey conducted during 19 December 2016 to 11 January 2017 which targeted 136 public tertiary hospitals across the country.

PARTICIPANTS

All patients and doctors who submitted completed questionnaire were retrieved from the survey database.

INTERVENTION

The study used propensity score matching method to match the respondents before and after China Central Television's news report about high medicines prices which was given at 00:00 hours on 24 December 2016.

OUTCOME MEASURE

Perception scores were calculated based on the five-point Likert scales to measure the opinions of the doctor-patient relationship.

RESULTS

The perception scores of the doctor-patient relationship were significantly affected by the negative media coverage for hospitalised patients, who scored 1.18 lower on the doctor-patient relationship following the report (p=0.006, 95% CI 0.34 to 2.02), and doctors who scored 5.96 points lower on the same scale (p<0.001, 95% CI 4.11 to 7.82). Score for the ambulatory patients was unaffected by exposure to the adverse news report (p=0.05).

CONCLUSION

Chinese national media's reporting of adverse news negatively affected the perceptions of the doctor-patient relationship among both inpatients and doctors. A better understanding of the role of mass media in the formation of opinion and trust between doctors and patients may permit strategies for managing the media, in order to improve public perceptions of the doctor-patient relationship.

Media Depictions of "Unacceptable" Workplace Violence Toward Nurses

Violence and aggression toward nurses are global concerns. Despite repeated research on causal factors and widespread zero tolerance campaigns, rates of violence and aggression have not declined. Violence and aggression toward nurses can negatively affect their health and ultimately patient care. Media reporting of violence and aggression toward nurses might shape people's perceptions of the profession, perhaps impeding nurse recruitment and retention efforts in the face of global nursing shortages. The purpose of this study was to determine how print media in Scotland depicted reports of violence and aggression toward nurses. We used qualitative thematic analysis of newspaper articles and online news reporting of incidents of violence and aggression toward nurses between June 1, 2006 and May 31, 2016. Searches of Nexis and British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) News Online databases returned 92 relevant newspaper articles. Standards for reporting qualitative research informed presentation of results. Key themes included blame (of perpetrator or senior management), helplessness (of nurses specifically or victimization), culture (social or organizational), and prevention and reduction measures. We concluded that media coverage of violence and aggression was overwhelmingly negative and reductionist. Normalization of violence and aggression was an accepted and acceptable part of the nursing role. We conclude with recommendations for policy and call for nurse leaders to challenge this culture of acceptability, especially to support recruitment and retention of nursing staff.

Nurses’ views on the impact of mass media on the public perception of nursing and nurse–service user interactions

The aim of this study was to examine nurses’ views on the impact that mass media has on service users and how this affects nurse/service user interactions. Internationally, the mass media is an important source of health information for the public. Media framing therefore exerts considerable influence on the public’s perceptions of healthcare professionals and services. However, it is not known how the reporting of health stories by the media impacts the work of front-line nursing staff. This is a qualitative interpretivist study using a single case study design, and includes semi-structured interviews with qualified nursing staff ( n = 31) within a large hospital in the United Kingdom. There are three key themes: ‘scaremongering health stories’, ‘negative portrayal of the nursing profession’ and ‘informed service users’. Nurses perceived media framing of health and healthcare services as predominantly negative. Nurses need greater awareness of how service users receive and respond to health information and how health stories are reported. Closer engagement between health journalists and nurses through ‘journalist-in-residence’ programmes could enable nurses and journalists to gain greater appreciation of their respective sets of knowledge to support shared and informed decision-making between service users and professionals.

The Association Between Internet Use and Ambulatory Care-Seeking Behaviors in Taiwan: A Cross-Sectional Study

Background

Compared with the traditional ways of gaining health-related information from newspapers, magazines, radio, and television, the Internet is inexpensive, accessible, and conveys diverse opinions. Several studies on how increasing Internet use affected outpatient clinic visits were inconclusive.

Objective

The objective of this study was to examine the role of Internet use on ambulatory care-seeking behaviors as indicated by the number of outpatient clinic visits after adjusting for confounding variables.

Methods

We conducted this study using a sample randomly selected from the general population in Taiwan. To handle the missing data, we built a multivariate logistic regression model for propensity score matching using age and sex as the independent variables. The questionnaires with no missing data were then included in a multivariate linear regression model for examining the association between Internet use and outpatient clinic visits.

Results

We included a sample of 293 participants who answered the questionnaire with no missing data in the multivariate linear regression model. We found that Internet use was significantly associated with more outpatient clinic visits (P=.04). The participants with chronic diseases tended to make more outpatient clinic visits (P<.01).

Conclusions

The inconsistent quality of health-related information obtained from the Internet may be associated with patients’ increasing need for interpreting and discussing the information with health care professionals, thus resulting in an increasing number of outpatient clinic visits. In addition, the media literacy of Web-based health-related information seekers may also affect their ambulatory care-seeking behaviors, such as outpatient clinic visits.

Knowledge of Coronary Heart Disease Risk Factors among a Community Sample in Oman: Pilot study

OBJECTIVES

The aim of this study was to assess the knowledge of Omani adults regarding conventional coronary heart disease (CHD) risk factors and to identify demographic variables associated with these knowledge levels.

METHODS

This descriptive cross-sectional pilot study was carried out among a convenience sample of 130 adults attending a health awareness fair held in a local shopping mall in Muscat, Oman, in November 2012. A modified version of the Heart Disease Facts Questionnaire in both English and Arabic was used to assess knowledge of CHD risk factors. Scores were calculated by summing the correct answers for each item (range: 0-21). Inadequate knowledge was indicated by a mean score of <70%. Descriptive and multivariate logistic regression analyses were performed to establish the participants' knowledge levels and identify associated demographic variables.

RESULTS

A total of 114 subjects participated in the study (response rate: 87.7%). Of these, 69 participants (60.5%) had inadequate mean CHD knowledge scores. Knowledge of CHD risk factors was significantly associated with body mass index (odds ratio [OR] = 0.739; P = 0.023), marital status (OR = 0.057; P = 0.036) and education level (OR = 9.243; P = 0.006).

CONCLUSION

Low knowledge levels of CHD risk factors were observed among the studied community sample in Oman; this is likely to limit the participants' ability to engage in preventative practices. These findings support the need for education programmes to enhance awareness of risk factors and prevention of CHD in Oman.

Readability of Ebola Information on Websites of Public Health Agencies, United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, and Europe

Public involvement in efforts to control the current Ebola virus disease epidemic requires understandable information. We reviewed the readability of Ebola information from public health agencies in non-Ebola-affected areas. A substantial proportion of citizens would have difficulty understanding existing information, which would potentially hinder effective health-seeking behaviors.