Bmc Public Health
-
The Ebola communication crisis of 2014 generated widespread fear and attention among Western news media, social media users, and members of the United States (US) public. Health communicators need more information on misinformation and the social media environment during a fear-inducing disease outbreak to improve communication practices. The purpose of this study was to describe the content of Ebola-related tweets with a specific focus on misinformation, political content, health related content, risk framing, and rumors. ⋯ Results highlight the importance of anticipating politicization of disease outbreaks, and the need for policy makers and social media companies to build partnerships and develop response frameworks in advance of an event. While each public health event is different, our findings provide insight into the possible social media environment during a future epidemic and could help optimize potential public health communication strategies.
-
In the globe, 1.3 million deaths and around 50 million non-fatal injuries were reported. From all deaths, 90% occur in developing countries. Ethiopia is considered as one of the worst countries in the globe where road traffic accident causes a lot of fatalities and injuries of road users every year. The main objective of the study was to identify the main predictors of fatal car accident. ⋯ In conclusion, fatal road traffic accidents happened due to drivers' lack of sufficient driving experience and low educational level. In addition, driving on weekends and driving on summer season were disclosed as responsible for fatal car accident. Moreover, drivers with younger age and those who drove a new vehicle likely caused fatal car accident. However, drivers who drive their vehicles seemed to be less responsible for fatal car accident than that of employed.
-
Homelessness is a growing concern as it affects a large number of people worldwide. Individuals and families experiencing homelessness are vulnerable in terms of health and underutilise health services. Despite being a global problem, not much is known about the range and breath of literature exploring health problems and health care service utilisation among homeless adults in Africa. ⋯ Evidence shows that homeless adults suffered from a range of physical and mental health problems, and underutilisation of health care services. However, there is lack of information on the complex interrelationship between homelessness and health, as well as differences in prevalence of health problems among the various sub-groups of homeless. There is also lack of information regarding utilisation other important healthcare services such as mental health services, alcohol and drugs services, and accident and emergency service, and future researches should address that. Also, attention should be given to intervention models for complex and effective physical and psychiatric care as well as social support to address the homeless people's health vulnerabilities.