Call for Abstracts: Land Use for Net Zero Hub Early Career Conference

Dear colleagues,

 

We are pleased to open the call for abstracts for the Land Use for Net Zero Hub Early Career Conference, which will be held on 7 September (1:00–6:00 pm) at the James Hutton Institute in Aberdeen, ahead of the LUNZ consortium meeting (8–10 September). The call for abstracts will close on 12 June 2026.

 

The conference theme is: “Future Careers at the Science–Policy Interface: Exploring Opportunities and Challenges in LUNZ.”

 

We aim to bring together early career researchers and practitioners from LUNZ Hub and LUNZ Research, as well as other early career groups interested in the conference themes, to network, share work, and discuss careers at the science–policy interface.

 

We welcome abstracts for poster and oral presentations within the following themes. Submissions can include works in progress and unpublished research, as we aim to stimulate open dialogue, feedback, and learning. We also encourage contributions from partners beyond academia. The format of the day will be shaped by the level of interest across these topics:

 

• Transdisciplinary collaboration across sectors and knowledge systems
• Science communication and knowledge impact
• Modelling and evidence for land use change
• Integrating people, place, and nature in Net Zero transitions
• Just transitions and community resilience
• Community-based research in academia and policy

 

Please complete the following form to submit your abstract: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeOzhkowu0NdM3YlQz-XEIovSB3805zX5LTT4Fm7FzBPq3f7Q/viewform?usp=header

 

Once we have received and reviewed abstracts, we will open up registration to presenters and the wider community.

 

If you are interested in helping with the organisation of the conference at an early stage, we would be very happy to hear from you—please get in touch.

 

We look forward to your participation.

 

Best regards,

LUNZ Early Career Board

https://lunzhub.com/get-involved/early-careers-board/

 

Anita Lazurko (she/her)

Senior Transdisciplinary Scientist

Biodiversity and Land Use

--------------------------------

My source: At 'Ecologies of Care':

Henrike (Kika) Neuhaus

Pronouns: she/her, they/them

Post-doctoral Research Fellow in Anthropology and Art

Livelihoods and Institutions Department

Natural Resources Institute

University of Greenwich 

ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0002-1245-5881

Geneva Health Forum 2025 (May 20-23) - Register Now!

Dear HIFA team

Can you share in your network this information. Thanks for your help

Sincerely

[HIFA profile: Eric Comte is Executive Director, Geneva Health Forum, External Affairs Directorate, Geneva University Hospitals. eric.comte AT unige.ch ]

--------------------------------------------------

Geneva Health Forum 2025 (#GHF2025) is approaching quickly!

Bringing together global health leaders, researchers, frontline practitioners, and policymakers, the annual Geneva Health Forum event serves as a unique platform to exchange knowledge, present innovations, and advance equitable and sustainable solutions to the world’s most pressing health challenges.

We are present every year during the week of the World Health Assembly, at the end of May, to enable academic and civil society players to make their voices heard during the World Health Assembly.

This 2025 edition will focus on four thematic priorities: • Malnutrition • Climate Change and Health • Migration, Health, and Equity • Digital Health

Each theme will be addressed through evidence-based dialogue, multi-sector collaboration, and a strong emphasis on real-world practices with the potential for broader application and impact.

Please note: registration is free but required individually for each session or event. To secure your participation, visit the dedicated page for the event(s) of interest and click on the “Register” button.

To see the program and to register click on this link : https://conference2025.genevahealthforum.com/

We invite you to secure your spot for this important event by registering today!

We look forward to welcoming you to Geneva very soon!

If you have a question, contact us : contact AT genevahealthforum.com

My source: HIFA

Postdoc “Citizen Science” (V25.0121) at Univ of Groningen

We're hiring:

Postdoc in Citizen Science at the University of Groningen

Are you passionate about public engagement with science and citizen science? Do you want to develop and work on projects that connect academia with society and make a real impact? We have an exciting Postdoc position available in our Citizen Science team!
Please note: You should be able to speak Dutch...

📅 Apply by March 23, 2025
🔗 Learn more & apply here: https://lnkd.in/emsFzdgJ

Feel free to share in your network.

Cheers,

Henk

Dr. Henk A.J. Mulder
Master Science Education and Communication &
Bèta Wetenschapswinkel (Science Shop @ Science LinX),
Rijksuniversiteit Groningen (University of Groningen)
Dr. Henk A.J. Mulder
Energy Academy/IREES
kamer/room 5158.0222
Nijenborgh 6
9747 AG Groningen
The Netherlands

h.a.j.mulder AT rug.nl
http://www.rug.nl/staff/h.a.j.mulder/
http://www.rug.nl/society-business/science-shops/
http://www.rug.nl/masters/educatie-en-communicatie-in-de-wiskunde-en-natuurwetenschappen/

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my ACADEMIC CAREER my LANGUAGE SKILLS my LIFE EXPERIENCE my PASSIONS	SCIENCES - ENGINEERING 'LIVED EXPERIENCE' Enthusiast-Expert [patient, swimmer, x,y,z ...] local, regional, national, international
PUBLIC UNDERSTANDING OF SCIENCE PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT COMMUNITY ISSUES/AWARENESS COMMUNICATION	CITIZENS EVIDENCE-BASED POLICY PUBLIC PRIORITIES POLICY PRIORITIES

n.b. No endorsement of Hodges' model should be construed from inclusion of #h2cm above.

Webinar: 11 December - Universal Health Coverage (UHC) Day 2024

"The UHC Compass and Social Participation:

empowering patient organisations to hold governments

 accountable for universal health coverage"

Register for the UHC Compass launch!

To mark Universal Health Coverage (UHC) Day 2024, IAPO will officially launch the UHC Compass at an exciting webinar titled "The UHC Compass and Social Participation: empowering patient organisations to hold governments accountable for universal health coverage" on 11 December 2024, from 11:30 to 13:00 GMT via Zoom.

The webinar will be conducted in English with simultaneous interpretation into Spanish.

Panellists include:

• Dani Mothci – International Alliance of Patients’ Organizations (IAPO) 
• Dr Pamela Cipriano – UHC2030 & International Council of Nurses
• Lara Brearley – Special Programme on Primary Health Care Universal Health Coverage - Life Course, World Health Organization
• Dumiso Gatsha – Success Capital NGO & Civil Society Engagement Mechanism for UHC2030 (CSEM)
• Nicola Bedlington – Global Patient Think Tank & Millwater Partners
• Smitha Sadasivan – Global Patient Think Tank, Inclusive Health Policy, Disability Rights India Foundation & CSEM 
• Paul Mendoza – Psoriasis Philippines and Psoriasis Asia Pacific & IAPO

The UHC Compass is a dynamic tool created by patients for patients, empowering local leaders and communities to advance universal health coverage (UHC). In the context of the World Health Assembly resolution on social participation and UHC Day 2024, this session will explore how the Compass can serve as a tool to hold governments accountable for investing in UHC.

Co-created by the Global Patient Think Tank (GPTT), a diverse group amplifying the patient voice in the UHC movement, the Compass is proudly hosted by IAPO. Our mission is to ensure this resource reaches and benefits our global network of patient organisations.

Join us to discover how the UHC Compass can help make UHC a reality for everyone!

Learn more & register [https://www.iapo.org.uk/node/15686] Share https://iapo.cmail19.com/t/d-fb-sfiudt-iuqjytrli-o/ Tweet https://iapo.cmail19.com/t/d-tw-sfiudt-iuqjytrli-b/ Share [https://iapo.cmail19.com/t/d-li-sfiudt-iuqjytrli-h/]

[http://www.iapo.org.uk]

The International Alliance of Patients’ Organizations is registered in England and Wales as charity no.1155577 and company limited by guarantee no.08495711.

Registered office: Hounslow House, 7 Bath Road, Hounslow TW3 3EB, UK.

It is also the IAPO's 25th Anniversary.
More details at:

https://www.iapo.org.uk/node/15687

I will post again in the New Year.

My source: HIFA

Previously: compass : UHC : patients

NHS Contaminated Blood Scandal UK

UK  - World

Why we need always to acknowledge 

the political in health and health in politics

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"In an interim report, the inquiry chair, Sir Brian Langstaff, said 'wrongs were done at individual, collective and systemic levels'."	(UP) contaminated       blood                              blood            donors     'dying for  COVER
	UP   scandal            paid          justice'     (screening?)

My source: Various - over several decades.

Photograph: Daily Express

https://www.express.co.uk/news/politics/1795449/rishi-sunak-infected-blood-inquiry-heckled-booed

UK Higher Education Research Excellence Framework - Disciplines

The Research Excellence Framework (REF) is a national assessment of the quality of UK higher education research in all disciplines.

34 subject-based Units of Assessment (UOAs)

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Psychology, Psychiatry and Neuroscience Archaeology Theology and Religious Studies Philosophy [Mathematics & Logic] ^Communication  as Intra- Interpersonal (Skills) Neurodiversity hence an individual's sense-making

Clinical Medicine (Neuroscience) Public Health, Health Services and Primary Care Allied Health Professions, Dentistry, Nursing and Pharmacy Biological sciences  Agriculture, Food and Veterinary Sciences Earth Systems and Environmental Sciences Chemistry Physics Mathematical Sciences Computer Science and Informatics Engineering Architecture, Built Environment and Planning Geography and Environmental Studies Archaeology Area Studies Sport and Exercise Sciences,

Archaeology Social Work and Social Policy Sociology Anthropology and Development Studies area studies Education Modern Languages and Linguistics English Language and Literature History Classics Communication^, Cultural and Media Studies, Library and Information Management Art and Design: History, Practice and Theory Music, Drama, Dance, Performing Arts, Film and Screen Studies

Leisure and Tourism Archaeology Economics and Econometrics Business and Management Studies Law area studies Politics and International Studies

As ever, you see the idealised nature of conceptual (and other) models. I have repeated archaeology, and area studies, added mathematics and logic to the intra- interpersonal (our reasoning, imaginative ability) which increasingly is being challenged and debated as computer-based proofs 'take-over'. I'm not sure where future studies might sit (or pace anxiously!)?

The REF was mentioned at the Improving University Teaching Conference [IUT] in the past week. I'd been meaning to look at the scope of the framework which is often raised across the media, hence this post. IUT, was well worth the effort of a presentation and attending. A global event spanning Australia-Asia, Europe, and North America - one to follow in the future.

STUDY: Bailed out and burned out? The financial impact of COVID-19 on UK care homes for older people and their workforce

 Via CHPI:

This research is the product of a collaboration between Warwick Business School, University College London and the CHPI, funded by the Economic and Social Research Council. 

The two year study examined  the financial impacts of the pandemic on UK care homes for older people  and their staff. It is based on an analysis of hundreds of company accounts, interviews with care home staff and a survey of over 600 care home workers.

 

Key findings

1. Without £2 billion of government support, and care workers working longer and harder, the sector would almost certainly have collapsed financially during the first year of the pandemic. That emergency funding helped to stabilise care homes early in the pandemic. Some even increased payments to investors: a quarter of companies increased dividends, by 11%.  
2. Since the peak of the pandemic, the care home sector has faced a financial crisis due to the removal of government financial support despite continuing COVID outbreaks, workforce shortages and inflation.  
3. Government support focused on keeping care homes financially viable, with only a small proportion devoted directly to supporting staff who were working in extreme circumstances. As many as 4 in 10 care home staff reported financial problems related to working in care during the pandemic. 
4. The financial impacts on staff varied by ownership type and size. Staff experiences were more positive in not-for-profits and smaller organisations on a range of measures. 
5. Staff valued in-person support from colleagues, managers, and external professionals 

Recommendations

1. Improved contingency planning for the financial impacts of future pandemics and their consequences for staffing, including creating a standby emergency social care workforce.  
2. Sustained government support for care homes coping with the lasting impacts of pandemics. 
3. Public funding for care, including emergency support during pandemics, should take account of evidence showing varying outcomes by ownership type and should seek to promote forms of provision that offer both good care and good jobs.  
4. Government and employers should improve pay and conditions for care staff, in general and especially during pandemics (including recognition payments, enhanced sick pay and overtime rates).  
5. Government should work with employers topromote a better understanding of how care staff experience their working lives, for example through an annual national workforce survey and to ensure adequate personal, professional, and clinical support is accessible to social care staff, particularly during a pandemic.
   
   

Fotaki, M., Horton, A., Rowland, D., Ozdemir Kaya, D. & Gain, A. (2023) Bailed out and burned out? The financial impact of COVID-19 on UK care homes for older people and their workforce. Coventry: Warwick Business School.

Listen also ... BBC Radio 4 Today 0652.50 

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m001kx5m

ISTAS23: Technology and Analytics for Global Development

Technology and Analytics for Global Development

13th – 15th September 2023

Swansea University, Swansea, Wales

The IEEE International Symposium on Technology and Society (ISTAS) is the flagship conference of the IEEE’s Society on Social Implications of Technology (SSIT). ISTAS is a multi-disciplinary and interdisciplinary forum for engineers, policy makers, entrepreneurs, philosophers, researchers, social scientists, and technologists to collaborate, exchange experiences, and discuss the social implications of technology.

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are global grand challenges that are inherently complex, multi-faceted and socially embedded (Corbett & Mellouli, 2017). The SDGs inevitably encounter tensions between their design and implementation, representing design-reality gaps (Pradhan et al., 2022; Heeks, 2020a; Dennehy et al., 2014). While optimism is relatively high about the role of technology and analytics in the context of global development (Smidt & Jokonya, 2022), significant learning remains about how best to use them as ‘platforms that mediate development’ (Heeks 2020b). Further, despite the efforts made by scholars to advance understanding about the role of technology and analytics for global development (e.g., Dwivedi et al., 2021; Khene & Masiero, 2022; Masiero & Arvidsson, 2021), a concerted effort within and between academic disciplines, policy-makers, practitioners, and the intended beneficiaries of the SDGs will help to discover and create better ways to achieve the SDGs.

ISTAS23 aims to bring together contributions from a variety of perspectives, disciplines, and communities for the advancement of knowledge regarding Technology and Analytics for Global Development. We invite participation from academics and practitioners who are engaged in current debates about the role and significance of technology and analytics, and who are interested in topics related to sustainability, ethics, equity, and social values for global development.

IEEE ISTAS 2023 is Technical Co-sponsored by IEEE Region 8, IEEE UK and Ireland Section, IEEE UK and Ireland SSIT Chapter and IEEE UK and Ireland Education Chapter.

ISTAS23 more details ...

My source: c/o Fabio Caraffini - Co-chair of Track 8 -

https://www.linkedin.com/in/fabio-caraffini/  and Twitter is https://twitter.com/facaraff

via www.jiscmail.ac.uk/AI-SGES, a mailing list hosted by www.jiscmail.ac.uk

Progress in Transdisciplinary Times

For about a decade I think ... hold on please! ...

Since October 2011 in fact, and an issue of -

Journal of Evaluation in Clinical Practice, Volume 17, Issue 5

Special Issue: Philosophy of Evidence Based Medicine

- I've carried the concept of 'progress' in my head. I think I picked up this issue somewhere and still have some of its key papers. 

 

Progress is always there in the media, in its obvious forms, technical, education, scientific, social, political, economic, medical; whether or not we agree on the pace, realisation, ethics, extent and contribution to overall well-being. Now, we can also add Earth as the foundational element.

Simon Kuper's 'Opening Shot' in the FT Magazine, 11-12 December 2021 wrote about 'progress' and Thomas Midgley Jr; "often described as the most disastrous peaceable human who ever lived." Responsible for the progressive, at the time, innovations of lead in petrol (to reduce "knocking" in petrol engines), and chlorofluorocarbons - you'll understand that one I think. Kuper notes how:

"Midgley's story illustrates the damage that one brilliant, ambitious, out-of-the-box thinker can do."

Since the early 20th century, we have nuclear fission, biolabs, genetic technology, artificial intelligence, climate change and other 'inventions'. The 'progress' of climate change is catching up with us. Ironic, how the question, after all those millennia remains - can I/We outrun this threat? The problems we face now, we are told, call for transdisciplinary solutions - adding yet more complexity.

Clearly, we need to equip people with the cognitive, conceptual tools to work alternately, in-and-out of the boxes. And, whatever our belief system consider progress in spiritual terms too.

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progress	progress
progress	PROGRESS

Another thing to return to!

Simon Kuper, Opening Shot, When too much progress is a bad thing. FT Weekend, Magazine, December 11-12, 2021, p.8.

Previously on W2tQ: progress

Nursing in the Digital Age survey

📢If you haven't yet completed our #Nursing in the Digital Age survey, please do and also share with your colleagues!

We would like to know how you use technology at your work and what effect it has had on workloads ⬇️https://t.co/Qxii5Pm7GY https://t.co/aYCbUsb8DF

— The Queen's Nursing Institute (@TheQNI) June 24, 2022

[and my source]

Nursing In the Digital Age 2022 (2) 

"Smart New World was published by the QNI in 2012 and again in 2016. Ten years later we think it is time to assess the level of progress and development in digital technology you use at work since the report was published. We are particularly interested in any effect (positive or negative) it has had on workloads. 

 We have created a survey to inform this work. It has 31 questions and should take around 8 minutes. Your contribution would be greatly appreciated. It contains no identifying information. Please address any queries to Alison Leary (alisonleary AT yahoo.com) or Dave Bushe dave.bushe AT qni.org.uk Thank you! SurveyMonkey is a third party provider. Please do not enter any patient identifiable or personal data other than your email address if you wish to share it with us at the end of the survey."

https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/NITDASoMe

£62.5k Funding opportunity for researchers interested in healthy ageing

UKRI and Zinc have announced the 3rd funding round for the Healthy Ageing Catalyst Awards. Researchers are encouraged to apply for this £62,500 (fEC) grant from UKRI and 9-month structured programme of support from Zinc, to translate their research into impactful and scalable products, services, and interventions that add quality to later life.

The call for expressions of interest opens on 1st February and closes on 22nd February 2022. You can access the expression of interest guidance, plus further resources here. If you have any questions, please visit zinc.vc/catalyst or email the team at catalyst AT zinc.vc

My source:

Wendy Zhou, CHAIN Manager

CHAIN - Contact, Help, Advice and Information Network – is an online international network for people working in health and social care. For more information on CHAIN and joining the network please visit website: www.chain-network.org.uk

 

Book: i "Making Research Matter - Steps to Impact for Health and Care Researchers" Open Access

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i m p a c t	impact
impact	"Making Research Matter"*

My source:

https://twitter.com/TaraJLamont/status/1448999679899865088?s=20

Thanks also to @policypress 

*An ever greater need for political impact!

Call For Papers: Special Track on AI for Tackling Dis/Misinformation during Pandemics

Call For Papers: Special Track on AI for Tackling Dis/Misinformation during Pandemics In conjunction with the ACM International Conference on Information Technology for Social Good (GoodIT 2021)

The GoodIT conference is sponsored by ACM SIGCAS, the Association for
Computing Machinery's Special Interest Group on Computers & Society.

The conference focuses on the application of IT technologies to social good.

The Special Track on AI for Tackling Dis/Misinformation during Pandemics focuses on new data technologies based on artificial intelligence, data governance, machine learning, natural language
processing, and social network analysis to aid experts in analyzing large volumes of social media data in order to detect fake news, misinformation, and disinformation. A number of open challenges need
more investigation from the research community, such as recent trends in composing information disorder by combining false and real content, the mechanisms that drive fake content diffusion during pandemics, how to differentiate fake content from personal viewpoints, why people tend to believe fake content and make decisions based on it during pandemics, and what are the different motivations behind the dissemination of fake content. Fact-checking and claim verification are two important strategies that are worth incorporating in the automated tackling and curtailment of fake content during and after pandemics.

************ Key Dates ************

Papers Submission Due:      May 1, 2021

Authors Notifications:        June 22, 2021

Final Manuscript Due:        July 10, 2021

GoodIT 2021:                    September 09-11, 2021

************ Important Links ************

Special Track Website: https://aitdmp.conceptechint.net

Submission Link: https://goodit2021.hotcrp.com/

************ Submission Guidelines  ************

All submissions will be reviewed using a single-blind review process.

The identity of referees will not be revealed to authors, but authors can keep their names on the submitted papers, on figures, bibliography, etc.

Papers should not exceed 6 pages (US letter size) double column including figures, tables, and references in standard ACM format. Papers must be submitted electronically in printable PDF form.

Templates for the standard ACM format can be found here:

https://www.acm.org/publications/proceedings-template No changes to margins, spacing, or font sizes are allowed from those specified by the style files. Papers violating the formatting guidelines will be

returned without review.

ACM has partnered with Overleaf, a free cloud-based, collaborative authoring tool, to provide an ACM LaTeX authoring template. The ACM LaTeX template on Overleaf platform is available to all ACM authors at: www.overleaf.com/gallery/tagged/acm-official

Accepted papers will be included in the ACM Digital Library. 

Special  issues associated with the conference are being organized.

************ Topics ************

Papers on practical as well as on theoretical topics and problems in various topics related to rumors, fake news, misinformation, and disinformation during and after pandemics, are invited, with special emphasis on novel techniques and tools for automated tackling and curtailment of fake content during and after pandemics. Topics include(but are not limited to):

• AI approaches for the detection of online influence and manipulation
• AI approaches to identify misinformation and disinformation campaigns
• AI approaches for spotting misinformation and disinformation spreaders.
• Social media mining for automated detection of misinformation propagation and disinformation circulation
• AI approaches for automated identification and verification of claims
• AI approaches for intention detection for misinformation and disinformation contents
• AI approaches for credibility assessment of Social media sources
• AI approaches for fake news curtailment, filtering and prevention.
• AI approaches for analysis/detection of distributed and multi-platform misinformation and disinformation disseminations
• AI approaches for predicting the Impact of misinformation and disinformation during pandemics
• New datasets and evaluation methodologies to aid in automated detection and analysis of misinformation and disinformation content in social media channels

**********The Conference Sponsored by**********

Association for Computing Machinery's Special Interest Group on Computers & Society http://www.sigcas.org/

This workshop is supported by the Association of Cyber Forensics and Threat Investigators (www.acfti.org) and the Industrial Cybersecurity Center (www.cci-es.org).

########################################################################

This message was issued to members of www.jiscmail.ac.uk/SOCIOTECH, a mailing list hosted by www.jiscmail.ac.uk

Thanks to Andrew Zayine.

WHO: 1 in 4 people projected to have hearing problems by 2050

"When unaddressed, hearing loss impacts many aspects of life at individual level"

 and collective too.

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"Communication and speech Cognition   Education and Employment: In developing countries, children with hearing loss and deafness often do not receive schooling. Adults with hearing loss also have a much higher unemployment rate. Among those who are employed, a higher percentage of people with hearing loss are in the lower grades of employment compared with the general workforce."

"Nearly 2.5 billion people worldwide ─ or 1 in 4 people ─ will be living with some degree of hearing loss by 2050, warns the World Health Organization’s (WHO) first World Report on Hearing, released today. At least 700 million of these people will require access to ear and hearing care and other rehabilitation services unless action is taken."

"But the most glaring gap in health system capacity is in human resources. Among low-income countries, about 78% have fewer than one ear, nose and throat (ENT) specialist per million population; 93% have fewer than one audiologist per million; only 17% have one or more speech therapist per million; and 50% have one or more teacher for the deaf per million. This gap can be closed through integration of ear and hearing care into primary health care through strategies such as task sharing and training, outlined in the report."

"Impact on society and economy Years Lived with Disability (YDLs) and Disability Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) WHO estimates that unaddressed hearing loss poses an annual global cost of US$ 980 billion. This includes health sector costs (excluding the cost of hearing devices), costs of educational support, loss of productivity, and societal costs. 57% of these costs are attributed to low- and middle-income countries."

Sources:

https://www.who.int/news/item/02-03-2021-who-1-in-4-people-projected-to-have-hearing-problems-by-2050

https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/deafness-and-hearing-loss

 

Dear colleagues,

We have recently published an article that presents some insights from Canada 

(full-text available from ResearchGate https://www.researchgate.net/publication/343400636_Here's_to_sound_action_on_global_hearing_health_through_public_health_approaches )

Shroff, F.M. and Jung, D. (2020), "Here's to sound action on global hearing health through public health approaches", International Journal of Health Governance, Vol. 25 No. 3, pp. 235-244. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJHG-01-2020-0004 

Abstract Purpose – A global pandemic, non-occupational noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL) is a completely preventable public health problem, which receives limited air time. This study has dual purposes: to contribute to scholarly literature that puts non-occupational NIHL on the global priority map and to effect change in the City of Vancouver’s policies toward noise. 

Design/methodology/approach – Experts in public health and hearing health were contacted in addition to a scoping literature search on PubMed. Information pertaining to both developed and developing countries was obtained, and comparison was made to Canada where possible. The authors met with elected officials at the City of Vancouver to inform them of the win–win aspects of policies that promoted better hearing.

Findings – Non-occupational NIHL is an underappreciated issue in Canada and many other countries, as seen by the lack of epidemiological data and public health initiatives. Other countries, such as Australia, have more robust research and public health programs, but most of the world lags behind. Better hearing health is possible through targeted campaigns addressing root causes of non-occupational, recreational noise–positive associations with loud noise. By redefining social norms so that soft to moderate sounds are associated with positive values and loud sounds are negatively attributed, the societies will prevent leisure NIHL. The authors recommend widespread national all-age campaigns that benefit from successful public health campaigns of the past, such as smoking cessation, safety belts and others. Soft Sounds are Healthy (SSH) is a suggested name for a campaign that would take many years, ample resources and sophisticated understanding of behavior change to be effective.

Research limitations/implications – A gap exists in the collection of non-occupational NIHL data. Creating indicators and regularly collecting data is a high priority for most nations. Beyond data collection, prevention of non-occupational NIHL ought to be a high priority. Studies in each region would propel understanding, partly to discern the cultural factors that would predispose the general population to change favorable attitudes toward loud sounds to associations of moderate sounds with positivity. Evaluations of these campaigns would then follow.

Practical implications – Everyday life for many people around the world, particularly in cities, is loud. Traffic, construction, loudspeakers, music and other loud sounds abound. Many people have adapted to these loud soundscapes, and others suffer from the lack of peace and quiet. Changing cultural attitudes toward loud sound will improve human and animal health, lessen the burden on healthcare systems and positively impact the economy. Social implications–Industries that create loud technologies and machinery ought to be required to find ways to soften noise. Regulatory mechanisms that are enforced by law and fines ought to be in place. When governments take up the banner of hearing health, they will help to set a new tone toward loud sounds as undesirable, and this will partially address the root causes of the problem of non-occupational NIHL.

Thanks

Irina Ibragimova, PhD

Co-editor, International Journal of Health Governance

HIFA profile: Irina Ibraghimova is a medical librarian, based in Croatia, and works with health care professionals in the countries of the Former Soviet Union, Central and Eastern Europe, and Africa. Her interests include evidence-based practice (both in health care and in library/informatics field). She is a HIFA Country Representative for Croatia. https://www.hifa.org/support/members/irina www.lrcnetwork.org www.healthconnect-intl.org ibra AT zadar.net

Source:

HIFA https://www.hifa.org/

(Posted a little late...)

Button Batteries: Power ... in its place

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  COMMUNITY

INFANTS - TODDLERS	BUTTON BATTERIES
“It turns out this is one of the most damaging and dangerous things that my beautiful boy could have ever swallowed. It does not get much worse than this.” - Mother of an 8 month-old baby boy	Credit: Child Accident Prevention Trust

The Healthy Brains Global Initiative: Mental Health Care NOT only by the Quarter II

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group - population

The Healthy Brains  Global Initiative	Tuberculosis, Malaria, HIV Aids Cancer, Infectious disease, Heart disease
The impacts of mental illness in societies	"25 per cent of people worldwide experience mental illnness" HBGI funding of $10 Billion direct & indirect costs of mental illness = $3 trillion a year $6 trillion by 2030 GeoPsychiatry, PsychoPolitics, SocioPolitical

 

Clive Cookson, Global drive aims to fight mental illness, FTWeekend, 10-11 October 2020, p.4.

 

Plus c/o HIFA: 

Today 10 October is World Mental Health Day.

The current issue of The Lancet carries a lead editorial on this subject: 

 CITATION: Mental health: time to invest in quality Editorial| volume 396, issue 10257, p1045, october 10, 2020 The Lancet Published: October 10, 2020 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(20)32110-3 

EXTRACTS The theme of this year's World Mental Health Day, on Oct 10, is increased investment in mental health. Why invest, and why now? The answer is simple. At the best of times, good mental health is needed for a society to thrive. During a pandemic, good mental health is more important than ever. Without a focus on mental health, any response to COVID-19 will be deficient, reducing individual and societal resilience, and impeding social, economic, and cultural recovery... Investment must be about more than just money if mental health services are to be made fit to address the challenges of the COVID-19 and post-COVID-19 era and to become resilient against future public health crises. There must be an investment of thought, time, and a commitment to change.

COMMENT (NPW): I would like to invite HIFA members to share their experience on mental health services in your country. What changes have you seen during the pandemic in terms of demand and provision? What approaches have worked well, or not so well, in dealing with these challenges? 

Best wishes, Neil

 Let's build a future where people are no longer dying for lack of healthcare information - Join HIFA: www.hifa.org

Eco-Visionaries: Royal Academy of Arts

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Confronting a planet in a state of emergency	Eco-Visionaries
Eco-Visionaries	Confronting a planet in a state of emergency

My source:
Royal Academy of Arts  Email - Call for Papers
Symposium in February, abstract not accepted but plan to attend.

Poverty on Election Eve: Gross Neglect

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POVERTY in THOUGHT	Social care (Displaced demand) 'here'
Social Care (Supply deficit) 'here'	POVERTY in POLICY  & LEADERSHIP

Mr / Ms X Y: Dementia, Football and Me c/o BBC

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The Spirit of Sport