Publications by authors named "Azzolina M"

The objective of this study is to identify the essential hard and soft skills that healthcare professionals must develop when working in a low- and middle-income country (LMIC), where the socio-economic and cultural context differs significantly from that of Italy. The analysis was conducted following a period of observation conducted by a hospital pharmacy resident at a rural hospital in southern Tanzania. In order to ascertain the role and requisite competencies for hospital pharmacists (HPs) in LMICs, an investigation was conducted based on the 24 competencies identified by EAHP.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Purpose: Telepharmacy (TF) represents a tool to manage the complexity related to drug therapies and to guarantee continuity of patient empowerment in transitions of care. The aim of this work is to analyze the critical issues related to the implementation of the TF service, in order to enhance its application.

Results: Over 27 months, the TF service was offered to 60 patients.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Hospital logistics automation applied to the dispensing of medicines to patients in care transition (hospital discharge or outpatient visit) offers significant opportunities to improve risk management and ensure the quality of healthcare. The adoption of technological innovation in hospital requires organizational changes, development of new workflows, collaboration between different professionals and acquisition of new skills. The logistics automation system was analyzed using NOISE analysis, as a strategic planning tool, in order to assess the impact of this innovation.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • A study in Piedmont, Italy evaluated the impact of an Allergy Call Center (ACC) program established to support patients at high risk for allergic reactions during the COVID-19 vaccination campaign.
  • The ACC operated from May 2021 to December 2022, receiving 15,865 calls, with only 336 patients needing further referral to the specialized unit, indicating effective management of consultations.
  • Overall, the study highlighted the success of proactive screening in reducing allergy-related concerns linked to COVID-19 vaccination, streamlining the referral process for high-risk patients.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

In the past three years, COVID-19 has had a significant impact on the healthcare systems and people's safety worldwide. Mass vaccinations dramatically improved the health and economic damage caused by SARS-CoV-2. However, the safety of COVID-19 vaccines in patients at high risk of allergic reactions still has many unmet needs that should be clarified.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Patients with autoimmune diseases (ADs) and primary immunodeficiencies (PIDs) are characterized by an increased risk of noninvasive and widespread infections as they are considered frail patients. In addition, many flares of the underlying disease are reported after routine vaccinations. To date, the vaccination rate in these two populations is suboptimal.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: The SARS-CoV-2 outbreak early in 2020 overwhelmed the Italian national health system, and hospitals were considered places at high risk of spreading the infection. We explored specific antibody seroprevalence of all employees at a single hospital in the epicentre of the outbreak, to identify areas of risk in nosocomial setting and to evaluate the usefulness of antibody testing.

Aims: Aim of this study was to explore SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence in a single hospital workers cohort.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Helicobacter pylori (Hp) infection is mainly acquired during childhood; it is recognised as a cause of gastritis and peptic ulcer and it has been classified as a group A carcinogen by World Health Organization. The exact mode of transmission is as yet, not known. Aim of our study has been to identify risk factors associated with Helicobacter pylori infection in a preschool and school population and to confirm if Hp antigen in faeces is useful as screening in epidemiological studies.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF