Perceptions towards COVID-19 and adoption of preventive measures among the public in Saudi Arabia: a cross sectional study.

Background: Effective management of the spread of a novel infectious disease, such as the COVID-19 virus can be achieved through influencing people's behavior to adopt preventive measures. The public's perceptions and attitudes towards the virus, governmental guidance and preventive measures were unknown in Saudi Arabia.

Objectives: 1) investigate the public perception of COVID-19, anxiety level, the COVID-19 information sources sought, adoption of preventive measures, and ability and willingness to self-isolate during and post-lockdown periods of the COVID-19 pandemic in Saudi Arabia; 2) investigate socio-demographic factors associated with adoption of preventive measures against COVID-19 and self-isolation practices.

Can health promotion videos 'go viral'? A non-randomised, controlled, before-and-after pilot study to measure the spread and impact of local language mobile videos in Burkina Faso.

Background: Mobile phones present a new health communications opportunity but use of mobile videos warrants more exploration. Our study tested a new idea: to produce health promotion videos in languages for which films have never previously been produced to see if they were widely shared.

Objective: To investigate whether the novelty of films in local languages focusing on health messages would be shared 'virally' among the target population.

Persistent unexplained physical symptoms: a prospective longitudinal cohort study in UK primary care.

Background: Unexplained physical symptoms (UPS) are extremely common among primary care attenders, but little is known about their longer-term outcome.

Aim: To investigate the persistence of somatic symptoms at 6 months among a cohort with multiple UPS, and identify prognostic factors associated with worsening symptom scores.

Design And Setting: Prospective longitudinal cohort study involving adults attending UK general practice in North and Central London between January and December 2013.

Guiding practitioners through end of life care for people with dementia: The use of heuristics.

Background: End of life care (EOLC) for people with dementia can present a multitude of challenges and difficult decisions for practitioners. These challenges may include assessment and management of difficulties with eating and swallowing, responding to agitation, treating pain, and managing recurrent infections. Practitioners sometimes lack both confidence in making end of life decisions and guidance.

A qualitative study exploring the difficulties influencing decision making at the end of life for people with dementia.

Background: Dementia is a progressive neurodegenerative condition characterized by declining functional and cognitive abilities. The quality of end of life care for people with dementia in the UK can be poor. Several difficult decisions may arise at the end of life, relating to the care of the person with dementia, for example management of comorbidities.

Improving teaching about medically unexplained symptoms for newly qualified doctors in the UK: findings from a questionnaire survey and expert workshop.

Objectives: Medically unexplained symptoms (MUS) present frequently in healthcare, can be complex and frustrating for clinicians and patients and are often associated with overinvestigation and significant costs. Doctors need to be aware of appropriate management strategies for such patients early in their training. A previous qualitative study with foundation year doctors (junior doctors in their first 2 years postqualification) indicated significant lack of knowledge about this topic and appropriate management strategies.

How do hospital doctors manage patients with medically unexplained symptoms: a qualitative study of physicians.

Objective Medically unexplained symptoms are a common presentation in medical practice and are associated with significant morbidity and high levels of service use. Most research exploring the attitudes and training of doctors in treating patients with unexplained symptoms has been conducted in primary care. This study aims to explore the ways in which doctors working in secondary care approach and manage patients with medically unexplained symptoms.

A co-design process developing heuristics for practitioners providing end of life care for people with dementia.

Background: The end of life for someone with dementia can present many challenges for practitioners; such as, providing care if there are swallowing difficulties. This study aimed to develop a toolkit of heuristics (rules-of-thumb) to aid practitioners making end-of-life care decisions for people with dementia.

Methods: An iterative co-design approach was adopted using a literature review and qualitative methods, including; 1) qualitative interviews and focus groups with family carers and 2) focus groups with health and care professionals.

Junior doctors' experiences of managing patients with medically unexplained symptoms: a qualitative study.

Objectives: To explore junior doctors' knowledge about and experiences of managing patients with medically unexplained symptoms (MUS) and to seek their recommendations for improved future training on this important topic about which they currently receive little education.

Design: Qualitative study using in-depth interviews analysed using the framework method.

Setting: Participants were recruited from three North Thames London hospitals within the UK.