Incidence, Prevalence, and Sources of COVID-19 Infection among Healthcare Workers in Hospitals in Malaysia.

The COVID-19 pandemic introduced significant novel risks for healthcare workers and healthcare services. This study aimed to determine the prevalence, trends, characteristics, and sources of COVID-19 infection among healthcare workers during the early COVID-19 pandemic in Malaysian hospitals. A cross-sectional study used secondary data collected from a COVID-19 surveillance system for healthcare workers between January and December 2020.

Integrative Review of Non-Technical Skills Frameworks to Apply for Air Medical Transfer of Pregnant Women.

Objective: To identify the most suitable non-technical skills framework to adapt and apply to the air medical transfer of pregnant women.

Data Sources: Embase, PsycINFO, PubMed, MEDLINE, Web of Science, CINAHL, Science Direct, and Google Scholar.

Study Selection: We retrieved potentially relevant articles using a predefined combination of keywords extended with truncation and Boolean operators.

Cardiovascular Risk Factor Modification in Asymptomatic Adults and Implications for Pilots.

This study aims to examine the available evidence that supports a more aggressive approach to managing asymptomatic people with low to intermediate cardiovascular risks; to evaluate the appropriate threshold for initiating pharmacologic interventions to treat hyperglycaemia, hyperlipidaemia, and hypertension; and to describe the implications for airline pilots. A systematic search was performed employing an OvidSP interface, including all EBM Reviews, EMBASE, and Ovid MEDLINE databases. Data, including sixteen randomised controlled trials, on the appropriate threshold for initiating pharmacologic interventions were extracted.

Cardiovascular Tests for Risk Assessment in Asymptomatic Adults and Implications for Pilots.

Background: This study aims to examine which marker or testing protocols have been suggested for cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk assessment in asymptomatic populations, at which CVD risk level, and how this can be implemented for CVD risk assessment in pilot populations.

Methods: A systematic search was performed using Systematic Reviews Subset on PubMed; the OvidSP interface, including all EBM reviews and EMBASE databases; and the G-I-N International Guideline Library. From each recommendation, we extracted data on consideration of the use of a marker or test for cardiovascular risk assessment in asymptomatic populations.

Duty of Notification and Aviation Safety-A Study of Fatal Aviation Accidents in the United States in 2015.

After the Germanwings accident, the French Safety Investigation Authority (BEA) recommended that the World Health Organization (WHO) and European Community (EC) develop clear rules for the duty of notification process. Aeromedical practitioners (AMEs) face a dilemma when considering the duty of notification and conflicts between pilot privacy and public and third-party safety. When balancing accountability, knowledge of the duty of notification process, legislation and the clarification of a doctor’s own set of values should be assessed a priori.

General Aviation Pilots Over 70 Years Old.

Background: Currently it is not unusual for general aviation pilots in the United States to continue to fly beyond the age of 70, even into their 80s and 90s. Pilots have regular examinations according to protocols which do not specify special or additional requirements for pilots over 70 yr of age. Additionally, the third class medical reforms passed by the U.

Fatigue in Air Medical Clinicians Undertaking High-acuity Patient Transports.

Abstract Background. Fatigue is likely to be a significant issue for air medical transport clinicians due to the challenging nature of their work, but there is little published evidence for this. Objective.

Cardiovascular investigations of airline pilots with excessive cardiovascular risk.

Background: This study examined the prevalence of airline pilots who have an excessive cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk score according to the New Zealand Guideline Group (NZGG) Framingham-based Risk Chart and describes their cardiovascular risk assessment and investigations.

Methods: A cross-sectional study was performed among 856 pilots employed in an Oceania based airline. Pilots with elevated CVD risk that had been previously evaluated at various times over the previous 19 yr were reviewed retrospectively from the airline's medical records, and the subsequent cardiovascular investigations were then described.

A study of airline pilot morbidity.

Introduction: It has long been believed that airline pilots are healthier than the general population. There are a number of reasons why this should be the case. However, there is very little evidence to support this belief as fact.

Blood and body fluid exposure related knowledge, attitude and practices of hospital based health care providers in United arab emirates.

Objectives: Knowledge, attitudes, and practices of healthcare providers related to occupational exposure to bloodborne pathogens were assessed in a tertiary-care hospital in Middle East.

Methods: A cross-sectional study was undertaken using a self-administered questionnaire based on 3 paired (infectivity known vs. not known-suspected) case studies.

The occupational health and safety of flight attendants.

In order to perform safety-critical roles in emergency situations, flight attendants should meet minimum health standards and not be impaired by factors such as fatigue. In addition, the unique occupational and environmental characteristics of flight attendant employment may have consequential occupational health and safety implications, including radiation exposure, cancer, mental ill-health, musculoskeletal injury, reproductive disorders, and symptoms from cabin air contamination. The respective roles of governments and employers in managing these are controversial.

Cardiovascular risk score and cardiovascular events among airline pilots: a case-control study.

Background: A cardiovascular risk prediction score is routinely applied by aviation authorities worldwide. We examined the accuracy of the Framingham-based risk chart used by the New Zealand Civil Aviation Authority in predicting cardiovascular events among airline pilots.

Methods: A matched case-control design was applied to assess the association of 5-yr cardiovascular risk score and cardiovascular events in Oceania-based airline pilots.

Impact of stigma, culture and law on healthcare providers after occupational exposure to HIV and hepatitis C.

Worldwide, approximately three million needlestick or sharps injuries occur annually during healthcare procedures, with an estimated 18-35 healthcare professionals (HCPs) acquiring HIV each year as a result. This qualitative study examined the lived experience of occupational exposure to HIV or hepatitis C reported by four HCPs working in a tertiary care hospital in United Arab Emirates (UAE). Findings were based on interviews conducted as part of a larger two-year study investigating an intervention to improve the reporting and management of blood and body fluid exposures (BBFE) in the hospital.

Symptom-based categorization of in-flight passenger medical incidents.

Introduction: The majority of in-flight passenger medical events are managed by cabin crew. Our study aimed to evaluate the reliability of cabin crew reports of in-flight medical events and to develop a symptom-based categorization system.

Methods: All cabin crew in-flight passenger medical incident reports for an airline over a 9-yr period were examined retrospectively.

Retention of knowledge and skills in first aid and resuscitation by airline cabin crew.

The study was conducted to investigate the retention of CPR and AED skills, first aid knowledge and perceived levels of confidence for a sample of 35 cabin crew 12 months after recurrent training. The 35 cabin crew undertook a mock resuscitation scenario using the AED and bag-valve-mask carried in the medical kit. Of the 35 subjects, 33 subjects failed to use the bag-mask correctly, 18 performed chest compressions at the incorrect site, only 13 achieved the correct compression depth, only 20 placed the AED pads correctly, and the average time to first shock was 110 s after commencement of the resuscitation.

Emergency assistance provided abroad to insured travellers from Australia.

Background: Emergency assistance provided on behalf of travel insurance companies may include direct services such as medical advice, referral for local medical or dental treatment abroad, or aeromedical evacuation (AME) back to Australia or a third country. Little is known about the nature of these services provided by emergency assistance services on behalf of travel insurance companies. This study is designed to investigate the nature of emergency assistance provided abroad to travellers from Australia.

Visual conversion disorder in a harbor pilot leading to sudden loss of control of a large vessel.

We describe an accident caused by the rapid onset of visual impairment in a ship's pilot, who was subsequently diagnosed as having visual conversion disorder (hysterical blindness). This case is documented to draw attention to the unusual cause of sudden incapacitation in transport crew and the consequential threat to transportation safety. Because sudden visual impairment incidents caused by conversion disorder are isolated and rare, they may be under-reported in the scientific literature.

Artefactual contraction band necrosis of the myocardium in fatal air crashes.

Background: The detection of conditions associated with possible medical incapacitation is a crucial component of the aviation autopsy. Acute myocardial ischemia is notoriously difficult to diagnose at autopsy, although various pathological markers may strongly support a diagnosis of acute myocardial infarction occurring just prior to the crash.

Hypothesis: Contraction band necrosis may not be a reliable indicator of acute myocardial ischemia in aircraft crashes because of the forces on myocardial tissue sustained in the crash.