Dexamethasone can reduce mortality in hospitalised COVID-19 patients needing oxygen and ventilation by 18% and 36%, respectively. Here, we estimate the potential number of lives saved and life years gained if this treatment were to be rolled out in the UK and globally, as well as the cost-effectiveness of implementing this intervention. Assuming SARS-CoV-2 exposure levels of 5% to 15%, we estimate that, for the UK, approximately 12,000 (4,250 - 27,000) lives could be saved between July and December 2020. Assuming that dexamethasone has a similar effect size in settings where access to oxygen therapies is limited, this would translate into approximately 650,000 (240,000 - 1,400,000) lives saved globally over the same time period. If dexamethasone acts differently in these settings, the impact could be less than half of this value. To estimate the full potential of dexamethasone in the global fight against COVID-19, it is essential to perform clinical research in settings with limited access to oxygen and/or ventilators, for example in low- and middle-income countries.

Modification to initial ART was common in this study. Further evaluation of the contribution of guideline changes on regimen modification and treatment outcomes is recommended.

*Objectives: We describe the frequency and types of drug therapy problems (DTPs), and interventions carried out to resolve them, among a cohort of HIV-infected patients on ART in Jos, Nigeria. Methods: A prospective pharmacists' intervention study was conducted between January and August 2012 at the outpatient HIV clinic of the Jos University Teaching Hospital (JUTH). Pharmacists identified DTPs and made recommendations to resolve them. The main outcome measures were number of DTPs encountered, interventions proposed and acceptance rate of recommendations. Results: A total of 42,416 prescriptions were dispensed to 9339 patients during the eight months study. A total of 420 interventions (Intervention rate of 1 per 100 prescriptions) were made to resolve DTPs in 401 (4.3%) patients with a mean age of 41 (SD=10) years, and made up of 73% females. DTPs encountered were drug omission (n=89, 21.2%), unnecessary drug (n=55, 13.1%) and wrong drug indication (n=55, 13.1%). Recommendations offered included; Addition of another drug to the therapy (n=87, 20.7%), rectification of incomplete prescriptions (n=85, 20.2%), change of drug or dosage (n=67, 16.0%), and discontinuation of the offending drug (n=59, 14.0%). A total of 389 (93%) out of 420 of the recommendations were accepted. In all, 50.4% (212) of the problematic prescriptions were changed and dispensed, 22.2% (89) were clarified and dispensed, while wrong identities were corrected in 11.7% (49). However, 7.5% (30) (21) were not dispensed, and 3% (12) were unresolved. Conclusion: Our findings suggest that pharmacistsinitiated interventions can ameliorate DTPs in patients receiving ART given the high intervention acceptance rate recorded. The implication of this finding is that pharmacists with requisite training in HIV pharmacotherapy are an excellent resource in detecting and minimizing the effect of antiretroviral drug-related errors.

Highlight The COVID-19 pandemic and its associated lockdown have had a negative impact on global mental health. Considerable fear and stigma surround the prospects of a return to non-essential international travel. The mental health aspects of travel have been historically neglected in the literature. The current pandemic has prompted a renewed focus on building psychological resilience in travellers by engaging innovative technological tools such as virtual reality.

Background Community health needs and assets assessment is a means of identifying and describing community health needs and resources, serving as a mechanism to gain the necessary information to make informed choices about community health. The current review of the literature was performed in order to shed more light on concepts, rationale, tools and uses of community health needs and assets assessment. Methods We conducted a scoping review of the literature published in English using PubMed, Embase, Scopus, Web of Science, PDQ evidence, NIH database, Cochrane library, CDC library, Trip, and Global Health Library databases until March 2021. Results A total of 169 articles including both empirical papers and theoretical and conceptual work were ultimately retained for analysis. Relevant concepts were examined guided by a conceptual framework. The empirical papers were dominantly conducted in the  United States. Qualitative, quantitative and mixed-method approaches were used to collect data on community health needs and assets, with an increasing trend of using mixed-method approaches. Almost half of the included empirical studies used participatory approaches to incorporate community inputs into the process. Conclusion Our findings highlight the need for having holistic approaches to assess community’s health needs focusing on physical, mental and social wellbeing, along with considering the broader systems factors and structural challenges to individual and population health. Furthermore, the findings emphasize assessing community health assets as an integral component of the process, beginning foremost with community capabilities and knowledge. There has been a trend toward using mixed-methods approaches to conduct the assessment in recent years that led to the inclusion of the voices of all community members, particularly vulnerable and disadvantaged groups. A notable gap in the existing literature is the lack of long-term or longitudinal–assessment of the community health needs assessment impacts.