Adolescents living in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) are struggling with accessing sexual and reproductive health (SRH) services, and COVID-19 has escalated the problem. The purpose of this review was to identify and assess the existing literature on the impact of the pandemic on SRH needs and access to services by adolescents in LMICs. A scoping review was conducted to collate findings on the topic. Searches were performed on eight databases. Data were extracted and categorized into various themes. After removing duplicates and performing a full-text reading of all articles, nine articles were included in our review. Our findings generated several themes related to adolescents’ sexual and reproductive health during the COVID-19 pandemic. These include (1) limited access to sexual and reproductive health services, (2) school closure and increased rate of early marriages, (3) sexual or intimate partner violence during COVID-19, (4) disruption in maternity care, (5) adolescents’ involvement in risky or exploitative work, (6) intervention to improve sexual and reproductive health services during COVID-19, and (7) policy development related to adolescent sexual and reproductive health. Several recommendations were made on policies—for instance, the use of telemedicine and community-based programs as a way to deliver SRH services to adolescents during and after a pandemic.

Adolescent access to quality sexual and reproductive health and rights has been a major issue in most low- to middle-income countries (LMICs). This systematic review aims to identify the relevant community and school-based interventions that can be implemented in LMICs to promote adolescents’ sexual and reproductive health and rights. We identified 54 studies, and our review findings suggested that educational interventions, financial incentives, and comprehensive post-abortion family planning services were effective in increasing their knowledge and use of Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (ASRHR) services, such as contraception, which led to a decrease in unwanted pregnancies. However, we found inconclusive and limited evidence on the effectiveness of interventions for improved violence prevention and adolescent behavior towards safe sexual practices. More rigorous studies with long-term follow-ups are needed to assess the effectiveness of such interventions.

Introduction: Intravenous insertion (IVI) is identified by children as extremely painful and the resultant distress can have lasting negative consequences. There is an urgent need to effectively manage such procedures. Our primary objective was to compare the pain and distress of IVI with the addition of humanoid robot-based distraction to standard care, versus standard care alone. Methods: This two-armed randomized controlled trial (RCT) was conducted from April 2017 to May 2018 at the Stollery Children's Hospital emergency department (ED). Children aged 6 to 11 years who required IVI were included. Exclusion criteria included hearing or visual impairments, neurocognitive delays, sensory impairment to pain, previous enrolment, and discretion of the ED clinical staff. Primary outcomes were measured using the Observational Scale of Behavioural Distress-Revised (OSBD-R) (distress) and the Faces Pain Scale-Revised (FPS-R) (pain). A total of 426 pediatric patients were screened and 340 were excluded. Results: We recruited 86 children, of which 55% (47/86) were male; 9% (7/82) were premature at birth; 82% (67/82) had a previous ED visit; 30% (25/82) required previous hospitalization; 78% (64/82) had previous IV placement and 96% (78/81) received topical anesthesia. The mean total OSBD-R score was 1.49 ± 2.36 (standard care) compared to 0.78 ± 1.32 (robot group) (p = 0.047). The median FPS-R during the IV procedure was 4 (IQR 2,6) in the standard care group alone, compared to 2 (IQR 0,4) with the addition of humanoid robot-based distraction (p = 0.10). Change in parental state anxiety pre-procedure versus post-procedure was not significantly different between groups (p = 0.49). Parental satisfaction with the IV start was 93% (39/42) in the robot arm compared to 74% (29/39) in the standard care arm (p = 0.03). Parents were also more satisfied with management of their child's pain in the robot group (95% very satisfied) compared with standard care (72% very satisfied) (p = 0.002). Conclusion: A statistically significant reduction in distress was observed with the addition of robot-based distraction to standard care. Humanoid robot-based distraction therapy reduces distress and to a lesser extent, pain, in children undergoing IVI in the ED. Further trials are required to confirm utility in other age groups and settings.

Adolescent’s access to quality Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights interventions has been a major issue in most of the low- to middle-income countries (LMICs) across the globe. This systematic review aims to identify the relevant community and school-based interventions that can be implemented in -LMICs to promote adolescent’s sexual and reproductive health and rights outcomes. We identified 54 studies and our review findings suggest that Adolescent’s Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (ASRHR) educational interventions, provision of financial incentives, and provision of comprehensive -post-abortion family planning services are effective in increasing adolescent’s knowledge on ASRHR, attitude towards ASRHR, uptake of ASRHR services, contraception and decreased unwanted pregnancy rates among young women. However, we found inconclusive and limited evidence on the effectiveness of the interventions to improve violence prevention and adolescent behaviors towards safe sexual practices. More rigorous studies with long-term follow-ups are needed to assess the effectiveness of such interventions.

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Older immigrants are at higher risks for inactivity due to cultural, environmental, and social barriers in the postmigration context. Community-based physical activity (PA) programs increase PA in older adults, yet little is known about approaches that specifically target older immigrants. This scoping review explores the literature on community-based programs that increase PA and physical fitness in immigrant older adults and identifies barriers and facilitators to PA program participation in this population. A systematic search of electronic databases and gray literature was conducted, and a total of 11 articles met the inclusion criteria after full-text screening. A range of populations and PA program characteristics are described, yet there is a lack of studies on older immigrant men, Black older immigrants, and immigrants from Arab and African countries. There is a need for further research to develop evidence-informed PA programs for this diverse population.

Media organizations can quickly disseminate information from official sources to the general population. Media plays a vital role before, during, and after a hazard incident or natural disaster by broadcasting early warnings, coordinating emergency management strategies, providing timely updates, and offering advice on protective actions. Therefore, it is important to examine how news media use various framing devices such as story selection, placement, length, and quotations from officials and citizens in their crisis news coverage. Our paper investigates print media coverage of Hurricane Harvey utilizing data from three newspapers: the New York Times (online), the Wall Street Journal (online), and the Houston Chronicle. By examining the use of descriptors, quotes, and wording regarding Hurricane Harvey, our research explores how media coverage framed and created a tone for government and private sectors for their roles in response and recovery processes. Findings reveal that the human-interest frame received the most media attention while the morality frame received less attention. Regarding tone, we find that the overall tone for government response was balanced and less negative. However, the media tone varies between three levels of government: the tone for the federal government was more negative, while the tone for the city and state level of government was slightly positive. For private sectors, we found that the for-profit sector coverage had a strong negative tone while the non-profit sector received a strong positive tone. By offering a descriptive analysis of framing and tone, our study reveals how print media portray actors involved in recovery and rebuilding efforts for Hurricane Harvey.

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