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Control of the COVID-19 pandemic requires significant changes in people's health behaviors. We offer this multidisciplinary perspective on the extent of compliance with social distancing recommendations and on coping with these measures around the globe in the first months of the pandemic. We present descriptive data from our survey of 17,650 respondents across 18 countries and territories in June 2020. The majority of respondents worried about contracting the virus. Nearly all engaged in at least some preventive behaviors, particularly handwashing, mask wearing, and avoiding social events. Most reported that it would be difficult to continue these behaviors for more than a few months, and about half reported feeling more anxious since the start of the pandemic. Commonly reported coping behaviors included news consumption, watching television, and sleeping. Our cross-national study highlights areas for developing and implementing health behavior interventions in the global fight to stop the spread of COVID-19.

The World Health Organization recommends that HIV counseling and testing (HCT) programs implement strategies to address how intimate partner violence (IPV) influences women's ability to protect themselves from and seek care and treatment for HIV infection. We discuss the process used to adapt a screening and brief intervention (SBI) for female clients of HCT services in Rakai, Uganda-a setting with high prevalence of both HIV and IPV. By outlining our collaborative process for adapting and implementing the SBI in Rakai and training counselors for its use, we hope other HCT programs will consider replicating the approach in their settings.

Intimate partner violence (IPV) has a bidirectional relationship with HIV infection. Researchers from the Rakai Health Sciences Program (RHSP), an HIV research and services organization in rural Uganda, conducted a combination IPV and HIV prevention intervention called the Safe Homes and Respect for Everyone (SHARE) Project between 2005 and 2009. SHARE was associated with significant declines in physical and sexual IPV and overall HIV incidence, and its model could be adopted as a promising practice in other settings. In this article we describe how SHARE's IPV-prevention strategies were integrated into RHSP's existing HIV programming and provide recommendations for replication of the approach.

BackgroundIn India, men who have sex with men (MSM) often face physical violence and harassment from police and the general society. Many MSM may not openly disclose their sexual identity, especially if they are married to women and have families. Due to pervasive stigma and discrimination, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) prevention programs are unable to reach many MSM effectively. ObjectiveThe objective of this paper was to describe the design, operations, and monitoring of the Sahaay helpline, a mHealth intervention for the MSM population of India. MethodsWe established the “Sahaay” mHealth intervention in 2013; a MSM-dedicated helpline whose main goal was to increase access to comprehensive, community-based HIV prevention services and improve knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors of MSM towards HIV and sexually transmitted infections (STI) in three states of India (Chhattisgarh, Delhi, and Maharashtra). The helpline provided a 24x7 confidential and easy to use interactive voice response system (IVRS) to callers. IVRS function was monitored through an online dashboard of indicators. The system also provided real-time reporting on callers and services provided. ResultsThe helpline received more than 100,000 calls from 39,800 callers during the first nine months of operation. The helpline maintained an operational uptime of 99.81% (6450/6462 hours); and answered more than 81.33% (83,050/102,115) of all calls. More than three-fourths of the calls came between 9:00 am-12:00 pm. The most successful promotional activity was “interpersonal communication” (reported by 70.05%, 27,880/39,800, of the callers). Nearly three-fourths of the callers self-identified as MSM, including 17.05% (6786/39,800) as rural MSM and 5.03% (2001/39,800) as a married MSM. Most callers (93.10%, 37,055/39,800) requested information, while some (27.01%, 10,750/39,800) requested counseling on HIV/acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS), STIs, and other health and nonhealth issues. There were 38.97% (15,509/39,800) of the callers that were provided contacts of different HIV/AIDS referral services. Many MSM clients reported increased self-esteem in dealing with their sexual identity and disclosing the same with their family and spouse; and an increase in HIV/AIDS risk-reduction behaviors like consistent condom use and HIV testing. ConclusionsNational HIV/AIDS prevention interventions for MSM in India should consider scaling-up this helpline service across the country. The helpline may serve as an important mechanism for accessing hard-to-reach MSM, and thus improving HIV prevention programing.

Objectives: Public health detailing is an intervention in which a public health professional visits health care providers to educate them about evidence-based approaches to improve health. The San Francisco Department of Public Health conducted a public health detailing program from 2016 to 2018 to improve sexual health care and preexposure prophylaxis services in the city. Methods: We conducted a mixed-methods study to understand the implementation of detailing and explore examples of changes to clinicians' clinical behaviors. We surveyed 203 clinicians, conducted 60-minute qualitative interviews with 7 clinicians and 4 detailers, and analyzed tracking forms. We used descriptive statistics to assess associations in the surveys. We used qualitative thematic analysis to understand facilitators and barriers to detailing and identify ways to improve the process and identify its potential benefits. Results: In interviews, both clinicians and detailers had a favorable view of detailing as a tool to connect health department expertise to clinicians. Detailers cited challenges such as limited clinic time, provider turnover, and policies that limit their access to clinicians. These challenges may attenuate the real-world benefits of detailing. Clinicians offered examples of how detailing altered their behaviors, such as taking sexual health histories, building knowledge and confidence about sexual health, and using health department services. Matched surveys (n = 21) showed preliminary changes to prescribing preexposure prophylaxis. Conclusions: Public health detailing is a promising approach to increase clinicians' knowledge and confidence to offer sexual health care services, build buy-in, and support connection to health departments. Detailing programs require sufficient investment and staff support to build lasting and collaborative relationships between clinicians and public health departments and to assess the impact of the intervention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is limited information about how the mental health of people has changed over time during the COVID-19 pandemic in low- and middle-income countries. In a cross-sectional study, we identified factors associated with psychological distress at two periods immediately after two peaks of the COVID-19 pandemic in Russia. Data were collected via online surveys. In May–June 2020, we surveyed 373 respondents across Russia. In January-February 2021, we surveyed 743 people, using the same approach for survey distribution. With Kessler-10 as a measure of psychological distress, we used regression analysis to determine factors associated with higher psychological distress among Russians. Levels of psychological distress were high in both time periods and did not significantly change between the surveys. Having had COVID-19, losing one's job, experiencing problems accessing healthcare, and changing drinking behaviour during the pandemic were associated with higher psychological distress. Apart from getting sick or worrying about the virus, psychological distress is affected by restrictions and the consequences of the pandemic situation. As the COVID-19 pandemic continues, actions are needed to address the mental well-being of the population in Russia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Vaccines against SARS‐CoV‐2 continue to be developed at an astonishingly quick speed and the early ones, like Pfizer and Moderna, have been shown to be more effective than many public health scientists had dared to hope. As COVID‐19 vaccine research continues to progress, the world's eyes are turning toward medicine regulators. COVID‐19 vaccines need to be authorized for use in each country in which the pharmaceutical industry intends to commercialize its product. This results in a patchwork of regulations that can influence the speed at which products are launched and the standards that govern them. In this research forum article, we discuss several key questions about COVID‐19 vaccine regulations that should shape research on the next stage of the pandemic response. We call for a research agenda that looks into the political economy of pharmaceutical regulation, particularly from a comparative perspective, including Global South countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study analyzed gender differences in exposure to family violence in Serbia and its association with health symptoms. Using data from the National Health Survey 2006 in Serbia, univariate and multivariate logistic regression models were run to examine the association between exposure to physical violence in the family (in the past 12 months) and the occurrence of 15 different health symptoms (in the past 4 weeks). Out of 12,646 interviewed adults (older than 20), women reported experiencing family violence nearly 1.7 times more often than men (1.28 % vs. 0.75 %). Women had nine health symptoms significantly associated with experienced violence, while men had four, even after controlling for socio-demographic characteristics. Depression and insomnia were common for both genders. Results suggest that physicians should pay attention to health complaints, consider family violence as an associated factor, and address violence in a gender sensitive way that is free of prejudice and preconceptions. Keywords Physical violence * Family violence * Health symptoms * Violence against women * Violence against men, Family violence is a serious public health concern that attracts the attention of international and national authorities of many sectors in societies and communities (Krug et al. 2002). Family violence [...]

Few studies explore how intimate partner violence (IPV) affects Arab Americans. Through focus groups with stakeholders from an Arab-centered health organization and semistructured interviews with Arab-American female clients (18–65 years), we explore how IPV affects Arab-American women and factors that impede and facilitate their access to support services. We find that IPV is a critical concern among Arab Americans and that generational status, educational attainment, and support from family, friends, or religious leaders were perceived to influence access to IPV support services. This study has implications for developing culturally sensitive IPV interventions for Arab-American women. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]