Streptococcus suis infection in Hong Kong: an emerging infectious disease?

We conducted a 31-month retrospective review of all laboratory-confirmed Streptococcus suis infections admitted to public hospitals in Hong Kong. Strain identification, serotyping and antibiotic susceptibility tests were conducted on S. suis isolates. Twenty-one sporadic cases were identified, comprising 18 (86%) males and 3 (14%) females. About half were patients aged 65 years. More cases occurred during summer. Occupational exposure was documented in five (24%) cases. The estimated annual incidence was 0.09/100 000 in the general population and 32/100 000 in people with occupational exposure to pigs and raw pork. The primary clinical manifestations were meningitis (48%), septicaemia (38%) and endocarditis (14%). The case-fatality rate was 5%. All available isolates from 15 patients were serotype 2, sensitive to penicillin, ampicillin, ceftriaxone, but resistant to tetracycline. Injury prevention and proper handling of pigs or raw pork should be advocated to both at-risk occupational groups and the general population.     

The promise of object technology: what's in it for healthcare?

This article focuses on the application of a new business computing model--Objects. Although Object Technology is not new, its widespread use in healthcare information management executives struggle with the integration demands of the new enterprise, Object Technology will unleash the true power of desktop computing and lessen the many quandaries faced with the integration and aggregation of strategic enterprise data. As we move forward, the new healthcare business model will attempt to create the "virtual enterprise." This new enterprise, will be lean and nimble and allow the Integrated Delivery System (IDS) to deliver care to a broader population with fewer requirements for expensive and scarce resources. To do this, the IDS must possess the technology to share key data, with partners and providers, that will allow faster and more accurate decision making. This article presents the "natural fit" of Object Technology and its ability to solve the complex computing issues of the new healthcare enterprise.     

Simply the best? The impact of quality on choice of primary healthcare provider in Sweden

ObjectiveOne of the more important objectives with the patient choice reform, introducing non-price competition in Swedish primary healthcare, was to improve performance and quality of care. However, in order for choice to lead to quality improvements, citizens need to consider quality aspects in their choices of provider. We hypothesize that quality of care influences choice of provider and the objective of this study is to investigate if citizens are willing to make a trade-off between distance to chosen provider and quality of care.MethodsWe use conditional logit models to analyse if quality and other provider attributes influence choice of provider. The study population includes all citizens of Region Stockholm with at least one primary healthcare contact (N ~1.4 million).ResultsThe results show that distance is the most important factor in choosing a primary healthcare provider but that there seems to be a willingness to make a trade-off between distance and quality measures. However, other provider attributes, such as the Care Need Index of the registered population, seem to influence choice to a greater extent than quality.ConclusionThe results point in the same direction as the arguments behind the patient choice reform. However, the effects are marginal. To enhance quality competition, policy makers should consider making quality information at the provider level more accessible.     

Whom should I rely on for my future care? Patterns of care expectations and intergenerational correlates among ageing Chinese adults in Hong Kong

This study examined ageing parents' care expectations across multiple care domains (financial and material, emotional, personal and informational) towards filial and formal sources and identified intergenerational correlates of care expectation patterns using a proposed care expectation model. Data of 780 eligible ageing parents were drawn from a representative household survey of ageing adults (≥50 years) conducted in 2016–2017. Latent class analysis was used to examine the typological structure underlying ageing parents' care expectations. Four patterns of care expectations were discovered: mixed–maximal, filial–modest, formal–modest and neither–minimal. Multinomial logistic regression analysis was conducted to validate the newly proposed care expectation model. In addition to certain predisposing factors (participants' age, sex and education), parental enabling resources (economic status), health characteristics (physical, mental and functional health status), children‐related enabling characteristics (number of sons and marital status of children), and intergenerational enabling circumstances (intergenerational relationships and caregiving to their own parents) were introduced into the model and found to be associated with ageing parents' care expectations. The findings can inform policy and programmes that effectively respond to ageing adults' diverse care expectations in Hong Kong and have implications for other Asian societies facing rapid population ageing and increasing care demands.     

The effectiveness of influenza vaccination in preventing hospitalizations in children in Hong Kong, 2009–2013

Background

Influenza vaccination is widely recommended every year to protect individuals against influenza virus infection and illness. There are few published estimates of influenza vaccine effectiveness against hospitalization in children or from subtropical regions.

Methods

We conducted a test-negative year-round study between October 2009 and September 2013, recruiting children 6 months to 17 years of age admitted to two hospitals in Hong Kong with a febrile acute respiratory infection. Cases were tested for influenza A and B and conditional logistic regression was used to estimate vaccine effectiveness comparing influenza vaccination history of the trivalent influenza vaccine (TIV) among patients testing positive versus negative for influenza, adjusting for age and sex and matching by calendar week of recruitment.

Results

Overall vaccine effectiveness against hospitalization with laboratory-confirmed influenza A and B was estimated to be 61.7% (95% CI: 43.0%, 74.2%). The estimated vaccine effectiveness against A(H3N2) was 36.6% (95% CI: −25.5%, 67.9%) compared to 71.5% (95% CI: 39.4%, 86.6%) for A(H1N1)pdm09 and 68.8% (95% CI: 41.6%, 83.3%) for B.

Conclusions

Vaccine effectiveness against hospitalization in children varied from year to year, but was moderate to high overall even in an area with influenza activity throughout the year.     

According to need? Predicting the amount of municipal home help allocated to elderly recipients in an urban area of Sweden

Given the cutbacks which have been carried out in the Swedish welfare state despite the unchanged official policy of allocation of home help services according to needs, it is essential to evaluate the factors which guide the allocation of home help today. Whereas numerous studies have identified factors which predict entry into the home help system, the present paper concentrates on predictors of the amount of home help amongst those allocated assistance. Data were obtained from the population-based care and services section of the 2002 Swedish National Study of Aging and Care-Kungsholmen (SNAC-K). All home help recipients (> or = 65 years of age) living in an inner city district of Stockholm (Kungsholmen) were analysed with ordinary least squares regressions to identify predictors of the number of hours of home help (n = 943). Need indicators, i.e. dependency in activities of daily living (ADLs) and instrumental ADLs (IADLs), and cognitive impairment (Berger scale) were the strongest predictors of more hours of home help. The addition of sociodemographic (i.e. age, gender and income), environmental (i.e. informal care, housing adaptations and housing accessibility) and structural (i.e. variations in allocation decisions between one care manager and another) factors contributed only marginally to the explained variance. Hours of help entitlement increased slightly with greater age. Co-residing individuals were allocated significantly fewer home help hours than those living alone. Income and regular access to informal care were not significant predictors. The fact that services are provided according to need criteria does not necessarily mean that the provided services are adequate to meet needs. On the macro level, social policy decisions and available economic and manpower resources determine the allotment of municipal home help. However, this study in an urban sample suggests that, within the available resources, the amount of home help allocated is guided mainly by need indicators amongst those given assistance.     

Can the unemployed be trained to care for the elderly? The effects of subsidized training in elderly care

Demographic change has increased the need for elderly care. Training unemployed workers might be one way to increase the supply of elderly care nurses. This study analyzes the effectiveness of subsidized training for unemployed individuals in the elderly care professions in Germany over 11.5 years. We find that short further training and long retraining courses significantly increase workers' long‐term employment. As approximately 25% to 50% of trained nurses have permanent jobs in the care sector, we estimate that approximately 5% of all employed nurses are formerly trained unemployed workers.     

Apparent consumption and socio‐economic distribution of nutrients in an urban settlement: Hong Kong†

Data relating to the Hong Kong population of 1971 show that with the exception of fats and calcium, the apparent consumption of food was comparable to that of populations in advanced industrial societies. An analysis of the socio‐economic distribution of calcium, energy and animal protein consumption reveals a clear gradation of intake from lower socio‐economic groups to higher socio‐economic groups. In this analysis it is shown that the level of intake of calcium and energy are well below current recommended dietary allowances. It is likely that the recommended allowances are conservative estimates of daily requirements and that some biological adaptation to low calcium and energy intake occurs. By present standards clinical manifestations of malnutrition are rare.     

Health insurance reforms in Singapore and Hong Kong: How the two ageing asian tigers respond to health financing challenges?

Singapore and Hong Kong, two high-income “Tiger economies” in Asia, were ranked as the top two most efficient health systems in the world. Despite remarkable similarities in history and socioeconomic development, both economies embraced rather different paths in health care reforms in the past decades, which reflect their respective sociopolitical dynamics. Rapidly ageing populations and the anxiety about future funding of health care have prompted them to embark on major health financing reforms in the recent three years. While Singapore has transitioned to universal health coverage with the implementation of MediShield Life (MSL), Hong Kong is about to introduce the Voluntary Health Insurance Scheme (VHIS) to supplement its health care financing. Based on secondary materials including policy documents, press releases, and anecdotal reports, this essay compares these two recent reforms on their political context, drivers of reforms, and policy contents, and assesses their prospects in terms of coverage, financial protection, and major implementation challenges. The preliminary assessment suggests that while both programs are associated with certain drawbacks, those of the VHIS may be more fatal and warrant close attention. This essay concludes with a central caveat that underscores the pivotal role of the state in managing health care reforms.     

Intimate partner physical violence: an obstacle to initiation of childcare in primary healthcare units in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil?

The aim of this study was to evaluate whether intimate partner physical violence is a risk factor for late initiation of childcare in primary healthcare units (PHCU). This cross-sectional study included 927 mothers and their infants less than six months of age seen at 27 PHCU in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The target outcome was delay in first visit to the service (at 60 days of age or later). Interactions between intimate partner physical violence, maternal employment, and quality of prenatal care were explored using multivariate logistic regression. Postpartum intimate partner physical violence was an independent risk factor for late initiation of children's healthcare when mothers had no formal occupation (OR = 3.1, 95%CI: 1.5-6.3) or reported inadequate prenatal care (OR = 4.8, 95%CI: 2.4-9.5). The results emphasize the need for better training of health professionals to detect cases of intimate partner violence during prenatal and pediatric care, which themselves are important steps for reducing such occurrence and thus promoting adequate maternal and child care.     

The many faces of ghrelin: new perspectives for nutrition research?

The appetite-modulating peptide ghrelin is predominantly produced and secreted by the stomach and shows a strong growth hormone-releasing activity, which is mediated by the activation of the so-called growth hormone secretagogue type 1a receptor. Ghrelin is involved in the regulation of energy balance by increasing food intake and reducing fat utilization. Additionally, it stimulates lactotroph and corticotroph function, influences the pituitary gonadal axis, inhibits pro-inflammatory cytokine expression, controls gastric motility and acid secretion and influences pancreatic exocrine and endocrine function, as well as impacting on glucose metabolism. This review summarizes the known functions of ghrelin and its role in the regulation of the gut-brain axis.