Understanding the dynamics of deceased organ donation and utilization in Colombia

Objective

To obtain a comprehensive overview of organ donation, organ utilization, and discard in the entire donation process in Colombia. 

Methods 

A retrospective study of 1 451 possible donors, distributed in three regions of Colombia, evaluated in 2022. The general characteristics, diagnosis, and causes of contraindication for potential donors were described. 

Retrospective review of medicine utilization for noncommunicable diseases in three public sector pharmacies in Jamaica

Objective

The rational use of medicines offers a cost-saving strategy to maximize therapeutic outcomes for developing and developed countries. The aim of this study was to evaluate the rational use of medicines for selected noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) at three pharmacies at public hospitals in Jamaica using the World Health Organization’s (WHO’s) prescribing indicators.

Institutional care in four Latin American countries: the importance of fostering public information and evaluation strategies

More than 8 million older people in Latin America depend on long-term care (LTC), accounting for 12% of people aged ≥ 60 years and almost 27% of those aged ≥ 80. It is crucial to develop sustainable strategies for providing LTC in the area, including institutional care. This special report aims to characterize institutional LTC in four countries (Brazil, Chile, Costa Rica and Mexico), using available information systems, and to identify the strategies adopted to support institutional care in these countries.

Public health surveillance and the data, information, knowledge, intelligence and wisdom paradigm

This article points out deficiencies in present-day definitions of public health surveillance, which include data collection, analysis, interpretation and dissemination, but not public health action. Controlling a public health problem of concern requires a public health response that goes beyond information dissemination. It is undesirable to have public health divided into data generation processes (public health surveillance) and data use processes (public health response), managed by two separate groups (surveillance experts and policy-makers).

Health alerts for substandard, falsified, and unregistered medical products at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in the Americas

Objective

Identify and analyze incidents of substandard, falsified, unregistered, and stolen medical products at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Methods

Detailed search of the websites of regulatory authorities in the Americas. Identification of incidents of substandard, falsified, unregistered, and stolen medicines and medical devices (including in vitro diagnostics). The types of products were determined, as were the stages in the supply chain where they were detected, and the actions taken by authorities.

Reporting guidelines for clinical trial reports for interventions involving artificial intelligence: the CONSORT-AI extension

The CONSORT 2010 statement provides minimum guidelines for reporting randomized trials. Its widespread use has been instrumental in ensuring transparency in the evaluation of new interventions. More recently, there has been a growing recognition that interventions involving artificial intelligence (AI) need to undergo rigorous, prospective evaluation to demonstrate impact on health outcomes. The CONSORT-AI (Consolidated Standards of Reporting Trials– Artificial Intelligence) extension is a new reporting guideline for clinical trials evaluating interventions with an AI component.

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