Choice and Medication is now available for Monash Health! Find fact sheets and printable patient information leaflets in multiple languages to help consumers, carers and family members understand their medicines better so they can make more informed decisions.

Visit our guide to Covidence – an online collaboration tool for screening references, extracting data, and keeping track of your work when conducting reviews of the literature. Register for a Covidence webinar on 20th August – no prior experience is necessary.

An UpToDate shortcut has now been added to all clinical desktops, providing quick and easy access from your work PC. Not registered yet? Visit our UpToDate guide for instructions, as well as video demonstrations such as this overview of UpToDate content.

Our new Telehealth library guide covers the use of telecommunications technologies to deliver health care and supportive services. The guide curates resources such as recent articles, books, journals, and podcasts.

July has seen multiple Australian states plunged back into lockdown in an effort to stem the spread of the highly transmissible Delta variant. The Delta variant has also contributed to rising infections abroad, and fears that the US may see another resurgence in the coming months. For a 5-minute summary on the Delta variant, see this video, podcast, or transcript from the WHO.

In vaccine news, the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) provisionally approved the Pfizer vaccine for those over 12 years of age. The Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation (ATAGI) also issued updated recommendations for use of the AstraZeneca vaccine in outbreak settings. And earlier this month, the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) published guidance on communicating about COVID-19 vaccines. The requirements do not apply to patient consultations.

On July 19th – dubbed “Freedom Day” – the majority of England’s COVID-19 restrictions were lifted. Coming amid rising infections and hospitalisations, the move was not without controversy among international health experts, with this open letter in The Lancet calling it “dangerous and premature”. Australia’s own Stephen Duckett also commented, noting that the UK had not yet met the two key criteria for relaxing restrictions.

Selected COVID-19 articles:

• Health literacy and disparities in COVID19 – related knowledge, attitudes, beliefs and behaviours in Australia recommends tailoring health messages to meet the needs of people with chronic disease, poorer health literacy, and those who primarily speak a language other than English at home.
   
• This article shares early findings from UK research and discusses the impact of lockdowns on alcohol consumption at home – suggesting the pandemic is an opportunity to reassess relationships with alcohol.
   
• Current methods for diagnosis of human coronaviruses: pros and cons discusses how human coronaviruses are identified – including COVID-19 – the structural make-up of viruses, development of testing and various methodologies involved.
   
• The challenge presented by inaccurate or misleading health information has increased during the pandemic. This paper looks at the issue from an Australian perspective.

Consumers Health Forum of Australia (CHFA) released their final report on the Consumer Health Literacy Segmentation and Activation Project. Commissioned by NPS MedicineWise, the report defines and measures health literacy in Australia. To discuss the report, the CEOs of NPS MedicineWise and CHFA were joined by a consumer advocate in this 20-minute podcast episode.

The Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) has updated their advice on the use of methylphenidate in pregnancy. Methylphenidate – marketed under brand names such as Ritalin and Concerta – has been changed from pregnancy Category B3 to Category D “due to a small increased occurrence of foetal cardiac malformations” during the first trimester of pregnancy.

Mental health services in Australia – published online by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) – was updated in July, including its section on the mental health impact of COVID-19. Among its key points: in April this year, 20% of Medicare-subsidised mental health services were delivered via telehealth.

At the beginning of the month, the OECD released their online database, OECD Health Statistics 2021. Access datasets on topics such as COVID-19 Health Indicators, Non-Medical Determinants of Health, and Health Care Quality Indicators.

Explore our range of journals on BrowZine.

• A study in Australasian Emergency Care analysed survey data from patients and carers attending the ED in NSW. People with mental health conditions reported less positive experiences in terms of emotional support, communication and respect for their preferences.
   
• From the new issue of BMJ Quality & Safety: a multicentre retrospective cohort study investigating the association between surgery at night and increased risk, partly explained by higher exposure to blood transfusions and anaesthesia handovers overnight.
   
• The EPDS and Australian Indigenous women highlights problems regarding the effectiveness of the EDPS for perinatal mental health screening including cultural safety, reliability, and low screening rates.
   
• Australian hand therapists indicate their orthotic preferences for post-traumatic elbow extension and flexion deficits in this article from the Journal of Hand Therapy. Factors affecting their choice are also presented.
   
• Causes of smoking relapse in the first year of cessation treatment are investigated in this article from Addictive Behaviours. Affective experiences such as feeling relaxed or angry and beginning smoking at an older age were key determinants.
   
• Recognizing expressions of thriving among persons living in nursing homes explores everyday expressions of thriving in a Victorian nursing home. The authors note practical implications for education, organisational policies, and person-centred care strategies.
   
• Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities are being negatively impacted by a lack of health literacy awareness in their communities. Access to and awareness of important resources for their community wellbeing have been widely impacted.