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Increasing Polio outbreaks in Pakistan have put the global Polio eradication at risk. The Federally Administrated Tribal Areas (FATA) has been the hub of Poliovirus making Pakistan the major contributor of Polio cases. Despite receiving huge foreign funding and carrying out several campaigns for countering Polio over the past several years points t...
Context in source publication
Context 1
... about 90% of them said the Polio can be prevented by Polio vaccine. It is quite clear from the Figure-1 given below that majority of the head of households was familiar to Polio disease, its effects on children health and Polio prevention through Polio vaccine but they had not any knowledge of what causes Polio and how it spreads. The data in the figure also shows similar responses from all the three selected agencies. ...
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This study examined the impact of armed conflict on public health surveillance systems, the limitations of traditional surveillance in this context, and innovative strategies to overcome these limitations. A qualitative case study was conducted to examine the factors affecting the functioning of poliovirus surveillance in conflict-affected areas of...
This study examined the impact of armed conflict on public health surveillance systems, the limitations of traditional surveillance in this context, and innovative strategies to overcome these limitations. A qualitative case study was conducted to examine the factors affecting the functioning of poliovirus surveillance in conflict-affected areas of...
In this study, we aimed to evaluate the immunological protectivity of infants following four doses of bivalent oral polio vaccine (bOPV; Bio Farma), which were given simultaneously with DTwP-Hb-Hib (Pentabio®), along with one dose of inactivated poliovirus vaccine (IPV) at the fourth visit. A total of 143 newborn infants who fulfilled the inclusion...
Background
To meet the demand for effective and affordable inactivated polio vaccines (IPVs), a reduced dose, aluminium hydroxide (Al(OH)3)-adjuvanted IPV vaccine was developed (IPV-Al, Picovax®) and evaluated in clinical trials. The present trial is an extension of two previous trials (a primary and a booster trial). The aim was to evaluate the pe...
Poliomyelitis is a viral disease caused by the poliovirus (PV), globally. This virus is responsible for Acute Flaccid Paralysis (AFP) in children in Pakistan. Due to this virus, thousands of children are paralyzed. This virus is transmitted through wastewater in a congested population. The target group of polioviruses comprises the children with no...
Citations
... For example, in Pakistan a popular conspiracy theory suggested that COVID-19 was created by the United States to attack the Muslim world (see Y. H. Khan et al., 2020). This anti-Western conspiracy theory was linked with older conspiracies about the CIA using anti-polio vaccines to make Muslims infertile (see M. A. Khan & Kanwal, 2015). ...
Research has explored how the COVID-19 pandemic triggered a wave of conspiratorial thinking and online hate speech, but little is empirically known about how different phases of the pandemic are associated with hate speech against adversaries identified by online conspiracy communities. This study addresses this gap by combining observational methods with exploratory automated text analysis of content from an Italian-themed conspiracy channel on Telegram during the first year of the pandemic. We found that, before the first lockdown in early 2020, the primary target of hate was China, which was blamed for a new bioweapon. Yet over the course of 2020 and particularly after the beginning of the second lockdown, the primary targets became journalists and healthcare workers, who were blamed for exaggerating the threat of COVID-19. This study advances our understanding of the association between hate speech and a complex and protracted event like the COVID-19 pandemic, and it suggests that country-specific responses to the virus (e.g., lockdowns and re-openings) are associated with online hate speech against different adversaries depending on the social and political context.
... People believe in rumors instead of facts, which leads to the spread of polio. To find the reason for unending polio, M.A. Khan and Kanwal (2015) collected data from the most affected areas of FATA. They made clear that religious militancy and armed conflicts are not the only reason for the failure of polio campaigns. ...
... However, in Pakistan, some children are getting vaccinated more than three times due to which the parents become suspicious why we give vaccine more than three times if it is required only three times. Multiple polio vaccination has been practiced not only because of sometimes poor coordination, but also based on the argument that the whole world is at risk if even a single child is affected (M.A. Khan & Kanwal, 2015). Meanwhile, others observe that many people did not take any polio vaccine but live normal lives which means that polio is not a fatal disease. ...
... The anti-vaccination behavior of the general public has been reported previously with polio vaccination in Pakistan. This behavior was developed due to various conspiracy theories and superstitious religious beliefs of the general public regarding vaccination [18][19][20][21]. Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the practice of non-pharmaceutical intervention like wearing a mask, using hand sanitizer, washing hands, and social distancing was less observed among the general population of Pakistan. ...
The current study aims to assess the beliefs of the general public in Pakistan towards conspiracy theories, acceptance, willingness to pay, and preference for the COVID-19 vaccine. A cross-sectional study was conducted through an online self-administered questionnaire during January 2021. The Chi-square test or Fisher exact test was utilized for statistical data analysis. A total of 2158 respondents completed the questionnaire, among them 1192 (55.2%) were male with 23.87 (SD: ±6.23) years as mean age. The conspiracy beliefs circulating regarding the COVID-19 vaccine were believed by 9.3% to 28.4% of the study participants. Among them, 1040 (48.2%) agreed to vaccinate on its availability while 934 (43.3%) reported the Chinese vaccine as their preference. The conspiracy beliefs of the participants were significantly associated with acceptance of the COVID-19 vaccine. The existence of conspiracy beliefs and low vaccine acceptance among the general population is a serious threat to successful COVID-19 vaccination.
... Along with these obstacles, Pakistan offers a difficult geography, which causes a poor public health delivery. Khan and Kanwal (2015) concluded that unsuccessful annihilation of polio in Pakistan is due to religious militancy. FATA has been the core of polio in Pakistan, which also put the global eradication of polio at risk. ...
Pakistan is faced by a number of health care challenges and battle against polio is still continued. Media can play an effective role through health care campaigns in creating awareness and educating the masses about the perilous and life threatening consequences of diseases, polio in particular. The efficacy of such campaigns is based on widespread mass media outreach. The study aims to identify the media that was the most effective in educating the mothers regarding the infectious disease polio and its immunization in Lahore, Pakistan. It also aims to find out the impact of media on the socio-demographic variables of the respondents. As many as 200 mothers residing in Lahore were surveyed to measure their knowledge, attitudes and practices towards polio immunization. The results of the study show that television channels were the most effective source of information about polio campaigns and immunization as compared to other sources of mass media. The study also determined that literate mothers from urban areas were more vigilant as compared to others with low literacy rate. Moreover, younger mothers had poor knowledge about polio immunization as compared to elderly mothers. Therefore, it is concluded that print, electronic, digital, social, outdoor media and interpersonal communication channels should join hands in hands to eradicate polio and make Pakistan a polio-free country
... Existing literature from Pakistan reports that societal cultural norms may pose a barrier to unrestricted movements of women in Pakistan and consultation with a male healthcare professional cannot take place alone. Hence, females are largely dependent upon a male family member for care, emotional support, logistics, and medical services [31,37]. Evidence from the literature highlights that females generally do not report to a clinic or discontinue their treatment before completion in most cases [36]. ...
... Existing literature from Pakistan reports that societal cultural norms may pose a barrier to unrestricted movements of women in Pakistan and consultation with a male healthcare professional cannot take place alone. Hence, females are largely dependent upon a male family member for care, emotional support, logistics, and medical services [31,37]. Evidence from the literature highlights that females generally do not report to a clinic or discontinue their treatment before completion in most cases [36]. ...
Background
Pakistan is one of the last few countries in which poliomyelitis is endemic. Evidence indicates that out-of-pocket expenditures are a barrier to polio rehabilitation treatment, yet there are no reported figures related to the financial burden of this disease on patients in a recently polio-endemic country.
Objective
This study investigated direct costs attributed to rehabilitation treatment of poliomyelitis among Pakistani patients and reported its duration along with the socioeconomic status of poliomyelitis survivors.
Conclusion
The cost of poliomyelitis rehabilitation in Pakistan is high; it has an economic effect on the lives of patients and their families. Despite good education, polio survivors in Pakistan appear to have low socioeconomic status, lower chances of employment and marriage, as well as fewer children. Further research is recommended to explore the burden of disease on society, i.e., indirect costs and suffering.
... It is essential to optimize the knowledge of these scholars as they can help to neutralize the negative perceptions of the public towards polio vaccination. Our findings pertaining to the attitudes of Muslim scholars towards polio vaccination were positive and are in line with what is reported in the literature (Khan and Kanwal 2015). The majority of scholars emphasized the need to depoliticize the polio vaccination issues in Pakistan. ...
... A large proportion of Muslim scholars believed that polio vaccines do not cause any harm to children, however, a handful of scholars thought otherwise. These findings are supported by another study where the head of households reported that they heard from the religious scholars about the harmfulness of polio vaccines (Khan and Kanwal 2015). It is essential to identify religious leaders with negative perceptions about polio vaccines. ...
Pakistan is one of the two countries where polio remains endemic. Among multiple reasons of polio prevalence, false religious beliefs are accounted as major barriers towards polio immunization in Pakistan. Within this context, religious scholars are now engaged in polio immunization campaigns to dismantle the myths and battle the resurgence of polio in Pakistan. The objective of this study was to assess knowledge, attitudes and perceived barriers of Muslim scholars towards polio immunization in Pakistan. A descriptive, cross-sectional survey of Muslim scholars was conducted in Quetta and Peshawar divisions of Pakistan. From October to December 2015, a convenience sample of 770 Muslim scholars was recruited from the local mosques and religious institutions to participate in this study. Knowledge, attitudes, and perceived barriers were assessed by using self-administered, anonymous and pretested questionnaire. Descriptive and regression analyses were used to express the results with p < 0.05 taken as significant. Three hundred and forty-eight (45.2 %) participants exhibited good knowledge about polio with a mean score of 7.16 ± 2.12 (based on 14 questions). Knowledge gaps were identified about the transmission (32.6 %) and consequences of poliovirus (39.9 %). Overall, 527 (68.4 %) participants showed positive attitudes towards polio immunization with a mean attitude score of 27.35 ± 2.68 (based on nine statements). The majority of participants agreed on the need of depoliticizing polio immunization issues (87.1 %), while reservations were noted about their willingness to participate in future polio immunization programs (44.6 %). Security (75.8 %) and vaccine management issues (64 %) were reported by the participants as the major barriers towards polio immunization in Pakistan. The findings showed poor knowledge of Muslim scholars towards polio; however, their attitudes were positive towards polio immunization. More studies are required to assess the knowledge and attitudes of Muslim scholars at the national level to validate the findings of this study.
The present study examined urban green space users’ self-perceived mental health benefits of visiting green spaces in Pakistan – one of South Asia’s rapidly urbanizing countries. By using a quantitative-based cross-sectional survey, 384 participants were surveyed in green urban neighbourhood settings. It was found that most green space users believed that their visits to green spaces have at least some positive effects on the different parameters of their mental health, such as stress or anxiety levels, mood, energy levels, optimism levels, confidence levels, or concentration levels, among others. The study explored that the frequency and duration of green space usage and intensity of activity performed in the green space have an important role in determining the degree of the self-perceived mental health benefits of visiting greenspaces, suggesting the importance of green interventions, including physical changes in the environment and social promotion activities to encourage green space usage among urban dwellers. Moreover, the study revealed low green space usage and activity intensity levels among certain sub-population groups compared to others, such as women, young adults, or the elderly, highlighting the need to ensure equity of access to green spaces for all sub-population groups and prioritize them in intervention strategies.
The rapid escalation of the novel coronavirus SARS -CoV-2 into a global pandemic, culminating in the World Health Organization’s declaration on March 11, 2020, marked a historic milestone. The far-reaching impact of the COVID -19 pandemic necessitates an interdisciplinary approach to address its myriad ethical challenges. This article categorizes the key ethical questions explored from an Islamic perspective into two groups: “Historical Issues” and “Modern Issues.” The former revisits questions examined in pre-modern discussions on historical pandemics, while the latter delves into ethical challenges relatively unique to the contemporary context of COVID -19. Each group’s exploration is complemented by a section on “Related Sources,” offering insight into pertinent primary works. The article concludes with reflections on the evolving trajectory of research in this field. Serving its introductory purpose, the article includes two appendices: Appendix 1, “Overview of Key Ethical Issues," provides a condensed summary in table form, while Appendix 2, “An Extended Bibliography on Islam, Pandemics, COVID -19, and Morality,” offers a comprehensive list of primary and secondary sources for researchers interested in further readings.
Federally Administered Tribal Areas of Pakistan, a region lying on the boundary between Pakistan’s North-West Frontier Province and southern Afghanistan, controlled by the Federal Government of Pakistan, has been in the public eye following the event of the United States invasion of Afghanistan in 2001. The spate of the rise of militancy and insurgencies in FATA currently poses a serious threat to the political stability of Pakistan and Afghanistan respectively. Relying on the documentary methods of data collection and analysis, therefore, this study argues that the major factor underlying the prevailing militancy in FATA is the deep-seated political and socio-economic marginalization of the region. The study thus recommends, among other measures, that the Government of Pakistan needs to expedite actions to initiate and implement deliberate and well articulated holistic reforms to bring the region into the mainstream of Pakistan’s socio economic and political developmental agenda. The study concludes that the intentional and proper adoption and application of these measures would be a realistic way of ending the militancy and insurgency in FATA and achieving lasting peace in the region and Pakistan as a whole. Keywords: Governance/Politics, Economy, Marginalization, FATA, Militancy, Religion.
