Physical, Psychological, and Social Health Impact of Temperature Rise Due to Urban Heat Island Phenomenon and Its Associated Factors

The Urban Heat Island Effect（UHI）has now become a commonly observed phenomenon worldwide.Indeed,it has become a significant environmental effect of urbanisation.In Malaysia,research results showed that UHI effects are very evident in several cities such as Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya.UHI effect has long been observed to cause temperature of cities.

Psychological and mental health impacts of COVID-19 pandemic on healthcare workers in China: A review

The coronavirus disease-19(COVID-19)pandemic has put healthcare workers in an unprecedented situation,increasing their psychological and mental health distress.Much research has focused on the issues surrounding anxiety,depression,and stress among healthcare workers.The consequences of mental health problems on healthcare workers’physical health,health-compromising behaviours,suicide ideation,family relationships,and job satisfaction during the COVID-19 pandemic are not well studied.Enhanced psychological stress has known effects on an individual’s physical health.In healthcare workers with preexisting comorbidities,psychological stressors may exacerbate their current health problems.Healthcare professionals are known to have a high risk of substance use,hence they may be at risk of development of substance use addiction or vulnerable to addiction relapse.Frontline COVID-19 healthcare workers are being pushed above and beyond their limits,possibly resulting in suicidal tendencies.Furthermore,the burden of high workload and burnout may also have serious manifestations in relationships with family and an intention to quit their jobs.Future studies should explore the above-mentioned deleterious consequences to provide insight into the development of mental healthcare strategies to combat the psychological impact of COVID-19 on healthcare workers during the COVID-19 emergency.It is imperative to employ strategies to care for and policies to protect the psychological well-being of healthcare workers.

Community Needs Assessment in Relation to Urban Heat Effects: A Study in Greater Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Urban areas usually experience higher temperatures compared with their rural surroundings; this is characterized as urban heat islands （UHIs）, which are the result of environmental overheating due to anthropic activities. Urban areas,which are characterised by massive construction that reduce local vegetation coverage, are subject to the absorption of a large amount of solar radiation,which is only partially released into the atmosphere by radiation in the thermal infrared.

COVID-19 vaccination intention and vaccine characteristics infuencing vaccination acceptance: a global survey of 17 countries

Background:The availability of various types of COVID-19 vaccines and diverse characteristics of the vaccines pre‑sent a dilemma in vaccination choices,which may result in individuals refusing a particular COVID-19 vaccine ofered,hence presenting a threat to immunisation coverage and reaching herd immunity.The study aimed to assess global COVID-19 vaccination intention,vaccine characteristics infuencing vaccination acceptance and desirable vaccine characteristics infuencing the choice of vaccines.Methods:An anonymous cross-sectional survey was conducted between 4 January and 5 March 2021 in 17 coun‑tries worldwide.Proportions and the corresponding 95%confdence intervals(CI)of COVID-19 vaccine acceptance and vaccine characteristics infuencing vaccination acceptance were generated and compared across countries and regions.Multivariable logistic regression analysis was used to determine the factors associated with COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy.Results:Of the 19,714 responses received,90.4%(95%CI 81.8–95.3)reported likely or extremely likely to receive COVID-19 vaccine.A high proportion of likely or extremely likely to receive the COVID-19 vaccine was reported in Australia(96.4%),China(95.3%)and Norway(95.3%),while a high proportion reported being unlikely or extremely unlikely to receive the vaccine in Japan(34.6%),the U.S.(29.4%)and Iran(27.9%).Males,those with a lower educational level and those of older age expressed a higher level of COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy.Less than two-thirds(59.7%;95%CI 58.4–61.0)reported only being willing to accept a vaccine with an efectiveness of more than 90%,and 74.5%(95%CI 73.4–75.5)said they would accept a COVID-19 vaccine with minor adverse reactions.A total of 21.0%(95%CI 20.0–22.0)reported not accepting an mRNA vaccine and 51.8%(95%CI 50.3–53.1)reported that they would only accept a COVID-19 vaccine from a specifc country‐of‐origin.Countries from the Southeast Asia region reported the highest proportion of not accepting mRNA technology.The highest proportion from Europe and the Americas would only accept a vaccine produced by certain countries.The foremost important vaccine characteristic infuencing vaccine choice is adverse reactions(40.6%;95%CI 39.3–41.9)of a vaccine and efectiveness threshold(35.1%;95%CI 33.9–36.4).Conclusions:The inter-regional and individual country disparities in COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy highlight the importance of designing an efcient plan for the delivery of interventions dynamically tailored to the local population.