Abstract:Objective: To evaluate the knowledge of basic life support (BLS) among students and health providers in Medicine, Pharmacy, Dentistry, and Allied Health Science Colleges at Qassim University. Methodology:A cross sectional study was performed using an online BLS survey that was completed by 139 individuals.Results: Ninety-three responders were medical students, 7 were medical interns, 6 were dental students, 7 were pharmacy students, 11 were medical science students and 15 were clinical practitioners. No responder scored 100% on the BLS survey. Only two out of the 139 responders (1.4%) scored 90-99%. Both of these individuals were fifth year medical students. Six responders (4.3%) scored 80-89%. Of these, 5 were fifth year medical students, and one was fourth-year medical student. Eleven responders (7.9%) scored 70-79%. Of these, eight were fifth year medical students, two were medical interns and one was a pharmacist. Twenty-three responders (16.5%) scored 60-69%. Of these, 11 were fifth year medical students, 1 was a fourth-year medical student, 3 were medical interns, 2 were medical science students, 1 was a dentistry student, and 5 were pharmacists. Twenty-eight responders (20.1%) scored 50-59%. Of these, 11 were fifth year medical students, 3 were fourthyear medical students, 1 was a third-year medical student, 1 was a second-year medical student, 2 were first-year medical students, 1 was a pharmacy student, 3 were dental students, 1 was a allied health science student, 2 were doctors, and 3 were pharmacists. The remaining 69 responders (49.6%) scored less than 50%. Conclusion:Knowledge of BLS among medicine, pharmacy, dentistry, and allied health science students and health providers at Qassim University is poor and needs to be improved. We suggest that inclusion of a BLS course in the undergraduate curriculum with regular reassessment would increase awareness and application of this valuable life-saving skill set.

Background Successful mass vaccination programmes are public health achievements of the contemporary world. While pharmaceutical companies are actively developing new vaccines, and demonstrating results of effectiveness and safety profiles, concerns on COVID-19 vaccine management are under-reported. We aimed to synthesise the evidence for efficient cold chain management of COVID vaccines. Methods The scoping review’s conduct and reporting were based on the PRISMA–ScR 2018 checklist. We searched from April 2020 to January 2022 for publications in PubMed (LitCovid), Scopus and ScienceDirect. All review stages were pilot-tested to calibrate 2 reviewers. Articles on cold chain logistics and management were included, while publications solely describing COVID vaccines, their development and clinical aspects of the vaccine, were excluded. To capture relevant data, charting was conducted by one reviewer and verified by another. Results were analysed thematically and summarised descriptively in a table and in-text. Results and discussion We assessed 6984 potentially relevant citations. We included 14 publications originating from USA (n = 6), India (n = 2), Finland, Spain, Bangladesh, Netherlands, Switzerland and Ethiopia. They were reported as reviews (4), policy or guidance documents (3), experimental studies (2), case reports (2), expert commentary (1), phenomenological study (1), and decision-making trial and evaluation laboratory trial (1). The findings were presented in three themes: (i) regulatory requirements for cold-chain logistics, (ii) packaging and storage, and (iii) transportation and distribution. A conceptual framework emerged linking regulatory requirements, optimal logistics operation and formulation stability as the key to efficient cold chain management. Recommendations were made for improving formulation stability, end-product storage conditions, and incorporating monitoring technologies. Conclusion COVID-19 vaccines require special end-to-end supply cold chain requirements, from manufacture, and transportation to warehouses and healthcare facilities. To sustain production, minimise wastage, and for vaccines to reach target populations, an efficient and resilient vaccine supply chain which is assisted by temperature monitoring technologies is imperative.

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Purpose: To investigate the actual use of eye drops with respect to their administration, storage, and disposal in a community in Saudi Arabia. Methods: A cross-sectional observational survey was conducted online. All the relevant data were collected using a standardized questionnaire. The questionnaire consisted of three sections: demographic characteristics of the participants, attitude of participants with respect to the administration and storage of eye drops, and the participants' understanding of the role of pharmacist in enhancing patients' compliance with eye drop regimens. Results: A total of 720 participants were included in the study, viz, 229 males (31.8 %) and 491 females (68.2 %). Majority of the participants (82.5 %) indicated that they avoided touching their eyes with the bottle tip. Likewise, most participants (90.8 %) reported that they applied eye ointment after administering eye drops while 30.6 % allowed an interval of < 5 min between eye drop and ointment administration. However, 30.5 % of the participants gave an interval of 5-10 min between eye drop and ointment treatment. Furthermore, 32.5 % reported that they consistently washed their hands before administering eye drops, while only 29.6 % occasionally washed their hands. Conclusion: These results indicate that all the patients used eye drops improperly at some point in time, and thus, there is a need for counselling on the appropriate use of eye drops as an essential step towards successful treatment.