The results of the study concluded that family involvement in acute care setting can help the nursing staff in taking care of the patient in acute care setting and it also provides the opportunity for preparing them for after care of the patients at home following discharge.

Objective. Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic autoimmune condition associated with a potential for deformities. It is one of the common conditions to seek health care. Hence, the present study was conducted to assess the telemedicine services for patients suffering from rheumatoid arthritis during the COVID-19 pandemic in an Asian Indian population. Methods. A prospective study was conducted (March 2020–June 2020) in the telemedicine department of a premier northern Indian tertiary care institution. Out of the total patients enrolled ( N = 7577 ) in telemedicine services, 122 rheumatoid arthritis patients (1.6%) were followed for 1 month to assess change in functional status by modified Health Assessment Questionnaire (mHAQ). Telephonic interviews of the enrolled patients were conducted to determine the level of understanding of advice given by consultants, barriers during the consultation, and satisfaction with teleconsultations for rheumatology clinics. Results. For the native people, language of the clinicians was the main barrier (20%) in telerheumatology. Saving of time and money was observed as beneficial factors for patients. More than three-quarters of all rheumatoid arthritis patients were ready to use teleconsultation in the near future. A similar proportion of patients were in support for the recommendation of these services to other persons. Conclusion. We report the successful use of telemedicine services in the evaluation and management of rheumatic diseases in the current COVID-19 pandemic situation.

Stenotrophomonas maltophilia, once regarded as an organism of low virulence, has evolved as a significant opportunistic pathogen causing severe human infections in both hospital and community settings, especially amongst highly debilitated patients. Globally, S. maltophilia ranks third amongst the four most common pathogenic non-fermenting Gram-negative bacilli (NFGNBs), others being Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Acinetobacter baumannii and Burkholderia cepacia complex (Bcc). The worth of accurate identification of S. maltophilia comes to the forefront as it needs to be differentiated from other NFGNBs such as Acinetobacter, P. aeruginosa and Bcc due to its inherently contrasting antibiotic susceptibility pattern. Consequently, its correct identification is essential as no single drug is amply effective against all NFGNBs, which hinders initiation of appropriate empirical treatment resulting in increased morbidity and mortality.

Stenotrophomonas maltophilia is an emerging nosocomial pathogen responsible for serious human infections. This study was carried out to determine antibiotic susceptibility, resistance mechanisms (integrons, sul1 and sul2), and genetic relatedness (Enterobacterial Repetitive Intergenic Consensus [ERIC]-PCR) among 106 clinical isolates of S. maltophilia from India. Twenty-four (22.6%) of S. maltophilia isolates exhibited resistance to mainstay antibiotic trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole (TMP-SMX). Except for 2 isolates which contained both TMP-SMX resistance determinants sul1 and sul2 genes, all other 22 TMP-SMX-resistant isolates carried either sul1 (10 isolates) or sul2 (12 isolates) genes. Class 1 integrons were present in 8.5% (9 out of 106) of S. maltophilia isolates, and only 5 out of these isolates were TMP-SMX resistant and positive for sul1 gene. The same isolates also carried resistance cassettes containing qac/smr gene. Minocycline and levofloxacin exhibited the maximum in vitro activity against S. maltophilia. ERIC-PCR revealed high diversity among S. maltophilia isolates. The present study demonstrated high (22.4%) TMP-SMX resistance in clinical isolates of S. maltophilia from India. TMP-SMX-resistant isolates carried relatively higher percentage of sul2 gene than sul1 gene as against the reported literature. Majority (58.3%) of sul1 gene positive were not associated with class 1 integrase gene.

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