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The purpose of this article was to investigate the relationship between symptoms related to air pollution, mask-wearing, mask choices and related factors.

A cross-sectional study among outpatient department (OPD) pollution clinic patients at Nopparat Rajathanee Hospital (PCNRH) during 2019 in Bangkok, Thailand.

The most common symptom after exposure to air pollution that affects treatment in the OPD is respiratory symptoms. A total of 45.7% (107/234) of the population wears a mask, 55.1% (59/107) of the population that wears a mask wears a surgical mask, and only 10.3% (11/107) of them wear an N95 mask. Mask-wearing and air quality index (AQI) onset were associated with the respiratory symptoms group, whereas wearing an N95 mask or surgical mask was found to be a protective factor for the occurrence of respiratory symptoms (adjusted OR = 0.065, 95% CI: 0.014–0.306, p = 0.001 and adjusted OR = 0.154, 95% CI: 0.058–0.404, p < 0.001, respectively). Therefore, the best practice in the face of air pollution, while the resolution needs a long period, is to wear a mask. In this study, the results showed that the best type of mask to prevent respiratory symptoms from air pollution is the N95, followed by the surgical mask; cloth masks are not recommended to use to protect against respiratory symptoms from air pollution.

Wearing an N95 and a surgical mask can help reduce respiratory symptoms. Hence, in addition to establishing hospital measures, cooperation from local and government agencies is necessary to effectively and jointly build a national health public policy framework.

1. This study provides evidence of a correlation between symptoms associated with air pollution and related factors, in-hospital visits in Bangkok, Thailand. 2. In this study, wearing an N95 mask and a surgical mask were found to be a protective factor for the occurrence of respiratory symptoms.

The purpose of this study was to develop a multi-component counseling program and examine the short-term effects of an 8-session program.

This present study was a research and development of a multi-component counseling program for enhancing resilience. The concept of resilience was reviewed based on a synthesis of existing research, together with an exploration of qualitative data derived from an interview with ten caregivers of older persons with dementia. Six domains of resilience were identified: physical, relationships, emotional, moral, cognitive and spiritual; which were then used to develop the eight-week program. The program was examined by a panel of three experts for content validity, which yielded an index of 0.87. The program was then tried out with 60 caregivers recruited and assigned 30 caregivers in the intervention and control group. The Caregiver’s Resilience Scale (CRS) was used by trained nurses to evaluate the program and data were analyzed using repeated measures ANOVA.

The results indicated that the resilience scores of the participants in the intervention group were statistically significantly higher than those of the control group at one month after program participation and at the follow-up three months later (p < 0.05).

It could be concluded that the program yielded support for the evidence-based practice of non-pharmacological intervention. The program would be suitable as a clinical practice guideline to provide help to caregivers of older persons with dementia at the outpatient setting.

The purpose of this study was to determine the effectiveness of a Qigong program on older adults in the Thai community suffering from mild to moderate depression.

A randomized controlled trial study was conducted in a public health service (PHS) center setting. Sixty-six older adults aged 60–90 years with mild to moderate depressive symptoms measured by the Thai Geriatric Depression Scale (TGDS: scores 13–24) were recruited and randomly allocated into two groups. The subjective sleep quality was assessed using the Thai version of the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (TPSQI). The Qigong program group was given 12 weeks of Qigong training including three sessions per week, while the control group followed normal PHS activities (singing and praying). The outcome measure was the change in the TGDS from baseline to 12 weeks.

Participants in the Qigong program group had a significantly improved TPSQI global score (p < 0.001), subjective sleep quality (p < 0.001), and sleep latency (p < 0.05) after 12 weeks of intervention, while those in the control group showed no significant difference in sleep quality. Compared with the control group, the Qigong program group reported significantly better sleep quality throughout the 12-week period. The prevalence of poor sleep quality in this population was 82 percent.

This study confirmed that the Qigong program could improve sleep quality in older adults with mild to moderate depressive symptoms as the Qigong program conferred more significant improvements than the usual program.