Abstract
Dear colleagues,
In the third issue of the International Journal of Risk & Safety in Medicine (IJRSM) in 2025, the Editorial Board is pleased to present five new papers, including two case reports, two small studies utilizing survey methodology, and an important new analysis of the World Health Organization’s COVID-19 database. All five papers together make a great learning read for our audience.
The ultimate highlight of this issue and the Editor’s Choice article is “Paradoxical increase in global COVID-19 deaths with vaccination coverage: World Health Organization Estimates (2020-2023)” by the author team from universities and health facilities in Nigeria and the United Kingdom, led by Dr Emmanuel O. Okoro from the University of Ilorin, Nigeria. As we move further away from the years of the pandemic, we learn more new lessons. We hope that these lessons and this new knowledge will contribute to the global preparedness to new potential health catastrophes in the future.
The authors extracted and analyzed data from the World Health Organization’s database of COVID-19 reported cases, mortality, and vaccination rates for 236 countries and territories in all six WHO regions: Africa, Americas, Eastern Mediterranean, Europe, South-East Asia, and Western Pacific.
At the online-only phase of pre-publication, the paper already generated heated interest and we expect further discussion of this important article in the journal and elsewhere.
Every single word of the authors after their thorough and elegant work with dedicated reviewers matters. We present the conclusion of the authors here word by word: “The results show increased COVID-19 mortalities over the vaccination era, and challenge the notion that high vaccination was responsible for saving lives everywhere than would have been the case without.” The editorial board considers this a must read article. 1
The observational cross-sectional study from the author team in Indonesia presents the survey results of 238 health professionals on Patient Safety Culture performed with the help of the validated instrument “Hospital Survey on Patient Safety Culture (HSOPSC) 2.0, by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ)”. The authors identified factors which were the most important in affecting patient safety culture and reporting of adverse drug reactions: age, education, working period, knowledge, perception, facilities, policies, and environment. 2
The very small survey on the use of antimicrobials in pregnant women of 52 physicians specializing in obstetrics and gynecology from authors in Russia found a troublesome rate of unsafe prescribing in pregnancy. The authors call for more research on antibiotic prescribing in pregnancy. 3
The author team from Morocco and Gabon present a case report on fluconazole-induced Stevens-Johnson syndrome at the Libreville University Hospital, Gabon, which allowed them to conclude that immunocompromised patients (e.g., HIV) are at risk of developing severe adverse drug reactions (ADRs) from fluconazole. The authors suggest using personalized patient monitoring to minimize the impact of these severe ADRs on patients and to be mindful of related costs and expenditures. 4
The second case report from authors in India presents a rare case of anagen effluvium, plica polonica, and cytopenia in a 32-year-old patient with vitiligo after azathioprine use. The authors hypothesize that cuticular damage to the hair shafts might be a result of azathioprine use. 5
We thank the authors for their unique and valuable contributions to this issue and invite our readership to use this issue for health education in the patient safety field at all levels and research-informed health policy decision-making.
The editorial board hopes that you appreciate and enjoy reading this issue.
