Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2020 Aug;85(2S Suppl 2):S171-S172.
doi: 10.1097/SAP.0000000000002447.

Availability of COVID-19 Information From National Plastic Surgery Society Web Sites

Sammy Al-Benna  1 , Andreas Gohritz  2
Affiliations

Availability of COVID-19 Information From National Plastic Surgery Society Web Sites

Sammy Al-Benna et al. Ann Plast Surg. 2020 Aug.

Abstract

Background: National plastic surgery society web sites are an important source of information for patients, family members, and healthcare professionals. There are currently no standardized recommendations for the information provided on web sites. The aim of this study was to assess the information available on each national plastic surgery society web site on the current pandemic of COVID-19.

Methods: A Google search was performed of United Nations member sovereign states to determine whether they had a national plastic surgery society web site and to assess its contents. The presence of COVID-19 information was recorded. Access to contact information, Facebook page, Twitter, and Instagram handles were noted.

Results: Thirty-five percent of sovereign states had plastic surgery society web sites. Twenty-two percent of national society web sites had a specific COVID-19 section. Fourteen (93%) of these 15 web sites had COVID-19-specific guidelines available for health care professionals.

Conclusions: COVID-19 information provided by national plastic surgery society web sites is sparse. Two-thirds of national plastic surgery societies do not have a web presence. The availability of COVID-19 clinical guidelines and patient information sheets on national plastic surgery society web sites is limited. This study suggests that improvement and increase in COVID-19 information provided by many national plastic surgery society web sites are needed.

PubMed Disclaimer

References

    1. Wang C, Horby PW, Hayden FG, Gao GF. A novel coronavirus outbreak of global health concern. Lancet. 2020;395:470–473. - PMC - PubMed
    1. WHO WHO Director-General's opening remarks at the media briefing on COVID-19 - 11 March 2020. https://www.who.int/dg/speeches/detail/who-director-general-s-opening-re... Date accessed: March 31, 2020.
    1. McCloskey B, Zumla A, Ippolito G, Blumberg L, Arbon P, Cicero A, Endericks T, Lim PL, Borodina M, WHO Novel Coronavirus-19 Mass Gatherings Expert Group. Mass gathering events and reducing further global spread of COVID-19: a political and public health dilemma. Lancet. 2020. Mar 20. pii: S0140-6736(20)30681-4. doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(20)30681-4. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Kandel N, Chungong S, Omaar A, Xing J. Health security capacities in the context of COVID-19 outbreak: an analysis of International Health Regulations annual report data from 182 countries. Lancet. 2020;395:1047–1053. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Al-Benna S. Adequate specialised burn care services are essential at major trauma centres. Burns. 2013;39:1495–7. - PubMed