Real-world global evidence of field hospitals during the COVID-19 pandemic / Siew King Ting ... [et.al.].

Disease pandemics have spawned the extensive use of field hospitals for disease outbreaks in modern history. The objective of this paper is to examine the characteristics, roles, and challenges facing field hospitals in battling the COVID-19 pandemic and to offer some policy recommendations for improving the performance of field hospitals. Using online academic databases, a literature review of COVID-19 field hospitals was conducted for six regions from 2020 - 2021: the Western Pacific, South East Asia, the Eastern Mediterranean, the Americas,Europe, and Africa

Reduction of human mobility matters during early covid-19 outbreaks: Evidence from india, japan and china

Mobility restrictions have been a heated topic during the global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). However, multiple recent findings have verified its importance in blocking virus spread. Evidence on the association between mobility, cases imported from abroad and local medical resource supplies is limited. To reveal the association, this study quantified the importance of inter-and intra-country mobility in containing virus spread and avoiding hospitalizations during early stages of COVID-19 outbreaks in India, Japan, and China. We calculated the timevarying reproductive number (Rt) and duration from illness onset to diagnosis confirmation (Doc), to represent conditions of virus spread and hospital bed shortages, respectively. Results showed that inter-country mobility fluctuation could explain 80%, 35%, and 12% of the variance in imported cases and could prevent 20 million, 5 million, and 40 million imported cases in India, Japan and China, respectively. The critical time for screening and monitoring of imported cases is 2 weeks at minimum and 4 weeks at maximum, according to the time when the Pearson’s Rs between Rt and imported cases reaches a peak (>0.8). We also found that if local transmission is initiated, a 1% increase in intra-country mobility would result in 1430 (±501), 109 (±181), and 10 (±1) additional bed shortages, as estimated using the Doc in India, Japan, and China, respectively. Our findings provide vital reference for governments to tailor their pre-vaccination policies regarding mobility, especially during future epidemic waves of COVID-19 or similar severe epidemic outbreaks

The role of gowns in preventing nosocomial transmission of respiratory viruses:a systematic review

Background: During the COVID-19 pandemic, long-sleeved gowns were advocated as personal protective equipment for healthcare workers (HCWs). The purpose of gowns is preventing transmission of infectious agents via the uniform or arms during contact with patients and their surroundings. Gowns, however, entail a substantial burden; in costs, workload for HCWs, and generated waste. Aim: To evaluate the current knowledge regarding the use of gowns during care of patients with COVID-19 and other respiratory viruses to prevent nosocomial transmission. Methods: PRISMA guidelines were used to search five databases (Medline, Embase, Web of Science, Cochrane, Google Scholar) up to April 11th, 2023. Findings: The search identified 2667 potentially relevant studies, of which 30 were selected and divided into four categories. In 12 studies, contamination rates of gowns ranged from 0% to 77.5% (median: 1.43%). Three out of seven studies showed that virus remained infectious the longest on Tyvek coveralls and plastic gowns, and the shortest on cotton and polyester. Two out of seven studies found a protective effect between HCW protective clothing and infection of HCWs. Finally, three out of four studies concluded that short sleeves, cotton gowns, or no gowns provided the same level of protection as standard gowns. Conclusion: Viral RNA can be found on clothing, but it is unclear whether viruses are transmitted to HCWs and/or patients. Evidence for the protective effect of long-sleeved gowns over alternatives is still insufficient. Therefore, well-controlled and adequately powered laboratory transmission experiments that simulate real-life conditions are necessary.</p

Advancing Cities’ Sustainability: Exploring the Effects of Interaction on the Public’s Perceived Efficacy of Emergency Infrastructure Projects—A Psychological Distance Perspective

Considering that emergency infrastructure projects (EIPs) play a significant role in the response to urgent events globally, the public’s perceived efficacy with respect to EIPs has become increasingly critical guidance for infrastructure systems and advancing cities’ sustainability. The interactions between the public and governments are deemed to be instrumental in enhancing the perceived efficacy. Concurrently, psychological distance, which can influence individuals’ thoughts and behaviors, is seen as a beneficial method of boosting the public’s perception of the effectiveness of EIPs. However, the underlying mechanism linking interaction, psychological distance, and perceived efficacy in relation to EIPs remains largely unexplored. In the current study, a theoretical framework was established through a literature review, leading to the formulation of four hypotheses. These hypotheses were tested using structural equation modeling based on data collected from a questionnaire survey of 337 residents regarding Leishenshan Hospital. The findings indicate that, firstly, interaction directly affects the public’s psychological distance and perceived efficacy. Secondly, the public’s psychological distance from EIPs directly affects the public’s perceived efficacy. Thirdly, the public’s psychological distance from EIPs plays a mediating role between interaction and perceived efficacy. These findings enhance the theoretical understanding of Environmental Innovation Policy (EIP) governance, aiming to maximize public welfare by effectively addressing unexpected crisis events and promoting the sustainable development of cities and society.</p

An epidemic model for COVID-19 transmission in Argentina: Exploration of the alternating quarantine and massive testing strategies

The COVID-19 pandemic has challenged authorities at different levels of government administration aroundthe globe. When faced with diseases of this severity, it is useful for the authorities to have prediction tools to estimate in advance the impact on the health system as well as the human, material, and economic resources that will be necessary. In this paper, we construct an extended Susceptible?Exposed?Infected?Recovered modelthat incorporates the social structure of Mar del Plata, the 4◦ most inhabited city in Argentina and head ofthe Municipality of General Pueyrredón. Moreover, we consider detailed partitions of infected individualsaccording to the illness severity, as well as data of local health resources, to bring predictions closer to thelocal reality. Tuning the corresponding epidemic parameters for COVID-19, we study an alternating quarantinestrategy: a part of the population can circulate without restrictions at any time, while the rest is equally dividedinto two groups and goes on successive periods of normal activity and lockdown, each one with a durationof days. We also implement a random testing strategy with a threshold over the population. We found that = 7 is a good choice for the quarantine strategy since it reduces the infected population and, conveniently,it suits a weekly schedule. Focusing on the health system, projecting from the situation as of September 30,we foresee a difficulty to avoid saturation of the available ICU, given the extremely low levels of mobility thatwould be required. In the worst case, our model estimates that four thousand deaths would occur, of which30% could be avoided with proper medical attention. Nonetheless, we found that aggressive testing wouldallow an increase in the percentage of people that can circulate without restrictions, and the medical facilitiesto deal with the additional critical patients would be relatively low.Fil: Vassallo, Lautaro. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mar del Plata. Instituto de Investigaciones Físicas de Mar del Plata. Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Investigaciones Físicas de Mar del Plata; ArgentinaFil: Pérez, Ignacio Augusto. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mar del Plata. Instituto de Investigaciones Físicas de Mar del Plata. Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Investigaciones Físicas de Mar del Plata; ArgentinaFil: Alvarez Zuzek, Lucila G.. University Of Georgetown; Estados UnidosFil: Amaya, Julián. Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Departamento de Física; ArgentinaFil: Torres, Marcos F.. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mar del Plata. Instituto de Investigaciones Físicas de Mar del Plata. Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Investigaciones Físicas de Mar del Plata; ArgentinaFil: Valdez, Lucas Daniel. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mar del Plata. Instituto de Investigaciones Físicas de Mar del Plata. Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Investigaciones Físicas de Mar del Plata; ArgentinaFil: la Rocca, Cristian Ernesto. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mar del Plata. Instituto de Investigaciones Físicas de Mar del Plata. Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Investigaciones Físicas de Mar del Plata; ArgentinaFil: Braunstein, Lidia Adriana. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mar del Plata. Instituto de Investigaciones Físicas de Mar del Plata. Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Investigaciones Físicas de Mar del Plata; Argentin

Evaluating the impact of large-scale nucleic acid testing and home quarantine on a novel emerging infectious disease prevention and control: a dynamic modeling approach

IntroductionConducting large-scale viral nucleic acid testing and isolating SARS-CoV-2-infections were crucial strategies in China, which played a key role in successfully controlling multiple waves of the Omicron epidemic. To thoroughly analyze the mechanisms and value of these measures, including testing and isolation, in epidemic prevention and control, and to provide a theoretical basis for scientific epidemic prevention and precise strategies in the face of potential future outbreaks of novel respiratory infectious diseases.MethodsWe developed an individual-based computational model of infectious disease dynamics. The model simulates regular large-scale nucleic acid testing for community residents during an epidemic. When individuals tested positive, they and their household members, as close contacts, are subjected to home isolation. During home isolation, the virus is assumed not to spread outside the household, but the potential for transmission within the household remained. Isolation measures can be lifted once the testing results turned negative. Finally, sensitivity analysis was conducted to verify the scientific validity and reliability of the model.ResultsThe study found that the efficacy of testing and isolation in epidemic prevention is closely related to the speed of disease transmission. When the basic reproduction number (R0) is less than 3, these measures can significantly reduce the infection rate among the population and the speed of epidemic spread; otherwise, they fail to achieve the goal of controlling the epidemic.DiscussionReducing person-to-person contact is crucial for epidemic prevention and control. In addition to testing and isolation, comprehensive non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs) should also be implemented, such as increasing social distancing, restricting gatherings in public places, and promoting vaccination, to control the transmission of the epidemic

COVID-19-related stress in postpartum women from Argentina during the second wave in 2021: Identification of impairing and protective factors

Postpartum women are a vulnerable population to pandemic stressors that challenge their psychological well-being. Thus, reliable and valid instruments are necessary to measure pandemic-related stress and to identify risk and protective factors. This work aimed to assess psychometric properties of the COVID-19 Pandemic-Related Stress Scale (PSS-10-C) and associations of maternal pandemic stress with demographic, reproductive, and pandemic factors of Argentinian postpartum women during the second COVID-19 wave. Design: An online cross-sectional survey was conducted from April to June 2021. Setting: Online recruitment of postpartum women was carried out during the second wave of COVID- 19 in Argentina. This study was conducted in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki and had the corresponding ethical approval. Participants: This study was performed on 300 women, aged 18?49 years, up to 12 months postpartum in Argentina. Measurements and findings: Stress was assessed with PSS-10-C, with a sociodemographic questionnaire being used to collect demographic, reproductive, and pandemic variables. Statistical analysis included psychometric procedures, structural equation modeling, and multiple regressions. PSS-10-C was a reliable and structurally valid instrument with two subscales, with an entire scale, Stress and Coping subscales scoring 17.31 (6.52), 9.70 (4.61), and 7.61 (2.77), respectively. History of mood disorders, pregnancy loss, and unhealthy child during the pandemic predisposed to increased stress ( β> 0.10, p 0.11, p < 0.05). Key conclusions: The study highlighted the vulnerability of postpartum women?s mental health in the pandemic context, with PSS-10-C being a useful instrument for clinicians and researchers to assess perceived stress. Targeting interventions toward women at higher risk can be highly beneficial for maternal and child health.Fil: Miranda, Agustín Ramiro. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Instituto de Investigaciones en Ciencias de la Salud. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Instituto de Investigaciones en Ciencias de la Salud; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Medicina. Escuela de Fonoaudiología; ArgentinaFil: Cortez, Mariela Valentina. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Medicina. Escuela de Fonoaudiología; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Instituto de Investigaciones en Ciencias de la Salud. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Instituto de Investigaciones en Ciencias de la Salud; ArgentinaFil: Scotta, Ana Veronica. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Instituto de Investigaciones en Ciencias de la Salud. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Instituto de Investigaciones en Ciencias de la Salud; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Medicina. Escuela de Fonoaudiología; ArgentinaFil: Soria, Elio Andres. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Medicina. Cátedra de Histología,embriología y Genética I; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Instituto de Investigaciones en Ciencias de la Salud. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Instituto de Investigaciones en Ciencias de la Salud; Argentin

COVID-19 and climate: global evidence from 117 countries

Visual inspection of world maps shows that coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is less prevalent in countries closer to the equator, where heat and humidity tend to be higher. Scientists disagree how to interpret this observation because the relationship between COVID-19 and climatic conditions may be confounded by many factors. We regressconfirmed COVID-19 cases 5per million inhabitants in a country against the country’s distance from the equator, controlling key confounding factors: air travel, distance to Wuhan, testing intensity, cell phone usage, vehicle concentration, urbanization, and income. A one-degree increase in absolute latitude is associated with a 2.6% increase in cases per million inhabitants (p value <0.001). The Northern hemisphere may see a decline in new COVID-19 cases during summer and aresurgence during winter. One Sentence Summary: An increase in absolute latitude by onedegree is associated with a 2.6% increase in COVID-19 cases per million inhabitants after controlling for several important factors