Assessment of the willingness of doctors to work at coronavirus disease-19 treatment center

Objectives: The Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic is currently ravaging the entire world. Doctors as well as other healthcare workers as front-liners in tackling this disease are at a higher risk of exposure to the virus and its potential consequences. The objectives of this study were to assess the knowledge of doctors on the mode of transmission of the virus, to assess their willingness and readiness to work at the COVID-19 treatment center, to identify factors that affect their willingness to work at the treatment center, and to assess their knowledge on infection prevention and control (IPC) practices.Materials and Methods: All medical doctors who attended the COVID-19 sensitization and preparedness meeting with the management of Federal Medical Centre, Owo, Ondo State Nigeria, were recruited into the study after an informed consent was obtained. Study period spanned from the beginning of April 2020 to middle of June 2020. A structured, pre-tested questionnaire was administered to collect relevant information.Results: A total of 112 doctors that were in attendance had the questionnaires administered to them; however, 106 (94.64%) questionnaires were returned. Out of these, 64.2% had correct knowledge of the mode of transmission of COVID-19. We observed that only 34.9% of doctors were willing to work in the treatment center while 1.9% were indifferent. The perceived lack of adequate training and insufficient personal protective equipment (PPE) for staff were major reasons why some doctors were not willing to work in these centers. Fifty percent of the participants got the correct meaning of donning and doffing and three quarters of them had good knowledge of IPC practice.Conclusion: We found in our study that a substantial number of doctors were unwilling to work in COVID-19 treatment areas due to a number of factors including perceived inadequate PPE and inadequate knowledge. The factors that would influence their willingness to work in COVID-19 treatment center were more training, provision of inducement or extra allowances and life insurance schemes. We recommend that in addition to putting emphasis on training, re-training, and providing appropriate equipment, special inducement allowance, and life insurance for healthcare workers might be helpful to encourage them to work in COVID-19 treatment centers

Approaches for Sample Characterization and Lithography with Nanoparticles using Modes of Scanning Probe Microscopy

Measurement and imaging modes of scanning probe microscopy (SPM) have been routinely applied for characterizing systems of nanoparticles; however the evolution of fabrication methods to prepare arrangements of nanoparticles remains a challenge. Reproducible fabrication of surface structures which integrate nanoparticles within ultra-small patterns will require innovative approaches to achieve high throughput and precision. Strategies for nanoscale lithography have been introduced for preparing defined arrangements of nanoparticles on surfaces based on physical or chemical interactions. For example, physisorption was employed for attaching nanoparticles based on colloidal lithography and site-directed assembly. Microfabricated atomic force microscope (AFM) tips with capillary channels have been used to pattern nanoparticles through electrostatic interactions. Specific chemical interactions can be designed for patterning nanoparticles with dip-pen nanolithography and SPM-based fabrication. Studies with nanoparticles are reviewed, which have applied either in situ and ex situ approaches for imaging and measurements using modes of SPM. The imaging principle for contact and tapping modes are described with example studies of nanoparticle patterns. The SPM modes for measuring physical properties (e.g. magnetism, softness, conductance) using force modulation microscopy (FMM), magnetic force microscopy (MFM), magnetic sample modulation (MSM), and conductive probe AFM are described for selected studies of lithography with nanoparticles. Strategies for patterning nanoparticles using lithography modes of nanoshaving, dip-pen nanolithography, and tip-induced oxidation have been reported for a range of nanoparticle systems. Applications for nanotechnology will require the integration of nanoparticles within engineered surface architectures. Stable, organized arrangements of nanoparticles with robust chemical/physical attachment to surfaces will be needed for applications, to fully gain advantages of the characteristic quantum properties of nanoparticles