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With the advent of COVID-19 arose the need for social distancing measures, including the imposition of far-reaching lockdowns in many countries. The lockdown has wreaked havoc on many aspects of daily life, but education has been particularly hard hit by this unprecedented situation. The closure of educational institutions brought along many changes, including the transition to more technology-based education. This is a systematic literature review that seeks to explore the transition, in the context of the pandemic, from traditional education that involves face-to-face interaction in physical classrooms to online distance education. It examines the ways in which this transition has impacted academia and students and looks at the potential long-term consequences it may have caused. It also presents some of the suggestions made by the studies included in the paper, which may help alleviate the negative impact of lockdown on education and promote a smoother transition to online learning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper contributes towards deciphering and decoding the misery of the urban poor in light of the COVID-19 scourge. The paper unpacks urban poverty in light of the corona virus. The emergence of the COVID-19 and the lack of any vaccines requires physical distancing as preventative measures to contain and reduce the spread of the virus. Governments across the world, including in Anglophone Sub Saharan Africa have implemented lockdown measures. The COVID-19 pandemic is happening within settlements where the majority of the population lives from hand to mouth. In Anglophone sub-Saharan Africa because of urbanisation and increased urban poverty, COVID-19 scourge has had a huge impact on the urban poor. The COVID-19 is likely to devastate economies and the community. For rapidly growing, densely populated and poorly planned settlements, the situation is tragic for these inhabitants. Nation states lockdown and social and physical distancing in response to the pandemic have escalated their misery. The paper adopts a critical review of literature anchored in case study analysis, document analysis and scanning from reports. Results point to redefining the way humanity has related, functioned and conceptualised realities. There is need to go beyond prevention from infection as majority of urban dwellers are in the informal sector or unemployed. For the urban poor, strategies for social distancing may not be possible or effective. People are being asked to make choices between being hungry and risk of getting infected. The paper recommends planning response at national, regional and local level bearing in mind informal settlements, high densities and forms of overcrowding which have been placed as hotspots for the virus. There is need for rebuilding societies, during and beyond COVID-19 calling for immediate disaster risk planning adaptation and transformation to promote resilience. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

During the outbreak of COVID-19, concern significantly influenced our financial system. This new paper's primary assessment of the COVID-19 virus affects the world's major economies and financial markets. This paper utilizes an event analysis approach and a data model to investigate the influence of COVID-19 on the financial market system from three viewpoints: (1) supply chain finance and titles, (2) processing system, and (3) the financial system of the organization. According to data analysis, the model built in this work may properly depict the influence of COVID-19 on the financial market system. The results indicated that the low age coefficient (p-value (p 0.05)) and a higher blocking condition (p-value (p > 0.05)) impact city tourism market system with p-values of 0.002 and 0.004, respectively. Other results show the impact of the Chinese New Year vacations. Since then, the government has slowly stabilized its recovery, with many measures taken to limit the epidemic in February and a series of regulatory measures enacted to stabilize financial markets. These findings show a small but statistically significant degree of stabilization in international financial markets in response to stay-at-home government policies and social distancing measures, which is encouraging for political actors concerned about economic performance during the coronavirus 2019 pandemic response. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates Catholic religious practices and Filipino values in the Philippines during the COVID-19 pandemic. It aims to show that religious practices conducted with proper social distancing help in the development of a renewed understanding of Filipino values without contributing to the spread of the virus. This qualitative study makes use of expository writing and content analysis. First, religious practices before the pandemic marked by maximum social interaction are presented. Then, the paper shows religious practices during the pandemic marked by social distancing. Thirdly, the paper looks into how Filipino values are recontextualized in relation to religious practices despite the need for social distancing during the COVID-19 pandemic. Ultimately, the researchers claim that those who participate in religious practices with social distancing do not contribute to the transmission of the virus while still developing a renewed understanding of Filipino values. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Coronavirus is the first global crisis of a digital age and the divergence in policy responses reflects the challenge of navigating an unprecedented global situation under conditions of enormous uncertainty. We ask what lessons can be learned from this experience and identify two, both of which push against mainstream interpretations of recent events. First, and contrary to the view that the crisis exposed social media and Big Tech as a source of dangerous misinformation that needs to be regulated more strictly, the paper argues that the less mediated spaces of the Internet—social media and Twitter, in particular—played an essential role in triggering a more effective policy response based around social distancing, lockdown, and containment. Second, and contrary to the view that things will go back to normal once the worst of the crisis has passed, the paper argues that, as a direct result of lockdown, the status quo has been shifted across multiple sectors of the economy. Three examples of this shift are introduced, notably the forced experimentation with digital technologies in education and health, the increased use of remote work in many companies, and a reduction in environmentally harmful behavior and decrease in pollution levels. The long-term effects of this 'reset' are impossible to predict, but a quick return to the 'old normal' seems unlikely. The paper concludes with the suggestion that this reset has created a unique historical opportunity for the reappraisal of regulatory approaches across multiple domains and exposed the need for regulatory models better aligned to a less mediated, more decentralized world. COVID-19 is a global tragedy, but—given that it has happened—it should be used as a learning experience to re-imagine a better, more socially, and environmentally responsible future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper uses a compartmental model that accounts for some of the main features of the COVID-19 pandemic. Assuming a control that represents the aggregated intensity of non pharmaceutical interventions, such as lockdown in varying degrees and the use of masks and social distancing, this text proposes an N-step-ahead optimal control (NSAOC) method that is easy to calculate and provides a guideline for implementation. The compartmental model is extended to account for vaccination, and the N-step-ahead optimal control is calculated for this case as well. The proposed control is robust to parameter variation in all model parameters, when they are assumed to be normally distributed about nominal values. In addition, the proposed NSAOC is shown to compare favorably with a recently proposed PID-like controller. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dense urban areas are especially hardly hit by the Covid-19 crisis due to the limited availability of public transport, one of the most efficient means of mass mobility. In light of the Covid-19 pandemic, public transport operators are experiencing steep declines in demand and fare revenues due to the perceived risk of infection within vehicles and other facilities. The purpose of this paper is to explore the possibilities of implementing social distancing in public transport in line with epidemiological advice. Social distancing requires effective demand management to keep vehicle occupancy rates under a predefined threshold, both spatially and temporally. We review the literature of five demand management methods enabled by new information and ticketing technologies: (i) inflow control with queueing, (ii) time and space dependent pricing, (iii) capacity reservation with advance booking, (iv) slot auctioning, and (v) tradeable travel permit schemes. Thus the paper collects the relevant literature into a single point of reference, and provides interpretation from the viewpoint of practical applicability during and after the pandemic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since the initial reports of the Coronavirus surfacing in Wuhan, China, the novel virus currently without a cure has spread like wildfire across the globe, the virus spread exponentially across all inhabited continent, catching local governments by surprise in many cases and bringing the world economy to a standstill. As local authorities work on a response to deal with the virus, the scientific community has stepped in to help analyze and predict the pattern and conditions that would influence the spread of this unforgiving virus. Using existing statistical modeling tools to the latest artificial intelligence technology, the scientific community has used public and privately available data to help with predictions. A lot of this data research has enabled local authorities to plan their response—whether that is to deploy tightly available medical resources like ventilators or how and when to enforce policies to social distance, including lockdowns. On the one hand, this paper shows what accuracy of research brings to enable fighting this disease; while on the other hand, it also shows what lack of response from local authorities can do in spreading this virus. This is our attempt to compile different research methods and comparing their accuracy in predicting the spread of COVID-19. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The COVID-19 pandemic is the most profound crisis of the twenty-first century. The SARS-CoV-2 virus was first registered in Brazil on March 2020, and its social and economic repercussions have been catastrophic. This paper investigates how to apply model predictive control (MPC) algorithms to plan appropriate social distancing policies that mitigate the pandemic effects. We consider MPC applications for the states of Bahia and Santa Catarina (Brazil), two regions of very different social and cultural demographics. We use Susceptible-Infected-Recovered-Deceased model to describe the pandemic dynamics in these two states, for which parameters are identified using a constrained optimization procedure. The control input to the process is a social isolation guideline passed to the population. Two MPC frameworks are developed and discussed: (a) a centralized approach, which coordinates a single predictive control policy for both states, and (b) a distributed strategy, for which a single MPC problem is solved for each state. We provide a series of simulation results in order to illustrate and compare the results obtained with both these MPC strategies. Discussions are drawn regarding the effectiveness of MPC to guide social distancing measures during pandemics and which approach (distributed, centralized) is more convenient, regarding different conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: In response to the SARS-CoV-2 emergency, the Competence Centre on digital health 'TrentinoSalute4.0' has developed TreC_Televisita, a tele visit solution that meets the needs of the Trentino healthcare system and maintains high-quality patient–doctor interactions while respecting social distancing. This paper highlights how 'TreC_Televisita' was integrated into the Trentino healthcare system and its potential to become a structural and durable solution for the future local healthcare service provisioning. Subject and methods: This paper presents the multifactorial context that TreC_Televisita has faced for its implementation and the strategies adopted for its structural integration into the healthcare system. The analysis focuses on the main issues faced for the integration of the tele visits (e.g. privacy, payments) and how the context of TrentinoSalute4.0 permitted responding quickly to its implementation during the pandemic. It also describes how TreC_Televisita fits into the healthcare continuum from the organisational and technological standpoint, the end-user perspective and the barriers that could hamper the solution scalability. Results: TreC_Televisita has demonstrated to be a technological solution that can be contextualised for different clinical domains beyond SARS-CoV-2. Moreover, it has shown its potential to scale up the solution beyond the COVID-19 emergency to the whole healthcare provisioning system in the long term. Conclusion: Being a positive experience in the first months of its implementation, the long-term goal is to transform TreC_Televisita into a structural pillar of the Trentino healthcare system, setting the bases for a sustainable, win–win situation for all the stakeholders involved in healthcare service provisioning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated the already existing gender inequalities with substantial implications on women. With the closure of offices and educational institutions, and the emerging norm of work from home and online education, along with the lack of services of domestic worker, the need to perform unpaid chores in the household has increased. Simultaneously, the requirements of social distancing and sanitization have created new unpaid chores. Owing to the sexual division of labour, and gendered roles and social norms of performing domestic and care work, the burden of unpaid work falls disproportionately on women. In this context, the objective of the paper is to study the impact of COVID-19 on time spent on unpaid work and the underlying gender differences in the urban centres in India. Specifically, the paper will do a comparative analysis of the gender differences in time spent on unpaid work before and during the lockdown, and analyse the reasons for the same. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This paper investigated the impact of COVID-19 stay-at-home regulations on the spatial distribution of commercial burglary in San Francisco. Method: Geocoded commercial burglary data for 2003–2021 from San Francisco were analyzed using the Andresen Spatial Point Pattern Test to examine potential spatial movement in commercial burglary. Results: Concentrations of commercial burglary spatially shifted following the emergence of COVID-19 and the subsequent stay-at-home orders. Original hot spots experienced a relative decrease in commercial burglary, and crime spread out throughout the city. These spatial changes in commercial burglary appear to be related to variations in guardianship and criminal opportunity. Conclusion: These findings suggest that the dramatic shifts in routine activities resulting from the COVID-19 policies could disrupt spatial burglary patterns, especially burglary clustering. Law enforcement should consider the spatial dynamics of commercial burglary, as well as land use heterogeneity, to effectively respond to crime during periods of social distancing and business shutdowns. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: With the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic spreading across the world, protective measures for containing the virus are essential, especially as long as no vaccine or effective treatment is available. One important measure is the so-called physical distancing or social distancing. Methods: In this paper, we propose an agent-based numerical simulation of pedestrian dynamics in order to assess the behavior of pedestrians in public places in the context of contact transmission of infectious diseases like COVID-19, and to gather insights about exposure times and the overall effectiveness of distancing measures. Results: To abide by the minimum distance of 1.5 m stipulated by the German government at an infection rate of 2%, our simulation results suggest that a density of one person per 16m2 or below is sufficient. Conclusions: The results of this study give insight into how physical distancing as a protective measure can be carried out more efficiently to help reduce the spread of COVID-19. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many educational institutions have partially or fully closed all operations to cope with the challenges of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. In this paper, we explore strategies that such institutions can adopt to conduct safe reopening and resume operations during the pandemic. The research is motivated by the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign's (UIUC's) SHIELD program, which is a set of policies and strategies, including rapid saliva-based COVID-19 screening, for ensuring safety of students, faculty and staff to conduct in-person operations, at least partially. Specifically, we study how rapid bulk testing, contact tracing and preventative measures such as mask wearing, sanitization, and enforcement of social distancing can allow institutions to manage the epidemic spread. This work combines the power of analytical epidemic modeling, data analysis and agent-based simulations to derive policy insights. We develop an analytical model that takes into account the asymptomatic transmission of COVID-19, the effect of isolation via testing (both in bulk and through contact tracing) and the rate of contacts among people within and outside the institution. Next, we use data from the UIUC SHIELD program and 85 other universities to estimate parameters that describe the analytical model. Using the estimated parameters, we finally conduct agent-based simulations with various model parameters to evaluate testing and reopening strategies. The parameter estimates from UIUC and other universities show similar trends. For example, infection rates at various institutions grow rapidly in certain months and this growth correlates positively with infection rates in counties where the universities are located. Infection rates are also shown to be negatively correlated with testing rates at the institutions. Through agent-based simulations, we demonstrate that the key to designing an effective reopening strategy is a combination of rapid bulk testing and effective preventative measures such as mask wearing and social distancing. Multiple other factors help to reduce infection load, such as efficient contact tracing, reduced delay between testing and result revelation, tests with less false negatives and targeted testing of high-risk class among others. This paper contributes to the nascent literature on combating the COVID-19 pandemic and is especially relevant for educational institutions and similarly large organizations. We contribute by providing an analytical model that can be used to estimate key parameters from data, which in turn can be used to simulate the effect of different strategies for reopening. We quantify the relative effect of different strategies such as bulk testing, contact tracing, reduced infectivity and contact rates in the context of educational institutions. Specifically, we show that for the estimated average base infectivity of 0.025 ( R 0 = 1.82 ), a daily number of tests to population ratio T/N of 0.2, i.e., once a week testing for all individuals, is a good indicative threshold. However, this test to population ratio is sensitive to external infectivities, internal and external mobilities, delay in getting results after testing, and measures related to mask wearing and sanitization, which affect the base infection rate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the efficiency of four major COVID-19 social distancing policies: (i) shelter-in-place orders (SIPO), (ii) non-essential business closures, (iii) mandatory quarantine for travelers, and (iv) bans on large gatherings. Results suggest that the average US state is highly inefficient in producing the fraction of the population that does not have COVID-19 without social distancing policies put in place. We find that having any of the four major social distancing policies increases conditional efficiency by 9.7 (9.5) percentage points in the first 100 days (full sample). This corresponds to 57 (172) fewer total COVID-19 cases per 100,000 population in the first 100 days (full sample). We also find that population density accounts for a majority of unconditional state inefficiency. Evidence suggests considerable heterogeneity in conditional efficiency improvement, indicating that no uniform national social distancing policy would have been more effective; more effective strategies would have been to target more densely populated areas. Conditional efficiency regressions suggest that bans on large gatherings were the most effective policies, with SIPOs and non-essential business closures having smaller impacts. States that implemented social distancing policies except mandatory quarantine for traveler policies were highly effective for the first 100 days, but had less effectiveness over the full sample. There is also preliminary evidence that premature revocations of social distancing policies reduced conditional efficiency, leading to COVID-19 case spikes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Given the role of human behavior in the spread of disease, it is vital to understand what drives people to engage in or refrain from health-related behaviors during a pandemic. This paper examines factors associated with the adoption of self-protective health behaviors, such as social distancing and mask wearing, at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic in the USA. These behaviors not only reduce an individual's own risk of infection but also limit the spread of disease to others. Despite these dual benefits, universal adoption of these behaviors is not assured. We focus on the role of socioeconomic differences in explaining behavior, relying on data collected in April 2020 during the early stages of the Covid-19 pandemic. The data include information on income, gender and race along with unique variables relevant to the current pandemic, such as work arrangements and housing quality. We find that higher income is associated with larger changes in self-protective behaviors. These gradients are partially explained by the fact that people with less income are more likely to report circumstances that make adopting self-protective behaviors more difficult, such as an inability to tele-work. Both in the USA and elsewhere, policies that assume universal compliance with self-protective measures—or that otherwise do not account for socioeconomic differences in the costs of doing so—are unlikely to be effective or sustainable. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The greatest challenge the world is facing today is to win the battle against COVID-19 pandemic as soon as possible. Until a vaccine is available, personal protection, social distancing, and disinfection are the main tools against SARS-CoV-2. Although it is quite infectious, the SARS-CoV-2 virus itself is an enveloped virus that is relatively fragile because its protective fatty layer is sensitive to heat, ultraviolet radiation, and certain chemicals. However, heat and liquid treatments can damage some materials, and ultraviolet light is not efficient in shaded areas, so other disinfection alternatives are required to allow safe re-utilization of materials and spaces. As of this writing, evidences are still accumulating for the use of ozone gas as a disinfectant for sanitary materials and ambient disinfection in indoor areas. This paper reviews the most relevant results of virus disinfection by the application of gaseous ozone. The review covers disinfection treatments of both air and surfaces carried out in different volumes, which varies from small boxes and controlled chambers to larger rooms, as a base to develop future ozone protocols against COVID-19. Published papers have been critically analyzed to evaluate trends in the required ozone dosages, as a function of relative humidity (RH), contact time, and viral strains. The data have been classified depending on the disinfection objective and the volume and type of the experimental set-up. Based on these data, conservative dosages and times to inactivate the SARS-CoV-2 are estimated. In small chambers, 10–20 mg ozone/m3 over 10 to 50 min can be sufficient to significantly reduce the virus load of personal protection equipment. In large rooms, 30 to 50 mg ozone/m3 would be required for treatments of 20–30 min. Maximum antiviral activity of ozone is achieved at high humidity, while the same ozone concentrations under low RH could result inefficient. At these ozone levels, safety protocols must be strictly followed. These data can be used for reducing significantly the viral load although for assuring a safe disinfection, the effective dosages under different conditions need to be confirmed with experimental data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, I study the short-run effect of social distancing due to the COVID-19 outbreak on movie demand and box-office revenue. Using longitudinal data on the Korean movie theater industry, I first estimate a nested logit model of movie demand, and then quantify the revenue loss in the industry. Estimation results reveal that the revenue loss due to the decrease in underlying movie demand is approximately 52 million dollars nationwide during the first five weeks after the outbreak, implying a 34 percent decrease in sales. The results also suggest an additional 42 million dollars were lost as the delay of some major movies lowered the overall quality of available movies in the market. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Accurately estimating the number of people is a useful information to monitor the occupancy level of spaces due to the COVID-19 pandemic in order to keep social distancing. Automated counters are responsible for accurately counting people movement. This paper proposes a cost-effective automatic counting system based on a microcontroller through an infrared sensor integration to monitor occupancy of indoor spaces. In order to evaluate the proposed system in real-world scenarios, experiments were carried out at the main campus of the University of Campinas—Brazil. For the first case, two prototypes were installed at both the front and rear door of a bus in order to count the number of passengers boarding and alighting on the vehicle during its operation. In the second case, three prototypes were installed in the university restaurant ticket gates in order to count the number of people entering during lunchtime. Experimental results showed an accuracy of 91.45% and 98.65% for Cases 1 and 2, respectively. The results are promising, showing that the device has potential to be used for different proposes, such as controlling access to public and indoor spaces, public transportation planning, occupancy monitoring, and security system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The novel coronavirus pandemic (hereafter COVID-19) is likely to have unprecedented impacts on the incidence and impacts of crime and violence globally. This includes impacts to the risk, consequences, and decision-making of women experiencing violence by an intimate partner (hereafter IPV). Most importantly, the COVID-19 pandemic, and its impact on the risk of IPV is likely to differentially impact vulnerable populations, including minority women and those with long histories of victimization and mental health issues. This review paper explores the potential short- and long-term implications of COVID-19 on the risk of IPV, highlighting some of the most recent preliminary data. The economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, record levels of male unemployment, added stressors in the home, including the care and home schooling of children, and the social distancing measures required by the epidemiological response, may serve to undermine the decades of progress made in keeping women and children safe at home. Victim police reporting, help-seeking decisions, and social service utilization during the pandemic are likely to be impacted by stay-at-home orders and social distancing requirements. The paper concludes with a discussion of the implications for providing safety planning and self-care for victims and their children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In low and middle-income countries (LMICs), strict social distancing measures (e.g., nationwide lockdown) in response to the COVID-19 pandemic are unsustainable in the long-term due to knock-on socioeconomic and psychological effects. However, an optimal epidemiology-focused strategy for 'safe-reopening' (i.e., balancing between the economic and health consequences) remain unclear, particularly given the suboptimal disease surveillance and diagnostic infrastructure in these settings. As the lockdown is now being relaxed in many LMICs, in this paper, we have (1) conducted an epidemiology-based "options appraisal" of various available non-pharmacological intervention options that can be employed to safely lift the lockdowns (namely, sustained mitigation, zonal lockdown and rolling lockdown strategies), and (2) propose suitable application, pre-requisites, and inherent limitations for each measure. Among these, a sustained mitigation-only approach (adopted in many high-income countries) may not be feasible in most LMIC settings given the absence of nationwide population surveillance, generalised testing, contact tracing and critical care infrastructure needed to tackle the likely resurgence of infections. By contrast, zonal or local lockdowns may be suitable for some countries where systematic identification of new outbreak clusters in real-time would be feasible. This requires a generalised testing and surveillance structure, and a well-thought out (and executed) zone management plan. Finally, an intermittent, rolling lockdown strategy has recently been suggested by the World Health Organization as a potential strategy to get the epidemic under control in some LMI settings, where generalised mitigation and zonal containment is unfeasible. This strategy, however, needs to be carefully considered for economic costs and necessary supply chain reforms. In conclusion, while we propose three community-based, non-pharmacological options for LMICs, a suitable measure should be context-specific and based on: (1) epidemiological considerations, (2) social and economic costs, (3) existing health systems capabilities and (4) future-proof plans to implement and sustain the strategy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since March of 2020, billions of people worldwide have been asked to limit their social contacts in an effort to contain the spread of the SARS-CoV-2 virus. However, little research has been carried out to date on the impact of such social distancing measures on the social isolation levels of the population. In this paper, we study the impact of the pandemic on the social isolation of the Spanish population, by means of 32,359 answers to a citizen survey collected over a period of 7 months. We uncover (1) a significant increase in the prevalence of social isolation in the population, reaching almost 26%; (2) gender and age differences, with the largest prevalence of isolation among middle-aged individuals; (3) a strong relationship between economic impact and social isolation; and (4) differences in social isolation, depending on the number of COVID-19 protection measures and on the perception of coronavirus infection risk by our participants. Our research sheds quantitative light on the sociological impact of the pandemic, and enables us to identify key factors in the interplay between the deployment of non-pharmaceutical interventions to contain the spread of an infectious disease and a population's levels of social isolation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we present the online tool http://salaplanejada.unifesp.br, developed to assist the layout planning of classrooms considering the social distancing in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. We address both the fixed and non-fixed position seat allocation problems. For the first case, we use two integer optimization models and discuss some curiosities about the solutions found. For the case that the seats can be moved freely, we handle the problem with circle packing techniques using continuous non-linear optimization. For these instances, we propose new algorithms, following other packing problems approaches in the literature. In addition, we propose a fast heuristic that provides a good starting point for the optimization procedure and also an efficient configuration ensuring the students positions in lines, which may be of interest to the user. Computational results are presented to illustrate the numerical behavior of the algorithms and models. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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We have a responsibility to obey COVID-19 rules, in order to minimize risk. Yet it is still seen as rude to challenge people who do not respect those rules, when in fact the opposite is true; it is rude to increase risk to others. In this paper I analyse the relationship between risk, responsibility, and rudeness by analysing the evolution of the main governmental slogans and rules and explore the complex relationship between simplicity, safety, and perceived fairness of these rules, and how these features in turn influence the extent to which we act responsibly. I begin by exploring the relationship between rudeness and risk in our interactions about coronavirus, before going on to analyse the importance of clear rules in minimizing tension between us, illustrating the argument with various slogans including "stay at home," "stay alert," and the now infamous "rule of six," which is actually at least three different rules. Ultimately, we are faced with a paradox: people annoyed about complex/unfair rules are less likely to obey them, even if that means rules will apply for longer and even though it was noncompliance with earlier simpler rules that means new rules are necessary. And if rules make less or no sense it is harder to try to get people to follow them in your own capacity as a citizen; it is hard to police rules that are seen as arbitrary or unfair. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, a new nature-inspired human-based optimization algorithm is proposed which is called coronavirus herd immunity optimizer (CHIO). The inspiration of CHIO is originated from the herd immunity concept as a way to tackle coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19). The speed of spreading coronavirus infection depends on how the infected individuals directly contact with other society members. In order to protect other members of society from the disease, social distancing is suggested by health experts. Herd immunity is a state the population reaches when most of the population is immune which results in the prevention of disease transmission. These concepts are modeled in terms of optimization concepts. CHIO mimics the herd immunity strategy as well as the social distancing concepts. Three types of individual cases are utilized for herd immunity: susceptible, infected, and immuned. This is to determine how the newly generated solution updates its genes with social distancing strategies. CHIO is evaluated using 23 well-known benchmark functions. Initially, the sensitivity of CHIO to its parameters is studied. Thereafter, the comparative evaluation against seven state-of-the-art methods is conducted. The comparative analysis verifies that CHIO is able to yield very competitive results compared to those obtained by other well-established methods. For more validations, three real-world engineering optimization problems extracted from IEEE-CEC 2011 are used. Again, CHIO is proved to be efficient. In conclusion, CHIO is a very powerful optimization algorithm that can be used to tackle many optimization problems across a wide variety of optimization domains. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The unique strengths of qualitative research, through in-depth inquiry and identification of unexpected themes and linkages, is essential to our growing understanding of COVID-19′s impacts on the social world and its intersection with sustainability science. However, many challenges—physical, psychological, and ethical in nature—face qualitative researchers during the pandemic, as social distancing and travel restrictions prevent in-person field work. In this paper, we outline the essential contributions of qualitative study to sustainability science, discuss current challenges, and in turn, provide recommendations for researchers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chronic pain management during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic is a challenging process, especially with growing evidence that COVID-19 infection is associated with myalgias, referred pain, and widespread hyperalgesia. In light of the limited data available for COVID-19-related impact on chronic pain patients, this review explores the changes in the healthcare delivery system due to social distancing and safety precautions to provide the appropriate management of chronic pain patients during the COVID-19 pandemic. Understanding both the general problems facing chronic pain patients as well as specific problems in the COVID-19 era including deconditioning, increased mental health concerns, financial burdens, and potential for medication-induced immune-suppression is vital in the appropriate management of patients. Telemedicine, the practice of caring for patients remotely when the provider and patient are not physically present with each other, is becoming increasingly used and recognized as a valuable tool to both health care providers and patients. This paper concentrates on the proper utilization of the available resources to help patients with the most severe conditions as well as the most vulnerable group. COVID-19 may be associated with a profound effect on both the health care system and patients with chronic pain. As a result, delaying, or stopping, treatment for chronic pain patients will have negative consequences, and strong pain evaluations must be administered to triage patients appropriately. Recent recommendations for the safe use of non-opioid analgesics, opioid analgesics, and interventional pain management procedures are vital to know and understand specifically during the pandemic era. Further researches are needed to identify the advance planning and rapid responses to reduce the impact of the pandemic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While the COVID-19 pandemic has dramatically affected the lives of people around the world, select populations (e.g., elderly, immune-compromised, and incarcerated individuals) are among the most likely to contract the virus and among the least likely to overcome the illness and regain full health. This paper focuses on the incarcerated individuals and how the coronavirus has added a new and unprecedented threat to correctional facilities that are already overcrowded and ill-equipped to identify and address the medical needs of the inmate population. The risk-need-responsivity model (RNR) should be used to make empirically-informed decisions about the targeted release. The identification and release of inmates who pose the least threat to society will help alleviate some of the burdens associated with prison crowding. Specifically, with fewer inmates, correctional facilities can comply with social distancing guidelines, introduce enhanced cleaning measures, and make necessary institutional adjustments. In so doing they will limit the transmission of COVI-19 within correctional institutions, ensure the safety of staff and their charges, and enable prisons and jails to better accommodate the needs of the inmate population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The primary practice adopted to reduce Covid-19 contamination is social distancing (SD). SD had significant consequences on alcohol/drug use, quality of life, and psychosocial aspects. In the university community specifically, SD produces a collective traumatic event with changes in the work routine by the suspension of presence. This study aims to identify and analyze the associations of increased alcohol and marijuana consumption on the quality of life and psychosocial aspects of the university community (students, professors, and technical and administrative staff) at a Brazilian public university during SD due to Covid-19 pandemic. This descriptive and cross-sectional study used an online questionnaire to obtain information from 2790 university community participants. Data were analyzed using IBM SPSS Statistics version 22. The analysis included descriptive associations performed using Spearman's correlation coefficient and p < 0.05 was taken as statistically significant. The participants' majority was 62% female, 95.4% students, 73% were 17–25 years old, 33.4% had income between 1 and 3 minimum wage, and 48% of the university community "totally adhered to SD." The increased alcohol consumption during SD was associated with a worsening in quality of life (p = 0.001), health satisfaction (p = 0.015), the meaning of life (p = 0.040), ability to concentrate (p = 0.001), satisfaction with yourself (p = 0.029), and frequency of negative feelings (p = 0.001); in contrast, increased alcohol use improved satisfaction with peer support (p = 0.042), as well as increased marijuana use improved satisfaction with sex life (p < 0.001). The increased alcohol use was higher in women (30.5%) than in men (26.7%) and was negatively associated with more quality of life and psychosocial aspects among women than men. Students were the segment that presented the highest frequency of associations with increased alcohol and/or marijuana use in the three domains analyzed. This study innovated by associating increased alcohol and/or marijuana use with worsening quality of life and psychosocial aspects rather than evaluating them apart. Future studies must identify whether this association between increased alcohol use, mainly, and the worsening quality of life and psychosocial aspects during the SD period is maintained or improved with the return to face-to-face activities at the university, with particular attention to women and students. Psychologists and other mental health professionals should be called upon to develop interventions to meet emerging mental health needs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since COVID-19 is easily transmitted among people in close physical proximity, the focus of epidemiological policy during the COVID-19 crisis included major restrictions on interpersonal distance. However, the way in which distance restrictions affected spatial perception is unclear. In the current study, we examined interpersonal distance preferences and perceptions at three time points: pre-pandemic, early post-pandemic, and late post-pandemic. The results indicate that following the pandemic outbreak, people perceived others as farther away than they actually were, suggesting that the distance restrictions were associated with an enlargement of perceived interpersonal distance. Interestingly, however, people maintained the same distance from one another as before the outbreak, indicating no change in actual distance behavior due to the risk of infection. These findings suggest that COVID-19 was associated with a change in the way distance is perceived, while in practice, people maintain the same distance as before. In contrast, COVID-related anxiety predicted both a preference for maintaining a greater distance and a bias toward underestimating perceived distance from others. Thus, individuals who were highly fearful of COVID-19 perceived other people to be closer than they actually were and preferred to maintain a larger distance from them. The results suggest that subjective risk can lead to an increased perception of danger and a subsequent change in behavior. Taken together, even when behaviors should logically change, the decision-making process can be based on distorted perceptions. This insight may be used to predict public compliance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Observing how humans and robots interact is an integral part of understanding how they can effectively coexist. This ability to undertake these observations was taken for granted before the COVID-19 pandemic restricted the possibilities of performing HRI study-based interactions. We explore the problem of how HRI research can occur in a setting where physical separation is the most reliable way of preventing disease transmission. We present the results of an exploratory experiment that suggests Remote-HRI (R-HRI) studies may be a viable alternative to traditional face-to-face HRI studies. An R-HRI study minimizes or eliminates in-person interaction between the experimenter and the participant and implements a new protocol for interacting with the robot to minimize physical contact. Our results showed that participants interacting with the robot remotely experienced a higher cognitive workload, which may be due to minor cultural and technical factors. Importantly, however, we also found that whether participants interacted with the robot in-person (but socially distanced) or remotely over a network, their experience, perception of, and attitude towards the robot were unaffected. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Motivated by the Covid-19 epidemic, we build a SIR model with private decisions on social distancing and population heterogeneity in terms of infection-induced fatality rates, and calibrate it to UK data to understand the quantitative importance of these assumptions. Compared to our model, the calibrated benchmark version with constant mean contact rate significantly over-predicts the mean contact rate, the death toll, herd immunity and prevalence peak. Instead, the calibrated counterfactual version with endogenous social distancing but no heterogeneity massively under-predicts these statistics. We use our calibrated model to understand how the impact of mitigating policies on the epidemic may depend on the responses these policies induce across the various population segments. We find that policies that shut down some of the essential sectors have a stronger impact on the death toll than on infections and herd immunity compared to policies that shut down non-essential sectors. Furthermore, there might not be an after-wave after policies that shut down some of the essential sectors are lifted. Restrictions on social distancing can generate welfare gains relative to the case of no intervention. Milder but longer restrictions on less essential activities might be better in terms of these welfare gains than stricter but shorter restrictions, whereas the opposite might be the case for restrictions on more essential activities. Finally, shutting down some of the more essential sectors might generate larger welfare gains than shutting down the less essential sectors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We document a causal effect of the conservative Fox News Channel in the USA on physical distancing during COVID-19 pandemic. We measure county-level mobility covering all US states and District of Columbia produced by GPS pings to 15–17 million smartphones and zip-code-level mobility using Facebook location data. Using the historical position of Fox News Channel in the cable lineup as the source of exogenous variation, we show that increased exposure to Fox News led to a smaller reduction in distance traveled and a smaller increase in the probability of staying home after the national emergency declaration in the USA. Our results show that slanted media can have a harmful effect on containment efforts during a pandemic by affecting people's behavior. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the realm of marine science, engaging with stakeholders (e.g., industry members, policy-makers, managers, NGOs) is an important method applied in many research projects. The Covid-19 pandemic has severely impacted this engagement in two ways. First, social distancing measures forbid most face-to-face participatory activities originally envisioned in projects. Second, the restrictions have caused hardships for the stakeholders being engaged by these projects. We assessed the impact of Covid-19 on stakeholder engagement activities in ongoing EU marine science projects by posing the following questions: What problems has Covid-19 caused for the workflow and outcomes of current research projects, (ii) how have scientists responsible for stakeholder engagement coped with the situation, and (iii) if alternative stakeholder activities were implemented, how have these been evaluated? Our survey was conducted nearly 2 months after the onset of Covid-19 lockdowns. It addressed researchers who engage with stakeholders in EU projects and delivers insights into the practical implications of Covid-19 for stakeholder engagement and the measures taken to tackle this challenge. The paper highlights the impacts of the pandemic on stakeholder engagement in marine science, outlines current coping strategies in different EU projects, and recommends seven practical actions to promote and maintain meaningful exchange with stakeholders in times of social distancing and lockdowns. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This manuscript presents a geospatial and temporal analysis of the COVID'19 along with its mortality rate worldwide and an empirical evaluation of social distance policies on economic activities. Stock Market Indices, Purchasing Manager Index (PMI), and Stringency Index values are evaluated with respect to rising COVID-19 cases based on the collected data from Jan 2020 to June 2021. The findings for the stock market index reveal the highest negative correlation coefficient value, i.e., −0.2, for the Shanghai index, representing a negative relation on stock markets, whereas the value of the correlation coefficient is minimum for Indian markets, i.e., 0.3, indicating the most impact by COVID-19 spread. Further, the results concerning PMI show that the highest value of the correlation coefficient is for the China i.e., −0.52, points to the sharpest pace of contraction. This reflects the lower value of the correlation indicating that the economy is on the way of growth, which can be seen from the PMI value of the various countries. The manuscript presents a novel geospatial model by empirically evaluating the correlation coefficient of COVID-19 with stock market index, PMI, and stringency index to understand the effect of COVID-19 on the global economy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since the beginning of the current COVID-19 pandemic, specialists were concerned about the potential detrimental effects of physical distancing measures on well-being. Loneliness has been underscored as one of the most critical ones given the wide range of mental and physical health problems associated with it. Unlike social isolation, loneliness does not depend on social network size, so it can be experienced even if surrounded by others, or not be experienced at all even if one is alone. In this article, I propose that the feeling of loneliness might result from a closure in a person's affordance space, i.e., in the whole range of affordances that might stand out as relevant to an individual with a particular repertoire of habits and embedded within certain sociocultural practices. I will explore three possible sources of this closure during the current pandemic, as well as some ways in which people coped with loneliness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Evidence from past economic crises indicates that recessions often affect men's and women's employment differently, with a greater impact on male-dominated sectors. The current COVID-19 crisis presents novel characteristics that have affected economic, health and social phenomena over wide swaths of the economy. Social distancing measures to combat the spread of the virus, such as working from home and school closures, have placed an additional tremendous burden on families. Using new survey data collected in April 2020 from a representative sample of Italian women, we analyse the effects of working arrangements due to COVID-19 on housework, childcare and home schooling among couples where both partners work. Our results show that most of the additional housework and childcare associated to COVID-19 falls on women while childcare activities are more equally shared within the couple than housework activities. According to our empirical estimates, changes to the amount of housework done by women during the emergency do not seem to depend on their partners' working arrangements. With the exception of those continuing to work at their usual place of work, all of the women surveyed spend more time on housework than before. In contrast, the amount of time men devote to housework does depend on their partners' working arrangements: men whose partners continue to work at their usual workplace spend more time on housework than before. The link between time devoted to childcare and working arrangements is more symmetric, with higher percentages of both women and men spending less time with their children if they continue to work away from home. For home schooling, too, parents who continue to go to their usual workplace after the lockdown are less likely to spend greater amounts of time with their children than before. Similar results emerge for the partners of women not working before the emergency. Finally, analysis of work–life balance satisfaction shows that working women with children aged 0–5 are those who find balancing work and family more difficult during COVID-19. The work–life balance is especially difficult to achieve for those with partners who continue to work outside the home during the emergency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant impact globally. Most affected, however, are those individuals and groups routinely disadvantaged by the social injustice created by the misdistribution of power, money, and resources. Simple measures that prevent the spread of COVID-19, such as frequent hand washing and social distancing, are unavailable to millions of people in the wealthiest of nations and in the poorest of nations. Disadvantaged groups are impacted more directly and in disproportionately higher numbers due to existing poor health, and the disruption of services central to securing an income and an education will have lasting consequences for their futures. The unintended effect of exclusionary government policies is that privileged citizens and healthcare systems are also at greater risk. This paper seeks to highlight the impact of COVID-19 on those already suffering health inequities through consideration of some of the social determinants of health on groups in affluent and poorer nations. It also highlights some of the factors that may assist in tackling health inequities as we emerge from this pandemic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Conclusion This research supports prior studies on the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on adult crime, with changes in crime rates during this period according to crime type and location (Ashby 2020a; Kim and Lung 2020; Kirchmeier and Villa-Lara 2020; Shayegh & Malpede, [64]). Although the effect of COVID-19 on crime rates has recently attracted growing attention, most studies focused on adult crime, while little is known about the effect of lockdowns on juvenile crime. Keywords: COVID-19 pandemic; Juvenile delinquency; Time series; ARIMA; Routine activities EN COVID-19 pandemic Juvenile delinquency Time series ARIMA Routine activities 785 808 24 09/11/23 20230901 NES 230901 Introduction The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic is undeniably one of the most critical events in the history of the world in recent decades. 2020; 19: 2 58 Pietrawska B, Aurand SK, Palmer W. Covid-19 and crime: CAP's perspective on crime and loss in the age of Covid-19: Los Angeles crime. [Extracted from the article]

The first months of the COVID-19 crisis offer the possibility to observe patterns of innovation in response to a large, unanticipated shock, simultaneously creating severe adversity and new opportunities. Using new survey data on 22,102 small businesses, we study the amounts, types, and determinants of innovation, particularly firm age, size, factor adjustment, and prior capabilities. Results imply high rates of innovation during the pandemic, including new products, processes, and modes of delivery. Regressions show that rates are higher for younger and larger firms, where younger firms show a greater propensity for product innovations and larger firms for process innovations. Innovation is higher for firms that adjust factors (employment) less. Firms with either extensive or zero pre-pandemic capabilities to accommodate social distancing innovated the least in directions that would expand this capability, while firms with some prior capability innovated the most to expand upon process innovations related to social distancing. Young firms are more likely to increase E-sales, while large firms are more likely to adjust the share of teleworkers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Older women with HIV (WWH) confront significant biopsychosocial challenges that may be exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Between May 2020 and April 2021, following a resiliency intervention conducted as part of a randomized parent trial, 24 cisgender WWH (M = 58 years old) completed quantitative assessments and qualitative interviews exploring the impact of COVID-19 on mental health. Qualitative data were analyzed via rapid analysis. Most participants were Black (62.5%) and non-Hispanic or Latina (87.5%). Emergent themes included (1) increased anxiety and depression; (2) a loss of social connectedness; (3) fear of unknown interactions among COVID-19, HIV, and other comorbidities; and (4) the use of largely adaptive strategies to cope with these issues. Findings suggest that older WWH face significant COVID-19-related mental health challenges, compounding existing stressors. As the pandemic persists, it will be important to assess the impact of these stressors on wellbeing, identify effective coping strategies, and provide increased support to mitigate COVID-19-related mental health issues over time. Trial Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT03071887. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

COVID-19 has undergone several mutations and is still spreading in most countries now. PA has positive benefits in the prevention of COVID-19 infection and counteracting the negative physical and mental effects caused by COVID-19. However, relevant evidence has indicated a high prevalence of physical inactivity among the general population, which has worsened due to the outbreak of the pandemic, and there is a severe lack of exercise guidance and mitigation strategies to advance the knowledge and role of PA to improve physical and mental health in most countries during the epidemic. This study surveyed the effects of COVID-19 on PA in Chinese residents during the pandemic and provided important reference and evidence to inform policymakers and formulate policies and planning for health promotion and strengthening residents' PA during periods of public health emergencies. ANOVA, Kolmogorov–Smirnov, the chi-square test and Spearman correlation analysis were used for statistical analysis. A total of 14,715 participants were included. The results show that nearly 70% of Chinese residents had inadequate PA (95%CI 58.0%–82.19%) during the COVID-19 outbreak, which was more than double the global level (27.5%, 95%CI 25.0%–32.2%). The content, intensity, duration, and frequency of PA were all affected during the period of home isolation, and the types of PA may vary among different ages. The lack of physical facilities and cultural environment is the main factor affecting PA. However, there was no significant correlation between insufficient PA and the infection rate. During the period of home isolation and social distance of epidemic prevention, it is necessary to strengthen the scientific remote network monitoring and guidance for the process of PA in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The year 2020 has marked the beginning of a new life in which humans must struggle and adapt to coexist with a new coronavirus, known as COVID-19. Population density is one of the most significant factors affecting the speed of COVID-19's spread, and it is closely related to human activity and movement. Therefore, many countries have implemented policies that restrict human movement to reduce the risk of transmission. This study aims to identify the temporal dependence between human mobility and virus transmission, indicated by the number of active cases, in the context of large-scale social restriction policies implemented by the Indonesian government. This analysis helps identify which government policies can significantly reduce the number of active COVID-19 cases in Indonesia. We conducted a temporal interdependency analysis using a time-varying Gaussian copula, where the parameter fluctuates throughout the observation. We use the percentage change in human mobility data and the number of active COVID-19 cases in Indonesia from March 28, 2020, to July 9, 2021. The results show that human mobility in public areas significantly influenced the number of active COVID-19 cases. Moreover, the temporal interdependencies between the two variables behaved differently according to the implementation period of large-scale social distancing policies. Among the five types of policies implemented in Indonesia, the policy that had the most significant influence on the number of active COVID-19 cases was several restrictions during the Implementation of Restrictions on Community Activities (Pelaksanaan Pembatasan Kegiatan Masyarakat/PPKM) period. We conclude that the strictness of rules restricting social activities generally affected the number of active COVID-19 cases, especially in the early days of the pandemic. Finally, the government can implement policies that are at least equivalent to the rules in PPKM if, in the future, cases of COVID-19 spike again. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The COVID-19 pandemic has created new opportunities for organized criminal groups and confronted them with new challenges. Analysis of how these groups have reacted to the pandemic yields better understanding of how they work and enables the devising of more effective counter-strategies. To this end, we identified illustrative cases regarding the provision of illegal governance and infiltration of the legal economy by conducting a systematic content analysis of international media articles and institutional reports published during the first eight months after the outbreak of the pandemic (January to August 2020). These cases were further analyzed in order to cluster the behavior of criminal groups in response to the COVID-19 emergency, and the means by which they tried to exploit the pandemic to strengthen their political and economic power. We found that different governance-type criminal groups proposed themselves as institutions able to mitigate the burdens imposed by the pandemic by providing support to people in need and enforcing social-distancing measures. Further, identified cases did not provide evidence of groups devoted to the provision of illicit services and goods assuming any governance role. In this respect, the available evidence supports previous knowledge about organized crime. Cases of misappropriation of public funds and organized crime infiltration of the legal economy seem less common, at least in the first phase of the pandemic. The wholesale distribution of pharmaceuticals and medicines has been the sector targeted the most. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The COVID-19 pandemic led ADHD services to modify the clinical practice to reduce in-person contact as much as possible to minimise viral spread. This had far-reaching effects on day-to-day clinical practice as remote assessments were widely adopted. Despite the attenuation of the acute threat from COVID, many clinical services are retaining some remote practices. The lack of clear evidence-based guidance about the most appropriate way to conduct remote assessments meant that these changes were typically implemented in a localised, ad hoc, and un-coordinated way. Here, the European ADHD Guidelines Group (EAGG) discusses the strengths and weaknesses of remote assessment methods of children and adolescents with ADHD in a narrative review based on available data and expert opinions to highlight key recommendations for future studies and clinical practice. We conclude that going forward, despite remote working in clinical services functioning adequately during the pandemic, all required components of ADHD assessment should still be completed following national/international guidelines; however, the process may need adaptation. Social restrictions, including changes in education provision, can either mask or exacerbate features associated with ADHD and therefore assessment should carefully chart symptom profile and impairment prior to, as well as during an ongoing pandemic. While remote assessments are valuable in allowing clinical services to continue despite restrictions and may have benefits for routine care in the post-pandemic world, particular attention must be paid to those who may be at high risk but not be able to use/access remote technologies and prioritize these groups for conventional face-to-face assessments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Reminiscence therapy (RT) is the most common non-pharmacological treatment for dementia care. The therapy stimulates the senses to evoke memories having the potential to reduce Behavioral and Psychological Symptoms of Dementia (BPSD). Digital RT, such as web-based reminiscence therapy (WBRT), has the potential to support dementia care and reduce the caregiving burden. Aims: This study aimed to explore healthcare professionals (HCPs) perceptions of utilizing WBRT in institutionalized settings to support persons with dementia during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: A qualitative phenomenological descriptive study was adopted and guided by Graham's Knowledge to Action framework. Online training on the use of WBRT was conducted, followed by interviews with HCPs. Results: Four major themes were identified on the potential use of WBRT in dementia care, including usability and efficacy, impact on caregiving, capability of reducing BPSD, and. feasibility during COVID-19 social distancing. Discussion: This study recognized the potential use of WBRT to support the person with dementia during the pandemic in institutionalized settings. Conclusion: The knowledge generated from this study will guide the future application of WBRT to support dementia care in diverse healthcare settings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: This study aimed at exploring the perception and experiences with regard to the COVID-19 pandemic among Bangladeshi urban young adults. Subject and methods: Using a mixed-method approach, an online cross-sectional survey among 315 participants and in-depth interviews (IDI) among 20 young adults were conducted from May 1 to May 25, 2020. Descriptive statistics and chi-square tests were performed for quantitative data, along with the thematic analysis for qualitative data. Results: The mean (± SD) age of the participants was 26.54 (± 3.05), and the majority were male (54.9%). About 81.6% of the participants reported COVID-19 as a viral disease, transmitted through droplets of sneezing and coughing, and close contact with another person (90.8%). Nearly 40% of participants reported news channels as a reliable source of information for COVID-19. Participants who were male were less likely to be aware than females in terms of mode of transmission of COVID-19 such as going outside of the home (82.7% male vs 90.8% female; p < 0.05). Male participants thought they were perfectly healthy and more reluctant to agree with maintaining social distance compared to female participants (72.8% male vs 90.1% female; p < 0.001). Participant's satisfaction level with services provided by the government was also significantly different and higher among females than male participants (39.9% male vs 53.5% female; p < 0.05). The majority of the participants reported suffering due to financial uncertainty, psychological distress, and inadequate health facilities. Dissatisfaction was reported with the existing health services as creating several misconceptions, lacking testing facilities, and debasement by the health professionals. Conclusion: This study found a better perception regarding COVID-19 among the young adults, but they had poor preventive practices. Health education intervention with the rapid response should be implemented targeting this vulnerable group to improve their preventive practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Data sources This review article scrutinised 16 clinical studies (clinical trials and observational studies) concerning coronavirus disease of 2019 (COVID-19). Additionally, 18 guidelines about the COVID-19 were reviewed and the key points were represented in this study. Study selection The review included human trials, in-vitro studies, review articles, and credible news reports about severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and COVID-19 complications, treatment guidelines, management strategies, and epidemiological features. There were no exclusion criteria reported in this review and the included information was in English and Chinese languages. Data extraction and synthesis A descriptive review of the literature was conducted, taking a comprehensive approach. The paper consisted of three main parts: introduction, presentation, and management. The introduction part presented basic information about the SARS-CoV-2, its evolution and transmission, and the course of disease. The presentation section introduced the signs and symptoms, diagnosis, high risk groups, and complications of COVID-19. Eventually, some evidence was presented about the prevention, medical management, and measuring responses to the treatments in the management section. Results Based on the results of this study, non-pharmaceutical interventions, including strict social isolation and distancing measures, might reduce the spread of the SARS-CoV-2 by nearly 99.3 percent (reproduction number mitigating from 406 to 2.5 in 30 days). In the supportive management section, monitoring vital signs and neonatal feeding were stated as the most important factors to consider. For symptomatic neonates, medical management and intervention were mentioned as essential. It was claimed that for adults with mild infection, the best option would be home quarantine with further medical monitoring or hospitalisation if required. The following sequence was also suggested as early supportive therapy and monitoring: intravenous fluid administration, oxygen therapy, and application of corticosteroids. Management of critical patients with critical COVID-19 included admission to intensive care unit, use of continuous positive airway pressure and bi-level positive airway pressure in certain circumstances, endotracheal intubation, invasive mechanical ventilation, extracorporeal membrane oxygenation, and fluid resuscitation and vasopressors. Additionally, this study suggested oseltamivir, iopinavir, remdesivir, chloroquine, baricitinib, ruxolitinib, and fedratinib as possible drugs to help manage COVID-19. A soaring c-reactive protein level and decreased albumin content in the blood were reported to be associated with a deteriorating status in COVID-19 patients. To keep the number of exposures to a minimum, two separate viral clearance tests taken at least 24 hours apart, were stated as necessary laboratory results before the discharge of patients with COVID-19. Conclusions The study warns about possible exponential spread of COVID-19 and proposes to adhering to tighter restrictions of social distancing. Besides the clinical guidelines presented within the study, it also encourages further up-to-date and evidence-based management guidelines for patients with COVID-19. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Individual social responsibility is essential to achieving the sustainable development goals of the society, yet there has been very little research on whether and how social and cultural factors influence individual social responsibility. Using the Covid-19 pandemic as our empirical context, this research examines the relationship between social capital and individual social distancing behaviors during the pandemic. Social distancing is a form of socially responsible behavior because it is critical in mitigating the spread of the Covid-19 virus. By exploiting daily mobile GPS location data, we provide strong evidence for the divergent relationships between the two constituents of social capital–civic norms and social networks–and social distancing behaviors. While civic norms are positively associated with social distancing, social networks have a negative association with social distancing. These results are consistent with a nuanced view of social capital: civic norms facilitate cooperation and self-sacrifice for the common good, whereas social networks increase individual embeddedness and hence inertia in maintaining social interactions, resulting in opposite effects on social distancing. Our results contribute to the research at the intersection of social capital and individual social responsibility by highlighting the nuanced effects of social capital on individual responses to the pandemic and provide valuable insights for policymakers and businesses in disaster management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]