Search

Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) is escalating all over the world and has higher morbidities and mortalities in certain vulnerable populations. People Who Use Drugs (PWUD) are a marginalized and stigmatized group with weaker immunity responses, vulnerability to stress, poor health conditions, high-risk behaviors, and lower access to health care services. These conditions put them at a higher risk of COVID-19 infection and its complications. In this paper, an international group of experts on addiction medicine, infectious diseases, and disaster psychiatry explore the possible raised concerns in this issue and provide recommendations to manage the comorbidity of COVID-19 and Substance Use Disorder (SUD). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since the first case of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus-2/Coronavirus Disease 2019 (SARS-COV-2/COVID-19) was discovered in Wuhan, China, it spread to vast limits globally and became a public health disaster, affecting nearly all countries around the globe. Along with mainstream medical treatment, alternative medicine desperately was the need of the hour for youngsters to manage their symptoms while being self-quarantined and ultimately to improve their chances of survival and recovery from COVID-19. Since the beginning of SARS-COV-2, few studies address the clinical-functional presentation of viral infection and management with physiotherapy for children. Major online electronic databases PubMed, PEDro, and Google Scholar were researched to identify, organize and commission the current review. To create a search strategy, Medical Subject Headings and Descriptors of Science and Health were utilized. The authors looked for other studies by screening the references list of the potentially pertinent papers. These computerized searches turned up studies and those studies' bibliographies with pertinent citations were examined. Personal protective equipment was a crucial component for protection and contact precaution. Following hypoxia, effective oxygen therapy is administered right away. When necessary, under the right circumstances, nasal high-flow oxygen therapy, non-invasive ventilation, lung-protective breathing methods, and prone positioning can be used. Children with SARS-CoV-2/COVID-19 may benefit from physiotherapy interventions with a focus on ventilatory management, airway clearance procedures, early activities, and mobilization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The burden of the COVID-19 pandemic on healthcare systems worldwide has been compromising the progress made in the fight against HIV. This paper aims to determine how the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted HIV comprehensive care service delivery globally as well as to consolidate the evidence and recommendations that may be useful in averting future crisis. Methods: This review adheres to PRISMA guidelines. PubMed, DOAJ, Science Direct and other sources like Google Scholar and citations from included studies were searched methodically to locate studies evaluating the effects of COVID on services for HIV care. The NIH and JBI quality assessment tools were used for the quality assessment of individual studies. Results: In the present review 31 eligible studies were included and the impact on HIV care cascade were summarised under six themes: Lab services, Treatment and allied services, Counselling services, Outreach services, Psycho-social impact and Implementation of sustainable strategies. The studies also presented many innovative alternatives which were lucidly highlighted in the present article. Conclusion: Current evidence depicts multiple factors are responsible for the interruption of HIV care service delivery during the pandemic, especially in low resources settings. The prospective, alternative solutions that have been used to circumvent the threat have also been addressed in this review, in addition to the negative aspects that have been observed. Transition with new innovative, sustainable care paradigms may prove to be the building blocks in removing HIV-AIDS as a public health threat. Registration: Open Science Framework (DOI: 10.17605/OSF.IO/74GHM). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While Canada has had relatively high vaccination rates against COVID-19, specifically during earlier waves of the pandemic, vaccine hesitancy has continued to serve as a significant barrier to adequate protection against the virus and, more recently, booster vaccine uptake. This paper explores the processes underlying Canadians' perceptions of COVID-19 vaccines and their decisions to take or refuse them, as well as how public policy and health messaging about vaccination has influenced vaccination attitudes and behaviors. Our focus group interviews with 18 vaccinated and unvaccinated adult Canadians conducted during October 2021 reveal that, in some respects, COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy conforms to prior knowledge about some of the factors that affect vaccine attitudes (e.g., the influence of known medical providers) but deviates from current theoretical frameworks regarding general vaccine hesitancy. Specifically, these frameworks emphasize a lack of scientific knowledge and literacy ("knowledge deficit" accounts) or individuals' inability to incorporate rational risk perceptions into initial emotional responses to vaccines ("emotionality/irrationality" accounts). In contrast to the knowledge deficit account, we find that expressions of COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy were most frequently associated with an information surplus or inability to prioritize information from multiple and often contradictory sources. Furthermore, top-down pro-vaccination messaging often triggered significant pushback against what participants perceived as moral shaming of the unvaccinated. Our findings demonstrate the necessity for a new framework to understand and address vaccine hesitancy. A better theoretical account of vaccine hesitancy has important implications for future vaccination efforts, specifically within the context of new variants and low booster vaccination rates in Canada. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The COVID-19 pandemic substantially impacted the mental health of the general population and particularly vulnerable individuals and groups. A wealth of research allows for estimating this impact and identifying relevant factors contributing to or mitigating it. The current paper presents and synthesizes this evidence into a multiaxial model of COVID-19 mental health impacts. Based on existing research, we propose four axes: (1) Exposure to COVID-related events; (2) Personal and social vulnerability, such as previous mental health problems or belonging to a vulnerable group; (3) Time, which accounts for the differential impacts throughout the development of the pandemic; and (4) Context, including healthcare and public policies, and social representations of the illness influencing individual emotional reactions and relevant behaviors. These axes help acknowledge the complexity of communities' reactions and are pragmatic in identifying and prioritizing factors. The axes can provide individual information (i.e., more exposure is harmful) and account for interactions (e.g., exposure in an early phase of the pandemic differs from a later stage). This model contributes to the reflections of the evidence and informs the mental health response to the next pandemic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: During the COVID-19 pandemic, as society struggled with increasing disease burden, economic hardships, and with disease morbidity and mortality, governments and institutions began implementing stay-at-home or shelter-in-place orders to help stop the spread of the virus. Although wellintentioned, one unintended adverse consequence was an increase in violence, abuse, and neglect. Methods: We reviewed the literature on the effect the pandemic had on domestic violence, child and elder abuse and neglect, human trafficking, and gun violence. In this paper we explore common themes and causes of this violence and offer suggestions to help mitigate risk during ongoing and future pandemics. Just as these forms of violence primarily target at-risk, vulnerable populations, so did pandemic-related violence target marginalized populations including women, children, Blacks, and those with lower socioeconomic status. This became, and remains, a public health crisis within a crisis. In early 2021, the American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP) Public Health and Injury Committee was tasked with reviewing the impact the pandemic had on violence and abuse as the result of a resolution passed at the 2020 ACEP Council meeting. Conclusion: Measures meant to help control the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic had many unintended consequences and placed people at risk for violence. Emergency departments (ED), although stressed and strained during the pandemic, remain a safety net for survivors of violence. As we move out of this pandemic, hospitals and EDs need to focus on steps that can be taken to ensure they preserve and expand their ability to assist victims should another pandemic or global health crisis develop. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The COVID‐19 pandemic led to major changes in public policies to address supply chain disruption and escalated the price of consumer disinfectant products. To address market demands on alcohol‐based hand rubs and disinfectants, Health Canada implemented major changes to the regulations regarding composition, handling, transportation, and packaging to insure product availability. Furthermore, accelerated licensing of ingredients and packaging did not meet standard medical quality guidelines yet were authorized for manufacturing and packaging of alcohol‐based hand rubs and disinfectants. The accountability associated with these policy changes were reactive, including industry self‐reporting, consumer reporting, and Health Canada advisories and recalls that were responsive to products after they were available in the market. Nonetheless, Canadian public health policy increased hand sanitizers availability. However, some of the interim policies have raised major public health concerns associated with ethanol quality, packaging, and labeling, and enforcement of regulations. In this paper, we review the changes in the Canadian regulations amid the current pandemic and we evaluate the unintended health risks that might arise from these changes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the subjective realities of female students in higher education as they navigated their well-being and active lives during the COVID-19 pandemic. Drawing upon Merleau-Ponty's phenomenological framework, which confronts an often-neglected dimension of our experience—the lived body and the phenomenal world—we aim to inform the development of targeted support and interventions to address the specific needs of female students, in future pandemic times. By exploring how three female students studying sport and recreation in higher education perceived their experiences, this article seeks to shed light on the unique challenges faced by these women in maintaining physical activity, coping with isolation and a change in social networks, and managing their mental health in the context of the pandemic. Understanding these subjective realities (such as isolation, restricted physical activity, and loss of social connections) and interpreting the three students' lived habitats, their bodily responsiveness, and their spontaneity ensures that their experience is heard, and appropriate future support can be given. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccination response in primary health care provides important learnings for strengthening health systems and preparing for surge response. The aim of this study was to examine the contributions of service providers to the COVID-19 vaccination program in Victoria, Australia, to gain insight into the role of primary health care during surge response and determine if this differs with rurality. Methods: A descriptive quantitative study design using existing COVID-19 vaccination data extracted from the Australian Immunisation Record via the Department of Health and Aged Care, Health Data Portal, de-identified for primary health networks, was used. Vaccination administrations were categorised by provider type for the first year of the Australian COVID-19 vaccination program in Victoria, Australia from February 2021 to December 2021. Descriptive analyses describe the total and proportional vaccinations administered by provider type and patient rurality. Results: Overall, primary care providers delivered half (50.58%) of total vaccinations for the population, and the number and proportion of vaccinations increased with patient rurality. The largest difference was observed in remote communities where 70.15% of COVID-19 vaccinations were administered by primary care providers. Primary care providers administered fewer COVID-19 vaccines in regional centres at 42.70%, compared to 46.45% administered by state government (and 10.85% administered by other). Conclusion: The contribution of primary health care to the COVID-19 vaccine program highlights the importance of rural primary care providers and settings, primarily general practice, to the delivery of population health interventions in rural communities especially during times of crisis. What is known about the topic? Research on pandemic response provides important insights for future surge planning and preparedness. What does this paper add? The contribution of primary care to the COVID-19 vaccine program highlights the importance of rural general practice to the delivery of population health interventions during times of crisis. What are the implications for practitioners? Policymakers must tailor reforms towards strengthening rural primary health care in preparation for future surge response. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

When the COVID‐19 virus first arrived in the United States in early 2020, many epidemiologists and public health officers counseled for shutdowns and advised policymakers to prepare for a major pandemic. In 2020, though, US society was rife with major political and cultural divides. Some elected leaders promoted policies at odds with the experts, and many people refused to heed the public health‐based communications about the coming pandemic. Additionally, the capacity to respond to a pandemic was distributed in the country in a highly unequal fashion. This paper analyzes the noteworthy geopolitical patterns of COVID‐19 illnesses, subsequent demands on hospitals, and resulting deaths. This description is based on a snapshot of archival data gathered in the midst of the pandemic during late January and early February of 2021. Demographic data, indicators of political party support, indicators of citizen attitudes, and public health compliance behaviors are combined in a multivariate analysis to explain COVID‐19 outcomes at the local government (county) level. The analysis suggests strongly that regional political culture and local demographics played a substantial role in determining the severity of the public health impact of the COVID‐19 pandemic. Key points: During the early stages of the COVID Pandemic, regional political culture and local demographics played a substantial role in determining the severity of the public health impact of the COVID‐19 pandemic.Race, as measured by the percent white of a county, was the single strongest predictor of COVID outcomes.Preparing for future pandemics requires us to address social and economic inequality in our society. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper argues that we ought to rethink the harm-reduction prioritization strategy that has shaped early responses to acute resource scarcity (particularly of intensive care unit beds) during the COVID-19 pandemic. Although some authors have claimed that "[t]here are no egalitarians in a pandemic," it is noted here that many observers and commentators have been deeply concerned about how prioritization policies that proceed on the basis of survival probability may unjustly distribute the burden of mortality and morbidity, even while reducing overall deaths. The paper further argues that there is a general case in favor of an egalitarian approach to medical rationing that has been missed in the ethical commentary so far; egalitarian approaches to resource rationing minimize wrongful harm. This claim is defended against some objections and the paper concludes by explaining why we should consider the possibility that avoiding wrongful harm is more important than avoiding harm simpliciter. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In January 2020, SARS-CoV-2 virus was identified as a cause of an outbreak in China. The disease quickly spread worldwide, and the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the pandemic in March 2020. From the first notifications of spread of the disease, the WHO's Emergency Programme implemented a global COVID-19 surveillance system in coordination with all WHO regional offices. The system aimed to monitor the spread of the epidemic over countries and across population groups, severity of the disease and risk factors, and the impact of control measures. COVID-19 surveillance data reported to WHO is a combination of case-based data and weekly aggregated data, focusing on a minimum global dataset for cases and deaths including disaggregation by age, sex, occupation as a Health Care Worker, as well as number of cases tested, and number of cases newly admitted for hospitalization. These disaggregations aim to monitor inequities in COVID-19 distribution and risk factors among population groups. SARS-CoV-2 epidemic waves continue to sweep the world; as of March 2022, over 445 million cases and 6 million deaths have been reported worldwide. Of these, over 327 million cases (74%) have been reported in the WHO surveillance database, of which 255 million cases (57%) are disaggregated by age and sex. A public dashboard has been made available to visualize trends, age distributions, sex ratios, along with testing and hospitalization rates. It includes a feature to download the underlying dataset. This paper will describe the data flows, database, and frontend public dashboard, as well as the challenges experienced in data acquisition, curation and compilation and the lessons learnt in overcoming these. Two years after the pandemic was declared, COVID-19 continues to spread and is still considered a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC). While WHO regional and country offices have demonstrated tremendous adaptability and commitment to process COVID-19 surveillance data, lessons learnt from this major event will serve to enhance capacity and preparedness at every level, as well as institutional empowerment that may lead to greater sharing of public health evidence during a PHEIC, with a focus on equity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in unprecedented challenges to health systems worldwide, including the control of non-COVID-19 diseases. Malaria cases and deaths may increase due to the direct and indirect effects of the pandemic in malaria-endemic countries, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). This scoping review aims to summarize information on public health-relevant effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the malaria situation in SSA. Methods: Review of publications and manuscripts on preprint servers, in peer-reviewed journals and in grey literature documents from 1 December, 2019 to 9 June, 2021. A structured search was conducted on different databases using predefined eligibility criteria for the selection of articles. Results: A total of 51 papers have been included in the analysis. Modelling papers have predicted a significant increase in malaria cases and malaria deaths in SSA due to the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. Many papers provided potential explanations for expected COVID-19 effects on the malaria burden; these ranged from relevant diagnostical and clinical aspects to reduced access to health care services, impaired availability of curative and preventive commodities and medications, and effects on malaria prevention campaigns. Compared to previous years, fewer country reports provided data on the actual number of malaria cases and deaths in 2020, with mixed results. While highly endemic countries reported evidence of decreased malaria cases in health facilities, low endemic countries reported overall higher numbers of malaria cases and deaths in 2020. Conclusions: The findings from this review provide evidence for a significant but diverse impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on malaria in SSA. There is the need to further investigate the public health consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic on the malaria burden. Protocol registered on Open Science Framework: https://doi.org/10.17605/OSF.IO/STQ9D [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

During February and March, in Costa Rica, as well as in many other countries in Latin America, public health authorities and government officials insisted that there was no reason to panic or to hoard toilet paper, canned food, and disinfectants. Even though, by this time, the World Health Organization had declared that transmission of the viral infection caused by the novel coronavirus (SARS-Cov-2) had reached the level of pandemic, these health authorities and elected officials asserted that most people need not feel afraid. After all, they claimed, the disease caused by this virus appeared to be mild in most cases, that is, except in people older than 70 years of age and people with concomitant health issues such hypertension or diabetes. The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate that the epistemic authority from which the dominant narrative about COVID-19 has emerged in Costa Rica is rooted in extended and normalized discriminatory and oppressive ideologies regarding the value of people and their bodies. This official discourse is an expression of the condescending and paternalistic tradition of medical epistemology in the country. With this paper, therefore, I make a critical contribution to the exploration of the following questions. How does this narrative discourse affect older people, people with disabilities, and people who live with physical circumstances such as hypertension or diabetes? Does this narrative discourse help the general public, fairly and in a dignify manner, to understand the risks of contagion with respect to COVID-19 and the preventative measures required to avoid the infection? [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The increasing spread of the Covid-19 pandemic is paralleled by increasing use of social media for general, positive or negative influences. A systematic review was attempted to evaluate the extent to which research has been done on the three categories of influence of social media and the nature of influence. A search of Google Scholar using the topic of the review itself as the search term, including abstracts also, yielded 32 papers, of which 30 were reviewed under the three categories. More than half of the selected papers were published on the negative influence of social media. Mis (dis) information dominated among the types of negative influences discussed. Many of the papers in all the three categories discussed a few factors related to the observed results. In the case of negative influence, suggestions were given to mitigate the negative influence. This research has implications policymaker and people/organisations responsible for running public health campaigns on social media. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Since COVID-19 first appeared in the United States (US) in January 2020, US states have pursued a wide range of policies to mitigate the spread of the virus and its economic ramifications. Without unified federal guidance, states have been the front lines of the policy response.Main Text: We created the COVID-19 US State Policy (CUSP) database ( https://statepolicies.com/ ) to document the dates and components of economic relief and public health measures issued at the state level in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Documented interventions included school and business closures, face mask mandates, directives on vaccine eligibility, eviction moratoria, and expanded unemployment insurance benefits. By providing continually updated information, CUSP was designed to inform rapid-response, policy-relevant research in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic and has been widely used to investigate the impact of state policies on population health and health equity. This paper introduces the CUSP database and highlights how it is already informing the COVID-19 pandemic response in the US.Conclusion: CUSP is the most comprehensive publicly available policy database of health, social, and economic policies in response to the COVID-19 pandemic in the US. CUSP documents widespread variation in state policy decisions and implementation dates across the US and serves as a freely available and valuable resource to policymakers and researchers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to review the federal decisions to coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) response in the United States and consider the different approaches employed by the California state government. Design/methodology/approach: This paper focuses on COVID-19-related issues, responses and implications in federal countries, and largely draws comparisons between the Trump Administration and California state. Findings: The slow response of the federal government could have been avoided, had there been a current and tested national plan. The defunding of the Office of Pandemics and Emerging Threats, and the lack of coordination between the Trump Administration and the states have contributed to its ranking as the country with the highest COVID-19 infection and fatality rates worldwide. California state oversaw an effective initial pandemic response, which was ultimately undermined by a lack of national support and the refusal of some citizens to comply with the restrictions. Research limitations/implications: The paper draws upon open-source information published on government websites and news media. Originality/value: As the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States is currently ongoing, information about the federal governance and state response is still evolving. The authors examine California as a state exemplar, since it is the largest such jurisdiction by populace and the first state to issue statewide mandatory lockdown measures. This comparison offers insights as to the decisive initiatives that could have occurred at the federal level. The "lessons learned" highlight the critical role of crisis leadership in societal and public health preparedness for future pandemic events. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores how Covid-19 is much more than a natural intrusion into our human world. Covid-19 reveals our interconnectivity, how nature needs to be re-imagined beyond our 20th century perceptions of it being an outside force, something of beauty to observe and protect, or to use as a resource or to control when disruptive. The paper takes a Lacanian psychoanalytic perspective to reflect on Covid-19 as master signifier of contagion. Covid19 is an intrusion of a traumatic Real into our lifeworlds. The Real enunciates a particular truth to us; that we live in a precarious, inter-dependent connected world, undoing the hegemony and fantasy of what J.A Miller calls Capitalism-Science. There is no human versus nature, no war against the virus, because the pandemic is more than just an intrusive virus, it's an Event (Badiou) produced by our social, technological and environmental ecosystems. The paper concludes by introducing Eco-Leadership (Western 2019) a theory and practice for leaders and organisations to adapt, and begin to address the truth of our precarious, interdependent connectivity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The COVID‐19 pandemic has a pervasive effect on all aspects of family life. We can distinguish the collective societal and community effects of the global pandemic and the risk and disease impact for individuals and families. This paper draws on Rolland's Family Systems‐Illness (FSI) model to describe some of the unique challenges through a multisystemic lens. Highlighting the pattern of psychosocial issues of COVID‐19 over time, discussion emphasizes the evolving interplay of larger systems public health pandemic challenges and mitigation strategies with individual and family processes. The paper addresses issues of coping with myriad Covid‐19 uncertainties in the initial crisis wave and evolving phases of the pandemic in the context of individual and family development, pre‐existing illness or disability, and racial and socio‐economic disparities. The discussion offers recommendations for timely family oriented consultation and psychoeducation, and for healthcare clinician self‐care. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted limitations in the current public health data infrastructure, and the need for a comprehensive, real-time, centralized, user-friendly data management system suitable for both disease surveillance and outbreak management. To address these issues, the Canadian Forces Health Services Group developed the webbased Canadian Armed Forces Surveillance and Outbreak Management System (CAF SOMS). This paper details the development of the CAF SOMS, provides formative evaluation results and includes a discussion of the lessons learned and intent to use the CAF SOMS in future to enhance the CAF's disease surveillance and outbreak management capability beyond COVID-19. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to combat the COVID-19 pandemic, policymakers around the globe have increasingly invested in digital health technologies to support the 'test, track and trace' approach of containing the spread of the novel coronavirus. These technologies include mobile 'contact tracing' applications (apps), which can trace individuals likely to have come into contact with those who have reported symptoms or tested positive for the virus and request that they self-isolate. This paper takes a critical public health perspective that advocates for 'genuine participation' in public health interventions and emphasises the need to take citizen's knowledge into account during public health decision-making. In doing so, it presents and discusses the findings of a UK interview study that explored public views on the possibility of using a COVID-19 contact-tracing app public health intervention at the time the United Kingdom (UK) Government announced their decision to develop such a technology. Findings illustrated interviewees' range and degree of understandings, misconceptions, and concerns about the possibility of using an app. In particular, concerns about privacy and surveillance predominated. Interviewees associated these concerns much more broadly than health by identifying with pre-existent British national narratives associated with individual liberty and autonomy. In extending and contributing to ongoing sociological research with public health, we argue that understanding and responding to these matters is vital, and that our findings demonstrate the need for a forward-looking, anticipatory strategy for public engagement as part of the responsible innovation of the COVID-19 contact-tracing app in the UK. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the United States, bioethicist Arthur L. Caplan, along with three colleagues, stated in a paper published in the PennLive Patriot-News in May 2020 that anyone with COVID-19 who has not followed public health guidelines regarding mask use or social distancing, or who is responsible for a COVID-19 outbreak, should volunteer to be treated last. They do this based on the principle of the philosopher John Stuart Mill that the expression of freedom cannot cause harm to others. While one can understand the arguments raised by Caplan and his colleagues, this position cannot be applied in the Quebec context, for philosophical (ethical) and public health reasons. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In March 2020, the Portuguese Government issued a remarkable regulation by which irregular migrants who had previously started the regularization procedure were temporarily regularized and thus allowed full access to all social benefits, including healthcare. The Portuguese constitutional and legal framework is particularly generous regarding the right to healthcare to irregular migrants. Nevertheless, until now, several practical barriers prevented full access to healthcare services provided by the national health service, even in situations in which it was legally granted. This decision is not only remarkable in light of the fulfilling of migrants' rights to health, as imposed by international commitments assumed by, but also in view of the fight against COVID-19. The decision is grounded both on human rights and in public health reasons. The paper is divided in two main parts. In the first one, it analyzes national State obligations with regard to healthcare provision to migrants in irregular situation. In the second part, it analyzes the Portuguese solution, using this case study to discuss the possible mechanisms to comply with such obligations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The COVID-19 pandemic has generated a range of responses from countries across the globe in managing and containing infections. Considerable research has highlighted the importance of trust in ethically and effectively managing infectious diseases in the population; however, considerations of reciprocal trust remain limited in debates on pandemic response. This paper aims to broaden the perspective of good ethical practices in managing an infectious disease outbreak by including the role of reciprocal trust. A synthesis of the approaches drawn from South Korea and Taiwan reveals reciprocal trust as an important ethical response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Reciprocal trust offers the opportunity to reconcile the difficulties arising from restrictive measures for protecting population health and individual rights. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Evidence is accumulating of the negative impact of the COVID‐19 pandemic and related public health measures on mental health. In this emergent field, there has been little research into the role of risk perception on depressive symptoms and the contribution of health‐care resources to model risk perception and mental health. The aim of this paper is to describe the relationship between individual‐level perception of risk and depression, controlling for a set of confounders and for country‐level heterogeneity. A cross‐sectional and observational online survey was conducted using a non‐probability snowball sampling technique. We use data on 11,340 respondents, living in six European countries (Italy, Sweden, United Kingdom, France, Poland, Czech Republic) who completed survey questionnaires during the first months of the pandemic. We used a fixed‐effect approach, which included individual and macro‐level variables. The findings suggest that a high proportion of people suffering from depression and heightened risk perception is positively associated with reporting depressive symptoms, even if this relationship varies significantly between countries. Moreover, the association is moderated by contextual factors including health‐care expenditure as a percentage of Gross Domestic Product, hospital beds for acute care, and number of medical specialists per head of population. Investment in health care offers a concrete means of protecting the mental health of a population living under pandemic restrictions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 pandemic coronavirus disease (COVID-19) and the measures taken to lessen its impact have had side effects affecting timely care of other diseases. The aim of this paper is to quantify the impact of the pandemic on the cancer care line in the province of Santa Fe, Argentina. Method: It is an observational cross-sectional study comparing the impact on selected variables of the pre-pandemic and intra-pandemic periods. The formula of percentage variation was used to show the differences. The positivity index was calculated and expressed as a percentage. The proportions of both periods were compared through the chi-squared test and its p-value. Results: Reductions were observed in all the variables under study. However, the deeper impact was evident in screening, with 56%-87% decreases in the number of procedures carried out. A 26% reduction was seen in diagnosis. Treatment was the variable with the least impact, with a 3% decrease. Discussion: COVID-19 as well as the measures taken to reduce its impact caused alterations in the cancer care line in the province, with clear differences according to the variable under study. Measures related to cancer screening were displaced, prioritising the care of patients already diagnosed and treated. Conclusion: Considering the new increase in the number of COVID-19 cases, it is essential to adapt the healthcare system, and design new innovative strategies to reduce longterm consequences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The COVID-19 pandemic has had significant and long-term social implication for economics, education, and employment. This paper aims to analyse the current situation in Turkey from the perspective of disabled and older people. Specific precautions related to the virus were taken for this population. However the precautions were implemented in a disorganized manner and did not necessarily protect the whole group. In some cases the precautions might be detrimental by nature. It was concluded that the governments need to be flexible to support the citizens. This analysis could be beneficial to Turkey and other countries in the case of that disease or a different pandemic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We all now know that the novel coronavirus is anything but a common cold. The pandemic has created many new obligations for all of us, several of which come with serious costs to our quality of life. But in some cases, the guidance and the law are open to a degree of interpretation, leaving us to decide what is the ethical (or unethical but desired) course of action. Because of the high cost of some of the obligations, a conflict of interest can arise between what we want to do and what it is right to do. And so, some people choose to respect only the letter of the law, but not the spirit, or not to respect even the spirit of the guidelines. This paper identifies and describes the new obligations imposed on us all by the pandemic, considers their costs in terms of the good life, and provides an ethical analysis of two personal and two public cases in terms of the letter and spirit of the guidance and legislation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The COVID-19 pandemic precipitated catastrophic job loss, unprecedented unemployment rates, and severe economic hardship in renter households. As a result, housing precarity and the risk of eviction increased and worsened during the pandemic, especially among people of color and low-income populations. This paper considers the implications of this eviction crisis for health and health inequity, and the need for eviction prevention policies during the pandemic. Eviction and housing displacement are particularly threatening to individual and public health during a pandemic. Eviction is likely to increase COVID-19 infection rates because it results in overcrowded living environments, doubling up, transiency, limited access to healthcare, and a decreased ability to comply with pandemic mitigation strategies (e.g., social distancing, self-quarantine, and hygiene practices). Indeed, recent studies suggest that eviction may increase the spread of COVID-19 and that the absence or lifting of eviction moratoria may be associated with an increased rate of COVID-19 infection and death. Eviction is also a driver of health inequity as historic trends, and recent data demonstrate that people of color are more likely to face eviction and associated comorbidities. Black people have had less confidence in their ability to pay rent and are dying at 2.1 times the rate of non-Hispanic Whites. Indigenous Americans and Hispanic/Latinx people face an infection rate almost 3 times the rate of non-Hispanic whites. Disproportionate rates of both COVID-19 and eviction in communities of color compound negative health effects make eviction prevention a critical intervention to address racial health inequity. In light of the undisputed connection between eviction and health outcomes, eviction prevention, through moratoria and other supportive measures, is a key component of pandemic control strategies to mitigate COVID-19 spread and death. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sweden has been considered both pioneer and pariah in regard to its approach to the novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 and its pandemic disease, COVID-19. While much of Europe went into economic hibernation and rigid lockdown in the first wave of novel coronavirus infections in the spring of 2020, Sweden kept its borders, bars, restaurants, schools, gyms etc. open. Organised children’s sporting arrangements were also encouraged, on the basis that socialising and physical activity outweighed the risks posed by COVID-19 to children. Public transportation could still be freely used. Masks were not worn. This paper examines the often controversial tenets of the Swedish public health response to COVID-19, and how widely it has appealed to public health experts and officials in Europe and beyond. Debates within the country are also discussed. What it shows is that, despite rising levels of infection in a second wave in Europe and concessions that it might have even failed, the Swedish model is being adopted by stealth and admired from afar. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In a previous report we answered a number of questions by the editors about the Dutch strategic policy in the first half year of the SARS-CoV-2 cri- sis. In the present paper we reply to a number of additional questions of the editors about the steps put by the Dutch policy during the second half of 2020, when the SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19 pandemic developed its second wave. Especially, the awareness of an upcoming second and third epidemic waves, the specific preventive actions and measures taken by the government and the changing compliance and trust of the public in the government’s strategy are described. Actions such as the Dutch test strategy, the division of regional vs national competences, partial and complete lockdowns, and cooperation with other member states and the (or their lack) are also briefly treated. Specific temporary and structural adjustments in the public health and health care system are mentioned. No hard conclusions or qualifications about the adequacy of the Dutch public health and health care policy are drawn. Nevertheless, in retro- spect it is clear that a straightforward, focussed and highly effective strategy in this unprecedented crisis by a new and dangerous and rapidly mu- tating virus is a great challenge for every country. Many things go well, but many more could or should have be done better. We have to learn, also from each other. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nurses are the largest group of healthcare workers in the world, and during the COVID‐19 pandemic, nurses have been recognized worldwide as frontline warriors working hard to stem suffering, infection rates and deaths. Korean nurses experienced the effects of the pandemic earlier than in most other countries, and the work of our nurses has been recognized as a successful model in responding COVID‐19. In this paper, we share the experiences of Korean nurses, including their experiences of workload, acute shortages of staff and equipment and work overload, and suggest ongoing tasks that need to be addressed to combat the pandemic's second wave and other possible waves. Specifically, the nursing issues relating to COVID‐19 are critically reviewed and recommendations for each issue are suggested in terms of nursing staffing, practice and policy, as well as health policy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper I discuss the ethical justifiability of the limitation of freedom of movement, in particular of the ban on running outdoors, enforced in Italy as a response to the COVID-19 outbreak in the spring of 2020. I argue that through the lens of public health ethics literature, the ban on running falls short of the criterion of proportionality that public health ethics scholars and international guidelines for the ethical management of infectious disease outbreak recommend for any measure that restricts essential individual freedoms, such as the freedom of movement. The public health ethics framework, however, falls short of explaining the widespread public support that the running ban has had in Italy. I discuss possible factors which could explain the public support for the ban in Italy. Finally, I raise the question of what societal implications the abandonment of the public health ethics framework based on proportionality might have. I conclude that if it is the case, as the history of pandemics teaches us, we will experience further waves of COVID-19 outbreaks, it becomes very important to raise these questions now, with an eye towards informing public health policies for the management of future COVID-19 outbreaks. This discussion should not become politicized along the lines of liberal pro-lockdown/conservative anti-lockdown. Instead, we should reflect on the trade-offs of lockdown policies according to a pluralist framework, in which COVID-19 related deaths are not the only possible value to pursue. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The novel coronavirus disease SARS‐CoV‐2 (COVID‐19) outbreak rapidly generated an unprecedented global, national, and state public health crisis with the need to rapidly develop alternate care sites (ACS) to care for COVID‐19 patients within an overburdened health care system. A hospital care model ACS to increase the health care capacity, provide care for mild to moderately symptomatic patients, and offer local self‐sustainment for a surge of patients was developed in Memphis, Tennessee located in Shelby County. We completed a temporary conversion of a large unused newspaper publication building to a health care facility for COVID‐19 patients. Developing an ACS from ground zero was met with many challenges, and throughout the process important lessons were learned. With the goal to complete the building conversion within a 28‐day timeframe, collaboration among the numerous governmental, health care, and private agencies was critical and nursing leadership was key to this process. The purpose of this paper is to describe the development of a COVID‐19 ACS in Memphis, TN, which has a large at‐risk population with limited access to health care. Specifically, we will discuss the strong leadership role of nursing faculty, key challenges, and lessons learned, as well as provide checklists and models for others in similar circumstances. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: The COVID-19 pandemic poses significant risks to the vulnerable patient population supported by community mental health (CMH) teams in South Australia. This paper describes a plan developed to understand and mitigate these risks.Methods: Public health and psychiatric literature was reviewed and clinicians in CMH teams and infectious disease were consulted. Key risks posed by COVID-19 to CMH patients were identified and mitigation plans were prepared.Results: A public health response plan for CMH teams was developed to support vulnerable individuals and respond to the COVID-19 pandemic. This plan will be reviewed regularly to respond to changes in public health recommendations, research findings and feedback from patients and clinicians.Conclusions: The strategic response plan developed to address risks to vulnerable patients from COVID-19 can assist other CMH services in managing the COVID-19 pandemic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Informal settlements remain a public health problem as they lack basic infrastructure. Furthermore, it is challenging to enforce public health regulations and protocols to prevent the spread of infection during a pandemic. This paper was set out to explore the impact of lockdown during COVID-19 among people living in informal settlements. An exploratory qualitative design was utilised. Purposive sampling was used to select research participants. In-depth one-to-one interviews were held involving 30 research participants through a WhatsApp online telephone platform. A thematic approach underpinned by the four stages of data analysis in interpretive phenomenological analysis was utilised to analyse the data. The study found that during the the research participants were affected by lack of space to practice social distancing, over-burdened infrastructure, lack of savings, loss of income and shortage of food, hunger and diseases, anxiety and depression and poor access to education. There is a need to prioritise the needs of informal settlers and endeavour to establish permanent homes. Health promotion and communication initiatives and pandemic awareness programmes are needed to mitigate the impact of lockdown during a pandemic in informal settlements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 2020 editor-in-chief (Andrew Malekoff) issued a special call for papers for group work stories on pandemic 2020. Among the 28 stories accepted for the series there were 16 from India, 9 from the United States, 2 from Canada and 1 from Israel. General submissions from the U.S., Canada and Israel were typical for the journal. Atypical are submissions from India. Rather than publish the stories in one special issue of the Journal, he decided to spread them out over several issues through 2022. In the course of organizing the special series (with a December 2021 deadline) he continued communication with a few of the authors from India, with particular interest and concern in the deteriorating situation as 2021 unfolded. Although the present commentary is not about group work per se, it is an update by Ajay Saini, Nancy and Andrew Malekoff on the current state of affairs in India, with some contrast to the situation in the U.S., that offers continuing context for the stories in the series. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores how masculinity may help us understand the varying ways political leaders are responding to the coronavirus crisis. By focusing directly on masculinity as a social process, this analysis contributes to the broader literature on gender and leadership, unpacking the gendered double bind that leaders who identify as men must navigate in acknowledging and responding to risks. I examine the responses of Justin Trudeau and Donald Trump suggesting that their respective struggles to acknowledge and respond to the public health threat were not simply the result of a lack of available information to inform rational policy decisions. Acknowledging risk and taking measures to prevent rather than 'fight' are not culturally neutral, they are coded as feminine and 'weak'. Clearly, the delay in the response and subsequent spread of the virus in North America was not inevitable, other jurisdictions were able to respond more quickly. The masculinity double bind may have been one of the factors that undermined a prompt response in the increasingly macho context of North America. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Solid waste management (SWM) is a public health service whose importance is often understated. When the solid waste management challenge is exacerbated by a public health emergency such as the Covid-19 pandemic, its real significance as an essential service becomes more apparent. The outbreak and spread of the novel coronavirus (Covid-19) has led to dramatic transformations of every sector of the Nigerian society including SWM systems, where formal and informal actors co-exist often in an uneasy relationship. Unfortunately, strategies for inclusive management of solid wastes during and after the Covid-19 pandemic are lacking in Nigeria, fuelling the further exclusion of informal sector in the waste governance and policy process in Nigeria. This paper reviews the state of the Covid-19 pandemic in Nigeria, identifies policy gaps in solid waste governance and highlights the linkages between Covid-19 and SWM with a view to catalysing inclusive solid waste governance and sustainability policy in Nigeria. It is argued that acknowledging the informal economy is the critical first step towards framing a sustainable SWM policy in which primary stakeholders are involved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The COVID-19 pandemic has disproportionately impacted ethnic minorities in the global north, evidenced by higher rates of transmission, morbidity, and mortality relative to population sizes. Orthodox Jewish neighbourhoods in London had extremely high SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence rates, reflecting patterns in Israel and the US. The aim of this paper is to examine how responsibilities over health protection are conveyed, and to what extent responsibility is sought by, and shared between, state services, and 'community' stakeholders or representative groups, and families in public health emergencies. The study investigates how public health and statutory services stakeholders, Orthodox Jewish communal custodians and households sought to enact health protection in London during the first year of the pandemic (March 2020–March 2021). Twenty-eight semi-structured interviews were conducted across these cohorts. Findings demonstrate that institutional relations – both their formation and at times fragmentation – were directly shaped by issues surrounding COVID-19 control measures. Exchanges around protective interventions (whether control measures, contact tracing technologies, or vaccines) reveal diverse and diverging attributions of responsibility and authority. The paper develops a framework of public health relations to understand negotiations between statutory services and minority groups over responsiveness and accountability in health protection. Disaggregating public health relations can help social scientists to critique who and what characterises institutional relationships with minority groups, and what ideas of responsibility and responsiveness are projected by differently-positioned stakeholders in health protection. • COVID-19 produced diverse responses and relations around health protection in London. •Pandemic preparedness can be enhanced by mapping possible partners in localities. •Establishing public health partnerships requires adequate resources. •Public health services cannot defer responsibility entirely to local partners. •Households are key constituents of public health relations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Due to COVID-19, the fragile economy, travel restrictions, and generalized anxieties, the concept of antibodies as a "declaration of immunity" or "passport" is sweeping the world. Numerous scientific and ethical issues confound the concept of an antibody passport; nonetheless, antibodies can be seen as a potential currency to allow movement of people and resuscitation of global economics. Just as financial currency can be forged, so too is the potential for fraudulent antibody passports. This paper explores matters of science, ethics, and identity theft, as well as the problems of bias and discrimination that could promulgate a world of pandemic "golden passports." [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The spread of Covid-19 profoundly changed citizens' daily lives due to the introduction of new modes of work and access to services based on smart technologies. Although the relevance of new technologies as strategic levers for crisis resolution has been widely debated before the pandemic, especially in the smart cities' context, how individuals have agreed to include the technological changes dictated by the pandemic in their daily interactions remains an open question. This paper aims at detecting citizens' sentiment toward technology before and after the emergence of the Covid-19 pandemic using Fuzzy Formal Concept Analysis (FFCA) to analyze a large corpus of tweets. Specifically, citizens' attitudes in five cities (Berlin, Dublin, London, Milan, and Madrid) were explored to extract and classify the key topics related to the degree of confidence, familiarity and approval of new technologies. The results shed light on the complex technology acceptance process and help managers identify the potential negative effects of smart technologies. In this way, the study enhances scholars' and practitioners' understanding of the strategies for enabling the use of technology within smart cities to manage the transformations introduced by the health emergency and guide citizens' behaviour. • The paper explores citizen sentiment towards the adoption of technologies to challenge Covid-19 in five international cities. • The tweet analysis identifies the topics associated with technology anxiety before and after the emergence of Covid-19. • Fuzzy Formal Concept Analysis permits to identify the critical factors in Tweeters' use of technology. • Comparing technology anxiety before and after the pandemic reveals useful insights on citizen behaviour. • A framework with the determinants that influence the acceptance of the technological changes imposed by Covid-19 is built. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The COVID-19 pandemic has negatively affected world economies. The water industry was adversely affected, with unprecedented slow down and changes to ways of working. However, the pandemic also accelerated positive digital transformation. A qualitative research approach was adopted to analyze data collected from 12 interviewees representing six water sector organizations. The paper provides insight into the impact of COVID-19 on the delivery of water sector projects and how organizational practices have adapted from business as usual. • COVID-19 has shown the importance of the water industry for public health during a pandemic. • COVID-19 crisis has brought to light the urgency of recognizing water access as a public health priority. • The pandemic has led to an increase in domestic water demand whilst decreased for businesses. • The pandemic has had a positive impact on accelerating technology use for progressing and delivering water sector projects. • Staff have been adaptable to the changes of working in accordance to COVID-19 secure guidelines. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]