The impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the development of selected regions of UE countries

The COVID-19 Pandemic and Eating Disorders: A Wake-Up Call for the Future of Eating Disorders Among Adolescents and Young Adults

Introduction: The coronavirus disease (COVID)-19 pandemic has affected nearly every facet of life, including clinical research, and has had an adverse and extensive impact on clinical trials including pediatric vaccine trials. Across the globe, countries implemented a variety of restrictions to people’s everyday lives, which have substantially impacted the ability to conduct pediatric vaccine trials. Objectives: The objectives of the study were to assess the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on enrollment and follow-up of clinical trial participants in pediatric vaccine clinical trials and simultaneously to explore various strategies used for overcoming these challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic period. Materials and Methods: Data of 10 pediatric vaccine clinical trials were obtained from the clinical trial records of the Clinical Research Unit. The number of subjects enrolled, number of study dropouts, protocol deviations, and reasons for participant dropout/deviations were recorded from these pediatric vaccine clinical trials carried out before and during the COVID-19 pandemic period from March to December 2020. These metrics were then compared with their counterparts recorded during our study to statistically assess the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Various factors which have affected the recruitment and follow-up in pediatric vaccine clinical trials and various strategies used to curtail subject dropout and protocol deviations during COVID-19 pandemic were studied in detail. Results: The primary and most visible impact of the COVID-19 pandemic was that protocol deviations and study dropouts were significantly higher for the trials conducted during COVID-19 pandemic period. The difference between proportion of protocol deviations and study dropouts in the pediatric vaccine clinical trials conducted during pandemic and trials conducted before pandemic was statistically significant (<0.05). The recruitment for ongoing trials was also adversely affected. Conclusion: At our site, the COVID-19 pandemic has affected the conduct and recruitment of pediatric vaccine trials markedly in an adverse manner. The protocol deviations and study dropout were significantly higher during the COVID-19 pandemic period. To counter these effects and still have the trials retain their effectiveness, we found that it is essential to implement measures and strategies for maintaining compliance and safe conduct of clinical trials. Adoption of telemedicine may offer promise in terms of a way forward for conducting clinical trials.

The aim of this study was to examine and analyze (1) the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the economic aspect of investment activities (2) The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on health services. This study is descriptive qualitative research that describes the conditions and challenges, in the Economic and Health sector during the COVID-19 Pandemic Period in Indonesia. The article used secondary legal materials, namely books, journals, articles, and other written works originating from both print and internet media, and the phenomena that occurred in the field related to the issues raised. The result indicated that (1) the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the economic aspect emerged the fluctuations in the domestic capital market, due to the PSBB policy which caused the economic sector to collapse; (2) The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the health aspect caused the decrease in the coverage of most health services, which was seen from the role of health workers and health facilities.

We performed a meta-analysis comparing the mortality rates after hip and knee joint arthroplasty between the coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic and pre-pandemic periods. The purpose of present study was to investigate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on mortality rates after hip and knee joint arthroplasty. We systematically searched the MEDLINE, Embase, and Cochrane Library databases for studies published up to 28 March 2022. We included studies which directly compared mortality rates after hip and knee joint arthroplasty between the COVID-19 pandemic and pre-pandemic periods. The methodological quality of the included studies was assessed using the Methodological Index for Nonrandomized Studies (MINORS). We compared the overall mortality rate as the primary outcome. For the subgroup analysis, the mortality rates included were: within 30 days and unrelated to COVID-19; we excluded studies with only elective arthroplasties. Readmission rates following arthroplasties were also compared. We included five studies with 3044 patients, of which 838 patients underwent surgeries during the pandemic period and 2206 patients underwent surgeries in the pre-pandemic period. The mean MINORS score was 15.4/24 (range: 15–16). The overall mortality rate showed no significant differences between the pandemic and pre-pandemic periods (OR, 2.71; 95% CI, 0.78–9.35; p = 0.12; I2 = 19%). No differences were observed in mortality following arthroplasties within 30 days and unrelated to COVID-19 nor in the readmission rates. Mortality, after excluding studies with only elective arthroplasty, presented significant differences between the COVID-19 pandemic and pre-pandemic periods (OR, 3.80; 95% CI, 1.18–12.28; p = 0.03, I2 = 0%). The limitation of the present study was that elective arthroplasty and urgent arthroplasty were not completely differentiated. The overall mortality rate in the COVID-19 pandemic period following hip and knee arthroplasty did not show a significant increase. This finding could help to maintain the practice of elective arthroplasty during a pandemic situation in the future (PROSPERO–CRD42022335471).

The COVID-19 pandemic has had many negative effects throughout the world. The pandemic has created many threats to the development of the agricultural sector, which is of particular importance in ensuring the security of the food supply. The aim of this paper is to examine the consequences of the global COVID-19 pandemic on agriculture, agri-food system and rural areas in developed countries as identified in the literature. The impact of the pandemic is divided into economic and social effects. A literature review was used to identify the current state of knowledge on the topic. The study found that the consequences of the pandemic occurred in every element of the food chain. The onset of the pandemic was characterised by shortages of many agri-food products, especially for certain groups of people who were unable to use the new sales channels. Production in the agricultural sector proved to be fairly resilient to the impact of the pandemic. However, the income insecurity of farms has increased significantly, especially for farms that offer seasonal products, rely on migrant labour and sell to the HoReCa sector. Food consumer behaviour has changed, which may have long-term consequences for the food economy. The social impact of the pandemic relates primarily to the increased digital exclusion of rural areas and the social exclusion of the elderly. The uncertainty of farmers' income and the deepening of social exclusion seem to be the most severe consequences of the pandemic in agriculture, agri-food sector and in rural areas.

Developments in paediatric cancer care throughout the COVID-19 pandemic: Lessons from China

Статья посвящена влиянию пандемии COVID-19 на предприятия общественного питания в России и его анализу. Отмечено, что пандемия COVID-19 оказала беспрецедентное и непредвиденное воздействие на мировое сообщество, общество и экономику, растущей глобальной рецессией и массовой безработицей. В настоящее время российский общепит внесен в перечень наиболее пострадавших из-за пандемии отраслей российской экономики. Приведены статистические данные по обороту общественного питания в России и рассчитано его снижение за январь-сентябрь 2020 года. Для формирования понимания организации общественного питания в условиях пандемии COVID-19 систематизированы существующие типы предприятий общественного питания и приведены их характерные черты. Обоснован влияние пандемии и определены тенденции развития предприятий общественного питания в России. Представлен прогноз изменений доли рынка общественного питания между ключевыми сегментами. The article is devoted to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on public catering enterprises in Russia and its analysis. It is noted that the COVID-19 pandemic has had an unprecedented and unforeseen impact on the world community, society and economy, with a growing global recession and mass unemployment. Currently, Russian catering is included in the list of the most affected sectors of the Russian economy due to the pandemic. Statistical data on the turnover of public catering in Russia are presented and its decline is calculated for January-September 2020. To form an understanding of public catering in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, the existing types of public catering enterprises are systematized and their characteristic features are given. The impact of the pandemic is substantiated and the trends in the development of public catering enterprises in Russia are determined. The forecast of changes in the share of the public catering market between key segments is presented.

The aim of this study was to analyze athletes’ quality of life during the COVID-19 pandemic. The study involved 249 athletes between 15 and 35 of age, M = 21.22, SD = 5.12. The sample was composed of eight Olympic Games medalists, three European medalists, 67 international medalists, and 63 national medalists. The instruments used were: (1) COVID-19 Anxiety Scale, (2) Athlete Quality of Life Scale, (3) Impact of Pandemic on Athletes Questionnaire, and (4) International Personality Item Pool (IPIP Anxiety, Depression, and Vulnerability Scales). The results indicate significant differences in COVID-19 anxiety depending on the sport practiced, F (9239) = 3.81, p < 0.01, showing that there were significant differences between sports. The negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic mediates the relationship between trait anxiety and the athletes’ quality of life. The percentage of mediation was 33.9%, and the indirect effect was −0.11, CI 95% (−0.18, −0.03), Z = −2.82, p < 0.01. Trait anxiety has an increasing effect on the intensity of the negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, 0.23, CI 95% (.10, 0.35), Z = 3.56, p < 0.01, and the negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic has a decreasing effect on quality of life, −0.47, CI 95% (−0.67, −0.27), Z = −4.62, p < 0.01. Gender and age did not moderate the relationship between the negative impact of COVID-19 and athletes’ quality of life. The results of the study highlighted the impact that social isolation and quarantine have on athletes’ affective well-being.

Nearly 20 years after the SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome) epidemic, we are facing another COVID-19 pandemic. Therefore, the aim of our study was to analyse the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the tourism behaviour of international students in Poland. We paid attention to the overall impact of the pandemic on life, travel, choice of tourist destination, tourism activity, ecotourism preference, and health and safety issues. We formulated two research questions: What areas of international student tourism behaviour were affected by the COVID-19 pandemic? What differences in travel behaviour occurred between international students from Europe and Asia? Participants were recruited from universities located in Warsaw between June and September 2020. A total of 806 questionnaires were collected, 87 of which were eliminated due to non-response. The research sample consisted of 719 people. Six factors were identified in the survey results: tourism inclination, impact on tourist destination, hygiene and accommodation, impact on life, impact on tourism, and mode of tourism. Impact on life and impact on tourism were attributed to the general impact dimension; tourism inclination and mode of tourism can be summarized as attitude and preference. Food and accommodation were assigned to hygiene and safety dimensions. In almost all aspects, the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on people’s lives was greater for Asian respondents. Asian respondents were more likely to say that they would avoid COVID-19-affected areas when choosing tourist destinations in the future, and avoid travelling to crowded large cities after COVID-19 ended. European survey participants’ responses were more moderate.

PurposeThis paper aims to explore the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the market timing skills of Islamic equity funds in Asia, Europe and North America.Design/methodology/approachThe authors employed a two-step process. First, a Granger causality test is applied to test the bivariate relationship between Islamic fund indices and stock market ones by highlighting the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Second, the methodology of Treynor and Mazuy (1966) is deployed to account for the market timing abilities skills of Islamic fund managers during the pandemic period.FindingsThe investigation revealed mixed results. The European Islamic funds were positively impacted by the stock market as well as by the COVID-19 pandemic context. Additionally, compared to their Asian and North American peers, only European Islamic fund managers have the ability to time the market during the health crisis period.Research limitations/implicationsDespite its contribution to the Islamic finance literature, this study has some flaws. Indeed, the selected sample of three regions, namely Asia, Europe and North America, precludes extrapolating these conclusions. Other regions should be investigated to further our understanding of Islamic equity funds. Furthermore, due to data availability and accessibility, the study period was limited to a specific time of the COVID-19 pandemic. This shortcoming can be addressed through a multiwave investigation, especially since each region was exposed differently to the pandemic.Practical implicationsThe paper provides scholars, portfolio managers and investors with insights regarding the investment dilemma during the COVID-19 pandemic period, especially for those wishing to hedge their pandemic risk exposure and/or diversify their portfolios. Equally, the depiction of potential market timing abilities of Islamic fund managers across the three regions would serve as a guide to identifying the most suitable internationally focused investment strategy.Social implicationsThe paper provides scholars, portfolio managers and investors with insights regarding the investment dilemma during the COVID-19 pandemic period, especially for those wishing to hedge their pandemic risk exposure and/or diversify their portfolios. Equally, the depiction of potential market timing abilities of Islamic funds managers across the three regions would serve as a guide to identify the most suitable internationally focused investment strategy.Originality/valueThe originality of this investigation is that it is the first to examine Islamic equity fund managers and their skills to time the stock markets during the COVID-19 pandemic period in Asia, Europe and North America. The current paper extends the Islamic finance literature.

Сфера туризма сталкивается с беспрецедентной проблемой коронавирусной болезни 2019 года (Covid-19), вызванной тяжелым острым респираторным синдромом коронавируса 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Целью данной статьи является анализ влияние пандемии Covid-2019 на состояние и развитие сферы туризма. Было проанализировано влияние пандемий на развитие туризма, рассмотрено влияние пандемии Covid-2019 на состояние и развитие сферы туризма – турпотока, поступления от международного туризма. Был проанализировано видение развития туризма и сопряженных с ними отраслей, цепочки создания добавленной стоимости в условиях пандемии в некоторых странах на начало мая 2020 года. Выявлены основные подходы к ограничительным мерам. Представлены возможные прогнозы развития сферы туризма после пандемии Covid-2019. Проанализированы государственные меры по поддержанию экономики в целом и в частности сферы туризма.

The pandemic affected not only the functioning of the world economy, but also the international business strategies of large transnational companies. The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on international business are analyzed in the article. The peculiarities of the increase in the level of unemployment during the COVID-19 pandemic have been studied. It is described that many sectors of the world economy have suffered losses from the pandemic. The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the international labor market and the unemployment rate is analyzed. The pandemic had a significant impact on the increase in unemployment. About 5 million people lost their jobs in China in the first 2 months of 2020. The world unemployment rate in 2021 was 6.18%, which is 0.4% less than in 2020, according to the World Bank. The level of unemployment in 2019 and 2020 in various regions is characterized, among them: North Africa and Western Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean, Europe and North America, Central and South Asia, etc. COVID-19 has led to massive job losses. The pandemic also affected the development of trade. After all, trade in services decreased in 2020. In general, the value of export of services in OECD countries decreased by -16.7% in 2020, which is twice the value of export of goods, which decreased by -8.2%. The COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant negative impact on the tourism industry. The tourism industry was one of those that was most affected by the pandemic. The tourism industry in many countries of the world has suffered great losses. It has been studied that the COVID-19 pandemic has affected the import and export trends for some of the world's largest trading economies. The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the investment activity of the countries of the world is characterized. Features of investment activity in 2019 and 2020 are described. It is worth noting that the Covid-19 pandemic had a significant impact on the GDP of the countries of the world. According to estimates by the International Monetary Fund, real world GDP grew by 2.8% in 2019, decreasing by 3.3% in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The COVID-19 pandemic crisis has been associated with a range of challenges for society, the economy, and business in particular. This chapter assesses how Czech companies dealt with the COVID-19 crisis at the beginning of the pandemic and how this crisis impacted labour productivity in select sectors of the Czech economy. In the literature concerning the Czech Republic, we can find analyses of the impact of COVID-19 on the economy of the Czech Republic, the social impact analysis of COVID-19 and analysis of the impact of COVID-19 on various economic sectors, especially heavily affected ones such as tourism, fashion or the automotive industry. The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on labour productivity and the unemployment rate is ambiguous, due to the different impacts of the pandemic on different sectors of the economy, and due to the role of the remote work.

Abstract: The global economic landscape has been significantly influenced by health pandemics, leading to heightened uncertainties. Using data from past epidemics and economic downturns, this research paper examines the repercussions of these health crises on global economies. Prominent among these health crises is the 1918 influenza epidemic, which Garrett (2008) reveals had severe impacts on investment, human capital, and consumer behaviour. In more recent history, the SARS outbreak in 2003, as analysed by Lee and McKibbin (2004), cost the world an estimated USD 40 billion, highlighting the tangible economic costs of health pandemics. COVID-19, emerging at the end of 2019, has created another layer of global economic uncertainty. Containment measures such as lockdowns and social distancing have led to a ripple effect, causing a downturn in various economic sectors. To better understand the scale of this uncertainty, this study employs the newly developed World Pandemic UncertaintyIndex (WPUI) – a tool introduced in 2020 specifically to measure the economic and political uncertainties introduced by pandemics.A crucial focus of the research is the impact of health pandemics on Foreign Direct Investment (FDI). FDI, a major non-debt financial resource, plays an instrumental role in the economic development of nations. It introduces technical know- how, generates employment, and can be seen as a barometer of a country's economic health. Using the WPUI, the study investigates the consequences of health pandemics on FDI in 142 countries from 1996 to 2019. It identifies patterns in different regions and economic brackets,adding new insights to existing literature. The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly impacted global foreign direct investment (FDI), causing disruptions in both inflows and outflows across countries and regions. This study, drawing from quantitative data from the World Bank and UNCTAD and qualitative insights from FDI experts, examines the extent and nature of this impact from 2019-2023. Results indicate a pronounced decline in FDI flows in 2020 and 2021, with varying impacts based on regional development, economic structures, and exposure to the pandemic. Factors such as digitalisation, diversification, and cooperation have influenced these FDI trends. This researchoffers valuable insights for policymakers navigating the post-pandemic FDI landscape, emphasising the need for further studies on the long-term effects of the pandemic on FDI dynamics. The study further narrows down its focus to India, analysing the FDI trends before and after the advent of COVID-19. Secondary data sources, including RBI bulletins and economic survey reports, provide insights into FDI equity inflows during the pandemic. Preliminary results suggest a considerable dip in FDI equity inflows at the onset of the pandemic. However, there's a noticeable recovery in the second quarter of FY-20, aided in part by significant investments, such as Google's $10 billion injection into the Indian market.In light of these findings, the study offers several solutions to mitigate the impact of pandemics on FDI. These range from promoting investment stability, diversifying investment promotion, and supporting digital transformations, to ensuring global health preparedness and implementing robust economic recovery plans. Effective execution of these strategies, tailored to a country's specific needs, can create an environment more receptive to foreign investment

To analyse the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the epidemiological situation of invasive meningococcal disease (IMD) and molecular characteristics of Neisseria meningitidis isolates causing IMD in the Czech Republic. The study was based on IMD surveillance data for 2018-2024 (as of 27 May 2024), and all availableN. meningitidis isolates from IMD of these years were subjected to whole genome sequencing (WGS). To analyse the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the study period was divided into three parts: the pre-COVID period (2018-2019), the COVID-19 pandemic period (2020-2022), and the post-COVID period (2023-2024). As a result of the implementation of the COVID-19 control measures, similar to other countries, there has been a decline in the incidence of air-borne infections including IMD in the Czech Republic. However, unlike many other countries, there has not been a resurgence of IMD in the Czech Republic following the release of these epidemiological measures. WGS characterisation of IMD isolates showed a gradual change in the population of meningococci causing IMD in the Czech Republic during the COVID-19 and post-COVID periods. For N. meningitidis isolates of serogroups C, W, and Y, a gradual and significant decline in overall heterogeneity can be observed - from ten different clonal complexes detected in the pre-COVID period to only three in the post-COVID years (cc11, cc23, and cc103). At the same time, a significant reduction was observed in N. meningitidis C isolates; cc11. In contrast, an increase in overall heterogeneity can be observed for N. meningitidis B isolates during the COVID-19 pandemic period, followed by its decline again to overall lowest values in the post-COVID period. The fact that MenB vaccine and conjugate vaccine A, C, W, Y started to be covered by health insurance for young children (in May 2020) and adolescents (in January 2022) also appears to play a role in the persistent decline of IMD in the Czech Republic. In order to maintain the low incidence of IMD in the Czech Republic, it is desirable to continue vaccination with MenB vaccine and conjugated vaccine A, C, W, Y in accordance with the recommendations of the Czech Society of Vaccinology of the Czech Medical Association of Jan Evangelista Purkyně.