COVID-19 Wards Research Articles

Raised D-dimer Level among COVID-19 Patients in a Tertiary Care Hospital: A Descriptive Cross-sectional Study.

Serum D-dimer is a protein fragment generated during the final phase of clot formation. Increased serum D-dimer levels indicate the hemostatic change in patients, likely related to the prothrombotic switch. As the world is battling with the damaging effect of coronavirus disease, it is very important to find out the early and effective predictors of prognosis to improve the management of COVID-19 patients. Thus, our study aims to find out the prevalence of increased D-dimer levels in coronavirus disease patients. A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted on a total of 235 patients admitted in the COVID ward and COVID Intensive Care Units at a tertiary care hospital from July 2020 to August 2021 after getting ethical approval (Reference number: 401/2020) from the Institutional Review Committee. A convenience sampling method was used for sample collection. The highest recorded values for D-dimer during the hospital stay were taken for data collection. The data were entered in Microsoft Excel 2013 and analyzed using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences version 16.0. Point estimate at 95% Confidence Interval was calculated along with frequency, proportion, mean and standard deviation. Among 235 patients, elevated D- dimer level was in 175 (74.46%) (68.88-80.04 at 95% Confidence Interval). Majority of the patients were males 136 (77.71%) whereas 39 (22.28%) of the patients were females. The prevalence of raised D-dimer levels was quite higher in our studies compared to other studies done in different parts of the world. Thus, serum D-dimer level may serve as an early marker in improving the management of patients with coronavirus disease. corona virus disease; d-dimer; disease severity.

COVID-19 and job demands and resources experienced by nurses in Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka has a history of successfully managing communicable diseases by utilising its extensive public healthcare network of community clinics and public hospitals. This article makes use of Job Demands-Resources theory (JD-R) to examine the impact of COVID-19 on nurses’ working conditions in public and private hospitals in Sri Lanka. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, nurses’ job demands on public hospital wards included long working hours, limited workplace autonomy, minimal medical resources and high workloads caused by understaffing. Private hospital nurses experienced pressure from patients and their families to provide them with discounts on medical bills. Nurses allocated to work on COVID-19 wards experienced additional physical job demands from wearing personal protective equipment (PPE) for lengthy periods on hospital wards in a humid climate. Nurses on COVID-19 wards also experienced increased anxiety that they could transmit the disease to family members. While nurses experienced job resources such as social support from nursing supervisors and other nurses, they reported receiving minimal training in the provision of healthcare to COVID-19 patients. This combination of high job demands and low job resources increased the levels of exhaustion and mental distress experienced by many nurses working on COVID-19 hospital wards.JEL codesH51, H54, J24, J45, O15

Profile of Urology Patients at the Covid-19 Isolation Ward in Dr. Moewardi General Hospital Surakarta Periode June 2020 – May 2021 (A Retrospective Descriptive Study)

Objective: Coronavirus disease firstly discovered in December 2019, has caused many changes in patient management in the hospital, including in urology department. Several studies have demonstrated an increased rate of delayed care, with urology surgery having a delay of more than 8 weeks (Amota, O. et al., 2020). The medical workers are trying to reduce the spread rate by reducing of transmission (Amota, O. et al., 2020;and Sanyaolu, A. et al., 2020). The spread of this infectious disease is continuously increasing, hence the declaration of a pandemic (Cucinotta D). The COVID-19 status in the Solo city was updated to the red zone since the first year of the pandemic which makes the author interested in sharing information about COVID-19 in urology inpatients in the isolation ward (Tanggap Covid 19 Jawa Tengah, 2020). Materials and Methods: This study is a retrospective descriptive study that used secondary medical records data to determine the profile of urology patients in the COVID-19 isolation ward in dr. Moewardi General Hospital Surakarta for 1 year from May 2020 – June 2021. Results: This study found the urology patients in the COVID-19 ward were 26 patients, which was 4% of the total urology inpatients in the dr. Moewardi General Hospital in the first year of pandemic. Male patients consisted 85% of the total patients, with a mean age of over 50 years. The most frequent diagnosis was urinary retention. The mean duration of hospitalization was 2 weeks. The management in ward were urinary catheter insertion, closed cystostomy, prostate biopsy with local anesthesia, and emergency debridement surgery in isolated operating room. Delayed diagnostic procedures consisted of USG and BNO, while the delayed elective surgery consisted of cystoscopy, nephrectomy, direct visual urethrotomy (DVIU), and DJ stent insertion. Conclusions: The urology inpatients in the COVID-19 ward treated by multiple departments, in which the treatment of COVID-19 was prioritized before the definitive management from the urology department.

Design and Manufacturing of Non- Contact Type Trolley using IOT

Abstract: Automation is a need of time. Automation makes task easier and reliable. Robot is a reprogrammable, multifunctional gadget which is basically intended to work like human being.The Internet of Things (IoT) and robotics communities have so far been driven by different yet highly complementary objectives, the first focused on supporting information services for pervasive sensing, tracking and monitoring; the latter on producing action, interaction and autonomous behaviour. In this paper, we will mainly focus on the issues of patients as well as safety and security, specifically the effect of medical device regulation and data protection laws on robots in healthcare. First, we will examine the demand for robots in healthcare and assess the benefits that robots can provide. Second, we will look at the types of robots currently being used in healthcare, anticipate future innovation, and identify the key characteristics of these robots that will present regulatory issues. To overcome the issues like direct contact with patients in Covid-19 wards, we will develop a robot i.e., corona warrior robot which will be used to provide medicines to patients and sanitize the person when any person comes in front of the robot Keywords: Sensors, Robot, IOT, Camera, Non contact type

International survey of ophthalmic anaesthesia service provision, protection of anaesthesia providers and patients during COVID-19 pandemic: a wake-up call.

AimsThis international survey was conducted to study the impact of Covid-19 pandemic on the provision and practices of ophthalmic anaesthesia, evaluate the methods employed by parent ophthalmic units for safeguarding their anaesthesia providers and patients during lockdown, and to assess pandemic’s effect on anaesthesia providers as individuals. The study was done with the hope that the results will help in protecting patients and safeguarding precious human resource by better management if this pandemic was to continue or there was to be another pandemic.MethodsAn anonymous questionnaire survey was distributed electronically between December 2020–January 2021 to the practicing ophthalmic anaesthesia providers in different parts of the world.ResultsThe survey identified that apart from reducing elective operating services, the ophthalmic units were ill prepared for the pandemic and the overall management was lacklustre. There was a definite lack of effective peri-operative patient screening, and, streaming processes. Measures for personal protection of staff were not optimal especially during regional/local ophthalmic anaesthesia. Severity of the pandemic, sudden job plan changes, and redeployment to intensive care units/acute covid wards had an adverse psychological impact on the affected staff.ConclusionOphthalmic anaesthesia services worldwide have had poor attentiveness to the life-threatening menace and reality of Covid-19 pandemic. A review of the institutional practices to address correctible deficiencies is urgently required. Robust, mandatory, elective, timely preventative strategies need to be implemented to protect patients, and, the precious ophthalmic workforce from potential adverse physical and psychological injuries.

The COVID-19 pandemic: Narratives of front-line nurses from Wuhan, China.

This study aimed to explore the experiences of nurses in Wuhan Hospital as front‐line workers during the COVID‐19 pandemic. A descriptive qualitative study of such nurses was conducted from a tertiary hospital in Wuhan. Semi‐structured individual interviews were undertaken with 8 registered nurses who were front‐line health workers in one of the COVID‐19 wards and 3 nursing managers from the response team. Five discrete themes were identified from the narratives of nurses' experiences during the COVID‐19 outbreak in Wuhan: “content of fundamental care,” “teamwork,” “reciprocity,” “nurses’ own worries,” and “lifelong learning and insights.” Nurses in the front line of care during the COVID‐19 pandemic can contribute important information from their hands‐on experience for providing a holistic response to an infectious outbreak like COVID‐19. The concerns nurses raised at both personal and professional levels have implications for nursing education and clinical practice settings, particularly in the time of a pandemic when nurses' well‐being requires attention, and at the same time for considering organizational factors that enable nurses to provide care to patients with confidence. Hospital policies and nursing management need to be ready and adhere to flexible work planning systems and approaches during a pandemic.

O03 The impact of COVID-19 infection prevention and control measures on transmission of hospital-acquired infections and antimicrobial resistance in Africa

BackgroundPatients who develop serious illness due to COVID-19 are more likely to have bacterial coinfections, for which WHO recommends treatment with antibiotics. As a result, many countries are observing a change in antimicrobial stewardship (AMS), in addition to changes in infection prevention and control (IPC) practices such as the use of personal protective equipment, on COVID-19 wards. Few data on COVID-19 and its impact on nosocomial infections and antimicrobial resistance (AMR) are available from low and middle-income countries (LMICs). As these countries often have high rates of AMR, it is vital to report the effects of COVID-19 on AMS so as to inform clinical practice and IPC guidelines. This study aims to compare prevalence of AMR in COVID-19 wards with general non-COVID-19 hospital wards.MethodsThis pilot hospital-based study is being conducted in two sites in both Sudan and Zambia. IPC and AMS guidelines for COVID-19 and non-COVID-19 wards were identified for each institution. This study is comparing bacterial isolates and AMR patterns of nosocomial associated infections acquired on COVID-19 and non-COVID-19 wards were compared, using microbiological and sequencing methods. A total of 200 patients have been recruited: 100 per country, 50 COVID-19 patients and 50 non-COVID-19 patients. AMR transmission patterns are being identified using Oxford Nanopore Technologies sequencing for phylogenetic analysis.ResultsThe study began recruiting in May 2021 and completed recruitment of patients in October 2021. The majority of microbiological laboratory work will be completed within Q3 2021, with analysis of the results and sequencing completed in Q4 2021. A half-way point summary analysis of the data suggests differences in patient profiles, both between COVID-19 and non-COVID-19 wards at both sites, as well as differences between the two countries. Preliminary analysis also suggests a significant difference between the prevalence of MDR infections in Gram-negatives seen between COVID-19 (53% in Sudan and 83% in Zambia) and non-COVID-19 (14% Sudan, 33% Zambia) (t-test, P=0.0032 Sudan, P=0.0455 Zambia) ward patients in both countries (see Figure 1).Figure 1.Percentage of Gram-negative bacteria isolated from patients on COVID-19 and non-COVID-19 wards in Sudan and Zambia, showing significant difference between the wards in both countries (t-test, P = 0.0032 Sudan, P = 0.0455 Zambia).ConclusionsThe study is providing evidence to inform policy on IPC and AMS measures to be implemented on COVID-19 wards. In addition, the outcomes of the study will be used to create a pragmatic sequencing pipeline for potential AMR outbreaks suitable for use in LMICs clinical settings.

Relationship Between Coping Styles and Blood Pressure in the Staff of Covid-19 Wards of Hospitals of Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences During 2020 - 2021

Background: With the global outbreak of Covid-19 at the beginning of 2020, the staff of hospitals involved in the care for the Covid-19 patients underwent great physical and psychological pressure. Objectives: This study was conducted to determine the correlation between coping styles and blood pressure in the staff of Covid-19 centers during 2020 - 2021. Methods: A total of 278 medical staff of Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences who were serving in the Covid-19 wards during 2020 - 2021 were recruited in this cross-sectional correlational study. The ways of coping questionnaire (Lazarus and Folkman, 1985) was used to assess the coping strategies. The blood pressure of the personnel was measured after three consecutive shifts. Data were analyzed by SPSS-20 software using descriptive and inferential statistics. Results: Among the coping styles used by the staff, the highest score (17.9 ± 4.4) was reported for planful problem-solving. The results showed a significant and positive correlation between emotion-oriented coping styles and blood pressure, while problem-oriented coping styles had a negative correlation with blood pressure. Conclusions: Emotion-oriented coping styles have a positive and significant correlation and problem-oriented coping styles have a negative and significant correlation with the increased blood pressure of employees. The relationship between coping styles in medical staff in different wards and the application of coping styles in medical assistants in different educational levels and specialties are suggested to be evaluated.

Heat Strain and Use of Heat Mitigation Strategies among COVID-19 Healthcare Workers Wearing Personal Protective Equipment-A Retrospective Study.

The combination of an exacerbated workload and impermeable nature of the personal protective equipment (PPE) worn by COVID-19 healthcare workers increases heat strain. We aimed to compare the prevalence of heat strain symptoms before (routine care without PPE) versus during the COVID-19 pandemic (COVID-19 care with PPE), identify risk factors associated with experiencing heat strain, and evaluate the access to and use of heat mitigation strategies. Dutch healthcare workers (n = 791) working at COVID-19 wards for ≥1 week, completed an online questionnaire to assess personal characteristics, heat strain symptoms before and during the COVID-19 pandemic, and the access to and use of heat mitigation strategies. Healthcare workers experienced ~25× more often heat strain symptoms during medical duties with PPE (93% of healthcare workers) compared to without PPE (30% of healthcare workers; OR = 25.57 (95% CI = 18.17–35.98)). Female healthcare workers and those with an age <40 years were most affected by heat strain, whereas exposure time and sports activity level were not significantly associated with heat strain prevalence. Cold drinks and ice slurry ingestion were the most frequently used heat mitigation strategies and were available in 63.5% and 30.1% of participants, respectively. Our findings indicate that heat strain is a major challenge for COVID-19 healthcare workers, and heat mitigations strategies are often used to counteract heat strain.

LIFE SAVER BUT SIGHT TAKER: STEROID INDUCED CSCR IN COVID 19 INFECTION.

Introduction:COVID-19 pandemic has multiple ocular manifestations. We report 2 cases of central serous chorioretinopathy, following COVID19 infection. Case Presentation: We diagnosed two middle aged patients with central serous chorioretinopathy one week post COVID-19 infection. Both patients were admitted in COVID-19 ward. Case 1 was a male diabetic and required ventilator assisted respiration. Case 2 was a female patient with no systemic diseases. Both patients were given intravenous (IV) methylprednisolone for 2 weeks followed by oral prednisolone. Case 1developed CSCR in right eye while the other patient developed CSCR in both eyes. Conclusion: The possibility of developing CSCR should be kept in mind by the treating physician in Covid 19 patients treated with steroids. Early involvement of ophthalmologist can lead to timely and effective management of same

Prevalence and characteristics of distress in a sample of large hospital's workers in Rome in a period between two peaks of the covid-19 pandemic.

The aim of this study has been to measure the distress of workers at a large hospital in Rome, immediately after the lockdown with relaxed national restrictions except the indication to wear masks FP2 and to maintain the interpersonal distance of at least one meter. A web-based anonymous survey has been conducted. Of the 324 responders (23-69 years; 78.09% females), 41.05% was nurse, 31.17% medical doctor, 7.72% employee with administrative function, 3.09% psychologist, 1.54% biologist, 13.58% grouped in the "other" category. 60.49% worked in a no-covid-19 ward, 20.37% in the covid-19 ward, 13.58% in outpatient clinics, and 5.56% outside the hospital. 45.06% have been exposed to covid-19 and 7.72% tested positive for covid-19. 66.67% were satisfied with the safety measures taken by the hospital. Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms, as measured by IES-R, and peritraumatic distress, measured by CPDI, were frequently reported (41.05% and 43.21%, respectively). PTSD resulted independently associated with peritraumatic distress (Adjusted Odds Ratio, AOR 49.83), perception of being avoided by family and/or friends due to work performed (AOR= 4.05), low hope for the future (AOR= 2.25) and female gender (AOR= 2.90). Age and profession were considered confounding variables. These results showed that even in times of reduced restrictions, the prevalence of peritraumatic distress and PTSD is high, regardless of work and professional specialization, length of service, more or less direct contact with covid-19 patients. Since the biological damage resulting from a PTSD is known, it is important to activate screening programs followed by specific interventions to reduce long-term risks to mental health.

POS-966 CLINICAL OUTCOME OF COVID-19 INFECTION AND END STAGE KIDNEY DISEASE PATIENTS IN A NEPHROLOGY SPECIALIZED WARD: ARE WE MOVING TOWARDS BETTER?

Patients with kidney disease are particularly vulnerable to severe COVID-19 as well as having higher risk of developing complications. We report the clinical experience of our nephrology team in managing COVID-19 cases when renal ward was converted to COVID-19 ward during this pandemic.

Role of Neutrophil Lymphocyte Ratio (NLR) in Predicting Disease Severity in Covid -19

Background: To evaluate the role of NLR as a prognostic indicator for severe COVID-19, due to its positive correlation with disease severity, easy accessibility and low cost.&#x0D; Material and Methods: A multicenter retrospective observational study was conducted in COVID-19 wards of two tertiary care hospitals of Faisalabad city, Pakistan, treating COVID-19 patients between May 2021 - July 2021. A predesigned proforma was filled to collect the data. SPSS 21 was used for the statistical analysis of this research.&#x0D; Results: A record of 100 COVID-19 patients admitted between May 2021 - July 2021, fulfilling the inclusion criteria was included in the study. All patients were divided into two groups. The non-severe group included 37 patients while the severe group included 63 patients. The mean age of the study population was 56 years with male predominance (63%). Overall, 50% of patients in the non-severe group and 71% in the severe group had some co-existent comorbidity. Fever and cough were the most commonly reported symptoms in both groups while shortness of breath was more widely reported in the severe group (74.2%). The mean NLR in the non-severe group was 4 as compared to 12 in the severe group.&#x0D; Conclusions: Higher neutrophil lymphocyte ratio (NLR) is associated with severe COVID -19 and can be used as an effective tool to predict the progression of the non-severe disease to severe disease.

Secure Telemedicine System Design for COVID-19 Patients Treatment Using Service Oriented Architecture.

The coronavirus pandemic, also known as the COVID-19 pandemic, is an ongoing virus. It was first identified on December 2019 in Wuhan, China, and later spread to 192 countries. As of now, 251,266,207 people have been affected, and 5,070,244 deaths are reported. Due to the growing number of COVID-19 patients, the demand for COVID wards is increasing. Telemedicine applications are increasing drastically because of convenient treatment options. The healthcare sector is rapidly adopting telemedicine applications for the treatment of COVID-19 patients. Most telemedicine applications are developed for heterogeneous environments and due to their diverse nature, data transmission between similar and dissimilar telemedicine applications is a difficult task. In this paper, we propose a Tele-COVID system architecture design along with its security aspects to provide the treatment for COVID-19 patients from distance. Tele-COVID secure system architecture is designed to resolve the problem of data interchange between two different telemedicine applications, interoperability, and vendor lock-in. Tele-COVID is a web-based and Android telemedicine application that provides suitable treatment to COVID-19 patients. With the help of Tele-COVID, the treatment of patients at a distance is possible without the need for them to visit hospitals; in case of emergency, necessary services can also be provided. The application is tested on COVID-19 patients in the county hospital and shows the initial results.

A patient satisfaction survey and educational package to improve the care of people hospitalised with COVID-19: a quality improvement project, Liverpool, UK.

Background: The perspectives and experiences of people hospitalised with COVID-19 have been under-reported during the coronavirus pandemic. We developed and conducted a COVID-19 patient satisfaction survey in a large university-affiliated secondary healthcare centre in Liverpool, UK, during Europe's first coronavirus wave (April-June 2020). The survey found that care was rated highly, including among people of Black Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) backgrounds. However, sleep-quality and communication about medications and discharge-planning were identified as areas for improvement. Methods: To improve care for people with COVID-19 admitted to our centre, we designed an educational package for healthcare professionals working on COVID-19 wards. The package, implemented in August 2020, included healthcare worker training sessions on providing holistic care and placement of "Practice Pointers" posters. Patient satisfaction was re-evaluated during the second/third COVID-19 waves in Liverpool (September 2020 - February 2021). Results: Across waves, most (95%) respondents reported that they would recommend our hospital to friends and/or family and rated overall care highly. Comparison of the responses of second/third-wave respondents (n=101) with first-wave respondents (n=94) suggested improved patient satisfaction across most care domains but especially those related to having worries and fears addressed and being consulted about medications and their side-effects. Conclusions: People admitted with COVID-19 to our centre in Liverpool, including those from BAME backgrounds, rated the care they received highly. A simple education package improved the feedback on care received by respondents between the first and second/third waves. These UK-first findings are informing regional strategies to improve person-centred care of hospitalised people with COVID-19.

MS-based targeted profiling of oxylipins in COVID-19: A new insight into inflammation regulation

The key role of inflammation in COVID-19 induced many authors to study the cytokine storm, whereas the role of other inflammatory mediators such as oxylipins is still poorly understood.IMPRECOVID was a monocentric retrospective observational pilot study with COVID-19 related pneumonia patients (n = 52) admitted to Pisa University Hospital between March and April 2020. Our MS-based analytical platform permitted the simultaneous determination of sixty plasma oxylipins in a single run at ppt levels for a comprehensive characterisation of the inflammatory cascade in COVID-19 patients. The datasets containing oxylipin and cytokine plasma levels were analysed by principal component analysis (PCA), computation of Fisher’s canonical variable, and a multivariate receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve.Differently from cytokines, the panel of oxylipins clearly differentiated samples collected in COVID-19 wards (n = 43) and Intensive Care Units (ICUs) (n = 27), as shown by the PCA and the multivariate ROC curve with a resulting AUC equal to 0.92. ICU patients showed lower (down to two orders of magnitude) plasma concentrations of anti-inflammatory and pro-resolving lipid mediators, suggesting an impaired inflammation response as part of a prolonged and unsolvable pro-inflammatory status. In conclusion, our targeted oxylipidomics platform helped shedding new light in this field. Targeting the lipid mediator class switching is extremely important for a timely picture of a patient’s ability to respond to the viral attack. A prediction model exploiting selected lipid mediators as biomarkers seems to have good chances to classify patients at risk of severe COVID-19.

Decreased number of inpatients with community-acquired pneumonia during the COVID-19 pandemic: A large multicenter study in Japan

The COVID-19 pandemic has shaped the dynamics of many diseases. This study aims to assess how the pandemic affected community-acquired pneumonia admission of all age groups among Japanese hospitals with various size and availability of COVID-19 wards. Our findings revealed a 44%–53% reduction in community-acquired pneumonia admission among 82 hospitals in Japan, from April through September of 2020, compared to the same period of 2019. Decreases were consistently found among hospitals with and without COVID-19 wards. The most significant decrease was found in the age group <20 years old. COVID-19 preventive measures and personal hygiene are considered to be effective measures to prevent the spreading of this disease. As vaccination progresses and the public gradually become less attentive to infection countermeasures, incidence of community-acquired pneumonia may increase in the coming season. Continued monitoring is required.

Anxiety and depression disorders on health workers in COVID and non-COVID wards of Sanglah Hospital

This study aims to determine anxiety and depression among health workers during the COVID-19 pandemic at Sanglah Hospital. Health workers in the front line on the COVID-19 pandemic are at high risk of being infected and at high risk of psychological impact. A descriptive study with a cross-sectional design and an online survey was conducted using the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) instrument, and Beck Anxiety Depression (BAI). A total of 188 health workers were included. In this study, 3.7% of the participants had mild mood disorders, 1.1% had clinical depression and 0.5% had severe depression. Health workers who do not deal directly with COVID patients have a greater percentage of depression (2.04%) compared to those who have direct contact (1.4%). Statistically, occupation was significantly associated with the incidence of depression (p= 0.044). It was found that 18.1% has anxiety and the highest level of anxiety was found in nurses (20.8%) and also in participants who worked in the Non-COVID ward (24.5%). There is a statistical significance between anxiety and work station (p = 0.064).

Nursing allocation in isolation wards of COVID-19 designated hospitals: a nationwide study in China

BackgroundAppropriate allocation of nursing staff is key to ensuring efficient nursing in hospitals, and is significantly correlated with patient safety, nursing quality, and nurse job satisfaction. However, there are few studies on nursing workforce allocation in the isolation wards of COVID-19 designated hospitals globally. This study aims to better understand the nursing workforce allocation in the isolation wards of COVID-19 designated hospitals in China, and provide a theoretical basis for efficiently deploying first-line nurses in China and across the world in the future.MethodsAn online survey was conducted among the head nurses (n = 229) and nurses (n = 1378) in the isolation wards of 117 hospitals (selected by stratified sampling), using a self-reported human resource allocation questionnaire.ResultsThe average bed-to-nurse ratios of different isolation wards were different (Z = 36.742, P = 0.000). The bed-to-nurse ratios of the ICU, suspected COVID-19 cases ward, and confirmed COVID-19 cases ward, were 1:1.88, 1:0.56, and 1:0.45, respectively. The nurse work hours per shift in different isolation wards were also different (Z = 8.468, P = 0.014), with the specific values of the ICU, suspected COVID-19 cases ward, and confirmed COVID-19 cases ward, being 5, 6, and 6 h, respectively. A correlation analysis showed that the average work hours per shift was proportional to the overtime work of nurses (rs = 0.146), the proportion of nurse practitioners was proportional to the overall utilization rate of nursing human resources in the wards (rs = 0.136), and the proportion of nurses with college degrees was proportional to teamwork (rs = 0.142). The proportion of nurses above grade 10 was inversely proportional to teamwork and psychological problems (rs = 0.135, rs = 0.203). The results of multiple stepwise regression analyses showed that the work hours of nurses per shift was the main factor affecting nurse satisfaction and that the proportion of nurses and the work hours of nurses per shift were both independent factors affecting the length of stay (LOS) of patients.ConclusionHospitals in China have made good nursing workforce allocations during the COVID-19 pandemic, but there are certain shortcomings. Therefore, scientific and efficient nursing workforce allocation practice plans should be established to improve the ability of hospitals to deal with public health emergencies and are urgent problems that need to be addressed soon.

Hyperlipidemia in Post-COVID patients; a unique observational follow-up study on lipid levels in post-COVID patients

Aim: Alterations in plasma lipid levels have been shown to be correlated with the severity of infections due to various pathogens such as bacteria, viruses. In this study, we aimed to evaluate the lipid metabolism changes associated with disease severity and prognosis in hospitalized COVID-19 patients during and after (post-COVID) the disease.&#x0D; Material and Method: Patients who were hospitalized in the COVID-19 wards between April 02, 2020, and November 20, 2020 and were then evaluated in the follow-up outpatient clinic were retrospectively searched.&#x0D; Results: Lipid levels were present at the admission and follow-up for 95 patients. The mean (S.D) age was 48.49 (16.4), and 49(51.6%) were male. The mean (S.D) day between the admission and the first visit in the COVID-19 follow-up outpatient clinic was 27.8 (12.8). LDL-C (p=0.044), and HDL-C (p=0.004) levels were significantly lower in the severely ill group at the admission. Total cholesterol, LDL-C, HDL-C, and triglyceride levels on follow-up were significantly higher than those levels on the admission day (p