Lockdown Rules Research Articles

New Approaches to On-Line Collaboration in Times of COVID-19 Pandemic

On-line collaboration has become a vital necessity and a beneficial instrument of providing continuous educational process under the COVID-19 pandemic. Since health security reasons forced governments to introduce lockdown and social distancing rules, the educational establishments in many countries made considerable efforts to meet new demands. The paper focuses on the results of the research into advantages and disadvantages of on-line collaboration in educational process. Students and teaching staff of the linguist and non-linguist faculties of the MGIMO University and MIIT University took part in 7 questionnaires which were especially elaborated to find out the attitude of students and teaching staff to on-line education, its challenges and opportunities. All in all 217 students and 25 members of the teaching staff (tutors, teachers and lecturers) participated in the research with the use of case-based reasoning system to analyze on-line collaboration between students, between students and teaching staff, between members of the teaching staff in digital learning and educational environment.The first two questionnaires were aimed to assess students’ abilities to adapt to new educational rules and learning environment. They proved that it was rather easy for most students to embrace changes in educational approaches and procedures. In some cases remote work with the use of IT technologies had been implemented long before the COVID-19 pandemic. The universities participating in the research had introduced mentorship and internship programmes, business incubator facilities with videoconferencing classes and supportive collaboration tools before the pandemic broke out. And those faculties that had elaborated and introduced IT innovations in their educational process beforehand find themselves more confident and independent in times of COVID-19 crisis. The third and fourth questionnaire estimated the attitude of educators to new challenges of the digital educational environment. The research has exposed the so-called “generation gap”: most elderly professors have voted for traditional in-person collaboration, meanwhile there is a rather high percentage of “active” professors who have demonstrated eagerness and diligence in acquiring new skills of working in digital environment. Most educators confess that getting used to new tools and methods of digital education is just a matter of time. The rest of the questionnaires testify that the overwhelming majority of interviewees observe that on-line collaboration serves the interests of protecting human health as well as corresponds to the qualification requirements modern employers seek and encourage in personnel. Nowadays employers quite often expect their staff to work in virtual teams, geographically dispersed. So students should be taught to work and learn digitally: to use the Internet resources effectively, to demonstrate acumen and self-discipline, to brush up their public speaking and presentation skills. Thus, on-line collaboration should pursue these goals.

COVID-19 recovery for the Nigerian construction sites: The role of the fourth industrial revolution technologies

Fourth industrial revolution (4IR) technologies have been proved as successful platforms to communicate and visualise construction projects within team meetings. These techniques possibly can enhance compliance with Covid-19 rules on sites. How far concerning Nigerian construction contractors in the use of 4IR technologies are yet to receive in-depth studies. Therefore, this paper offers a collective insight into the issues affecting construction firms from Covid-19 regarding lockdown rules and the role of 4IR technologies. Given the unexplored nature of the problem, a virtual face-to-face type of qualitative research method was employed. Twelve semi-structured interviews from selected construction firms and consultant experts were engaged and collated data analysed via a thematic approach. Findings group the 4IR technologies into smart construction site, simulation and modelling, and digitisation and virtualisation in Nigeria’s context, and majority of the 4IR technologies can be useful to enhance Covid-19 compliance. Reluctant to adopt, high implementation cost, inadequate knowledge management, resistance to change, among others emerged as the factors hindering 4IR technologies usage. Findings will strengthen and provide a rich insight into the impact of Covid-19 on construction sites and contribute towards informing key stakeholders to create an enabling environment for the implementation of 4IR technologies on site.

Fluctuating Attitudes and Behaviors of Customers toward Online Shopping in Times of Emergency: The Case of Kuwait during the COVID-19 Pandemic

This study investigates the various risk factors that alter online shopping behavior in Kuwait, during the COVID-19 pandemic. Online questionnaires were distributed through various social media platforms. Overall, 385 responses were collected via online questionnaire, and the data were analyzed using AMOS 21 for the purpose of structural equation modeling. The findings show that risk susceptibility, risk severity, and risk of formal penalties positively affect consumers’ online buying attitude in Kuwait, whereas product risk, financial risk, and non-delivery risk show no significant effect. Convenience risk is the only factor that negatively affects attitudes. Further, we find a new path wherein formal penalties imposed on those who break the lockdown rules can directly and positively affect consumer behavior toward online shopping during the pandemic. We show that factors that affect the attitude and behavior of users toward online shopping in normal non-emergency times, vary from those during emergency times.

The impact of the COVID-19 lockdown rules on the socio-psychological condition of the people over 65 in Azerbaijan

The impact of the COVID-19 lockdown rules on the socio-psychological condition of the people over 65 in Azerbaijan

Parallel trends in the transmission of SARS-CoV-2 and retail/recreation and public transport mobility during non-lockdown periods

Recent literature strongly supports the hypothesis that mobility restriction and social distancing play a crucial role in limiting the transmission of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2). During the first wave of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, it was shown that mobility restriction reduced transmission significantly. This study found that, in the period between the first two waves of the COVID-19 pandemic, there was high positive correlation between trends in the transmission of SARS-CoV-2 and mobility. These two trends oscillated simultaneously, and increased mobility following the relaxation of lockdown rules was significantly associated with increased transmission. From a public health perspective, these results highlight the importance of tracking changes in mobility when relaxing mitigation measures in order to anticipate future changes in the spread of SARS-CoV-2.

My story in response to the stories of my patients’ experience of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic: a relational psychoanalytic approach

The hallmark of being human is to tell stories. The stories told give meaning to the experience, and it is in telling stories about our experience, that we begin the process of meaning-making. Psychotherapy is storytelling, and in our consultation room we, as psychotherapists, listen to the tales told. This paper documents my story in response to some of the stories of my patients’ experience of the impact of the unprecedented impact of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. While there have been pandemics before, this pandemic is arguable unique because of social media and the number of people across the world who can share their experience. It is said that more than 4 billion people have self-isolated at home together at the same time as a collective humanity in response to their country’s lockdown rules. For psychotherapists, the shift to online therapy has allowed for a continuation of psychotherapy, and the telling of stories of COVID-19. Some of their stories are sad stories of loss and uncertainty. Some of their stories are more positive and inspiring. In this paper, three patients’ stories have been selected that illustrate both the positive and negative reactions to the COVID-19 pandemic. As the conceptual framework is relational psychoanalytic with its focus on the dynamics of the intersubjective relationship, my story, as counter-transference reactions are incorporated.

Prioritising of hip and knee arthroplasty procedures during the COVID-19 pandemic: the European Hip Society and the European Knee Associates Survey of Members.

PurposeDuring the COVID-19 pandemic there has been a massive reduction of arthroplasty services due to reallocation of hospital resources. The unique challenge for clinicians has been to define which arthroplasty patients most urgently require surgery. The present study aimed to investigate priority arthroplasty procedures during the pandemic and in the reinstatement period from the surgeon’s perspective.Material and methodsAn online survey was conducted among members of the European Hip Society (EHS), European Knee Associates (EKA) and other invited orthopaedic arthroplasty surgeons (experts) from across the world. The survey consisted of 17 different arthroplasty procedures/indications of which participants were asked to choose and rank the most important 10.ResultsFour hundred and thirty-nine arthroplasty surgeons from 44 countries responded. The EHS and EKA had a 43% response rate of members. In weighted average points, the majority of respondents (67.5 points) ranked ‘acute fractures requiring arthroplasty (Periprosthetic fractures, THA/hemi-arthroplasty for femoral neck fractures)’ as priority indication number one, followed by ‘first-stage explantations for acute PJI (periprosthetic joint infection)’ in second place and priority indication (45.9 points) three as ‘one-stage revision for acute PJI’ (39.7 points).ConclusionsThere was agreement that femoral neck fractures, periprosthetic fractures, and acute infections should be prioritised and cannot be postponed in the setting of the COVID-19 pandemic. As arthroplasty procedures are being resumed in most countries now, there has also been a relaxation of lockdown rules in most countries, which might cause a so-called second wave of the pandemic. Therefore, the results of the current study present a proposal by experts as to which operations should be prioritised in the setting of a second wave of the pandemic.

Re-imagining a New Normal: COVID-19 Pandemic and the Changing Face of Social Interaction

Future communities have been imagined. When such communities confront us, we respond not by imagining but re-imagining the emerging communities so that we can cope with the new reality. But are there new realities, or is what we imagine as new a case and curse of historical recurrence? The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted communities as we have known them. Disruptions enable transformation through creativity. Disruptions introduce a semblance of newness that requires new ways of doing, seeing, reading and telling reality. This paper discusses how, in the face of global lockdown, quarantine and social distancing rules – the new normal ‒ the creative impulse of humans has responded and adapted to COVID-19 pandemic-induced change.

Religion and the state in an episodic moment of COVID-19 in Ghana.

The goal of this paper is to discuss the role religions are playing to stem the tide against the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19) in Ghana. Focusing on the ubiquity of religions in Ghana, the paper argues that religious experts deploy their ability to invoke the transcendental being to compel adherents to comply with the lockdown rules, as well as follow precautionary measures to fight the virus in Ghana. The paper also maintains that the state has, in the face of the current crisis, passed a law that could be inimical to the future of religious freedom in the country. Methodologically, I draw on critical reflections on electronic and social media reports about religion and humanitarian services in Ghana to argue that religions are bridging the mundane and spiritual gaps to aid the state, while the state is also creatively engaging religions to invest in prayers and also pass laws that are potentially inimical to the future of religious freedom.

Hidden Parameters Impacting Resurgence of SARS-CoV-2 Pandemic

The spread of the SARS-CoV-2 virus has had an enormous impact on the world's health and socioeconomic system. While a lockdown, which severely limits the movement of the population, has been implemented in March 2020 and again in late 2020, the psychological and economic costs are severe. Removal of these restrictions had varying degrees of success. To understand the impact of health policy, we study parameters that contribute to the resurgence of the virus upon removal of lockdown. Mandates and guidance on removal of lockdown varied across the United States. Along with social distancing mandates, active infections and the fraction of susceptible population remaining are identified as important factors in the resurgence of infections. We consider an epidemiological model that incorporates the set of people in lockdown, a population that is released linearly upon removal of lockdown. This model further incorporates a dynamic social distance metric based on progression of the infections; it reflects the dynamic propensity of infection spread based on the current infections relative to the susceptible population. It is determined that this model fits the data with more accuracy than the standard SIR model, where data on growth of infections, hospitalizations and death was obtained from 24 counties in multiple US states, along with a categorization of the lockdown removal policies after the first lockdown. Mobility data from the counties illustrates the relationship between policy mandates and visits to establishments like restaurants and personal care establishments. Model parameters are used to determine the rate at which the susceptible population increases, due to removal of lockdown, to fit the rate of infections. We also studied infection growth in the 24 US counties with respect to a two-phase release policy derived from CDC guidelines and compared against strategies that delay the removal of lockdown. Results: The efficacy of the lockdown removal policy is measured via a ratio, Peak Infection Ratio (PIR). This ratio evaluates to less than one for counties where social distancing measures were mandated and which delayed complete re-opening of closed spaces like restaurants and personal care establishments. For other counties this ratio is greater than one. Our results also show that not all counties respected the two-phase policy rule that we devised using CDC guidelines. Furthermore, delaying reopening in these counties by 30 days would have resulted in at least 40% less infections. Conclusions: Results illustrate that guidelines for deciding when lockdown rules are to be relaxed should consider the current state of the actively infectious population and the remaining susceptible population which are hidden parameters that are deducible from epidemiological models such as the one we consider, the SIR-SD-L model. This contrasts with policies that measure the reduction in growth of infections; the growth rate being correlated primarily to immediate non-pharmaceutical (NPI) interventions. This is especially true for counties where the growth rate of the virus is initially slow and misleading. Emphasis and mandates on social distancing is critical. Funding Statement: Research sponsored by NSF. grant No. 2028274. Declaration of Interests: None to declare.

Weather and Lockdown Compliance

The effectiveness of containment measures depends on both epidemiological and sociological mechanisms, most notably compliance with national lockdown rules. Yet, there is growing discontent with social distancing rules in many countries, which is expected to intensify further during summer. Using a highly granular dataset on compliance of over 105,000 individuals in the United Kingdom (UK), we find that compliance with lockdown policies tends to be high in the overall population, but that specific segments of society are substantially less compliant. Our findings show that warmer temperatures decrease non-compliance with governmental guidelines of individuals who are male, divorced, part-time employed, and/or parent of more than two children. Thus, as long as heard immunity through vaccination is not achieved and new strains demand containment measures to remain in place, understanding the individual determinants of non-compliance behaviour in different seasons of the year will remain important for policymakers to design effective policies in the future.

A Study on the Growth of E-Commerce during COVID-19

The worldwide spread of the COVID-19 pandemic has agitated how people buy commodities and other services and how they are involved in e-commerce. This is fully based on the current situation and current information. The patterned lockdown rules across India and the growing hesitation among consumers to go outside and shop for essential goods have given a wider view of the nation towards e-commerce. Consumers have a turnabout from shops, supermarkets, and shopping malls to online portals and other shopping apps for the purchase of products, ranging from basic commodities to reputed brands

The Effects of Physical Distancing and Lockdown to Restrain SARS-Cov-2 Outbreak in the Italian Municipality of Cogne

The outbreak of SARS-CoV-2 started in Wuhan, China, and is now a pandemic. An understanding of the prevalence and contagiousness of the disease, and of whether the strategies used to curb it to date have been successful, is important to implement future containment measures. A widely used way to break down the spread of SARS-CoV-2, as part of the Non-Pharmaceutical Interventions (NPIs), is to adopt strong social distancing policies. Cogne (Italy) is an isolated alpine village served by a single access road: a rare and ideal socio-geographic framework for studying the dynamics of viral shedding. The Municipality of Cogne imposed strict lockdown rules from March 4, 2020 up to May 18, 2020. This first wave of the pandemic impressed by the extremely low impact of the SARS-CoV-2 on the inhabitants. Starting from October 2020 up to the end of December, when the second wave hit Italy and Cogne territory, heavier effects were observed. In order to cast light on the effectiveness of the adopted strategy 74,5% of the local population underwent a blood screening to detect IgM and IgG antibodies and after six months all the people tested positive were again investigated to establish the longitudinal changes in antibodies level. The main topic of the present observational study is the comparison of the SARS-CoV-2 outbreak in the March 2020 lockdown vs the October 2020 lockdown. Emphasis is put on the usefulness of the early and strict lockdown tool to contain the pandemic. Moreover a rare and intere-sting case of secondary infection has been identified and here reported.

Effects of COVID-19 pandemic lockdown on medical advice seeking and medication practices of home-bound non-COVID patients.

BACKGROUND:Many countries are implementing measures for social distancing to contain the spread of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. The Indian government also issued an order for complete lockdown of the country, with all the nonessential services, including most of the services for nonemergency health issues, being temporarily suspended.OBJECTIVES:This study aimed to understand the effect of pandemic lockdown on medical advice-seeking behavior and the medication practices of the non-COVID Indian patients confined to homes, who would have normally visited the outpatient departments (OPDs) for medical advice.MATERIALS And METHODS:It was a questionnaire-based, cross-sectional study conducted online during the lockdown period. The questions dealt with medical advice-related practices, self-medication, the sources of medical advice, and the need to visit emergency department. Evaluation of data was done as for descriptive studies.RESULTS:A total of 106 people (34%) out of the 312 participants had either old or new health problems. Ninety-six of such people (90.5%) tried to manage their sufferings by either continuing the drugs prescribed earlier or by making phone calls to doctors along with taking the help of home remedies, if needed. Ten (9.5%) of the symptomatic participants did not consult any doctor waiting for natural course of relief. None of the participants practiced self-medication of modern medicine therapy. Only one participant (of the total 312) took hydroxychloroquine as self-medication for assumed prophylactic therapy against the COVID-19 infection.CONCLUSION:Most of the people with medical conditions, confined at home due to national lockdown, are coping with their problems without any irrational self-medication with modern medicines or any misuse of prophylactic therapy against the COVID infection. This seemingly positive trend may also have been due to the strict enforcement of the lockdown rules by the law enforcement agencies.

Pakistan 2020: The PTI government amidst COVID-19 pandemic

The year 2020 was a landmark year for Afghanistan. The country witnessed the signing of the peace deal between the US and the Taliban as well as the beginning of intra-Afghan negotiations that, for the first time since 2001, brought together representatives from the Taliban and the Government of Afghanistan. These two political milestones occurred in parallel to the long-delayed final announcement of the September 2019 Presidential elections results. This was followed by a power-sharing agreement signed on 17 May, which ended the political impasse deriving from the contested electoral outcome. In Afghanistan, like in all other countries in the world, the COVID-19 pandemic had a major impact on the country’s economy and on people’s livelihood. Despite a prompt government response and the implementation of some very tough lockdown rules, Afghanistan’s weak health system and very limited testing capacity meant that the real scale of the negative impact of the pandemic was massive, albeit difficult to capture. With regards to Afghanistan’s international relations, the year under examination was characterized by continuity in the approach that regional powers, Pakistan, India and above all China, had towards Kabul. Each of these countries has continued supporting their preferred actors on the Afghan political scene, but the peace deal between the US and the Taliban has put Pakistan in a strong position, given the long-standing support that Islamabad provided to the fundamentalist Islamic militia.

Breaking Lockdown during Lockdown: A Neutralization Theory Evaluation of Misbehavior during the Covid 19 Pandemic

ABSTRACT The Covid-19 pandemic constitutes a global crisis that has necessitated many nations to adopt and enforce various strategies to reduce the spread of the virus, protect citizens, and alleviate pressures on healthcare systems. Central to such reactions are ‘lockdown’ regulations that limit travel, require restricted movement by citizens, and enforce stay-at-home rules. However, while evidence suggests general (but not unanimous) support for the principles of such lockdowns, reports also indicate that individuals are far from universally compliant. In this regard, lockdown rule breaking may be viewed as a form of misbehavior. The aim of this study is to explore and explicate if, and if so, how and why citizens deviate from espoused lockdown rules and neutralize or justify their guilt. In order to do so, we utilize the theory of neutralization as our conceptual lens of analysis. Using in-depth interviews of individuals experiencing lockdown conditions, we analyze neutralization techniques to lockdown infringements. Our analysis suggests that the guilt of rule transgressions is neutralized in two main ways; via the denial of deviance and the negation of the espouse lockdown norm. Insights are generated in specific forms of neutralization and wider implications discussed.

Implications of COVID-19 for resumption of sport in South Africa: A South African Sports Medicine Association (SASMA) position statement - Part 2.

The lockdown regulations due to the coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19) that broke out towards the end of 2019 and continued to spread throughout most countries in the world had a negative effect on the sporting community. The South African government eased the lockdown rules to Level 1 from 21 September 2020. In Part 2 of this Position Statement of the South African Sports Medicine Association (SASMA), the authors address the position regarding the safe return to sports for athletes who were infected by the virus. An update on clinical manifestations and multi-organ involvement, testing for Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), prolonged positive real time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and the role of quantitative real time polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) in informing return to sports, grading of disease severity, individualised management of infected athletes and graduated return to play guidelines (GRTP) is provided. The authors also share thoughts on athletes with disabilities, immunisation, the using of masks during exercise and utilising biologically safe environments (BSE). Finally the SASMA Guidelines for Safe RTP in Level 1 lockdown during SARS-Cov-2 are introduced.

Short-term impact of COVID-19 lockdown on metabolic control of patients with well-controlled type 2 diabetes: a single-centre observational study

Aims/hypothesisThe strict rules applied in Italy during the recent COVID-19 pandemic, with the prohibition to attend any regular outdoor activity, are likely to influence the degree of metabolic control in patients with type 2 diabetes. We explored such putative effect immediately after the resolution of lockdown rules, in the absence of any variation of pharmacologic treatment.MethodsOne-hundred and fourteen patients with adequate metabolic control took part in this single-centre, prospective, observational study. The metabolic profile tested 1 week after the end of the lockdown was compared with the last value and the mean of the last three determinations performed before the pandemic emergency (from 6 months to 2 years before).ResultsAfter 8 weeks of lockdown, an increase of HbA1c > 0.3% (mean +0.7%) was observed in 26% of the participants; these were also characterized by a persistent elevation in serum triglycerides able to predict the worsening of glucose control.ConclusionsLockdown determined a relevant short-term metabolic worsening in approximately one-fourth of previously well-controlled type 2 diabetic individuals; pre-lockdown triglycerides were the only parameter able to predict such derangement of glucose control.

An Eye on the Future of COVID-19: Prediction of Likely Positive Cases and Fatality in India over a 30-Day Horizon Using the Prophet Model.

The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic was initiated in Wuhan Province of mainland China in December 2019 and has spread over the world. This study analyzes the effects of COVID-19 based on likely positive cases and fatality in India during and after the lockdown period from March 24, 2020, to May 24, 2020. Python has been used as the main programming language for data analysis and forecasting using the Prophet model, a time series analysis model. The data set has been preprocessed by grouping together the days for total numbers of cases and deaths on few selected dates and removing missing values present in some states. The Prophet model performs better in terms of precision on the real data. Prediction depicts that, during the lockdown, the total cases were rising but in a controlled manner with an accuracy of 87%. After the relaxation of lockdown rules, the predictions have shown an obstreperous situation with an accuracy of 60%. The resilience could have been better if the lockdown with strict norms was continued without much relaxation. The situation after lockdown has been found to be uncertain as observed by the experimental study conducted in this work.

The Impact of Coping Strategies and Perceived Family Support on Depressive and Anxious Symptomatology During the Coronavirus Pandemic (COVID-19) Lockdown.

The coronavirus pandemic represents a severe global crisis, affecting physical, and psychological health. Lockdown rules imposed to counteract the rapid growth of COVID-19, mainly social restrictions, have represented a risk factor for developing depressive and anxious symptoms. The research aims are to explore the effect of coping strategies and perceived social support on depressive and anxious symptomatology during the COVID-19 pandemic. Ninety-six healthy people (46 males, mean age = 39.3; SD = 16.6) completed through on-line platform: Socio-demographic questionnaire, Coping Inventory for Stressful Situations (CISS), Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MSPSS) and Symptom Checklist-90-Revised (SCL-90-R), 3 weeks after the imposition of lockdown restrictions. SCL-90-R Depression scores showed significant positive correlation with CISS Emotion (r = 0.85; p = 0.001) and Avoidant (r = 0.34; p = 0.018), a significant negative correlation with MSPSS Family support (r = −0.43; p = 0.003). SCL-90-R Anxiety scores showed a significant positive correlation with CISS Emotion (r = 0.72; p = 0.001) and Avoidant (r = 0.35; p = 0.016). No significant correlations between both CISS Emotion and Avoidant scales with social support emerged. Two Multiple Linear Regression analysis were performed using, respectively, SCL-90-R Depression and Anxiety scores as dependent variables, and the CISS and MSPSS scales, age, and gender as predictors. The first regression model (R2 = 0.78; adjusted R2 = 0.75) revealed CISS Emotion (β = 0.83; p = 0.001) and MSPSS Family support (β = −0.24; p = 0.004) had a predictive effect on SCL-90-R Depression scores. The second regression model (R2 = 0.52; adjusted R2 = 0.472) revealed that only CISS Emotion (β = 0.71; p = 0.001) predicted the SCL-90-R Anxiety scores. In conclusion, during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns, coping focus on emotions seemed to increase anxious and depressive symptoms, probably due to the uncontrollable nature of the stressful event and the high emotional response. Family support which reduces the sense of loneliness had an exclusive role in mitigating depressive symptoms. These results highlight the importance of promoting psychological strategies to improve emotional regulation skills, reducing isolation from family, to prevent mood symptomatology in healthy citizens during large-scale health crises.