Second Wave Of COVID-19 Research Articles

코로나19는 여당 지지율을 상승시켰는가?

During the pandemic period, the world underwent significant changes not only in health and economic fields, but also in political ones. European politics also saw substantial changes in supporting rates for the ruling parties, far-right parties, and the main opposition parties. However, in exceptional situations like COVID-19, supporting rates for parties might be influenced more by the crisis itself than by party policies or economic performance. This paper aims to identify the key factors that contributed to the changes of supporting rates for the ruling parties, far-right parties, and the main opposition parties during the two waves of COVID-19 in 2020. A multiple regression analysis was conducted, with the dependent variable of supporting rates for the ruling parties, far-right parties, and the main opposition parties of 30 European countries, including EU member states(excluding Cyprus), Iceland, Norway, the UK, and Scotland, during the first wave, period of pause, and second wave of COVID-19. The independent variables are supporting rates for other parties, health factors such as COVID-19 casualties and confirmed cases, economic factors like GDP growth rate, inflation, total income, and 23 government-imposed lockdown measures of 30 European countries. The analysis revealed following findings. First, the human casualties of COVID-19 did not directly impact supporting rates of parties. The number of deaths per million was only positively correlated with an increase in support for the ruling party during the second wave, likely due to a rallying effect as the pandemic resurged. Second, among the lockdown measures, bans on outdoor activities, restaurant closures, and workplace shutdowns had an impact on the support rates for the ruling parties, far-right parties, and the main opposition parties. Countries that imposed outdoor activity bans for a longer duration experienced a decrease in support for the ruling parties, while far-right and main opposition parties’ supporting rates tended to increase. Third, economic factors continued to influence party support during the pandemic. Countries with higher GDP growth rates, higher total income, and lower unemployment rates during the first and second waves maintained higher supporting rates for the ruling parties. Additionally, during the second wave, countries with rapidly rising unemployment rates had higher supporting rates for far-right parties and the main opposition parties. Through this analysis, it became evident that supporting rates for parties in 30 European countries were influenced more by government-imposed lockdown measures and economic factors than by the direct impact of COVID-19 casualties during the pandemic spread.

Impacts of information about COVID-19 on pig farmers’ production willingness and behavior: Evidence from China

This paper examines the impacts of information about COVID-19 on pig farmers’ production willingness by using endorsement experiments and follow-up surveys conducted in 2020 and 2021 in China. Our results show that, first, farmers were less willing to scale up production when they received information about COVID-19. The information in 2020 that the second wave of COVID-19 might occur without a vaccine reduced farmers’ willingness to scale up by 13.4%, while the information in 2021 that COVID-19 might continue to spread despite the introduction of vaccine reduced farmers’ willingness by 4.4%. Second, farmers whose production was affected by COVID-19 were considerably less willing to scale up, given the access to COVID-19 information. Third, farmers’ production willingness can predict their actual production behavior.

Division of Labor and Maternal Gatekeeping during the Second Wave of COVID-19 in Turkey

Division of Labor and Maternal Gatekeeping during the Second Wave of COVID-19 in Turkey

Correlation between Chest Computed Tomography Severity Scores and Age of Adult Patients with Suspected Covid-19 Pneumonia Admitted in Intensive Care Unit of a Tertiary Care Hospital, Bangladesh

In Bangladesh, the second wave of Covid-19 was devastating. Mostly RT-PCR is used to determine the Covid-19 infection. But when test results are delayed, or when there is a clinical suspicion of Covid-19 despite initial negative RT-PCR testing, CT scan of chest was used to detect Covid-19 and Covid-19 severity. This observational cross-sectional study was carried out at Corona dedicated ICU of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical College Hospital, Faridpur during February to June, 2021 to observe the HRCT severity score of the patient and its correlation with different ages. A total of 50 patients with clinically suspected Covid-19 cases who were admitted to the Corona dedicated ICU were included in the study. The chest HRCT images of study participants was gathered, CT severity score was calculated by a particular assignment radiologist. Based on this score; Severe disease was mainly seen in the >60 year age group (50%). A significant moderate positive correlation was observed between age and CT chest severity score. With the increasing age the patients were suffering more and being male may increase the risk and put the patient to get admitted in the ICU, and as an alternative of the RT-PCR, CT scan of chest could be useful. Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Med. Coll. J. 2023;2(2):77-82

Performance measurement of Islamic philanthropic institution during pandemic in Indonesia: A balanced scorecard approach

This study aims to analyze the performance of Islamic philanthropic institution during the COVID-19 pandemic (2020–2021) by using a balanced scorecard approach. The balanced scorecard assesses a company or institution based on four perspectives: finance, customer, internal business, and growth and learning. For internal business and growth and learning performance perspectives, data were taken from interviews, and the annual report of the institution was taken for a finance perspective. For customer perspectives, the study used a questionnaire distributed to 100 respondents who are regular donors to philanthropic institution. They play an essential role because regardless of the economic conditions that occur, they are still obliged to donate as a form of the obligation of a rich Muslim to pay zakat. The results showed that the customer perspective had the highest value in its performance results compared to the other three perspectives. Islamic philanthropic institution has a high orientation to customers where customer satisfaction is prioritized in improving the performance of zakat institutions, especially during the pandemic. This is in line with the performance of Islamic philanthropic institution, which continues to increase performance during the pandemic. Despite experiencing a decline in zakat funds in the second wave of COVID-19, Islamic philanthropic institution increased infaq and sadaqah funds during the same period. AcknowledgmentThe authors thank the Research and Innovation Institute (LRI), Universitas Muhammadiyah Surakarta, for the enormous financial support in writing this research through the HIT funding scheme with number 01/A.6-II/FAI/1/2022.

Update on Treatment of Covid-19 in Children

Since its emergence in December 2019 in Wuhan, China, more than three years, and a half has passed, yet the world is still grappling with the far-reaching impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. Many countries endured a devastating blow during the second wave of COVID-19, witnessing a significant rise in severe cases among children and instances of multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children, surpassing the numbers seen during the initial wave of the pandemic [1]. While numerous countries have successfully developed effective COVID-19 vaccines for adults, options for pediatric populations have only recently emerged. The Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) granted emergency approval for the use of COVISHIELD and COVAXIN in pediatric patients aged 12 years and older [2]. However, despite considerable research efforts, a definitive cure or treatment for COVID-19 remains elusive. Several drugs, including remdesivir, casirivimab/imdesivimab, ivermectin, baricitinib, and tofacitinib, have garnered significant attention, but none can be hailed as a panacea [3].

Management of COVID-19 during the second wave at a tertiary care public hospital in Eastern India: An experience from the administrative control room.

Though many arrangements had been made during the first wave, multiple complaints were reported regarding the arrangements made for COVID patients. The control room was set up as a 24 × 7 administrative coordination center to attend to issues after the initial setup of COVID units. To identify the major problems reported to the control room during the second wave of COVID-19 and find the related cause for the same. Issues reported to the control room were recorded from April to June (2021). The control room residents were asked to allocate each problem into six categories. Next, the residents allotted a frequency score to each of the problems depending on how regularly it was reported. Secondary data from various reports were also considered. Data were analyzed using MS Excel software. Various administrative issues were identified to be due to issues in communication and coordination (23%), policy and procedures (22%), human resource and training (16%), administration and implementation (15%), infrastructure (14%), and HMIS and IT (10%). Most frequent problems reported to the control room were related to infrastructure, policy implementation, and manpower training. After the initial implementation of new processes, there was a requirement for regular follow-up and coordination. This model of setting up an administrative control room and evidence-based approach will serve as a template for public hospitals to ensure coordination of hospital operations.

A cross sectional survey on COVID-19 vaccination coverage at urban health center of a district in central Gujarat

Background: COVID-19 vaccination can lead to herd immunity when a sufficient proportion of population is vaccinated. Effectiveness of vaccination coverage depends on the population’s willingness to be vaccinated completely. Aim and objective was to estimate COVID-19 vaccination coverage and to determine reasons for its acceptance and non-acceptance in urban field practice area of medical college attached with tertiary care hospital. Methods: A cross-sectional house to house survey was conducted among the households (n=1346) under an urban health training centre (UHTC) of a medical college in central Gujarat after the second wave of COVID-19. All the beneficiaries above the age of 18 years residing in the house-holds coming under the field area were included in the study. The data was collected using Epi-collect 5 mobile based applications. Beneficiaries who had taken two doses of COVID-19 vaccine were counted as fully immunized. Vaccination coverage was calculated different for first and second dose. Facilitators and barriers for COVID-19 vaccination were shown with appropriate diagram. Results: Out of the 1832 participants in the survey, vaccination coverage was 78.22% for first dose and 37.23% for second dose. Most common motivation (81%) behind taking vaccination was “good health”. Among the non-users for COVID-19 vaccination, 36.8% did not take the vaccine due to fear of adverse reactions. Conclusions: Vaccination coverage is average in the urban area surveyed. Majority of the population is motivated to take the vaccine to protect themselves from COVID-19. The main reason for not taking vaccine was fear of side-effect of vaccine.

Ventricular arrhythmia burden in ICD patients during the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic

AimCOVID-19 has been associated with cardiovascular complications including ventricular arrhythmias (VA) and an increased number of out-of-hospital cardiac arrests. Nevertheless, several authors described a decrease of VA burden in patients with an implantable defibrillator (ICD) during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. The objective of this study was to determine if these observations could be transferred to later periods of the pandemic as well.MethodsWe retrospectively analyzed a total of 1674 patients with an ICD presenting in our outpatient clinic during the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic and during a control period for the occurrence of VA requiring ICD interventions.ResultsSeven hundred ninety-five patients with an ICD had a device interrogation in our ambulatory clinic during the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic compared to eight hundred seventy-nine patients in the control period. There was significant higher amount of adequate ICD therapies in the course of the COVID-19 period. Thirty-six patients (4.5%) received in total eighty-five appropriate ICD interventions during COVID-19, whereas only sixteen patients (1.8%) had sustained VA in the control period (p = 0.01).ConclusionIn contrast to the first wave of COVID-19, which was characterized by a decrease or least stable number of ICD therapies in several centers, we found a significant increase of VA in ICD patients during the second wave of COVID-19. Possible explanations for this observation include higher infectious rates, potential cardiac side effects of the vaccination as well as personal behavioral changes, or reduced utilization of medical services.

Market reactions to drugs price reduction during COVID-19 distress in an emerging economy: value creation through CSR

PurposeThe coronavirus (COVID-19) is the worst pandemic in recent memory in terms of its economic and social impacts. Deadly second wave of COVID-19 in India shook the country and reshaped the ways organizations functions and societies behave. Medical infrastructure was unaffordable and unsupportive which created high distress in the Indian society, especially for poor. At this juncture, some pharmaceutical firms made a unique social investment when they reduced price of drugs used to treat COVID-19 patients. This study aims to examine how the market and the society respond to the price reduction announcement during the psychological distress of COVID-19.Design/methodology/approachMarket reactions have been analyzed by conducting an event study on stock market data and visual analytics-based sentiment analysis on Twitter data.FindingsOverall, this study finds positive abnormal returns on the day and around the day of event. Interestingly, this study finds that returns during the time of high distress are significantly higher. Sentiment analysis conveys that net sentiment is favorable to the pharmaceutical firms around the day of event and it sustains more during the time of high distress.Originality/valueThis study is unique in contributing to the business and industrial management literature by highlighting market reactions to social responsibility of business during the time of psychological distress in emerging economies.

Burnout and mental health problems among health care workers during second wave of Covid-19 pandemic: A hospital based cross sectional study

Background: Large number of healthcare workers exposed to COVID-19 might be at increased risk of developing mental and psychological disorders. This study aimed to find out the prevalence of burnout, depression, anxiety and stress and its correlates. Methods: This was hospital based cross-sectional study using printed Questionnaire conducted during second wave of COVID-19. Total 96 healthcare workers participated in this study. Depression Anxiety Stress Scale (DASS-21) and Copenhagen Burnout Inventory (CBI) were used to measure study variables. Multivariable logistic regression analysis was done to determine the associate factors. Results: The symptoms of depression, anxiety and stress were found to be 31.3%, 40.6 % and 14.6 % respectively. Doctors were 5.2 and 6 fold more likely to experience anxiety and depression respectively. The prevalence of personal, work, and client-related burnout were 43.7%, 31.3% and 14.6% respectively. Younger healthcare workers (HCWs) less than 27 years were 3.5 fold more likely to develop personal burnout. Healthcare workers who had worked for more than 100 hours/week were 5 times more likely to experience personal burnout. Doctors and nurses were 7.9 and 3.5 times more likely to develop work related burnout. Personal, work and client related burnout were significantly correlated with anxiety. Conclusion: This study finds considerate proportion of burnout, depression, anxiety and stress among HCWs. Doctors and younger HCWs with increased working hours had high level of these symptoms. Early identification of mental health disorders and awareness intervention could increase the efficiency and quality of care.

Opportunities to strengthen resilience of health care workers regarding patient safety

BackgroundThe COVID-19 pandemic endangered the quality of health care and the safety of patients and health care workers (HCWs). This provided challenges for HCWs’ resilience and for hospital management and probably increased risks for patient safety incidents (PSI). HCWs may also have experienced psychological consequences as second victims of PSI, but evidence on this is lacking. Therefore, we mapped HCWs’ experiences with PSI during the second wave of COVID-19, the associations of these experiences with the hospital management of patient safety culture and HCWs’ interests in receiving further training.MethodsWe obtained data from 193 HCWs working at the COVID-related departments of one large hospital in eastern Slovakia via a questionnaire developed in direct collaboration with them. We measured PSI experiences as various HCWs’ experiences with near miss and adverse events and the hospital management of patient safety culture using indicators such as risk of recurrence, open disclosure and second victim experiences. For analysis, we used logistic regression models adjusted for age and gender of the HCWs.ResultsOne-third of the hospital HCWs had experienced PSI; these were more likely to expect adverse events to recur (odds ratio, OR = 2.7–3.5). Regarding the hospital management of patient safety culture, the HCWs’ experiencing openly disclosed PSI was associated with one negative outcome, i.e. conflicts among colleagues (OR = 2.8), and one positive outcome, i.e. patients’ acceptance of their explanation and apologies (OR = 2.3). We found no associations for any other essential domains after disclosure. PSI experiences were strongly associated with psychological indicators of second victimhood, such as sadness, irritability, anxiety and depression (OR = 2.2–4.3), while providing support was not. The majority of the HCWs would like to participate in the suggested trainings (83.4%).ConclusionHCWs with PSI experiences reported poor hospital management of the patient safety culture, which might reflect they missed the opportunities to strengthen their resilience, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Spatio-temporal analysis of air pollution dynamics over Bangalore city during second wave of COVID-19

The country wide lockdown implemented during 27th April to 14th June 2021 in order to prevent the spread of COVID-19 during the second wave in India. Effect of the restricted lockdown resulted in improved air quality. This study focuses on analyzing the spatio-temporal distribution analysis of major air pollutant concentration over Bangalore city in India. The inverse distance weighting (IDW) method is implemented for the spatial analysis in order to quantify the distribution of the pollutant concentrations at each location in the Urban city of Bangalore. The research considers the distinct periods of pre-lockdown and lockdown during the second wave of COVID-19 pandemic in 2021 to investigate the impact of reduced human activities on air quality over the city. The study mainly utilizes the air pollution data collected from Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) monitoring stations across Bangalore, including measurements of pollutants such as PM2.5, PM10, O3, NO2, SO2, and CO. The IDW method is implemented to create the high-resolution pollution concentration maps for both the pre-lockdown and lockdown periods. This spatial distribution provides valuable insights into the variations in the pollution levels though out the Bangalore city. The comparative analysis of the concentration maps reveals significant changes in air pollution levels between the two periods; similarly, the temporal weekly average analysis also witnessed negative anomalies during the lockdown weeks. The results indicate substantial reductions in pollutant concentrations during the second wave COVID-19 lockdown, attributed to decreased vehicular emissions, industrial activities, and construction operations. The pre-lockdown period serves as a baseline for assessing the improvements in air quality during the lockdown. The spatio-temporal modeling approach enhances our understanding of the distribution patterns of air pollutants across the Bangalore metropolitan city. The findings underscore the potential benefits of implementing sustainable strategies to maintain improved air quality even after the pandemic subsides.

Identifying value in healthcare transformation initiatives: an evaluation of an approach to benefits realisation

Benefits realisation management (BRM) aims to facilitate the process of identifying, measuring and tracking desired benefits derived from a project. Improvement methodology frameworks often describe BRM as integral to identifying...

Mucormycosis in COVID-19 patients: A cross-sectional study at IGIMS, Patna

Introduction: During the second wave of COVID-19, the incidence of mucormycosis has increased more rapidly. The most common causes attributed to the rise of mucormycosis in COVID-19 are uncontrolled diabetes, the excessive use of corticosteroids, and long-term stays in the intensive care unit, organ or bone marrow transplantation, etc. Objective: To determine the sociodemographic and associated risk factors, pattern of disease, treatment of mucormycosis and outcome of individual at time of discharge and after three months and six months of follow-up. Methodology: This cross-sectional study included all treated mucormycosis cases with prior COVID-19 infection. Data collected from medical records using purposive sampling. Survivors followed up at 3 and 6 months after discharge. Results: In our study, we analyzed 161 mucormycosis cases identified through positive RTPCR/Rapid Antigen reports. Among them, 72% were males and 28% were females. Diabetes mellitus was present in 71.4% and hypertension in 29.8% of patients. The case-fatality rate was 6.8% at discharge, increasing to 18.6% after 3 months and 28% after 6 months of follow-up. Statistical analysis was conducted using SPSS version 15. This analysis helped us draw meaningful conclusions from the data, highlighting the impact of comorbidities and time on mucormycosis outcomes. Conclusion: Post-COVID mucormycosis in India was primarily observed in patients with uncontrolled diabetes, immunodeficiency due to other comorbidities, and dysfunctional immune systems.

A Curious Case of Invasive Fungal Sinusitis in a Post-COVID-19 Patient: A Case Report

Introduction: Secondary fungal infection following severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 is a serious cause of concern as in majority of cases these are associated with devastating consequences. Invasive mucormycosis which was already prevalent in our country came back with a vengeance during the second wave of COVID-19. Methods: A 34-year-old male who had recovered from mild COVID disease developed invasive rhinosinusitis by two different fungi. The patient was followed up for clinical course, diagnosis, treatment, and outcome. Results: This case illustrates a first of a kind of an invasive fungal rhinosinusitis caused by two different fungi: Schizophyllum commune (of phylum Basidiomycota) and Rhizopus arrhizus (of the Mucorales group) in a patient who had recovered from COVID-19. In this case, conventional methods of direct detection and culture only revealed S. commune. Sequencing after DNA extraction from the paraffin blocks was done due to strong clinical suspicion of invasive mucormycosis and R. arrhizus was detected in the tissue sections. Appropriate antifungals for extended duration ensued complete eradication of the infection. Conclusion: Host risk factors are to be taken into consideration while diagnosing fungal infection. One needs to look beyond the obvious when clinical diagnosis is not consistent with the etiological agent isolated and in this regard molecular tools are a great help in establishing the etiological agent conclusively.

Determinant Aspects of Students to Become Entrepreneurs During the Second Wave of Covid-19

Studying successful entrepreneurs is an exciting focus for policymakers, professionals, and academics. It presents different research results so that researchers fill the gap by using student respondents to examine the essential aspects that can drive the desire to become entrepreneurs. The researcher used a cross-sectional approach with student respondents who had attended entrepreneurship courses to discover this aspect. The number of respondents who filled out a structured questionnaire using the Google form was 129 students—the data analysis technique used the Partial Least Square structural equation model. The study results showed that 9 (nine) essential aspects could increase students' desire to become entrepreneurs. This research only used student respondents to examine essential aspects that could encourage the desire to become entrepreneurs. The cross-sectional approach was also tested simultaneously during the second wave of Covid-19. The research results have implications for developing essential aspects for students to become entrepreneurs.

Exploring media consumption and mental health among young adults during the second wave of COVID-19 in Bangladesh

BackgroundThis study examined the association between media exposure and mental health during the second wave of lockdown among the general population of Bangladesh. MethodsA total of 449 adult participants were enrolled in the study to evaluate their levels of exposure to total media, electronic media, and social media. Mental health was assessed using a 7-item generalized anxiety disorder (GAD-7) scale. A multivariate logistic regression model was constructed to explore the relationships between media exposure levels and anxiety. The models included covariates such as sex, daily working hours, health problems, media distraction, and income from social media. ResultsThe results showed that 44.5%, 39.2%, and 16.3% of participants reported low, medium, and high levels of exposure to different media during the COVID-19 period, respectively. Additionally, 96.4%, 2.7%, and 0.9% of participants had low, medium, and high levels of exposure to electronic media, respectively, and 89.1%, 10.5%, and 0.4% of participants had low, medium, and high levels of exposure to social media, respectively. The overall prevalence of anxiety was 25.38% among the respondents. Participants with high levels of total media exposure were significantly more likely to experience anxiety, with an odds ratio of 2.75 (95% CI = 1.40–5.14, p < 0.01). Females were 2.26 times more likely to experience anxiety than males (95% CI = 1.37–3.74, p < 0.01), and participants with health problems were also more likely to develop anxiety compared to those who did not. ConclusionOur results show a positive relationship between increased media exposure and anxiety levels, providing useful insights for both academics and public health practitioners.

Prevalence of Psychological Morbidities Among Hospital Staff During the Second Wave of COVID-19 in India.

Prevalence of Psychological Morbidities Among Hospital Staff During the Second Wave of COVID-19 in India.

Strategi Kebijakan Pemulihan Ekonomi Berdasarkan Perspektif Critical Realism Pada Disruption Di Indonesia

Researchers observe that after the second wave of Covid-19 is an economic revival, countries that recover faster from the economic crisis are countries that are ready to win market competition. The urgency of this research is that the acceleration of economic recovery in Indonesia is very important to observe and analyze. The formulation of this research problem has two things, namely: 1) What is the potential for economic recovery based on the perspective of critical realism in disruption in Indonesia? 2) How is the optimization of economic recovery policy strategy in Indonesia? The stages of research methods to achieve research objectives are qualitative through the use of in-depth interviews, focus group discussions and observations. The results show that the priority program of import substitution policy has been implemented to reach 35% in 2022 and is predicted to continue to be increased as an effort to improve the national trade balance. The priority program for import substitution policy has been implemented to reach 35% in 2022 and is predicted to continue to be increased as an effort to improve the national trade balance.