scholarly journals Organizing a Mass Gathering Amidst a Rising COVID-19 Public Health Crisis: Lessons Learned From a Chinese Public Health Forum in Vancouver, BC

Cureus ◽  
2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jayneel Limbachia ◽  
Hollis Owens ◽  
Maryam Matean ◽  
Sophia S Khan ◽  
Helen Novak-Lauscher ◽  
...  
European View ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 19 (2) ◽  
pp. 154-163
Author(s):  
Nad’a Kovalčíková ◽  
Ariane Tabatabai

As governments and citizens around the world have struggled with the novel coronavirus, the information space has turned into a battleground. Authoritarian countries, including Russia, China and Iran, have spread disinformation on the causes of and responses to the pandemic. The over-abundance of information, also referred to as an ‘infodemic’, including manipulated information, has been both a cause and a result of the exacerbation of the public health crisis. It is further undermining trust in democratic institutions, the independent press, and facts and data, and exacerbating the rising tensions driven by economic, political and societal challenges. This article discusses the challenges democracies have faced and the measures they have adopted to counter information manipulation that impedes public health efforts. It draws seven lessons learned from the information war and offers a set of recommendations on tackling future infodemics related to public health.


2021 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 177-192
Author(s):  
Yan Jin ◽  
Sung In Choi ◽  
Audra Diers-Lawson

For more than a year the world has tried to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic. This special issue of the Journal of International Crisis and Risk Communication Research (JICRCR) provides an expert evaluation of how different countries have responded to this global threat. As the pandemic has fundamentally affected most of our lives in a multitude of ways, lessons learned and insights gained from innovative and inclusive research have also advanced theory and practice in public health crisis and risk communication.


2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarah E. Neil-Sztramko ◽  
Emily Belita ◽  
Robyn L. Traynor ◽  
Emily Clark ◽  
Leah Hagerman ◽  
...  

Abstract Background The COVID-19 public health crisis has produced an immense and quickly evolving body of evidence. This research speed and volume, along with variability in quality, could overwhelm public health decision-makers striving to make timely decisions based on the best available evidence. In response to this challenge, the National Collaborating Centre for Methods and Tools developed a Rapid Evidence Service, building on internationally accepted rapid review methodologies, to address priority COVID-19 public health questions. Results Each week, the Rapid Evidence Service team receives requests from public health decision-makers, prioritizes questions received, and frames the prioritized topics into searchable questions. We develop and conduct a comprehensive search strategy and critically appraise all relevant evidence using validated tools. We synthesize the findings into a final report that includes key messages, with a rating of the certainty of the evidence using GRADE, as well as an overview of evidence and remaining knowledge gaps. Rapid reviews are typically completed and disseminated within two weeks. From May 2020 to July 21, 2021, we have answered more than 31 distinct questions and completed 32 updates as new evidence emerged. Reviews receive an average of 213 downloads per week, with some reaching over 7700. To date reviews have been accessed and cited around the world, and a more fulsome evaluation of impact on decision-making is planned. Conclusions The development, evolution, and lessons learned from our process, presented here, provides a real-world example of how review-level evidence can be made available – rapidly and rigorously, and in response to decision-makers’ needs – during an unprecedented public health crisis.


Author(s):  
Elise D Riley ◽  
Matthew D Hickey ◽  
Elizabeth Imbert ◽  
Angelo A Clemenzi-Allen ◽  
Monica Gandhi

Abstract Job loss and evictions tied to the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic are expected to increase homelessness significantly in the coming months. Reciprocally, homelessness and the many vulnerabilities that inevitably accompany it are driving COVID-19 outbreaks in US shelters and other congregate living situations. Unless we intervene to address homelessness, these co-existing and synergistic situations will make the current public health crisis even worse. Preventing homelessness and providing permanent affordable housing has reduced the ravages of the HIV epidemic. We must take the lessons learned in 40 years of fighting HIV to respond effectively to the COVID-19 crisis. Housing is an investment that will curb the spread of COVID-19 and help protect all of us from future pandemics.


2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 94 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jennifer Carrera ◽  
Kent Key ◽  
Sarah Bailey ◽  
Joseph Hamm ◽  
Courtney Cuthbertson ◽  
...  

While the story of the Flint water crisis has frequently been told, even sympathetic analyses have largely worked to make invisible the significant actions of Flint residents to protect and advocate for their community. Leaving the voices of these stakeholders out of narratives about the crisis has served to deepen distrust in the community. Our project responds to these silences through a community-driven research study aimed explicitly at elevating the frame of Flint residents in and around the Flint water crisis. This paper describes the coming together of the research team, the overall project design for each of the three research efforts, and lessons learned. The three sub-projects include: (1) a qualitative analysis of community sentiment provided during 17 recorded legislative, media, and community events, (2) an analysis of trust in the Flint community through nine focus groups across demographic groups (African American, Hispanic, seniors, and youth) of residents in Flint, and (3) an analysis of the role of the faith-based community in response to public health crises through two focus groups with faith based leaders from Flint involved with response efforts to the water crisis. Our study offers insight for understanding trust in crisis, which could be valuable to other communities and researchers seeking to address similar situations. The project offers community science as a model for considering community engagement in research as part of the process of resilience.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarah Neil-Sztramko ◽  
Emily Belita ◽  
Robyn L. Traynor ◽  
Emily Clark ◽  
Leah Hagerman ◽  
...  

Abstract Background The COVID-19 public health crisis has produced an immense and quickly evolving body of evidence. This research speed and volume, along with variability in quality, could overwhelm public health decision-makers striving to make timely decisions based on the best available evidence. In response to this challenge, the National Collaborating Centre for Methods and Tools developed a Rapid Evidence Service, building on internationally accepted rapid review methodologies, to address priority COVID-19 public health questions. Methods Each week, we receive requests from public health decision-makers and frame the prioritized topics into searchable questions. We develop and conduct a comprehensive search strategy and critically appraise all relevant evidence using validated tools. We synthesize the findings into a final report that includes key messages, with a rating of the certainty of the evidence using GRADE, as well as an overview of evidence and remaining knowledge gaps. Rapid reviews are typically completed and disseminated within two weeks. Results As of May 12, 2021, we have answered more than 29 distinct questions and completed 28 updates as new evidence emerged. Reviews receive an average of 200 downloads per week, with some reaching up to 5000. To date reviews have been accessed and cited around the world, and a more fulsome evaluation of impact on decision making is planned. Conclusions The development, evolution, and lessons learned from our process, presented here, provides a real-world example of how review-level evidence can be made available – rapidly and rigorously, and in response to decision-makers’ needs – during an unprecedented public health crisis.


2008 ◽  
Vol 13 (14) ◽  
pp. 5-6
Author(s):  
R Strauss ◽  
R Muchl ◽  
C Hain ◽  
H Hrabcik

The European Football Championship 2008 (EURO 2008) is jointly organised by Switzerland and Austria and will take place between 7 and 29 June 2008. The Austrian Public Health Service is making special preparations for a potential public health crisis during this mass gathering, which is expected to have around 550,000 spectators [1].


2020 ◽  
Vol 20 ◽  
Author(s):  
Miribane Dërmaku-Sopjani ◽  
Mentor Sopjani

Abstract:: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is currently a new public health crisis threatening the world. This pandemic disease is caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The virus has been reported to be originated in bats and by yet unknown intermediary animals were transmitted to humans in China 2019. The SARSCoV- 2 spreads faster than its two ancestors the SARS-CoV and Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERSCoV) but has reduced fatality. At present, the SARS-CoV-2 has caused about a 1.16 million of deaths with more than 43.4 million confirmed cases worldwide, resulting in a serious threat to public health globally with yet uncertain impact. The disease is transmitted by inhalation or direct contact with an infected person. The incubation period ranges from 1 to 14 days. COVID-19 is accompanied by various symptoms, including cough, fatigue. In most people the disease is mild, but in some other people, such as in elderly and people with chronic diseases, it may progress from pneumonia to a multi-organ dysfunction. Many people are reported asymptomatic. The virus genome is sequenced, but new variants are reported. Numerous biochemical aspects of its structure and function are revealed. To date, no clinically approved vaccines and/or specific therapeutic drugs are available to prevent or treat the COVID-19. However, there are reported intensive researches on the SARSCoV- 2 to potentially identify vaccines and/or drug targets, which may help to overcome the disease. In this review, we discuss recent advances in understanding the molecular structure of SARS-CoV-2 and its biochemical characteristics.


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