Face Mask and Social Distancing Detection for Surveillance Systems

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
L.A. Rakhsith ◽  
B.E. Karthik ◽  
Arun Nithish D ◽  
Kishore Kumar V ◽  
K.S. Anusha
Keyword(s):  
Face Mask ◽  
Surveillance Systems ◽  
Social Distancing

scholarly journals Examining the interplay between face mask usage, asymptomatic transmission, and social distancing on the spread of COVID-19

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Adam Catching ◽  
Sara Capponi ◽  
Ming Te Yeh ◽  
Simone Bianco ◽  
Raul Andino
Keyword(s):  
Social Distance ◽  
Large Fraction ◽  
Real Life ◽  
Virus Transmission ◽  
Face Mask ◽  
Social Distancing ◽  
Viral Spread ◽  
The Face ◽  
Asymptomatic Individuals ◽  
High Virus

AbstractCOVID-19’s high virus transmission rates have caused a pandemic that is exacerbated by the high rates of asymptomatic and presymptomatic infections. These factors suggest that face masks and social distance could be paramount in containing the pandemic. We examined the efficacy of each measure and the combination of both measures using an agent-based model within a closed space that approximated real-life interactions. By explicitly considering different fractions of asymptomatic individuals, as well as a realistic hypothesis of face masks protection during inhaling and exhaling, our simulations demonstrate that a synergistic use of face masks and social distancing is the most effective intervention to curb the infection spread. To control the pandemic, our models suggest that high adherence to social distance is necessary to curb the spread of the disease, and that wearing face masks provides optimal protection even if only a small portion of the population comply with social distance. Finally, the face mask effectiveness in curbing the viral spread is not reduced if a large fraction of population is asymptomatic. Our findings have important implications for policies that dictate the reopening of social gatherings.

scholarly journals COVID-19 Pandemic Response Simulation in a Large City: Impact of Nonpharmaceutical Interventions on Reopening Society

2021 ◽  
pp. 0272989X2110030
Author(s):  
Serin Lee ◽  
Zelda B. Zabinsky ◽  
Judith N. Wasserheit ◽  
Stephen M. Kofsky ◽  
Shan Liu
Keyword(s):  
Large City ◽  
Face Mask ◽  
School Closure ◽  
Contact Tracing ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Agent Based ◽  
Social Distancing ◽  
Variable Compliance ◽  
Novel Coronavirus ◽  
Nonpharmaceutical Interventions

As the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic continues to expand, policymakers are striving to balance the combinations of nonpharmaceutical interventions (NPIs) to keep people safe and minimize social disruptions. We developed and calibrated an agent-based simulation to model COVID-19 outbreaks in the greater Seattle area. The model simulated NPIs, including social distancing, face mask use, school closure, testing, and contact tracing with variable compliance and effectiveness to identify optimal NPI combinations that can control the spread of the virus in a large urban area. Results highlight the importance of at least 75% face mask use to relax social distancing and school closure measures while keeping infections low. It is important to relax NPIs cautiously during vaccine rollout in 2021.

Implications of COVID–19 Outbreak on the Construction and Property Development Sector in the South-East Nigeria

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-9
Author(s):  
Uche Felix Ikechukwu ◽  
Chinwe Ngozi Odimegwu
Keyword(s):  
Labour Force ◽  
Correlation Method ◽  
Face Mask ◽  
Survey Method ◽  
Eastern Region ◽  
The South ◽  
Economic Activities ◽  
Property Development ◽  
Social Distancing ◽  
The Government

Pandemic like Covid-19 usually affects the productivity of man, let alone when there is a consequent total lock-down effect in the society. Construction and property development sector among others therefore is bound to suffer enormously since it involves the services of variety of labour force. The study therefore explores the implication and consequences of the Covid-19 outbreak on the construction and property development sector in the south eastern region of Nigeria. Data were collected electronically using field survey method of research design from the sampled respondents of building professionals in the area. Tau-b correlation method was adopted in the statistical analyses to determine the most commonly observed Covid-19 measures, most common vulnerable factors leading to spread and contraction of the pandemic in the study. Findings reveal that majority of the establishment in the area shutdown their operations according to the directive of the government; while about the three quarter of these establishments who were in active operations are observed as public owned corporations or projects. It is also discovered that hand washing, wearing of face mask and social distancing were mostly complied with. On the other hand, economic hardship, inflation, and difficulty in accessibility to fund noticeably affect the flow and progress of work projects. Despite the considerable compliance with the preventive measures, there is no significant relationship between conformity to social distancing and shut-down policy, and the volume of construction works in progress during the shut-down in the study area. In conclusion therefore, it is recommended that shut-down of economic activities should not be total but, in part and alternate form among the various sections of the economic activities within the society. Attention to the operations of the private construction and property development projects like in the and the public structure is also recommended for a more holistic arrangement, towards cushioning the effect of similar economic crisis occasioned by any pandemic like Covid-19 in general.

Development of a Social Distancing Monitoring System in Korea: Results of a Modified Delphi Process (Preprint)

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Heeyoung Lee ◽  
Suin Seo ◽  
Jin-Ok Han ◽  
Sool Shin
Keyword(s):  
Monitoring System ◽  
Surveillance System ◽  
Response Rate ◽  
Delphi Process ◽  
Surveillance Systems ◽  
Input Process ◽  
Social Distancing ◽  
Modified Delphi ◽  
Process Output ◽  
Different Levels

BACKGROUND Since the COVID-19 pandemic is an ongoing situation in most countries worldwide, a “social distancing” policy as a non-pharmaceutical intervention has been implemented for several months in many countries including Korea. Social distancing policies work in different ways and at different levels. In addition, various forms of surveillance systems have been implemented in different countries. However, there is an almost complete lack of specific surveillance system in Korea to effectively monitor social distancing policy. OBJECTIVE This study aims to develop a monitoring system for social distancing measures in Korea to evaluate and improve the implemented policy. METHODS A draft monitoring system was developed after reviewing Korea's social distancing measures (central and local government briefings) and checking available data for applications. The modified Delphi process was used to evaluate the draft of the monitoring system. In total, 27 experts participated in the evaluation. The round 1 evaluation includes (1) commenting on the composition of the monitoring fields (open response), (2) monitoring indicators for each monitoring field (10-point Likert scale), and (3) commenting on the source of data used to develop the monitoring system (open response). In the round 2 evaluation, 55 indicators, excepting open responses, were re-evaluated. RESULTS The response rate for the Delphi survey was 100% in both the first and second rounds. Of the 55 indicators, 14 were excluded according to experts’ open response comments, as these indicators did not satisfy the quantitative criteria. Finally, 41 indicators were included with 12 available data sources. The monitoring system domain was divided into input, process/output, and result. CONCLUSIONS This study is significant in that it is the first in Korea to develop a comprehensive monitoring system for social distancing policy, and is applicable to estimates utilizing data that are immediately available for each indicator. Furthermore, the developed monitoring system could be a reference for other countries that require the development of such systems to monitor social distancing measures.

scholarly journals The Timing and Intensity of Social Distancing to Flatten the COVID-19 Curve: The Case of Spain

2020 ◽  
Vol 17 (19) ◽  
pp. 7283 ◽  
Author(s):  
Miguel Casares ◽  
Hashmat Khan
Keyword(s):  
Dynamic Model ◽  
Early Phase ◽  
Threshold Level ◽  
Face Mask ◽  
The State ◽  
Social Distancing ◽  
Infected People ◽  
Preventive Actions ◽  
The Impact

The continued spread of COVID-19 suggests a significant possibility of reimposing the lockdowns and stricter social distancing similar to the early phase of pandemic control. We present a dynamic model to quantify the impact of isolation for the contagion curves. The model is calibrated to the COVID-19 outbreak in Spain to study the effects of the isolation enforcement following the declaration of the state of alarm (14 March 2020). The simulations indicate that both the timing and the intensity of the isolation enforcement are crucial for the COVID-19 spread. For example, a 4-day earlier intervention for social distancing would have reduced the number of COVID-19 infected people by 67%. The model also informs us that the isolation enforcement does not delay the peak day of the epidemic but slows down its end. When relaxing social distancing, a reduction of the contagion probability (with the generalization of preventive actions, such as face mask wearing and hands sanitizing) is needed to overcome the effect of a rise in the number of interpersonal encounters. We report a threshold level for the contagion pace to avoid a second COVID-19 outbreak in Spain.

scholarly journals Early estimates of COVID-19 infections in small, medium and large population clusters

2020 ◽  
Vol 5 (9) ◽  
pp. e003055
Author(s):  
Amir Siraj ◽  
Alemayehu Worku ◽  
Kiros Berhane ◽  
Maru Aregawi ◽  
Munir Eshetu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Large Population ◽  
Face Mask ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Contact Tracing ◽  
Local Context ◽  
African Region ◽  
Social Distancing ◽  
Population Sizes ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
The Impact

IntroductionSince its emergence in late December 2019, COVID-19 has rapidly developed into a pandemic in mid of March with many countries suffering heavy human loss and declaring emergency conditions to contain its spread. The impact of the disease, while it has been relatively low in the sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) as of May 2020, is feared to be potentially devastating given the less developed and fragmented healthcare system in the continent. In addition, most emergency measures practised may not be effective due to their limited affordability as well as the communal way people in SSA live in relative isolation in clusters of large as well as smaller population centres.MethodsTo address the acute need for estimates of the potential impacts of the disease once it sweeps through the African region, we developed a process-based model with key parameters obtained from recent studies, taking local context into consideration. We further used the model to estimate the number of infections within a year of sustained local transmissions under scenarios that cover different population sizes, urban status, effectiveness and coverage of social distancing, contact tracing and usage of cloth face mask.ResultsWe showed that when implemented early, 50% coverage of contact tracing and face mask, with 33% effective social distancing policies can bringing the epidemic to a manageable level for all population sizes and settings we assessed. Relaxing of social distancing in urban settings from 33% to 25% could be matched by introduction and maintenance of face mask use at 43%.ConclusionsIn SSA countries with limited healthcare workforce, hospital resources and intensive care units, a robust system of social distancing, contact tracing and face mask use could yield in outcomes that prevent several millions of infections and thousands of deaths across the continent.

scholarly journals Exploring online search behavior for COVID-19 preventive measures: The Philippine case

PLoS ONE ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (4) ◽  
pp. e0249810
Author(s):  
Adrian Galido ◽  
Jerina Jean Ecleo ◽  
Atina Husnayain ◽  
Emily Chia-Yu Su
Keyword(s):  
Information Needs ◽  
Preventive Measures ◽  
Face Mask ◽  
Disease Outbreak ◽  
Hand Washing ◽  
Google Trends ◽  
Social Distancing ◽  
The Public ◽  
Hand Sanitizer ◽  
Search Terms

Public health agencies have suggested nonpharmaceutical interventions to curb the spread of the COVID-19 infections. The study intended to explore the information-seeking behavior and information needs on preventive measures for COVID-19 in the Philippine context. The search interests and related queries for COVID-19 terms and each of the preventive measures for the period from December 31, 2019 to April 6, 2020 were generated from Google Trends. The search terms employed for COVID-19 were coronavirus, ncov, covid-19, covid19 and “covid 19.” The search terms of the preventive measures considered for this study included “community quarantine”, “cough etiquette”, “face mask” or facemask, “hand sanitizer”, handwashing or “hand washing” and “social distancing.” Spearman’s correlation was employed between the new daily COVID-19 cases, COVID-19 terms and the different preventive measures. The relative search volume for the coronavirus disease showed an increase up to the pronouncement of the country’s first case of COVID-19. An uptrend was also evident after the country’s first local transmission was confirmed. A strong positive correlation (rs = .788, p < .001) was observed between the new daily cases and search interests for COVID-19. The search interests for the different measures and the new daily cases were also positively correlated. Similarly, the search interests for the different measures and the COVID-19 terms were all positively correlated. The search interests for “face mask” or facemask, “hand sanitizer” and handwashing or “hand washing” were more correlated with the search interest for COVID-19 than with the number of new daily COVID-19 cases. The search interests for “cough etiquette”, “social distancing” and “community quarantine” were more correlated with the number of new daily COVID-19 cases than with the search interest for COVID-19. The public sought for additional details such as type, directions for proper use, and where to purchase as well as do-it-yourself alternatives for personal protective items. Personal protective or community measures were expected to be accompanied with definitions and guidelines as well as be available in translated versions. Google Trends could be a viable option to monitor and address the information needs of the public during a disease outbreak. Capturing and analyzing the search interests of the public could support the design and timely delivery of appropriate information essential to drive preventive measures during a disease outbreak.

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