Covid-19-induced fear in infoveillance studies: a meta-analysis (Preprint)

Health Organization ◽

UNSTRUCTURED The World Health Organization named the phenomenon of misinformation spread through the social media “infodemics”, and recognized the need to curb it. Misinformation infodemics undermine not only population safety, but also compliance to the suggestions/prophylactic measures recommended in pandemics. The aim of this study was to review the impact of social media on general population fear in “infoveillance” studies during the COVID-19 pandemic. PRISMA protocol was followed and six out of twenty studies were retrieved, meta-analyzed, and had their findings presented in the form of a Forest plot. The summary random and significant event rate was 0.298, 95% CI respectively 0.213 and 0.400, suggesting that social media-circulated misinformation related to COVID-19 triggered public fear and other manifestations. These findings merit special attention by public health authorities. Thus, “infodemiology” and Infoveillance are valid tools in the hands of epidemiologists to help prevent dissemination of false information, with potentially damaging effects.

Impact Analysis of COVID 19 Response Measures on Social Media Postings

10.21203/rs.3.rs-1217984/v1 ◽

2022 ◽

Author(s):

Farrukh Hasan Syed ◽

Muhammad Sudais

Keyword(s):

Social Media ◽

Impact Analysis ◽

World Health ◽

Residential Areas ◽

The Social ◽

The World ◽

Response Measures ◽

Global Concern ◽

Health Organization ◽

Abstract Declared a pandemic in March 2020, SARS-COVID19 has become a health emergency of global concern. The World Health Organization has directed the countries all over the world to take measures to stop the spread of disease. There was a public outburst for policies like lockdown and a mixed review for Working from Home on social networking platforms. By analyzing this change, we can identify the sentiment of people about different policies. A lot of work has been done on sentiment analysis of Covid19 tweets. This is an in-depth impact analysis of COVID-19 response measures on sentiments of tweets. It can help us understand the social media trends revolving around COVID19. For achieving the goal, Google Mobility Report has been used for obtaining data about the mobility in different countries. A huge collection of tweets is extracted using Twitter API. Both datasets are used to analyze multiple trends over a period of more than a year. This article shows the change in social media sentiments with the evolving state of pandemic and the steps taken by authorities. Although, number of cases have more impact on Sentiments, the impact of changing mobility of residential and non-residential areas is also not negligible because average sentiments have seen significant up and down trends because of changing government policies.

The Impact of Covid-19 Public Health Policies on Persons with Disability and their Caregivers in Malta

International Journal of Social Science Research and Review ◽

10.47814/ijssrr.v4i2.88 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 4 (2) ◽

pp. 25-37

Author(s):

Andrew Camilleri ◽

Samantha Pace Gasan ◽

Andrew Azzopardi

Keyword(s):

Public Health ◽

World Health Organisation ◽

World Health ◽

Persons With Disabilities ◽

Health Authorities ◽

Essential Services ◽

Novel Coronavirus ◽

Restrictive Measures ◽

On March 11, 2020, the World Health Organisation (WHO) declared a global health pandemic, due to the spread of a novel coronavirus, later named “Covid-19”. The spread of Covid-19 led to social isolation, distancing and a number of restrictive measures in Malta. The aim of this paper is to analyse the impact of Covid-19 and the subsequent restrictive measures on persons with disability and their caregivers and families in Malta. Using thematic analysis, the study found that a variety of impacts ranging from a sense of isolation, lack of essential services being provided, additional difficulties encountered at the place of work and education and measures that were not sufficiently tailored for persons with disability issued by public health authorities. Underlying the additional difficulties brought about by Covid-19, structural difficulties to access essential services as well as ignorance from policy makers and politicians and the added “vulnerable-ization” of persons with disabilities were found to be highly impacting factors that pervade the experience of persons with disabilities and their caregivers.

Misinformation, chiropractic, and the COVID-19 pandemic

Chiropractic & Manual Therapies ◽

10.1186/s12998-020-00353-2 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 28 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Iben Axén ◽

Cecilia Bergström ◽

Marc Bronson ◽

Pierre Côté ◽

Casper Glissmann Nim ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Public Health ◽

Social Media ◽

Scientific Evidence ◽

Collective Responsibility ◽

Economic Consequences ◽

Best Interests ◽

World Health ◽

Chiropractic Treatment ◽

Health Organization ◽

Abstract Background In March 2020, the World Health Organization elevated the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) epidemic to a pandemic and called for urgent and aggressive action worldwide. Public health experts have communicated clear and emphatic strategies to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Hygiene rules and social distancing practices have been implemented by entire populations, including ‘stay-at-home’ orders in many countries. The long-term health and economic consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic are not yet known. Main text During this time of crisis, some chiropractors made claims on social media that chiropractic treatment can prevent or impact COVID-19. The rationale for these claims is that spinal manipulation can impact the nervous system and thus improve immunity. These beliefs often stem from nineteenth-century chiropractic concepts. We are aware of no clinically relevant scientific evidence to support such statements. We explored the internet and social media to collect examples of misinformation from Europe, North America, Australia and New Zealand regarding the impact of chiropractic treatment on immune function. We discuss the potential harm resulting from these claims and explore the role of chiropractors, teaching institutions, accrediting agencies, and legislative bodies. Conclusions Members of the chiropractic profession share a collective responsibility to act in the best interests of patients and public health. We hope that all chiropractic stakeholders will view the COVID-19 pandemic as a call to action to eliminate the unethical and potentially dangerous claims made by chiropractors who practise outside the boundaries of scientific evidence.

Experience of non-breastfeeding mothers

Nursing Ethics ◽

10.1177/0969733014561913 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 23 (2) ◽

pp. 231-241 ◽

Cited By ~ 11

Author(s):

Jessica Nihlén Fahlquist

Keyword(s):

Online Survey ◽

Research Question ◽

World Health ◽

The United Kingdom ◽

Qualitative Survey ◽

Health Authorities ◽

Ethics Guidelines ◽

Health Organization ◽

Research Ethics Guidelines

Background: Breastfeeding is currently strongly recommended by midwives and paediatricians, and the recommendations are based on documents provided by the World Health Organization and public health authorities worldwide. Research question: The underlying question is, how are non-breastfeeding mothers affected emotionally when informed that breastfeeding is the safest and healthiest option? Research design: The method used is an anonymous web-based qualitative survey exploring the narratives of non-breastfeeding mothers, published on Thesistools.com . The aim is to achieve qualitative knowledge about the emotions of non-breastfeeding mothers. Participants and research context: Participants were based in Sweden, the United Kingdom and the Netherlands and were selected through a purposeful sample. Ethical considerations: The online survey anonymizes responses automatically, and all respondents had to tick a box agreeing to be quoted anonymously in scientific articles. The study conforms to research ethics guidelines. Findings: Respondents describe how they were affected, and the following themes emerged in studying their descriptions: depression, anxiety and pain, feeling failed as a mother and woman, loss of freedom/feeling trapped, relief and guilt. Discussion: The themes are discussed against the background of the ethics of care and a theory of ethically responsible risk communication. Conclusion: Three conclusions are made. First, the message should become more empathetic. Second, information should be given in an attentive dialogue. Third, information providers should evaluate effects in a more inclusive way.

Impact of data accuracy on the evaluation of COVID-19 mitigation policies

Data & Policy ◽

10.1017/dap.2021.25 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 3 ◽

Author(s):

Michele Starnini ◽

Alberto Aleta ◽

Michele Tizzoni ◽

Yamir Moreno

Keyword(s):

Epidemiological Data ◽

Surveillance Data ◽

Inaccurate Data ◽

Health Authorities ◽

The Social ◽

Containment Measures ◽

Nonpharmaceutical Interventions ◽

The Impact ◽

Extreme Care

Abstract Evaluating the effectiveness of nonpharmaceutical interventions (NPIs) to mitigate the COVID-19 pandemic is crucial to maximize the epidemic containment while minimizing the social and economic impact of these measures. However, this endeavor crucially relies on surveillance data publicly released by health authorities that can hide several limitations. In this article, we quantify the impact of inaccurate data on the estimation of the time-varying reproduction number $ R(t) $ , a pivotal quantity to gauge the variation of the transmissibility originated by the implementation of different NPIs. We focus on Italy and Spain, two European countries among the most severely hit by the COVID-19 pandemic. For these two countries, we highlight several biases of case-based surveillance data and temporal and spatial limitations in the data regarding the implementation of NPIs. We also demonstrate that a nonbiased estimation of $ R(t) $ could have had direct consequences on the decisions taken by the Spanish and Italian governments during the first wave of the pandemic. Our study shows that extreme care should be taken when evaluating intervention policies through publicly available epidemiological data and call for an improvement in the process of COVID-19 data collection, management, storage, and release. Better data policies will allow a more precise evaluation of the effects of containment measures, empowering public health authorities to take more informed decisions.

Vaccine hesitancy and anti-vaccination attitudes during the start of COVID-19 vaccination program: a content analysis on Twitter data

10.1101/2021.05.28.21257774 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Hüseyin Küçükali ◽

Ömer Ataç ◽

Ayşe Zülal Tokaç ◽

Ayşe Seval Palteki ◽

Osman Erol Hayran

Keyword(s):

Social Media ◽

Content Analysis ◽

World Health ◽

Vaccine Hesitancy ◽

Analysis Method ◽

Conspiracy Theories ◽

Health Authorities ◽

Content Analysis Method ◽

Health Organization

Background: Vaccine hesitation, which is defined as one of the most important global health threats by World Health Organization, maintains its universal importance during the COVID-19 period. Due to the increasing appearance of anti-vaccine arguments on social media, Twitter is a useful resource in detecting these contents. In this study, we aimed to identify the prominent themes about vaccine hesitancy and refusal on social media during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: In this qualitative study we collected Twitter contents which contain a vaccine-related keywords and published publicly between 9/12/2020 and 8/1/2021 (n=551,245). A stratified random sample (n=1041) is selected and analyzed by four researchers with content analysis method. Results: All tweets included in the study were shared from 1,000 unique accounts of which 2.7% were verified and 11.3% organizational users. 90.5% of the tweets were about vaccines, 22.6% (n=213) of the tweets mentioned at least one COVID-19 vaccine name and the most frequently mentioned COVID-19 vaccine was CorronaVac (51.2%). Yet, it was mostly as "Chinese vaccine" (42.3%). 22.0% (n=207) of the tweets included at least one anti-vaccination theme. Among tweets that included an anti-vaccination theme; poor scientific processes (21.7%), conspiracy theories (16.4%), and suspicions towards manufacturers (15.5%) were the most frequently mentioned themes. The most co-occurred themes were "Poor scientific process" theme come along with "suspicion towards manufacturers" (n=9) and "suspicion towards health authorities" (n=5). Conclusions: This study may be helpful for health managers to identify the major concerns of the population and organize the preventive measures, through the significant role of social media on early information about vaccine hesitancy and anti-vaccination attitudes.

The Impact of the COVID-19 Confinement on the Habits of PA Practice According to Gender (Male/Female): Spanish Case

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health ◽

10.3390/ijerph17196961 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 17 (19) ◽

pp. 6961

Author(s):

Marta García-Tascón ◽

César Sahelices-Pinto ◽

Cristina Mendaña-Cuervo ◽

Ana María Magaz-González

Keyword(s):

Physical Activity ◽

Sports Medicine ◽

Ad Hoc ◽

World Health ◽

Muscular Fitness ◽

Health Authorities ◽

Promotion Of Physical Activity ◽

Health Organization ◽

The declaration of the COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in drastic changes to life worldwide. In Spain, the state of alarm caused the confinement of 47 million inhabitants, affecting every aspect of life. This study analyzes the impact of such confinement on the health of men and women, as well as the effect on the practice of physical activity (PA) of both genders. An ad hoc questionnaire was administered. A total of 1046 people (48.57% men and 51.43% women) with an average age of 40 years (SD ± 13.35) participated in this study. For both genders, there was a significant decrease in quantity and intensity (p = 0.000). There was also an alteration in the type of PA practiced, shifting from cardiorespiratory exercise and muscular fitness to flexibility and neuromotor exercise (especially in women). The most popular way of practicing PA during the confinement was “autonomously” (statistically higher in men (M = 3.58) compared to women (M = 3.18)) and the most frequent format was “virtual” (statistically higher in women (M = 2.81) compared to men (M = 1.94)). Confinement modifies the habits of PA practice, especially in men. Both genders put their health and quality of life at risk by not following the PA guidelines of the health authorities World Health Organization (WHO) and American College of Sports Medicine ACSM). These conclusions highlight the importance of considering gender when designing programs and PA formats for the promotion of physical activity to reduce the existing gender divide.

A CYCLE THRESHOLD VALUE-BASED EPIDEMIC PROGNOSTICATION TO MONITOR LONG-TERM EPIDEMIOLOGIC TRENDS OF SARS-COV-2 VIRUS

10.36106/gjra/8200797 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 24-30

Author(s):

Aditi Munmun Sengupta ◽

Diptendu Chatterjee ◽

Bibhuti Saha

Keyword(s):

Meta Analysis ◽

Threshold Value ◽

High Viral Load ◽

World Health ◽

Rt Pcr ◽

Cycle Threshold ◽

Ct Value ◽

Health Organization ◽

The real-time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) is considered as the sensitive proof for detecting the viral infection of the SARS-CoV-2 virus obtained from respiratory samples. The quantitative values for the analysis are benecial for estimating the transmissibility of people who test positive for SARS-CoV-2. This can be further achieved by analyzing the samples by semiquantitative means through the interpretation of the cycle threshold (Ct) values of RT-PCR that represent the rst cycle of PCR at which a detectable signal appears during the assays. The Ct value shows a correlation between high viral load and disease infectiousness, which is observed with other respiratory viruses, including the inuenza B infection and rhinovirus infection. Hence, the present study aims to analyze the surveillance of COVID-19 to monitor longer-term epidemiologic trends and trends in deaths due to COVID-19. In order to achieve this aim, the present review was reported to the preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analysis statements (PRISMA) for analyzing the Ct value-based epidemic predictions and to monitor long-term epidemiologic trends of SARS-CoV-2 virus. Total 33 studies have been nalized for nding out the results of the study. The epidemiologic parameter and a representative of the surveillance data for reporting to the World Health Organization were fullled by analyzing the systematic review and metaanalysis of the selected study. Moreover, the evaluation of the impact of the pandemic on the health care system and society was achieved by analyzing the studies mentioned here.

A Study on Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on Primary, Secondary and Tertiary Sectors of Indian Economy

International Journal of Asian Business and Information Management ◽

10.4018/ijabim.20210701oa62 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 12 (3) ◽

pp. 0-0

Keyword(s):

Migrant Workers ◽

Secondary Data ◽

World Health ◽

Indian Economy ◽

The Social ◽

Political Dimensions ◽

The Government ◽

Novel Coronavirus ◽

Health Organization ◽

COVID-19 emerged in China in December. The World Health Organization declares this virus as Global Disaster in March. The coronavirus has affected the social, economic, political dimensions of the nations globally. In this study, the authors consider the impact of novel coronavirus (COVID-19) on the different activities of primary, secondary, and tertiary sectors of the Indian Economy and various policies and reforms have been taken by the government. The secondary data is collected to put down this literature. Each sector of the economy faces chaos due to coronavirus. Migrant workers or laborers go to their state in the lockdown, a ban on materials, electronics imported from china, supply chain disruption, disturbance in the cash flow are some of the majors' reasons that lead to the uncertainty in different sectors. A fund issued by the Government can be utilized effectively to give benefits to employees, workers, farmers, organizations, and industries.

Polska gospodarka na kwarantannie – analiza wskaźników ekonomicznych, społecznych oraz rozwiązań formalnoprawnych dotyczących przeciwdziałania koronawirusowi COVID-19

Polityka i Społeczeństwo ◽

10.15584/polispol.2020.4.2 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 18 (4) ◽

pp. 27-47

Author(s):

Robert Staniszewski ◽

Keyword(s):

Social Indicators ◽

Multidimensional Analysis ◽

World Health ◽

Financial Status ◽

Health Dimension ◽

The Social ◽

The World ◽

Health Organization ◽

The Impact ◽

Economic And Social Indicators

On 11th March 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) announced the COVID-19 pandemic, i.e., SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus disease. A few days later, an epidemic emergency was announced in Poland. From the very beginning, it was obvious that the pandemic, apart from the strictly health dimension, would affect a number of aspects of the state's functioning, including the key one – its economy. The purpose of the article is to provide a multidimensional analysis of the impact of the pandemic on the state’s financial status, in particular in relation to the most fundamental economic and social indicators as well as formal and legal solutions, including so-called “anti-crisis shields” (1.0 – 4.0). Finally, analysis of the social perception of the phenomenon (public opinion) in relation to two groups, i.e., entrepreneurs and the general public, also constitutes one of the key elements of the present study.