scholarly journals Mass Testing With Contact Tracing Compared to Test and Trace for the Effective Suppression of COVID-19 in the United Kingdom: Systematic Review (Preprint)

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mathew Mbwogge
Keyword(s):  
United Kingdom ◽  
Majority Vote ◽  
Community Services ◽  
Primary Objective ◽  
Google Scholar ◽  
Contact Tracing ◽  
Manual Search ◽  
The United Kingdom ◽  
Secondary Objective ◽  
Conventional Test

BACKGROUND Making testing available to everyone and tracing contacts might be the gold standard to control COVID-19. Many countries including the United Kingdom have relied on the symptom-based test and trace strategy in bringing the COVID-19 pandemic under control. The effectiveness of a test and trace strategy based on symptoms has been questionable and has failed to meet testing and tracing needs. This is further exacerbated by it not being delivered at the point of care, leading to rising cases and deaths. Increases in COVID-19 cases and deaths in the United Kingdom despite performing the highest number of tests in Europe suggest that symptom-based testing and contact tracing might not be effective as a control strategy. An alternative strategy is making testing available to all. OBJECTIVE The primary objective of this review was to compare mass testing and contact tracing with the conventional test and trace method in the suppression of SARS-CoV-2 infections. The secondary objective was to determine the proportion of asymptomatic COVID-19 cases reported during mass testing interventions. METHODS Literature in English was searched from September through December 2020 in Google Scholar, ScienceDirect, Mendeley, and PubMed. Search terms included “mass testing,” “test and trace,” “contact tracing,” “COVID-19,” “SARS-CoV-2,” “effectiveness,” “asymptomatic,” “symptomatic,” “community screening,” “UK,” and “2020.” Search results were synthesized without meta-analysis using the direction of effect as the standardized metric and vote counting as the synthesis metric. A statistical synthesis was performed using Stata 14.2. Tabular and graphical methods were used to present findings. RESULTS The literature search yielded 286 articles from Google Scholar, 20 from ScienceDirect, 14 from Mendeley, 27 from PubMed, and 15 through manual search. A total of 35 articles were included in the review, with a sample size of nearly 1 million participants. We found a 76.9% (10/13, 95% CI 46.2%-95.0%; <i>P</i>=.09) majority vote in favor of the intervention under the primary objective. The overall proportion of asymptomatic cases among those who tested positive and in the tested sample populations under the secondary objective was 40.7% (1084/2661, 95% CI 38.9%-42.6%) and 0.0% (1084/9,942,878, 95% CI 0.0%-0.0%), respectively. CONCLUSIONS There was low-level but promising evidence that mass testing and contact tracing could be more effective in bringing the virus under control and even more effective if combined with social distancing and face coverings. The conventional test and trace method should be superseded by decentralized and regular mass rapid testing and contact tracing, championed by general practitioner surgeries and low-cost community services.

scholarly journals Mass Testing With Contact Tracing Compared to Test and Trace for the Effective Suppression of COVID-19 in the United Kingdom: Systematic Review

JMIRx Med ◽  
10.2196/27254 ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. e27254 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mathew Mbwogge
Keyword(s):  
United Kingdom ◽  
Majority Vote ◽  
Community Services ◽  
Primary Objective ◽  
Google Scholar ◽  
Contact Tracing ◽  
Manual Search ◽  
The United Kingdom ◽  
Secondary Objective ◽  
Conventional Test

Background Making testing available to everyone and tracing contacts might be the gold standard to control COVID-19. Many countries including the United Kingdom have relied on the symptom-based test and trace strategy in bringing the COVID-19 pandemic under control. The effectiveness of a test and trace strategy based on symptoms has been questionable and has failed to meet testing and tracing needs. This is further exacerbated by it not being delivered at the point of care, leading to rising cases and deaths. Increases in COVID-19 cases and deaths in the United Kingdom despite performing the highest number of tests in Europe suggest that symptom-based testing and contact tracing might not be effective as a control strategy. An alternative strategy is making testing available to all. Objective The primary objective of this review was to compare mass testing and contact tracing with the conventional test and trace method in the suppression of SARS-CoV-2 infections. The secondary objective was to determine the proportion of asymptomatic COVID-19 cases reported during mass testing interventions. Methods Literature in English was searched from September through December 2020 in Google Scholar, ScienceDirect, Mendeley, and PubMed. Search terms included “mass testing,” “test and trace,” “contact tracing,” “COVID-19,” “SARS-CoV-2,” “effectiveness,” “asymptomatic,” “symptomatic,” “community screening,” “UK,” and “2020.” Search results were synthesized without meta-analysis using the direction of effect as the standardized metric and vote counting as the synthesis metric. A statistical synthesis was performed using Stata 14.2. Tabular and graphical methods were used to present findings. Results The literature search yielded 286 articles from Google Scholar, 20 from ScienceDirect, 14 from Mendeley, 27 from PubMed, and 15 through manual search. A total of 35 articles were included in the review, with a sample size of nearly 1 million participants. We found a 76.9% (10/13, 95% CI 46.2%-95.0%; P=.09) majority vote in favor of the intervention under the primary objective. The overall proportion of asymptomatic cases among those who tested positive and in the tested sample populations under the secondary objective was 40.7% (1084/2661, 95% CI 38.9%-42.6%) and 0.0% (1084/9,942,878, 95% CI 0.0%-0.0%), respectively. Conclusions There was low-level but promising evidence that mass testing and contact tracing could be more effective in bringing the virus under control and even more effective if combined with social distancing and face coverings. The conventional test and trace method should be superseded by decentralized and regular mass rapid testing and contact tracing, championed by general practitioner surgeries and low-cost community services.

scholarly journals Mass Testing with Contact Tracing Compared to Test and Trace for Effective Suppression of COVID-19 in the UK: A rapid review

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mathew Mbwogge
Keyword(s):  
Majority Vote ◽  
Research Question ◽  
Community Services ◽  
Primary Objective ◽  
Google Scholar ◽  
Contact Tracing ◽  
Rapid Review ◽  
Manual Search ◽  
Conventional Test ◽  
The Uk

AbstractBackgroundMaking testing available to everyone and tracing contacts might be the gold standard towards the control of COVID-19, particularly when significant transmissions are without symptoms. This study evaluated the effectiveness of mass testing and contact tracing in the suppression of COVID-19 compared to conventional Test and Trace in the UK.DesignA rapid review of available evidencePrimary research questionIs there evidence that mass testing and tracing could suppress community spread of SARS-CoV-2 infections better than Test and Trace?Secondary research questionWhat is the proportion of asymptomatic cases of SARS-CoV-2 reported during mass testing interventions?MethodsLiterature was searched in September through December 2020 in Google Scholar, ScienceDirect, Mendeley and PubMed.ResultsLiterature search yielded 286 articles from Google Scholar, 20 from Science Direct, 14 from Mendeley, 27 from Pubmed and 15 through manual search. Altogether 35 articles were included, making a sample size of close to a million participants.ConclusionThere was a very low level but promising evidence of 76.9% (95% CI: 46.2 – 95.0, P=0.09) majority vote in favour of the intervention under the primary objective. The overall proportion of asymptomatic cases among those tested positive and tested sample populations under the secondary objective was 40.7% (95% CI: 38.8– 42.5) and 0.01% (95% CI: 0.01 – 0.012) respectively. Conventional test and trace should be superseded by a decentralised and regular mass rapid testing and contact tracing, championed by GP surgeries and low cost community services.

Exploring Leave Events for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People From Australian Tertiary Services: A Systematic Literature Review

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julieann Coombes ◽  
Syazlin Sazali ◽  
Tamara Mackean ◽  
Margaret Banks ◽  
Nilva Egana ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Health Services ◽  
Torres Strait Islander ◽  
Primary Objective ◽  
Google Scholar ◽  
Evidence Based ◽  
Torres Strait Islander People ◽  
Policy Document ◽  
Manual Search ◽  
Preventative Measures ◽  
Torres Strait

Abstract Objective The primary objective of this systematic review was to identify contributing causes to leave events from health services for Australian patients. The second objective was to identify evidence based preventative measures for effectively reducing leave events, which could be implemented. Study design Articles published in Australia were included if they reported on Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people and other Australians who leave health services prior to being seen or discharged by a medical professional. Two researchers screened each abstract and independently reviewed full text articles. Study quality was assessed, and data were extracted with standardised tools.Data sources MEDLINE and Google Scholar were searched for relevant publications from May 27th to June 30th, 2020. The search returned 30 relevant records. Nine additional records were identified by manual search in Google Scholar. References of included articles were searched. From these articles, 11 met the inclusion criteria. Of these 5 were from New South Wales, 2 from Western Australia, 1 each from Queensland and Northern Territory, two were conducted nationally. Data synthesis Four studies used a retrospective cohort method, one included patient interviews,(1) Four cohort studies and two systematic reviews were included. Two government reports and one health policy document were included in this review. All studies were from Australia using mixed methods.Conclusions This review identified causes for, and evidence based preventative measures that have been or could be implemented to reduce Leave Events and describes additional terms and definitions used for Leave Events.

scholarly journals Should Google Scholar be used for benchmarking against the professoriate in education?

2020 ◽  
Vol 125 (3) ◽  
pp. 2505-2522 ◽  
Author(s):  
Margaret K. Merga ◽  
Sayidi Mat Roni ◽  
Shannon Mason
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
United Kingdom ◽  
United States Of America ◽  
The United States ◽  
Job Security ◽  
Google Scholar ◽  
Data Reliability ◽  
H Index ◽  
The United Kingdom

AbstractIn the neoliberal environment of contemporary academia, an individual’s research rankings and outputs can shape their career security and progression. When applying for ongoing employment and promotional opportunities, academics may benchmark their performance against that of superior colleagues to demonstrate their performance in relation to their discipline. The H-index and citation rates are commonly used to quantify the value of an academic’s work, and they can be used comparatively for benchmarking purposes. The focus of this paper is to critically consider if Google Scholar be used for benchmarking against the professoriate in education, by weighting up issues of data reliability and participation. The Google Scholar profiles of full professors at top ranked universities in Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States of America are analysed to explore how widespread Google Scholar use is in the education professoriate. Quartiles of impact are established in relation to H-index, with exploration of how gender is distributed across these quartiles. Limitations of using Google Scholar data are highlighted through a taxonomy of quality confounders, and the utility of Google Scholar as a legitimate tool for benchmarking against the professoriate in education is strongly challenged. As metrics continue to rise in their importance for academics’ job security and promotional prospects, reliance on metrics of dubious quality and uneven participation must be questioned.

scholarly journals Academic Career Development in Indonesia and the United Kingdom: A Systematic Literature Review

2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 409
Author(s):  
Maya Kurniawati ◽  
Choirul Saleh ◽  
M.R. Khairul Muluk
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
United Kingdom ◽  
Career Development ◽  
Literature Review ◽  
Systematic Literature Review ◽  
Academic Career ◽  
Community Services ◽  
Journal Articles ◽  
The United Kingdom ◽  
The Uk

Lecturers are an essential element of a higher education institution. The lecturer has two functions in Indonesia, namely an educator and a researcher who has the job in developing and deploying science, technology, and art to the community through the Three Pillars of Higher Education activities: education, research, and community services. This study aims to investigate and answer the three research questions, which involve how the academic career development system for lecturers, how the academic career development patterns for lecturers, and the factors which affect the academic career in Indonesia and the United Kingdom (UK). We chose the UK since it is one of the countries with the most robust higher education system globally. This research was required to capture the gap in academic career development for lecturers in Indonesia and the UK. There are 23 journal articles and other literature included and found using systematic literature review and PRISMA protocol. These journal articles and other literature analyzed by meta-synthesis and could describe the comparative perspectives between an academic career in Indonesia and the UK. These review results can be an excellent comparison for improving higher education systems, specifically in the academic career development for Indonesian lecturers. A significant improvement will encourage universities in Indonesia to embrace the vision as a world-class university.

The outcome of contact tracing for gonorrhoea in the United Kingdom

1998 ◽  
Vol 9 (11) ◽  
pp. 657-660 ◽  
Author(s):  
M R Fitzgerald ◽  
D Thirlby ◽  
C A Bedford
Keyword(s):  
United Kingdom ◽  
Contact Tracing ◽  
The United Kingdom

scholarly journals Doctors’ and nurses’ views and experience of transferring patients from critical care home to die: A qualitative exploratory study

2014 ◽  
Vol 29 (4) ◽  
pp. 354-362 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maureen Coombs ◽  
Tracy Long-Sutehall ◽  
Anne-Sophie Darlington ◽  
Alison Richardson
Keyword(s):  
Critical Care ◽  
United Kingdom ◽  
End Of Life ◽  
Health Care Professionals ◽  
Care Home ◽  
Rare Event ◽  
Community Services ◽  
Critical Care Units ◽  
The United Kingdom ◽  
Doctors And Nurses

Background: Dying patients would prefer to die at home, and therefore a goal of end-of-life care is to offer choice regarding where patients die. However, whether it is feasible to offer this option to patients within critical care units and whether teams are willing to consider this option has gained limited exploration internationally. Aim: To examine current experiences of, practices in and views towards transferring patients in critical care settings home to die. Design: Exploratory two-stage qualitative study Setting/participants: Six focus groups were held with doctors and nurses from four intensive care units across two large hospital sites in England, general practitioners and community nurses from one community service in the south of England and members of a Patient and Public Forum. A further 15 nurses and 6 consultants from critical care units across the United Kingdom participated in follow-on telephone interviews. Findings: The practice of transferring critically ill patients home to die is a rare event in the United Kingdom, despite the positive view of health care professionals. Challenges to service provision include patient care needs, uncertain time to death and the view that transfer to community services is a complex, highly time-dependent undertaking. Conclusion: There are evidenced individual and policy drivers promoting high-quality care for all adults approaching the end of life encompassing preferred place of death. While there is evidence of this choice being honoured and delivered for some of the critical care population, it remains debatable whether this will become a conventional practice in end of life in this setting.

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