Prioritizing high-contact occupations raises effectiveness of vaccination campaigns

A twenty-year-old idea from network science is that vaccination campaigns would be more effective if high-contact individuals were preferentially targeted. Implementation is impeded by the ethical and practical problem of differentiating vaccine access based on a personal characteristic that is hard-to-measure and private. Here, we propose the use of occupational category as a proxy for connectedness in a contact network. Using survey data on occupation-specific contact frequencies, we calibrate a model of disease propagation in populations undergoing varying vaccination campaigns. We find that vaccination campaigns that prioritize high-contact occupational groups achieve similar infection levels with half the number of vaccines, while also reducing and delaying peaks. The paper thus identifies a concrete, operational strategy for dramatically improving vaccination efficiency in ongoing pandemics.

Occupation and COVID-19 diagnosis, hospitalisation and ICU admission among foreign-born and Swedish-born employees: a register-based study

BackgroundResearch on occupation and risk of COVID-19 among foreign-born workers is lacking. We investigated whether working in essential occupations was associated with COVID-19 diagnosis, hospitalisation and intensive care unit (ICU) admission and whether foreign-born workers in similar occupations as Swedish-born individuals had a higher risk of the studied outcomes.MethodsOccupational data (2018–2019) of 326 052 employees (20–65 years) who were resident in Sweden as of 1 January 2020 were linked to COVID-19 data registered from 1 January 2020 to 28 February 2021. We analysed the risk of COVID-19 outcomes in different occupational groups and in four immigrant/occupation intersectional groups using Cox proportional hazards regression with adjustments for sociodemographic and socioeconomic characteristics and pre-existing comorbidities.ResultsWe identified 29797, 1069 and 152 cases of COVID-19 diagnosis, hospitalisations and ICU admissions, respectively, in our cohort. Workers in essential occupations had an elevated risk of COVID-19 diagnosis, hospitalisation, and ICU admissions. Healthcare workers had a higher risk of all the outcomes compared with other essential workers. Relative to Swedish-born workers in non-essential occupations, foreign-born workers in essential occupations had 1.85 (95% CI 1.78 to 1.93), 3.80 (95% CI 3.17 to 4.55) and 3.79 (95% CI 2.33 to 6.14) times higher risk of COVID-19 diagnosis, hospitalisation and ICU admission, respectively. The corresponding risks among Swedish-born workers in essential occupations were 1.44 (95% CI 1.40 to 1.49), 1.30 (95% CI 1.08 to 1.56) and 1.46 (95% CI 0.90 to 2.38).ConclusionOccupation was associated with COVID-19 outcomes and contributed to the burden of COVID-19 among foreign-born individuals in this study.

Brucellosis morbidity in Russia and Primorsky region

Objective: Epidemiological data analysis concerning the spread of brucellosis in Russia and Primorsky Region, study of the manifestations of the epidemic process and the current state of brucellosis issue.Methods: Descriptive epidemiological analysis of materials on infectious morbidity based on state statistical reporting forms No. 1, No. 2 “Information on infectious and parasitic morbidity”.Results: Brucellosis affects workers in the main occupational groups of livestock breeders, workers involved in the processing of livestock, who contact sick animals and other sources of brucellosis infection. Primorsky Region is a territory with an unstable epidemiological situation on brucellosis. A different morbidity rates were registered over the years. However usually it does not exceed the national average rate. In 2009, the morbidity rate counted 27.5% less than in Russian Federation (0.21 and 0.29 per 100,000 respectively), compared to previous years, the average long-term morbidity rate in the region increased by 3.5 times. The disease rate for the period from 2009 to 2019 ranged from 0.05 to 0.21%. In 2012, it exceeded the index in the Far Eastern Federal District (0.1 per 100,000 population). Brucellosis cases were detected among livestock breeders during an extraordinary medical examination due to the bad situation on brucellosis among animals.Conclusions: In recent decades, the epizootic and epidemiological situation on brucellosis remains tense due to the decrease in the number of serological and bacteriological studies among animals and humans, the weakening of veterinary-sanitary control and the formation of new private farms.

Exploring Blue- and White-Collar Employees' Well-Being at Work System

The aim of this study was to examine occupational group-related differences in well-being at work (WBW) indicators ranging from real accidents, absences and retirement to experienced pleasure at work. Occupational group included two categories: blue- and white-collar employees. The study is based on analysing national statistics or ones of various industrial sectors (Study 1), or bases on findings of questionnaires in Finnish case companies (N=7) (Studies 2 and 3). WBW questionnaires answered by 3500 employees. Analysis utilised data that employees of two occupational groups, or company and national statistics revealed about WBW. Analysis was based on factors related to employee, task, tool, organisation and work environment (traditional work system (WS)), psychosocial factors, and information and communication within WS. The biggest and statistically significant differences were emphasised in results and discussion. Although two groups' roles and tasks provide reasons for many differences, the ones should be measured, thoroughly discussed and consciously managed.

Digitalism and Jobs of the Future

There has been a strong relationship between digitalism and the future of jobs. Reports by OECD and WEF examined the jobs in the coming decades, and the findings show that there is a completely new order in the professions that we are not familiar with. In addition, how the impacts of artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning, data science, and robotics have affected labour, the market is analyzed. The findings in the reports clearly would affect the careers of the next generations. With the post-pandemic developments and the rapid advancement of technology in many areas worldwide, digitalization has gained significant momentum. This situation manifested itself in professions and workforce. However, it is obvious that in the coming years, with digitalization, many occupational groups and accordingly, differences in skills will be seen. While some occupational groups disappear completely, it is seen that some new occupational groups will emerge and, some will transform.

The Contributions of Competitions to Cities and Urban Design

Competitions are a significant means of focusing on specific spaces in cities and forming public opinion. Competitions result in many professionals such as architectures, urban planners, urban designers, landscape architects, civil engineers, etc. proposing lots of designs for the same space, and thereby submitting various solution offers for it. Therefore, competitions are important not only for their results, but also for increasing knowledge about the occupational groups of design and the shaping of urban open spaces and built environments, in other words, cities. This study analyzes competitions’ contributions to urban design based on the experience of Merzifon Municipality’s Business and Life Center Architectural Project Competition. The discipline of urban design, which plays an important role in forming the urban open spaces and built environments, is enriched by competitions. The approaches developed in the projects that compete for the urban spaces focused on the competitions play an important role in shaping cities.

Stability and Social Sustainability of Farm Household Income in Poland in 2003–2020

This article analyses the available income of farmer households in Poland in 2003–2020 in the context of their level, variability, and differentiation. The income situation of farmers was analysed from the intra-sectoral perspective and the inter-sectoral perspective by comparing the average monthly available income per capita of farmer households to the income of employees and total households. The research aimed to assess the stability of farmers’ incomes against the background of comparative groups and to assess their social sustainability. We understand farmers’ income parity relative to other socio-professional groups and a similar level of intra-sectoral differentiation. The source of empirical materials was the cyclical statistics of the Central Statistical Office prepared as part of the Household Budget Surveys, published in the years 2004–2021. It was found that despite a significant increase in the real income of farmers’ households in Poland over the studied years, the income disparity of farmers relative to other socio-occupational groups persisted. However, the income gap of farmers in relation to workers from the non-agricultural sector decreased from 35.1% in 2003 to an average of 15.7% in 2004–2020, which is largely due to the support for agriculture from the CAP funds. Compared to the analysed groups, the income of farmers’ households is characterised by the most significant instability and greater diversification. These results indicate a persistent deficit in the social sustainability of farmers’ household income in Poland.

Prevalence and Risk Factors Analysis for Low Back Pain Among Occupational Groups in Key Industries of China

Background: With the acceleration of industrialization and the growth of population aging, LBP has become the main disease of life loss caused by disability, which brings huge economic burden to society and is a global public health problem that needs to be solved urgently. The purpose of this study is to carry out epidemiological investigation and research on a large sample of people in key industries in different regions of China, to find out the incidence and distribution characteristics of LBP in key industries in China, to explore the epidemic law, and to provide reference basis for alleviating the global public health problems caused by LBP.Methods: This study adopts the modified epidemiological cross-sectional survey method and the stratified cluster sampling method. From the representative enterprises in key industries in seven regions of North China, East China, central China, South China, southwest, northwest and Northeast China, all workers on duty and fulfill the criteria are taken as the research objects. The Chinese version of musculoskeletal disease questionnaire modified by a standardized Nordic Questionnaire was used to collect information, and a total of 57501 valid questionnaires were received. Descriptive statistics were used and multivariate logistic regression analysis (p < 0.05) was performed to explore the associations between musculoskeletal disorders and potential risk factors.Results: The annual incidence of LBP in key industries or workers in China is 16.4%. There was significant difference in the incidence of LBP among occupational groups in different industries (P < 0.05). The results of multivariate regression model show that always make the same movements with your trunk, working in the same positions at a high pace, trunk position, always turn round with your trunk, often work overtime, lift heavy loads (more than 20 kg), education level, staff shortage, working age (years), cigarette smoking, use vibration tools at work Body mass index (BMI), lift heavy loads (more than 5 kg) and age (years) were risk factors for LBP. Physical exercise, standing often at work and absolute resting time are protective factors.Conclusion: The incidence of LBP in key industries or workers in China is high. It is urgent to take relevant measures according to individual, occupational and psychosocial factors of LBP to reduce the adverse impact of LBP on workers' health.