Neuroeconomics of decision-making during COVID-19 pandemic.

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic reveals the decision-making challenges faced by communities, governments, and international organizations, globally. Policymakers are much concerned about protecting the population from the deadly virus while lacking reliable information on the virus and its spread mechanisms and the effectiveness of possible measures and their (direct and indirect) health and socioeconomic costs. This review aims to highlight the various balanced policy decision that would combine the best obtainable scientific evidence characteristically provided by expert opinions and modeling studies. This article's main goal is to summarize the main significant progress in the understanding of neuroeconomics of decision-making and discuss the anatomy of decision making in the light of COVID-19 pandemic.

Evaluating Knowledge, Awareness, and Practices among Pakistani Population regarding COVID-19: An Online Survey-Based Study

Aim The study aims to analyze the knowledge, awareness, and practices among the Pakistani population. Study Method This is an online survey-based study conducted in July 2020 among the general public of Pakistan. Pretested and structured self-administered questionnaire, designed on Google Forms Inc., was used to collect data. The questionnaire included sociodemographic and measurable coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) knowledge data. Assessments on participants' attitudes and practices toward COVID-19 included questions on transmission, symptoms knowledge, and preventive measures. Results Among the survey completers ( n = 962) 61% ( n = 590) were male and 39% ( n = 372) were female. The majority of participants is aged 18 to 25 and belonged to Punjab. The participants had moderate knowledge regarding disease origin, clinical features, symptoms, and prevention. A vast majority of participants had good knowledge of symptoms and prevention measurements. A good number of participants were also practicing precautionary measures. The majority of participants utilize media and government authorities as authoritative sources of information. The population was also satisfied with the information given by the government. Conclusion Participants have moderate knowledge regarding the COVID-19 pandemic, reflected by a positive attitude and safe practices. There are gaps in knowledge of the virus, its origin, and transmission. Rumors affect the psychology of people, which may lead to the worst situation of panic conditions.

A review of the role of graphene-based nanomaterials in tackling challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic

In 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared a pandemic due to the emergence of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) which was resulted by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Significant efforts have been devoted by many countries to develop more advanced medicines and vaccines. However, along with these developments, it is also extremely essential to design effective systems by incorporating smart materials to battle the COVID-19. Therefore, several approaches have been implemented to combat against COVID-19. Recently, due to its superior physicochemical properties along with other fascinating properties, graphene-based materials have been explored for the current COVID-19 and future pandemics. Therefore, in this review article, we discuss the recent progress and the most promising strategies related to graphene and related materials and its applications for detection, decontamination, diagnosis, and protection against COVID-19. In addition, the key challenges and future directives are discussed in detail for fundamental design and development of technologies based on graphene and its related materials and lastly, our personal opinions on the appropriate approaches to improve these technologies respectively.

Defense mechanism responses to COVID-19.

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a wide range of negative physical and mental impacts. This review begins with a theoretical explanation of the psychological defense mechanisms used to deal with the pandemic. It then discusses different categories of defense mechanisms and their roles in managing the impacts of psychological distress. The aim of this review is to highlight the various psychological defense mechanisms individuals use to deal with the pandemic and to discuss how adjustment mechanisms can protect individuals from internal and external threats by shielding the integrity of the ego (the mind) and helping individuals maintain their self-schema.

Status of COVID-19 vaccination around South Asia.

The public health sector and the global economy are facing the challenges of the epidemic of coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19) since December 2019. Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) is an emerging outbreak and spreading rapidly across the globe. The COVID-19 pandemic of unprecedented proportions has devastated almost all countries and pervaded globally. However, various vaccines have been developed to achieve immunity against the virus and limit transmissibility. By 18 November 2021, 52.6% of the world population got first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. South Asia shares 15% fully vaccinated and 22.6% partially vaccinated population in the world. The 56.5% of South Asian Association Regional Cooperation (SAARC) regions, consisting of Pakistan, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, India, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Maldives, and Bhutan, got the first shot of COVID-19 vaccine, whereas 30.5% were fully vaccinated. India has the highest percentage of the vaccinated population of about 46.5% among SAARC countries. Although South Asian countries have unstable multiple socio-economic factors, including poverty, overpopulation, low literacy about medical care and medical systems, etc., the increasing trend in vaccination status has been observed. The high percentage of health budgets of SAARC countries was utilized for purchasing COVID-19 vaccines. This report observes that South Asian countries have been significantly tackling the threats of COVID-19.

The Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on Rehabilitation Services in a Tertiary Care Hospital in the Eastern Region of Saudi Arabia: A Single-Center Study.

Objective In this retrospective study, we aimed to investigate the impact of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic on rehabilitation services including outpatient rehabilitation clinic visits, speech therapy, and occupational therapy and physiotherapy sessions. Materials and methods This was a retrospective, observational, single-center study, which included all patients who presented to the rehabilitation clinic at the King Fahad Specialist Hospital, Dammam (KFSHD) from January to August 2020 (study period), and they were matched with parallel groups from 2017 to 2019 (control period). Results A total number of 1,435 patient visits were recorded in the outpatient rehabilitation clinics during the study period as compared to the 1,496 patient visits during the control period. However, the number of patients seen by the speech therapists, physiotherapists, and occupational therapists significantly came down from 482, 963, and 171, respectively in the control period to 77, 218, and 130, respectively in the study period. The occupational therapy, physiotherapy, and speech therapy services were significantly affected during the COVID-19 pandemic. Conclusions Our findings revealed the negative consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic on the outpatient rehabilitation services, which was reflected in the sharp decline in the number of patients who attended the rehabilitation clinics as well as in the reduced number of sessions. The rehabilitation facilities should be better prepared for such pandemics in the future to deliver appropriate and timely rehabilitation programs with a patient-centered approach.

COVID-19 and stock exchange return variation: empirical evidences from econometric estimation.

This research looked at the effects of COVID-19 on a number of the world's most important stock exchanges, as well as the empirical relation between the COVID-19 wave and stock market volatility. In order to plan proper portfolio diversification in international financial markets, researchers must examine COVID-19 anxiety in relation to stock market volatility. The stock market volatility connected with the COVID-19 pandemic was measured using AR(1)-GARCH(1,1). COVID-19 fear, according to our research, is the ultimate driver of public attention and stock market volatility. The findings show that throughout the pandemic, stock market performance and GDP growth both declined significantly due to average increases. Furthermore, a 1% increase in COVID-19 causes a 0.8% and 0.56% decline in stock return and GDP, respectively. The stock market, on the other hand, showed a slight movement in GDP growth. Furthermore, the COVID-19 pandemic reported cases index, death index, and global panic index all influenced public perceptions of purchasing and selling. As a result, rather than investing in stocks, it is recommended that you invest in gold. The research also makes policy recommendations for important stakeholders. We look to examine how stock returns respond dynamically to unanticipated changes in the COVID-19 scenarios, as well as the uncertainty that comes with a pandemic. Using daily data from Canada and the USA, we conclude that a spike in COVID-19 instances has a negative impact on the stock market in general. Furthermore, in both the increase and decline scenarios in Canada, the stock return reactions are asymmetric. The disparity is due to the unfavorable impact of the pandemic's unpredictability. We also discovered that uncertainty had a negative impact on the US stock market. The magnitude, however, is insignificant.

Moral judgment is important in COVID-19 pandemic.

The nature of moral judgment is not only of longstanding philosophical interest, but also it is a matter of immediate practical concern. Currently, when the information, the advice, even the science and the sequela of the pandemic COVID-19 are all consistently and rapidly changing, it creates inconsistency in our decision making. Nevertheless, we lack of a detailed scientific understanding of how people make moral decisions. The letter is an effort aimed at understanding moral decision-making during the present pandemic of COVID-19.

Perspective of Covid-19 pandemic in Middle East countries.

COVID-19 has emerged as the world's biggest challenge that has not only threatened human lives but also had an immense impact on the economy, safety and religious practices. The situation has worsened due to the lack of proper guidelines for fighting the sudden unexpected outbreaks. The world was not prepared for this situation. This review highlights some important steps the Middle East countries is taking and their impact on controlling the COVID-19 outbreak. We also discuss some hypothetical predictions for the coming months.

The battle against the COVID-19 pandemic- a perspective from Saudi Arabia.

COVID-19 has emerged as the world's biggest challenge that has not only threatened human lives but also had an immense impact on the economy, safety and religious practices. The situation has worsened due to the lack of proper guidelines for fighting the sudden unexpected outbreaks. The world was not prepared for this situation. Muslims make up the largest religious group in the world, and Saudi Arabia is the center of religious life for Muslims. The eye of the Muslim world is turned toward the measures and reforms that the Saudi state is implementing during this pandemic, including strict curfews and quarantines with heavy fines and punishments for violations. This review highlights some important steps the Saudi government is taking and their impact on controlling the COVID-19 outbreak.

Comorbidities in Patients with COVID-19 and Their Impact on the Severity of the Disease

Infection with COVID-19 is associated with significant morbidity, especially in patients with chronic medical conditions. At least one-fifth of cases require supportive care in intensive care units, which have limited availability in most developing countries. A literature search was conducted on PubMed, Medline, Scopus, Embase, and Google Scholar to find articles published by May 7, 2020 on the role of comorbidities in patients with COVID-19 and the impact of comorbidities on the disease. This review highlighted that patients with comorbidities are more likely to experience severe disease than those with no other conditions;that is, comorbidities correlated with greater disease severity in patients with COVID-19. Proper screening of COVID-19 patients should include careful inquiries into their medical history;this will help healthcare providers identify patients who are more likely to develop serious disease or experience adverse outcomes. Better protection should also be given to patients with COVID-19 and comorbidities upon confirmation of the diagnosis. This literature review showed that the comorbidities most often associated with more severe cases of COVID-19 are hypertension, cardiovascular disease, and diabetes. Individuals with these comorbidities should adopt restrictive measures to prevent exposure to COVID-19, given their higher risk of severe disease.