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Context: The research gap is found when it comes to studying the perception of the medical undergraduate students toward e-learning during COVID-19 pandemic in India when e-learning has emerged as the only available option to continue learning in medical education. Aims: This study aims to identify the perception of the medical undergraduate students toward e-learning during COVID-19 pandemic. Settings and Design: Descriptive questionnaire-based study was conducted at Yenepoya Medical College, Mangalore. Materials and Methods: A prevalidated questionnaire form on online teaching was circulated to medical students of our institution. A total of 135 students' responses were analyzed. Statistical Analysis Used: Descriptive statistical method was applied and results are expressed in frequency and percentages. Results: Out of 135 responses, 37.8% were from phase I, 28.9% from Phase II, and 33.3% from phase III students. 57.8% of students expressed they would like to learn with online classes, whereas, 20.7% of students mentioned that teaching activities should be suspended till the pandemic settles down, 12.6% suggested self-directed learning, and the remaining 8.9% are happy with assignments and study materials. Regarding the format of online classes, 52.6% preferred live classes with PowerPoint presentations to prerecorded classes. With respect to duration, 77% insisted each class should be between 30 and 45 min. 71.9% said a maximum of 2-4 h they could concentrate on online teaching activity in a day. 88.9% expressed connectivity issues as a challenge, 60.7% were not able to grasp the subject, and 22.2% expressed that their doubts are not answered. In general, 81.5% feel that conventional offline classes are better and only 7.4% of students are happy with online classes. Regarding the benefits of online classes, 80.7% expressed that online classes are safe and can attend online class from any place. 69.6% mentioned that group activity is the major concern followed by lack of discussion with the teacher. Conclusions: With advanced technology online teaching though was a boon during pandemics for many but other concerns should be addressed for successful and effective teaching activities. © 2022 Wolters Kluwer Medknow Publications. All rights reserved.
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Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), a novel coronavirus of the same family as SARS-CoV and Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus, has spread globally, leading the World Health Organization to announce it as a pandemic. The disease caused by SARS-CoV-2, 2019 coronavirus disease (COVID-19), causes flu-like symptoms that may become severe in people at high risk. Infection is known to spread from human to human and through contact with contaminated surfaces. COVID-19's main symptoms include nausea, cough, fatigue, mild dyspnea, sore throat, headache and gastrointestinal problems. Real time polymerase chain reaction is used as a diagnostic device using nasal swab, oropharyngeal swab, tracheal aspiration or bronchoalveolar lavage samples. Antiviral medications, steroids, IL-6 antagonist and respiratory support devices are the primary treatments being used to treat the condition. In addition, while several interventions have been suggested, quarantine is the only method that seems to be successful in lowering the risk of infection. The COVID-19 pandemic reflects the present generation's major global public health issue, following the 1918 pandemic influenza epidemic. The pace and frequency of clinical trials conducted to evaluate possible COVID-19 therapies underscore both the need and capacity to deliver high-quality evidence even in the midst of a pandemic. Various vaccines have been developed which are in different phases and we hope to have a vaccine for the general population soon, as it could prevent the spread of the disease. Copyright © 2022, Kuwait Medical Association. All rights reserved.
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BACKGROUND: Traditionally, randomized clinical trials have relied on physical research centers to support subject recruitment and participation. The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the need to interact with subjects who are unable to physically visit research centers. By leveraging remote technology, such clinical trials may reach subjects in isolation and broaden geographical reach. We describe a fully remote, multisite randomized controlled clinical trial of outpatient COVID-19 treatments using a technologyenabled, decentralized approach. METHODS: We conducted a remote double-blind, randomized placebocontrolled trial (COVID-OUT). We identified subjects through medical records, patient advocacy groups, testing facilities, and multiformat advertising. They were recruited via brochure, electronic message, telephone outreach, and self-referral. Research staff across sites used the Research Electronic Data Capture (REDCap) system to manage local and central enrollment and were reallocated dynamically based on trial needs. Subjects were screened by phone, consented and randomized electronically and delivered study medication by courier or same-day mail. They were followed via their preferred communication method (phone, video, text, or email) to determine the study endpoints. RESULTS: 1195 non-hospitalized adults aged 30-85 years with laboratory confirmed infection with SARS-CoV-2 were enrolled into the COVID-OUT trial through January 6, 2022 over a span of 7 months. Initially starting as a 2- arm trial with 7 sites, the study expanded to a 6-arm trial with recruitment at 8 sites. To date, 9600 subjects have been screened with an enrollment rate of 12% from 822 zip codes. 25 research coordinators are involved across 8 sites, and the rate of study completion is 90%. CONCLUSIONS: Decentralized remote studies offer an efficient, low-touch way of performing research in the COVID-19 era. Our decentralized study design enables research with infectious, isolated subjects in widespread geographies, while maintaining safety of subjects, the research team, and public atlarge. Coordination across sites via RED Cap enabled programmatic efficiencies, including the ability to redistribute staffing support across enrollment sites for study drug distribution, follow-up calls, recruitment, and event reporting. We decreased overall costs by less need for physical research space. The decentralized infrastructure enabled nimble adaptations of the protocol, including increasing follow-up periods to assess long-COVID symptoms and adding study arms for additional outpatient treatments. Given the widespread availability of mobile phones and remote communication, decentralized trials show promise for improving reach and efficiency in both pandemic and nonpandemic times.
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In the current outbreak of COVID-19, healthcare facilities are hit by a shortage of supply of Personal Protective Equipments (PPE) owing to extensive local and global demands and restrictions on their import or export. To circumvent this, trials with several indigenous materials suitable to qualify for PPEs and sterilization techniques for their reuse are being carried out. Prior to their commercialisation, it is imperative to evaluate the resistance of the PPE fabrics against penetration of synthetic blood under applied pressure, 40-300 mmHg as per test standards. Generally, two types of tests are recommended, Penetration Test and Splash Resistance Test, the former being more stringent. While the final certification of PPEs is carried out by authorised agencies, a first impression quick estimate of the choice of fabric can be made using a simple laboratory set-up. This study describes setups developed in the laboratory to carry out these tests. Evaluation of the fabrics, post-gamma irradiation, was also carried out. Microscopic examinations were performed to investigate radiation-induced structural changes in fabrics showing degraded performance. This set-up is useful for selection of fabrics and to assess the feasibility of reuse of PPEs, which is the need of the hour in this pandemic situation.
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2D transition metal dichalcogenides have performed exceptionally as the active layer for chemiresistive gas sensors. Combining these materials with semiconductor oxides of tunable properties has proved to improve gas sensing and overall device performance due to the synergizing effect of the hybrid nanostructures. In this manuscript, we report the synthesis of a Co3O4/MoS2 nanostructure-based highly sensitive chemiresistive gas sensor selective toward NOx gases. An increase in air pollution has caused an equal increase in the concentrations of toxic NOx gases in the atmosphere. Exposure to these gases leads to grave health hazards such as pulmonary diseases and cardiovascular diseases. Furthermore, recent studies prove that NOx gases are also a contributor to COVID-19 fatality. We investigated the effect of the change in precursor concentration of cobalt nitrate (CoN2O6) and temperature on the gas sensor response. The precursor concentration was varied over an increasing range of molarities (1, 5, 10, and 25 mM), and it was observed that the gas sensor with a precursor concentration of 25 mM and an operating temperature of 200 °C exhibited the highest response of 145.7% toward NO2 gas (4.3 ppm) and then 105.37% toward NO (2.75 ppm). It was also noted that the device responded to NO2 gas of concentration as low as 300 ppb. This device was then subjected to an increasing range of temperatures (50, 100, 150, 200, 250, and 300 °C). A clear increase in the device performance was observed with an increase in temperature. It was found that the gas sensor was the most sensitive toward NO2 gas (4.3 ppm) and exhibited a response of 186.2% at 250 °C followed by NO (2.75 ppm) with a response of 141.6%. A stable and excellent response toward a low concentration of 50 ppb of NO2 was observed. Two activation energies (Ea) were calculated from the Arrhenius plot Ea1 (0.846 eV) between 150 and 200 °C and Ea2 (1.316 eV) between 200 and 250 °C, indicating multiple energy trapping. These results pave a way for a plausible application of Co3O4/MoS2 hybrid nanostructures for the detection and monitoring of NOx gases in the air. ©
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The construction sector in India employs nearly 60 million people, so the unprecedented two-month lockdown to slow the spread of Covid-19 in 2020 had devastating economic and social effects. The reduced demand for projects slowed demand for downstream industries, increased labour migration to villages and reduced logistics support for supplies and resources. This paper reports on the challenges experienced by one of India's leading construction organisations on a major metro contract in Mumbai. It describes the impact of the pandemic on project delivery, including time, cost and supply chain issues, and discusses the mitigation strategies adopted. © 2021 ICE Publishing: All rights reserved.
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Introduction: COVID-19 pandemic had a significant impact on the pediatric and neonatal surgery. The COVID-19 infection in children present either with mild symptoms or with atypical clinical features mimicking other infectious diseases. This study was conducted to assess the impact of COVID-19 pandemic and lockdown on the pediatric surgical cases admitted and managed at our Institute. Materials and Methods: Clinical characteristics and management & its outcome were noted down. Clinical characteristics included age, weight, gender, residence, nature of disease, any past history of surgery, history of contact with COVID patient, any recent COVID infection. These variables were compared with the patients managed during pre-COVID-19 era of same duration. All the babies admitted for routine and some emergency cases where tested for COVID-19 using RT-PCR method. COVID tests were done post-operatively in emergency cases. Results: During the study 630 patients were admitted and managed in our department, which included 200 elective, 150 semi emergencies, and 280 emergency cases. The average age was 19.53 ± 23 months. The study included 190 surgical neonates also. There were 400 male and 230 female patients. A total of 20 patients were tested positive during the study period. Among these 20 patients, 12 were tested positive on preoperative screening, while as eight cases were positive on post-operative COVID testing. Operation theatre days were reduced from 6 days to 4 days per week. The several measures undertaken in the outpatient clinic, operation theatre, pre and post-operative period to minimize the spread of COVID-19 virus from child to caregiver and surgical staff were highly effective. During these 9 months five doctors in our department got infected, with mild to moderate symptoms of COVID 19. They resumed their duties after an average of 2 to 3 weeks. Our academic activities got significantly hampered, although bedside teaching and case discussions continued in wards and operation theatres. Conclusion: COVID -19 pandemic effects pediatric population also, surgeries and the concern for its transmission. We continue to perform routine neonatal and pediatric surgical cases, while adapting the standard safety protocols. We believe that health professionals who use the appropriate personal protective equipment may continue to work in outpatient and operating rooms.
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Global economy because of COVID-19 has tanked to historical lows. It is not the first time in the world history that global community is bracing for a pandemic. COVID-19 started in Wuhan, the global epicentre of both-the virus as well as the economic bustle and flurry. After the few days of proliferation of the virus, busy streets of Wuhan were back to deserted scenes. China is currently the production house of the world. The dangers to the health sector of the countries is definitely under tremendous pressure but more worryingly, it is threatening world economy into recession. US Federal Reserve has gone for an emergency rate-cut of half percentage point. This is the biggest since 2008 financial crises. But the step seems more a knee-jerk reaction out of compulsion rather than a mature policy decision.