'Sorry, we're closed': a fuzzy-set ideal-type analysis of pandemic childcare-policy responses in 28 European countries

Based on an original data set of early childhood education and care/school closures and reopenings, this article presents a fuzzy-set ideal-type analysis of pandemic childcare-policy responses in 28 European countries and explores the complex empirical variety of these policies across Europe. The analysis shows that European countries cluster into five models, comprising not only the opposite poles of strict closures (public-health approach) or absence of closures (high-risk approach) but also more 'mixed' approaches prioritising early childhood education and care/schools' educational (educational approach) or work-care functions (lenient work-care approach or strict work-care approach). A few countries' poor fit within these approaches indicates struggles in balancing different, often contradictory, policy goals during COVID-19. The findings reflect how (continued) provision of early childhood education and care/schools became a highly contested issue, especially as the pandemic evolved and public-health concerns were increasingly weighted against the implications for work-care balance and educational outcomes.

Novel real world evidence from mSGo, a digital support program for secondary Progressive multiple sclerosis patients in Australia using siponimod

Introduction: Siponimod is approved in Australia for adults with secondary progressive multiple sclerosis (SPMS). Prescreen requirements for siponimod include a CYP2C9 genotype test to determine maintenance dosing. An integrated digital platform, 'MSGo', was developed by Novartis and RxMx to support Healthcare Professionals and their multiple sclerosis patients. Objective(s): Data derived exclusively from MSGo was utilised to explore the onboarding experience of siponimod patients in Australia. Aim(s): To provide real world evidence on siponimod for SPMS patients in Australia. Method(s): The study enrolled >350 adults with SPMS registered in MSGo for siponimod in Australia. Primary endpoint is the average time for onboarding with key secondary endpoints addressing adherence and variables that influence onboarding and adherence. Result(s): Final data extraction on April 20th, 2022 included 368 patients (median age of 59y).CYP2C9 genotype testing took a median of 19 days (95%CI 17-21) from registration and maintenance doses of 2mg (n=166) or 1mg (n=27) were initiated as per label recommendations;1mg was initiated for two rare allele genotypes (*1*5 and*1*11) in the absence of label recommendations. Mixture-cure modelling estimated that 58% of patients will ever initiate siponimod, with a median time to initiation of 56d (95%CI 47-59) from registration. Among those who initiated siponimod the most common reported reason for delayed initiation was 'waiting for vaccination'. Self-reporting of daily treatment, captured under the treatment reminder function in MSGo, had a drop-off of ~25% after the first week of initiation;a continued decline in reporting over time limited assessment of adherence. Continued self-reporting of daily dosing trended lower with older patients with only 28% of those >70y continuing to self-report at day 90 compared to 47-69% with the younger age groups. The study uncovered the important role of care partners, with Cox regression analyses demonstrating that SPMS patients who nominated a care partner were more likely to initiate (HR:2.1, 95%CI 1.5-3.0) and to continue self-reporting their daily medication (HR:2.2, 95%CI 1.3-3.7). A total of 90 patients discontinued the study;48 prior to and 42 after siponimod exposure. Conclusion(s): This study provides insights into siponimod onboarding for adults living with SPMS in Australia and demonstrates the impact of MSGo and care partner support during a period challenged by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Evaluation of the Biomeme Franklin Human Performance Factors: Final Report

U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command Chemical Biological Center (CCDC CBC) scientists completed an evaluation of the human performance factors related to the execution of COVID-19 testing using the SARS-CoV-2 Test Kit including (1) ease of use, (2) workflow development and assessment, and (3) time to results and sample throughput. The assay was found to require a fairly complex laboratory in order to safely process the samples due to the need for a biosafety cabinet to contain any SARS-CoV-2 containing aerosols. The workflow required nearly 3.5 h to complete 7 extractions, set up the seven RT-PCR reactions plus the two control RT-PCR reactions, run the RT-PCR on the Biomeme Franklin thermocycler, and interpret results. Therefore, throughput was estimated at 42 samples per 24 period on a single Franklin thermocycler.

Antihypertensive medication and outcome in patients with COVID-19 compared to non-COVID respiratory infections

Background: Recent reports suggested no adverse effects of antihypertensive medication including inhibitors of the renin-angiotensin system on outcome of patients with coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19). However, most of these studies lack adequate control groups, and regional and socio-economic differences may additionally affect clinical course and outcome of COVID-19. Methods: In the prospective observational cohort COrona VIrus surviVAl (COVIVA) study at our university hospital, we consecutively enrolled patients presenting to the emergency department with symptoms suggestive of COVID-19 between March and June 2020. Patients tested positive for COVID-19 (cases) were compared with patients tested negative, who had a respiratory infection (respiratory control). Primary outcome measure was the composite of ICU admission, 3'-day mortality or rehospitalization for respiratory symptoms. Results: The final analysis consisted of 191 patients with COVID-19 and 323 respiratory controls. Sixty cases (31.4%) and 87 (26.9%) respiratory control patients were on ACE inhibitors (ACE-I) or angiotensin II receptor blockers (ARB). In unadjusted models the hazard ratio [95% CI] for the composite outcome for patients on ACE-I/ARBs was 2.36 [1.34;4.16], p=0.003 and 2.05 [1.03;4.09], p=0.04 among patients with COVID-19 and respiratory controls, respectively. The corresponding multivariable adjusted HRs were 1.32 [0.68;2.55], p=0.41 and 1.20 [0.58;2.48], p=0.62. Furthermore, we did not observe an increased risk for the outcome when assessing ACE-Is and ARBs separately or other antihypertensive agents, both in COVID-19 patients and respiratory controls (Table). Conclusions: In a Swiss cohort of patients with COVID-19 or non-COVID respiratory controls treatment with ACE-I/ARBs or other antihypertensive medication was not associated with adverse events after accounting for comorbidities and risk factors.

Novel generation of real world evidence through MSGo, a digital support program supporting the use of siponimod in secondary progressive multiple sclerosis patients in Australia

Introduction: Siponimod is approved in Australia for adults with secondary progressive multiple sclerosis (SPMS). Initiating siponimod involves prescreening tests, including a CYP2C9 genotype test to determine siponimod maintenance dosing. Furthermore, patients undergo a 6-day titration prior to the maintenance phase. To support onboarding, an integrated digital platform, 'MSGo', has been developed by Novartis and RxMx® for Healthcare Professionals and their multiple sclerosis patients. Objective: Data derived exclusively from MSGo will be utilised to characterise the onboarding experience of siponimod patients in Australia. Aims: To provide real world evidence on siponimod for SPMS patients in Australia. Methods: The study will enrol 500 adults with SPMS registered in MSGo for siponimod treatment in Australia. The primary endpoint is the average time for onboarding with key secondary endpoints addressing adherence and the variables that influence onboarding and adherence. Results: As of April 19th, 2021, 211 patients have enrolled in the RWE study, with baseline patient characteristics revealing more females than males (70% vs 30%) and a median age range of 51-60 years. A total of 88 patients proceeded to at least the first titration dose;75 with at least one day of maintenance. Mixturecure modelling estimated a median time to initiation of 53 days in the predicted population of patients who will ever initiate on siponimod. Univariate Cox regression analyses demonstrated that patients who nominated a care partner at registration (n=27, 13%) appeared more likely to initiate siponimod earlier (p=0.017). A total of 163 CYP2C9 genotype assessments were performed through MSGo and the median time to receiving results from registration was 21 days (95% CI: 18 to 28 days). Of these, 87 patients had their maintenance dose selected in MSGo, with all but one patient having the recommended maintenance dose selected: 2 mg for CYP2C9∗1∗1 (n=58), ∗1∗2 (n=13), ∗2∗2 (n=1) and 1 mg for ∗1∗3 (n=10) and ∗2∗3 (n=4). 1 mg maintenance was selected for a patient with a rare ∗1∗5 genotype which currently has no dose recommendation. A total of 7 patients unenrolled from MSGo prior to siponimod initiation whilst 10 patients ceased after siponimod initiation. Conclusions: These interim results provide early insights into the siponimod onboarding experience for SPMS patients in Australia and demonstrate the utility of MSGo during a period challenged by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Narrative plots for regulatory, distributive, and redistributive policies

The Narrative Policy Framework (NPF) has ignited a remarkably active research community, one of its main contributions being distinct narrative elements-including settings, characters, and plots. Yet, while the plot constitutes a core element of narrativity, it has received less attention vis-a-vis other narrative components. Existing classifications of plots have been proven to possess a great ability to capture "universal" policy stories, but not the specific variations of different types of policies. This article presents a typology of plots by linking their universal and policy-specific themes, thereby theorizing from Lowi's seminal typology of regulatory, distributive, and redistributive policies. Empirically, it focuses on the political communication of Germany's policy responses to the COVID-19 pandemic. Policy narratives were mined from Twitter and from governmental press conferences (March-June 2020). The qualitative NPF analysis demonstrates that the identified plots-restricting-to-control, liberating-to-promote, providing-to-promote, giving-to-give, and giving-to-promote-can grasp different regulatory, distributive, and redistributive policies as well as their variety.

Failure to Perceive Change: From Neurons to Social Networks

Humans are fundamentally bad at perceiving change which is not expected to be present based on prior experience of the organism. Change blindness and inattentional blindness are striking such examples of failure to notice changes in a visual scene. This has been observed in other sensory systems including auditory and somatosensory. In conditions of crisis, whether it is a global crisis such as the COVID-19 pandemic or a local crisis such as Hurricane Katrina, profound changes in structure and function of previously static environmental elements occur and trickle down to each neighborhood, street corner, and individual person’s life. In such conditions of flux and instability, susceptibility to micro-perceptual failures such as change and inattentional blindness may be heightened. These phenomena occur at millisecond to seconds time scale, at the level of initial sensations and first level perceptions, however are linked to multimodal associative brain-wide processes. Here we review the evidence for, and develop a line of argument that following propositions hold true in conditions of crisis: (1) Frequency of change blindness events and related failures of micro-perceptions may be higher;(2) accumulation of micro-perceptual failures of a single sensory system such as vision can impact complex cognitive processes such as reasoning, reality-based belief, and judgment occurring over longer time scales and brain-wide networks;and (3) same failures of micro-perceptions across individuals in a population may have impact on faulty consensus assessments of reality of situation and missed opportunities for solution building on group or collective level. © 2021, The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Switzerland AG part of Springer Nature.

Social investment in an age of austerity: A comparison of family policy reforms in four European countries

The focus of this article is on family policy reforms in four European countries – Austria, Finland, Portugal, and Slovenia – between 2008 and 2015. These years were marked by the ‘Great Recession’, and by the rise of the so-cial-investment perspective. Social investment is an umbrella concept, though, and it is also somewhat ambiguous. This article distinguishes between different social-investment variants, which emerge from a focus on its interaction with alternative social-policy perspectives, namely social protection and austeri-ty. We identify different variants along the degree of social-investment: from comprehensive, over crowding out, towards lean forms. While the empirical analysis highlights variation, it also shows how there is a specific crisis context, which may lead to ‘crowding out’ of other policy approaches and ‘leaner’ forms of social investment. This has led to strong cutbacks in family cash benefits, while public childcare and parental leaves have proved more resilient in the investigated countries. Those findings are revelatory in the current Covid-19 pandemic, where countries are entering a next, possibly larger economic crisis. © 2020, University of Zagreb, Faculty of Political Sciences. All rights reserved.

The IMEx coronavirus interactome: an evolving map of Coronaviridae-host molecular interactions.

The current coronavirus disease of 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV)-2, has spurred a wave of research of nearly unprecedented scale. Among the different strategies that are being used to understand the disease and develop effective treatments, the study of physical molecular interactions can provide fine-grained resolution of the mechanisms behind the virus biology and the human organism response. We present a curated dataset of physical molecular interactions focused on proteins from SARS-CoV-2, SARS-CoV-1 and other members of the Coronaviridae family that has been manually extracted by International Molecular Exchange (IMEx) Consortium curators. Currently, the dataset comprises over 4400 binarized interactions extracted from 151 publications. The dataset can be accessed in the standard formats recommended by the Proteomics Standards Initiative (HUPO-PSI) at the IntAct database website (https://www.ebi.ac.uk/intact) and will be continuously updated as research on COVID-19 progresses.

Childcare-policy responses in the COVID-19 pandemic: unpacking cross-country variation

From mid-March 2020, childcare services and schools were closed around the globe in the fight of the COVID-19 pandemic. This situation, unprecedented in the history of modern welfare states, brought striking cross-country differences in pandemic childcare-policy responses. They varied particularly in the re-opening phase–both in being more lenient or strict, and in being universal or selective. This article presents a conceptual framework that allows to unpack and classify variations in the design of immediate childcare-policy responses to COVID-19, which became (primarily) driven by public-health-related goals and therefore transverse existing conceptualisations. We argue that specific responses are resulting from a country-specific combination of pandemic prevention strategy (either focused on high-risk groups or the whole population), and childcare-related policy concerns (e.g. educational goals, or work-family reconciliation). The distinct childcare-policy responses are then developed, and empirically illustrated on the basis of data collected for 28 European countries. This provides a basis for future research into the cross-country variation of responses, as well as gender and social consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic. © 2020 European Sociological Association.

COVID-19, une approche polyphonique

Au moment où nous avons entendu les premiers rapports sur une nouvelle épidémie en Chine, peu d’entre nous ont imaginé le scénario qui est en train de se dérouler en Europe. Au début, c’était le problème d’un autre continent, de quelques épidémiologistes ou peut-être encore de l’OMS, mais pas le nôtre. En très peu de temps, cette vision a été radicalement bousculée. Nous sommes désormais touchés, tant au niveau privé que professionnel. La pandémie nous sidère. Nous, occidentaux, natifs de la seconde moitié du 20e siècle qui, à l’exception peut-être du VIH, n’avions jamais vécu de situation similaire. Pourtant, les épidémies sont un fléau commun, depuis ses débuts, à toute l’humanité. Le constat actuel est celui de notre vulnérabilité individuelle mais aussi nos ressources et nos forces collectives. Le pays est tous les soirs à ses fenêtres pour applaudir les héros de la lutte. Moins d’un an après juin 2019, force est de constater qu’il s’agit, pour beaucoup, d’héroïnes : infirmières, caissières, agentes de propreté, proches aidantes.