Bridging the urban-rural gap: A qualitative examination of perceived access, barriers, risks and opportunities of children's digital learning during the COVID-19 pandemic

The COVID-19 pandemic has tremendously reshaped the landscape of education worldwide, shifting digital learning from a substitute to a possible necessity in a time of uncertainty. This study explored the digital learning experience for children in China during and after the lockdown periods from February 2020 to January 2022, with a particular focus on the urban-rural divide. Forty-eight semi-structured interviews were conducted with fifth- and sixth-grade students, parents and teachers to obtain multiple perspectives regarding children's digital learning in YY County in southwestern China. This study revealed that the urban-rural digital divide is not rooted in differences in minimal access to digital devices per se but rather in meaningful access to make full use of those devices for extended learning purposes. The major barriers that give rise to the digital divide include teachers' technology challenges, internet addiction among children and a lack of parental supervision of children's digital use. However, digital learning also offers an opportunity to address educational inequality. This study calls for empowering rural teachers and parents to better support children's digital needs and boost their digital learning experience. Well-designed virtual interventions, school- and community-based programmes and policy interventions are potential solutions to address the needs of rural teachers, parents and children.

Customized Luminescent Multiplexed Quick-Response Codes as Reliable Temperature Mobile Optical Sensors for eHealth and Internet of Things

The need to sense and track in real time through sustainable and multifunctional labels is exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, where the simultaneous measurement of body temperature and the fast tracking of people is required. One of the big challenges is to develop effective low-cost systems that can promote healthcare provision everywhere and for that, smarter and personalized Internet of things (IoT) devices are a pathway in large exploration, toward cost reduction and sustainability. Using the concept of color-multiplexed quick response (QR) codes, customized smart labels formed by two independent layers and smart location patterns provide simultaneous tracking and multiple synchronous temperature reading with maximum sensitivity values of 8.5% K-1 in the physiological temperature range, overwhelming the state-of-the-art optical sensor for healthcare services provided electronically via the internet (eHealth) and mobile sensors (mHealth).

Development of New Stroke Interprofessional Education (Stripe) E-Learning Platform

Background and Aims: The COVID-19 pandemic had affected traditional face-to-face learnings due to manpower shortage in frontline and safe management measures. Stroke patients with respiratory symptoms were also admitted to isolation wards instead of stroke unit. Isolation ward staff may not be familiar with post stroke care. Hence a stroke e-learning platform was developed to facilitate staff learning in the midst of chaos. Method(s): An e-learning platform was designed and developed, using a multi-disciplinary approach, to ensure optimal stroke care and learning opportunity were maintained. The content was developed based on healthcare professionals' and stroke survivors' learning needs across the stroke care continuum. This e-educational learning guide was published and shared with various stakeholders in multiple meeting platforms. The link can be easily accessible through mobile devices. Result(s): The e-learning platform consists of three domains. First domain was infographics development, which was a 1-page recent evidence on stroke care for busy healthcare professionals. Second domain was short voice-annotated presentations ranging from 10 to 15 minutes on stroke care across the continuum. Third domain consists of patient education materials, which includes rehabilitation short video and fact sheets for stroke survivors and caregivers. Many positive feedbacks were received Conclusion(s): This e-learning platform is useful for all healthcare professionals even in the new post-COVID normal era. There are plans to include more educational materials in the future.

Hyperacute Stroke Nursing Workshop in a New Norm: A Small Scale Pilot Hybrid Training Program

Background and Aims: The presence of a code stroke nurse has been demonstrated to reduce door-to-treatment time. Unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic have halted face-to-face training program, resulting in a hybrid training program development. The aim of this project was to explore the users' experience and effectiveness of a new hybrid program for hyperacute stroke nursing training. Method(s): This hybrid workshop was incorporated virtual learning platforms and traditional in-person learning. Pre-post self-assessment knowledge was evaluated using a 20 multiple choice questions (MCQs) and a 5-point Likert scale. A virtual Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE) was conducted as summative assessment. All faculty and participants completed the course evaluation. Result(s): Six neuroscience Advanced Practice Nurses with no prior experience in stroke activation participated in the training program. There was only a 10% increase in MCQ mean score. Feedback received for MCQs include having plausible distractors and difficult vocabulary. Five participants completed the virtual OSCE with mean score of 80%. Majority would prefer to have more clinical exposure. Overall, there was 39.4% increase of self-assessment on knowledge post workshop. Being able to conduct proper assessment and debrief in safe environment were key positive feedbacks. Conclusion(s): This hybrid workshop enhances nurses' knowledge in code stroke nursing training. Faculty will need to review and improve the MCQ construct. Clinical attachment extension would have created more opportunity to gain clinical knowledge and insight on the stroke activation processes. Overall, hybrid session on hyperacute stroke nursing training is feasible especially in this COVID-19 pandemic.

Apabetalone, a BET inhibitor, attenuates inflammation induced by viral RNA mimetic and reduces SARS-CoV-2 spike protein binding regardless of variants

Background/Introduction: Hyperinflammatory responses to SARS-CoV-2 can cause myocarditis and cardiac dysfunction including congestive heart failure [1]. SARS-CoV-2 RNA induces type I interferon (IFN-I), activating IFN regulatory factors (IRFs) and downstream IFN stimulated genes (ISGs) to initiate inflammatory processes. SARS-CoV-2 variants may develop immune escape, undercutting benefits of vaccinations. These challenges highlight the need of variant-independent therapies to improve COVID-19 outcomes. Apabetalone is an epigenetic BD2-selective BET inhibitor in phase 3 trials for cardiovascular disease [2]. Apabetalone has the potential to treat COVID-19. It counters inflammatory signals caused by cytokine storm (CS), preventing cardiac dysfunction associated with severe COVID-19 symptoms in cardiac organoids [3]. It also downregulates angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) expression, the main host cell receptor for SARS-CoV-2 spike protein thus impeding propagation of wild-type SARS-CoV-2 [3,4]. Purpose: 1) Evaluate apabetalone's effect on inflammatory processes induced by viral-RNA mimetic in human lung cells;2) Assess apabetalone's ability to prevent binding of the highly contagious delta variant spike protein to human lung cells. Methods: Inflammatory gene expression was examined by real-time PCR in apabetalone treated human bronchial epithelial cells (Calu-3) stimulated with poly I:C, a well-accepted viral RNA mimetic that elicits inflammatory signals similar to SARS-CoV-2 RNA [5]. Binding of SARS-CoV-2 delta or wild-type spike protein to apabetalone treated Calu-3 cells was determined by flow cytometry. Results: In Calu-3 cells, apabetalone dose-dependently downregulated poly I:C induced transcription of key COVID-19 associated cytokines (IL6, CXCL10, CCL2) to a similar extent as baricitinib (up to 86%, p<0.0001), an anti-inflammatory agent in emergency use for COVID-19 treatment. Moreover, apabetalone but not baricitinib diminished IL1B mRNA levels (up to 66%, p<0.0001). Apabetalone and baricitinib opposed poly I:C induced expression of IFNB1 (an IFN-I), IRF1 and IRF9 (upstream regulators) as well as IFIT1 and IFIT2 (downstream ISGs that regulate CXCL10 expression;up to 90%, p<0.0001). Clinically relevant doses of apabetalone did not alter expression of anti-viral IFITM2, an ISG that blocks SARS-CoV-2, particularly omicron, endosomal entry [6]. Therefore, apabetalone counters the expression of inflammatory factors with roles in CS and IFN-I signaling in response to poly I:C. Additionally, apabetalone reduced delta and wild-type spike protein binding to unstimulated Calu-3 cells (up to 72%, p<0.0001). Conclusions: Apabetalone's dual anti-viral and anti-inflammatory mechanism positions it as a variant-independent COVID-19 therapeutic. Together with an established safety profile from >2000 treatment-years with apabetalone, the data provide rationale for an ongoing clinical trial (NCT04894266) which includes analysis of cardiac damage. Funding Acknowledgement: Type of funding sources: Private company. Main funding source(s): Resverlogix Corp

Discussion on the Social Return after the Outbreak of COVID-19

After COVID-19, patients, medical workers and the whole society in COVID-19 were faced with the challenge of how to quickly return to normal life. Patients cured in COVID-19 would face mental or psychological barriers, or be discriminated against, or face problems such as overweight of local epidemic prevention policies. The front-line medical personnel experienced job burnout and a variety of mental and psychological disorders, with some even developing physical symptoms. During the epidemic, ordinary people were in a state of psychological stress, education, production and economic activities were affected, and the incidence of mental or psychological disorders increases. It was necessary to provide COVID-19 patients with mental health monitoring and counseling. Give professional guidance to front-line medical staff, arrange rotation reasonably, and pay attention to their mental health status. Local governments should strictly implement the national epidemic prevention system, formulate epidemic prevention policies with humanistic care, actively publicize epidemic related knowledge and safeguard the rights and interests of the people. © 2022, Editorial department of Chinese Medical Ethics. All rights reserved.

The effects of self-generated and other-generated eWOM in inoculating against misinformation

This study examines the effects of self-generated and other-generated electronic word-of-mouth communication (eWOM) in inoculating individuals against potential misinformation. A three-phase between-subject experiment (N = 543) was conducted to compare the persuasive effects of inoculation messages combined with different eWOM content (self-generated, other-generated, and inoculation only) over two health topics (Covid-19 vaccine and e-cigarette). The results show that exposure to inoculation messages did not significantly increase resistance to misinformation. But inoculation messages combined with other-generated eWOM helped the participants develop more negative attitudes toward alternative smoking immediately after exposure to the inoculation stimuli. The participants who wrote eWOM after exposure to inoculation messages were more resistant to the attack of misinformation in Phase 3. Self-generated and other-generated eWOM did not significantly differ in their persuasive effects in any phases. The findings extend the literature on the effects of WOM in the inoculation process and offer theoretical implications over inoculation theory in online contexts. The study provides empirical guidance on using inoculation messages to combat misinformation in social media. © 2022 Elsevier Ltd

Smart Optical Sensors for Internet of Things: integration of temperature monitoring and customized security physical unclonable functions

Nowadays, the Internet of Things (IoT) has an astonishingly societal impact in which healthcare services stand out. Amplified by the COVID-19 pandemic scenario, challenges include the development of authenticatable smart IoT devices with the ability to simultaneously track people and sense in real-time human body temperature aiming to infer a health condition in a contactless and remote way through user-friendly equipment such as a smartphone. Univocal smart labels based on quick response (QR) codes were designed and printed on medical substrates (protective masks and adhesive) using flexible organic-inorganic luminescent inks. Luminescence thermometry and physically unclonable functions (PUFs) are simultaneously combined allowing non-contact temperature detection, identification, and connection with the IoT environment through a smartphone. This is an intriguing example where luminescent inks based on organic-inorganic hybrids modified by lanthanide ions are used to fabricate a smart label that can sense temperature with remarkable figures of merit, including maximum thermal sensitivity of Sr=1.46 %K-1 and temperature uncertainty of dT=0.2 K, and accuracy, precision, and recall of 96.2%, 98.9%, and 85.7%, respectively. The methodology proposed is feasibly applied for the univocal identification and mobile optical temperature monitoring of individuals, allowing the control of the access to restricted areas and the information transfer to medical entities for post medical evaluation towards a new generation of mobile-assisted eHealth (mHealth). Author

Research on the Industrial Chain Reorganization of Taiwan Enterprises in Fujian by FNN Simulation

This paper analyzes the main problems and difficulties faced by the economy of our province after the COVID-19, and probes into the effective countermeasures to accelerate the improvement of our province's economy through many field investigations inside and outside the province. Team is the purpose of the investigation research in new outbreaks that Taiwanese traditional entity industry under the condition of shock, assist the governments at all levels to develop more ground gas industry guidance and the support policy, optimize the business environment, help in fujian and Taiwan companies survive, enables companies to seize the development opportunity of outbreak of the global crisis, bold reform, restructuring, transformation and upgrading and complete industry chain Embrace domestic demand market in mainland China and actively integrate into the new pattern of national double-cycle development;so that Taiwan enterprises can get better development in the mainland. This paper focuses on the Research on the industrial chain reorganization of Taiwan enterprises in Fujian after the impact of the epidemic. After thorough investigation and analysis, the research group put forward several feasible schemes. © 2021 IEEE.

Understanding China's resumption of work and production during the critical period of COVlD-19 based on multi-source data

Monitoring the resumption of work and production (RWP) is of great significance to the restoration of social order and the economy after the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) epidemic. In this study, the most critical period of epidemic prevention and control and economic recovery was divided into four phases according to the changes in emergency response levels during the epidemic in China, and based on VIIRS I-Band 375-m active fire data (VNP14IMG), NO2 tropospheric vertical column density (TVCD) data, and intracity travel intensity data, the density-based spatial clustering of applications with the noise logistic regression industrial heat source identification model, NO2 difference model, and urban relative recovery index were constructed to analyze work resumption at different phases. The results indicate that: (1) the production intensity of China's heat source enterprises decreased first and then exceeded the epidemic period compared with the same period in history. From phases 1 to 3, the heat source enterprise production intensity was lower than the same period in 2019 (the production intensities were 19,562.79, 22,462.57, and 38,466.89, respectively), and the reduction rates of production intensity were 27.5, 26.1, and 22.7%, respectively. In phase 4, enterprise production intensity achieved an increase of 7%. (2) The process of the RWP in China is closely related to NO2 TVCD. In the first three phases, significantly decreased emission sources of NO2 reduced the total value of NO2 by varying degrees in most provinces of the country. Correspondingly, in phase 4, the NO2 TVCD in some provinces recovered to the value of the same period in 2019, including typical industrial bases (Shandong, Hebei, Shanxi, etc.) and economically developed coastal areas (Jiangsu, Guangdong, Zhejiang, etc.). (3) In phase 3, the intracity travel intensity in all cities improved, and the city relative recovery index (RRI) rose across the board. In particular, the western cities were better than the eastern cities. Among them, the RRIs of most cities in southwest China (Sichuan, Yunnan) and northwest China (Gansu) were more than 90%. Notably, the recovery situation exhibited an obvious "siege phenomenon," and the recovery of core cities required a longer period. Overall, the sudden COVID-19 epidemic seriously affected the production of Chinese enterprises. However, benefitting from rapid and effective epidemic prevention and control measures, the resumption of work and production has been a success. Our study provides guidance for economic recovery strategies during post-pandemic stages.

Let's fight the infodemic: the third-person effect process of misinformation during public health emergencies

Purpose: Drawing on the third-person effect (TPE) theory and the theory of planned behavior (TPB) as a theoretical framework, the current study aims to explore the cognitive mechanisms behind how third-person perception (TPP) of misinformation about public health emergencies affects intention to engage in corrective actions via attitude, subjective norms and perceived behavioral control. Design/methodology/approach: A total of 1,063 participants in China were recruited via a professional survey company (Sojump) to complete an online national survey during the outbreak of coronavirus (COVID-19) in China. Structural equation modeling using Mplus 7.0 was used to address the research hypotheses. Findings: The results reveal that attention to online information about public health emergencies significantly predicted TPP. In addition, TPP positively influenced attitude and perceived behavioral control, which, in turn, positively encouraged individuals to take corrective actions to debunk online misinformation. However, TPP did not significantly influence subjective norms. A potential explanation is provided in the discussion section. Research limitations/implications: The research extends the TPE theory by providing empirical evidence for corrective actions and uncovers the underlying cognitive mechanism behind the TPE by exploring key variables of the TPB as mediating constructs. These are all significant theoretical contributions to the TPE and offer practical contributions to combating online misinformation. Originality/value: The research extends the TPE theory by providing empirical evidence for a novel behavioral outcome (i.e. corrective actions in response to misinformation) and uncovers the cognitive mechanism underlying the TPE by exploring key variables of the TPB as mediating constructs. These are all significant theoretical contributions to the TPE and offer practical contributions to combating online misinformation. © 2021, Emerald Publishing Limited.

Vulnerable migrants' access to healthcare in the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic in the UK.

OBJECTIVES: To understand the living conditions, changes in the service user profile, and needs of vulnerable migrants trying to access healthcare in the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic. STUDY DESIGN: Mixed methods study; using quantitative questionnaire data collected from migrant service users of Doctors of the World UK (DOTW UK) with qualitative data from free-text notes. METHODS: DOTW UK provides drop-in clinics to vulnerable migrants. Consultations switched to remote during the UK's first lockdown. We compared patient profile, well-being, healthcare access and reason for consultations of individuals attending the virtual clinic between March and September 2020 to those of the prepandemic periods between 2011 and 2018. RESULTS: During the pandemic, consultations dropped to under half of the prepandemic numbers, with the shift to remote consultations attracting more users outside of London. DOTW UK's user base changed to include a greater proportion of asylum seekers, younger adults (18-34) and individuals reporting good health. Socio-economic conditions and housing stability deteriorated for the majority of users. Those in the greatest need of healthcare appeared to be less able to access remote services. General practitioner (GP) registration remained the most common reason for contacting the virtual clinic with a lack of knowledge of the healthcare system being the main barrier to access. CONCLUSION: The shift to virtual consultations may have exacerbated existing inequalities in healthcare access for vulnerable migrants. Given that many clinical services continue to operate remotely, it is important to consider the impact such actions have on vulnerable migrants and find ways to support access.

The utility of pathelective.com as a curricular adjunct in laboratory medicine education

Introduction/Objective: PathElective.com was founded as a means of combating stagnating resident and medical student education due to halting of in-person educational activities during the COVID-19 pandemic. The site has since grown to be included in medical student and resident training programs at numerous institutions across the world, serving as a unique means of delivering highquality and trackable laboratory medicine education. Methods/Case Report: The PathElective website was developed using Squarespace, video lectures were recorded by each professor or sourced from openly available web resources incorporating virtual slides, reading assignments, or relevant podcasts at the course director's discretion. Monthly website traffic data were obtained through Squarespace analytics for the first 11 months of the website being available (May 1, 2020, to April 22, 2021). Geographic and source data were obtained through deidentified IP address analysis built-in to Squarespace analytics. Students who registered to take the online courses were assessed before and after interacting with the course materials using a dual form crossover quiz design to prevent memorization of questions and assess comprehension. Quiz data were all anonymous and improvement was determined using a paired t-test. Comparisons between courses were made via percentage improvements. Results (if a Case Study enter NA): Over the tracking period, PathElective.com received 352,012 page views, 73,550 visits, 33,225 unique visitors, and accrued 5,815 registered users. Most of the visitors (72.8%) arrived at the site via a direct URL input, 14.9% through a search engine, and 10.6% through social media. Most visitors were from the US (43.8%) or India (11.9%). With a total of 1598 test pairs being analyzed from all clinical pathology modules, the average increase in score was 14.4% (95%, CI=10.3- 18.6, p=0.0052). All courses experienced a statistically significant increase in scores except for Clinical Chemistry lesson 3.2 (7%, -1.8-15.9% CI, p=0.12). Courses were well received with a median satisfaction score was very satisfied in all six assessment categories. Conclusion: PathElective.com is a free and effective means of enhancing clinical pathology training in medical education. Students liked the online format, the quality of the lectures, and course faculty, and felt they could get help if needed. An area of improvement for this platform would be the interaction with students on social media.

FPGA-accelerated Agent-Based Simulation for COVID-19

Agent-based models (ABMs) can provide realistic dynamics for epidemics at the individual level so that users can observe and predict the spreading pattern and the effectiveness of intervention over time and space. This paper proposes an FPGA-based accelerator for agent-based epidemic modeling for COVID-19. The optimizations enabling the effective acceleration of the simulation procedure are presented. The key idea is to partition the calculation properly to decouple the on-chip resource usage from the population size. Also, an algorithmic adaptation is proposed to reduce the latency caused by conditional branches within loops. An experimental implementation on an Intel Arria 10 GX 10AX115S2F45I1SG FPGA running at 240MHz achieves 2.2 and 1.9 times speed-up respectively over a CPU reference using 10 cores on an Intel Xeon Gold 6230 CPU and a GPU reference on an Nvidia GeForce RTX 2080 Ti GPU.

Bromodomain and extraterminal (BET) protein inhibitor, apabetalone, reduces ACE2 expression and attenuates SARS-CoV-2 infection in vitro

Background/Introduction: SARS-CoV-2 causes life threatening COVID- 19 complications including acute coronary syndrome, venous thromboembolism, hyperinflammation and damage in multiple tissues. The SARSCoV- 2 spike protein binds cell surface receptors including angiotensinconverting enzyme 2 (ACE2) for entry into host cells to initiate infection. Host cell dipeptidyl peptidase-4 (DPP4 / CD26) is implicated as a cofactor in uptake. Recent evidence indicates expression of factors involved in SARS-CoV-2 uptake into host cells is regulated by BET proteins, epigenetic readers modulating gene expression. Apabetalone, the most clinically advanced BET inhibitor (BETi), is in phase 3 trials for cardiovascular disease (CVD) (a, b). In cultured human cardiomyocytes, apabetalone suppressed infection with SARS-CoV-2 and prevented dysfunction of cardiac organoids induced by the cytokine-storm that arises in patients with severe symptoms (c). However, anti-viral properties of apabetalone in other cell types are not known. Purpose: To examine effects of apabetalone on SARS-CoV-2 infection in cell culture via downregulated expression of cell surface receptors involved in viral entry. Cell systems used mimic initial sites of infection in the lung as well as cell types contributing to complications in late stages of infection. Methods: Gene expression was measured by real-time PCR, protein levels by immunoblot or flow cytometry, and binding of recombinant SARSCoV- 2 spike protein by flow cytometry. Infection with SARS-CoV-2 was determined in a BSL3 facility. Infectivity was quantified by determining levels of viral spike protein amongst total cells via imaging on an Operetta CLS. Results: In Calu-3, a human bronchial epithelial cell line, apabetalone dose-dependently downregulated ACE2 gene expression (up to 98%), reduced ACE2 protein levels (up to 84%) and diminished binding of SARSCoV- 2 spike protein (up to 77%, p<0.001 for all parameters). Further, apabetalone abolished infection of Calu-3 cells with live SARS-CoV-2, which was comparable to other antiviral agents. Apabetalone-driven ACE2 downregulation was also observed in extrapulmonary cell types including HepG2, Huh-7 or primary hepatocytes (up to 90%, p<0.001 for all cell types), and Vero E6, a monkey kidney epithelial cell line (up to 38%, p<0.05). DPP4/CD26, a potential cofactor for SARS-CoV-2 uptake, was also downregulated by apabetalone in Calu-3 cells (mRNA ∼65% and protein ∼40%, p<0.001), which may be synergistic with ACE2 reductions to impede SARS-CoV-2 infection. Conclusions: Apabetalone, an investigational drug for CVD, reduced cell surface receptors (ACE2 and DPP4) involved in SARS-CoV-2 uptake into host cells and dramatically attenuated SARS-CoV-2 infection/propagation in vitro. Our results suggest apabetalone can mitigate SARS-CoV-2 replication in multiple organs, which together with an established safety profile supports clinical evaluation of apabetalone to treat.

Evaluation and prediction of the status of COVID-19 epidemic prevention and control based on the SEIR+CAQmodel

This paper analyzes the spread of the COVID-19 epidemic in China, establishes a SEIR+CAQ epidemiologic model that classifies the diagnosed population into asymptomatic, mild, and severe, and considers the condition of an isolated population. First of all, we theoretically analyzed the key problems of the disease-free equilibrium, stability, and basic reproduction number of the model. Then, combined with the actual data, the development trend of the epidemic situation is simulated and compared, and the influence of some important parameters is discussed in the model evaluation part. Finally, based on the theoretical analysis and numerical simulation results, we forecast the future development of the COVID-19 epidemic and put forward some reasonable scientific suggestions for the government to formulate a future epidemic prevention policy. © World Scientific Publishing Company.

Diagnostic utility of chest CT scan for COVID-19, in the early stage of the pandemic in Brooklyn, New York

Background: Diagnosis of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in the early weeks of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic in New York City posed unique challenges. Due to inadequate testing availability and long turnaround times, decisions on which patients to isolate were problematic. With sensitivity comparable to reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), the absence of ground glass opacities (GGOs) on chest CT scan was useful to rule out COVID-19. We evaluated the specificity of chest CT scan findings for COVID-19 along with other clinical and laboratory findings. Methods: A retrospective chart review was done of 182 adult patients who were tested for SARS-CoV-2 by RT-PCR and underwent a chest CT scan while admitted to Maimonides Medical Center between March 1 to 23, 2020. Cases were defined as those with a positive RT-PCR result or who were treated for COVID-19. Negative cases were defined as those with negative RT-PCR and an alternative diagnosis confirmed by an ID physician. Beyond March 23, almost all newly admitted patients were isolated. Results: There were 111 COVID-19 positive and 71 COVID-19 negative patients. Of the COVID-19 patients, 61% were male and 39% female, 56% white, 20% Hispanic, 14% black, 9% Asian, 36% Jewish, 35% had diabetes mellitus (DM), 50% had hypertension and 42% had cardiovascular disease. Clinical symptoms, signs, and laboratory values for COVID-19 positive and negative groups were not significantly different. COVID-19 patients had significantly higher BMI (p = 0.001). On chest CT scan, bilateral or unilateral, peripheral distribution and lower lobar GGOs were over 80% specific for COVID-19. The frequency of GGOs was significantly higher when chest CT scans were done during the second week of illness compared to the first week (p = 0.0195). Jewish patients were associated with higher rates of death (p = 0.0475) and underlying DM was associated with higher rates of ARDS, AKI, intubation, ICU admission and death (p < 0.05) compared to other demographic and comorbid groups. Conclusion: Chest CT scan is an important component in the diagnostic process for patients with suspected COVID-19 infection, especially during the second week of symptoms. The findings may aid clinical decisions in the setting of a second surge of SARS-CoV-2.