Individual and community preparedness to disasters and pandemics in Idaho Falls: A cross sectional analysis.

Communities form an integral component of disaster and pandemic preparedness. This study aimed to explore disaster/pandemic preparedness-with a special focus on coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)-at the household and community level among residents within 50 miles of Idaho Falls. A structured online survey questionnaire was distributed, resulting in 924 responses from participants over 18 years of age. The results highlighted that 29 and 10 percent of participants were not prepared to deal with disasters and pandemics, respectively. Most participants trusted healthcare professionals (61 percent) for information about COVID-19, followed by scientists (46 percent) and local health departments (26 percent). The overall preparedness to disasters/pandemics at the community level was 50 percent. Males, participants older than 35 years, and participants with paid employment had higher odds of being prepared for disasters, whereas higher education was associated with higher preparedness for pandemics. This study highlights the need for better household and community disaster and pandemic preparedness.

Worsening of the COVID-19 Pandemic in New York City: Analysis of Response Gaps and Challenges at the Public Policy and Community Levels.

This review was aimed to probe into factors that resulted in worsening of novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic in New York City, USA. Extensive review of available information sources, such as scientific literature, COVID-19 data generating websites, expert opinions as well as government briefings and simultaneous measures, were carried out to fulfil the objectives of this paper. Data was arranged in tabular form. Gaps in responding to the pandemic were identified. There was lack of proactivity in measures taken by governments which is due to neo-liberal capitalism on one hand and lack of coordination among three tiers of government on the other. Cosmopolitan features of the city also made it prone to devastating spread of pandemic. Crowded mega cities with incompetent governments in implementing timely public health measures for prevention of spread of COVID-19 are at potential threat of high disease spread across the globe. Keywords: New York City, COVID-19 pandemic, Response gaps, Metropolitan.

Pakistan's Health System Against COVID-19: Where Do Things Stand?

The national response of Pakistan's health system to COVID-19 was assessed by applying a framework of three distinct tiers. The first tier assessed politico-economic ecosystems: lockdown procedures, contact-screening, monetary/organisational arrangements for economically deprived groups, and travel restrictions. The second tier assessed intervention measures according to six building blocks of WHO: strategic vision highlighted by National Action Plan COVID-19, inadequacy and urban bias of healthcare professionals, expanded bed capacity, enhanced laboratory diagnostic capacity and financial assistance. The third tier of community participation revealed that the majority of the population was abiding by restrictions, but sporadic instances of orthodox religious gatherings were facilitating community spread. We recommend private health sector coordination with public facilities and call for deployment of non-practising health professionals. The neighborhood-warden-system should be introduced at the union council level with the help of community level volunteers to facilitate enforcement of quarantines and responding to emerging community needs. Key Words: COVID-19, Coronavirus disease 2019, Pakistan healthcare delivery.