Association between the level of concern for COVID-19 and information sources among college students (preprint)

Objective We administered an online survey to 185 college students to assess their level of concern, information sources, and mitigation strategies during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2021. Responses from only students enrolled in college during 2021 were analyzed. We sought to examine their level of concern as defined as utilization of protective measures and/or personal protective equipment and/or social distancing and/or following other public health recommendations from public health sources.  Results College students that participated in our survey used various sources to obtain information about COVID-19 that included social media and other sources (58.92%), followed by mainstream media (27.57%) and email from their university/college (13.51%). Students who learned about the pandemic from social media (65.94%) were concerned; however, only 23.19% and 10.87% of the participants that sourced information from mainstream media and their schools’ email, respectively, were concerned. Furthermore, students who received information from social media and other sources were three times more likely to be concerned about COVID-19 than students who received information from the university via email.

The WHO-TDR Dissemination and Implementation Massive Open Online Course (MOOC): Evaluation and Lessons Learned from Eight Low-and Middle-Income Countries. (preprint)

Introduction Non-communicable diseases (NCDs) are a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in low-and middle-income countries (LMICs). Despite this, a lack of funding, training and mentorship for NCD investigators in LMICs exists. In an effort to gain knowledge and skills to address these gaps, participants from the Global Research on Implementation and Translation Science (GRIT), a consortium of studies in eight LMICs and their networks, attended the dissemination and implementation (D&I) massive open online course (MOOC) developed by the Special Programme for Research and Training in Tropical Diseases at the World Health Organization to strengthen D&I capacity building. Here, we report on the feasibility of this MOOC, which was implemented during the SARS COVID-19 pandemic from April- November 2020.Methods Participants completed pre- and post- training questionnaires to assess self-reported D&I competencies, general research skills, and research mentor access and quality. D&I competencies were measured by use of a scale developed for a US-based training program, with change in competency scores assessed by paired t test. We used univariate statistics to analyze the data for all other outcomes.Results Of the 247 participants enrolled, 32 (13%) completed all MOOC components. D&I competency scores suggest improvement for those who had complete pre- and post-assessments. Trainee’s average score on the full competency scale improved 1.45 points (0-5 scale) from pre- to post-test; all four subscales also showed evidence of improvements. There were small but not significant increases in competencies for grant writing, proposal/ manuscript writing and presentations from pre- to post-test assessment. 40% of trainees reported access to a research mentor and 12% reported access to a D&I specific mentor. Participants reported barriers (e.g., unstable internet access and challenges due to COVID-19) and facilitators (e.g., topical interests, collaboration with colleagues) to completing the MOOC.ConclusionsAlthough COVID-19 affected program usage and completion, the MOOC was feasible and effective, showing that among LMIC participants completing the course, there was improvement in D&I competency scores. Recommendations for future D&I trainings in LMICs should include 1) adding more topic specific modules (i.e., NCD research, general research skills) for scalability; 2) fostering more collaboration with participants across LMICs; and 3) establishing partnerships with D&I mentors for course participants.