Assessment of COVID-19 Impact on Commercial Sex Workers in India: A Formative Research by Media Scanning.

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic restricted movement, closed businesses, and economic activities which disproportionately affected people globally. This pandemic has resurfaced the existing cracks in the societal set-up and has pushed the vulnerable and marginalized communities like migrant workers, people with disabilities, geriatric population, and commercial sex workers (CSWs) to an edge for their existence. Materials and Methods: Due to the paucity of peer-reviewed research publications on CSWs, formative research was conducted to identify the determinants and attributes of the challenges faced by CSWs during COVID-19 situation in India. Media scanning approach was used to collate literature from newspaper and magazine reporting, and peer-reviewed articles were referred from research-based search engines. Results: In total, 31 articles were included for content analysis and four domains of issues i.e., economic, social, psychological and health related challenged faced by them were identified which are supported with the verbatims of the community members as reported in the data sources considered for this study. It was identified that the CSWs adopted several protective measures and coping strategies to deal with the pandemic situation. Conclusion: This research highlighted that there is a need for further exploration of issues among CSWs by conducting studies among the communities. Furthermore, this paper provides a scope for future implementation research by identifying the key priorities and determinants of the challenges among the personal livelihood of CSWs in the country.

Assessment of Community Behavior and COVID-19 Transmission during Festivities in India: A Qualitative Synthesis through a Media Scanning Technique.

In India during the first wave of COVID-19 infection, the authorities were concerned about the advent of the festive season, which could lead to a surge in cases of SARS-CoV-2 infection. The present study attempted to assess the socio-behavioral aspects of COVID-appropriate behavior (CAB) at individual and community levels, and their impact on the transmission of COVID-19 during festivities in India. Media scanning was conducted to qualitatively assess CAB by analyzing 284 news reports from across India; quantitative data on COVID-19 daily cases from March 2020 to December 2020 were used to determine the trends of the adjusted test positivity (ATP) ratio for six cities. Peaks in ATP were observed in Chandigarh, Delhi-NCR in North India during and after Dussehra and Deepavali, and in Mumbai, in the west, after Navratri. Additionally, a surge in ATP was observed in Trivandrum after Onam and in Chennai around Deepavali in the south; meanwhile, in the eastern city of Kolkata, cases increased following Durga Puja. The major challenges were adherence to CAB viz. social distancing, hygiene, and compliance with the mask mandate. Microlevel CAB indicated relatively higher laxity in maintaining hand hygiene in all cities. Observations from the current study indicate that innovative community-driven initiatives during festivals in each geographical zone are key to the large-scale implementation of disease prevention measures.

Association between ambient air pollutants and meteorological factors with SARS-CoV-2 transmission and mortality in India: an exploratory study.

BACKGROUND: The Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic poses a serious public health concern worldwide. Certain regions of the globe were severely affected in terms of prevalence and mortality than other. Although the cause for this pattern is not clearly understood, lessons learned from previous epidemics and emerging evidences suggest the major role of ecological factors like ambient air pollutants (AAP) and meteorological parameters in increased COVID-19 incidence. The present study aimed to understand the impact of these factors on SARS-CoV-2 transmission and their associated mortality in major cities of India. METHODS: This study used secondary AAP, meteorological and COVID-19 data from official websites for the period January-November 2020, which were divided into Pre-lockdown (January-March 2020), Phase I (April to June 2020) and Phase II (July to November 2020) in India. After comprehensive screening, five major cities that includes 48 CPCB monitoring stations collecting daily data of ambient temperature, particulate matter PM2.5 and 10 were analysed. Spearman and Kendall's rank correlation test was performed to understand the association between SARS-CoV-2 transmission and AAP and, meteorological variables. Similarly, case fatality rate (CFR) was determined to compute the correlation between AAP and COVID-19 related morality. RESULTS: The level of air pollutants in major cities were significantly reduced during Phase I compared to Pre-lock down and increased upon Phase II in all the cities. During the Phase II in Delhi, the strong significant positive correlation was observed between the AAP and SARS-CoV-2 transmission. However, in Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Kolkata and Mumbai AAP levels were moderate and no correlation was noticed. The relation between AT and SARS-CoV-2 transmission was inconclusive as both positive and negative correlation observed. In addition, Delhi and Kolkata showed a positive association between long-term exposure to the AAP and COVID-19 CFR. CONCLUSION: Our findings support the hypothesis that the particulate matter upon exceeding the satisfactory level serves as an important cofactor in increasing the risk of SARS-CoV-2 transmission and related mortality. These findings would help public health experts to understand the SARS-CoV-2 transmission against ecological variables in India and provides supporting evidence to healthcare policymakers and government agencies for formulating strategies to combat the COVID-19.

Psychosocial impact of COVID-19 pandemic on healthcare workers in India & their perceptions on the way forward - A qualitative study.

Background & objectives: The healthcare system across the world has been overburdened due to the COVID-19 pandemic impacting healthcare workers (HCWs) in different ways. The present study provides an insight into the psychosocial challenges faced by the HCWs related to their work, family and personal well-being and the associated stigmas. Additionally, the coping mechanisms adopted by them and their perceptions on the interventions to address these challenges were also explored. Methods: A qualitative study was conducted between September and December 2020 through in-depth telephonic interviews using an interview guide among 111 HCWs who were involved in COVID-19 management across 10 States in India. Results: HCWs report major changes in work-life environment that included excessive workload with erratic timings accentuated with the extended duration of inconvenient personal protection equipment usage, periods of quarantine and long durations of separation from family. Family-related issues were manifold; the main challenge being separated from family, the challenge of caregiving, especially for females with infants and children, and fears around infecting family. Stigma from the community and peers fuelled by the fear of infection was manifested through avoidance and rejection. Coping strategies included peer, family support and the positive experiences manifested as appreciation and recognition for their contribution during the pandemic. Interpretation & conclusions: The study demonstrates the psychological burden of HCWs engaged with COVID-19 care services. The study findings point to need-based psychosocial interventions at the organizational, societal and individual levels. This includes a conducive working environment involving periodic evaluation of the HCW problems, rotation of workforce by engaging more staff, debunking of false information, community and HCW involvement in COVID sensitization to allay fears and prevent stigma associated with COVID-19 infection/transmission and finally need-based psychological support for them and their families.