ABSTRACT
Professional burnout is one of the significant factors affecting the productivity of the workforce. This has become more common during the COVID-19 pandemic due to the decrease in the psychological safety of employees. Working from home can also negatively affect work-life balance, leading to burnout. Undetected and untreated burnout leads to a decrease in worker productivity and eventually depression and other psychological problems. It is important to create and monitor working conditions to prevent professional burnout. Preventing burnout is always easier to achieve than treating the damaging symptoms. This paper will examine the factors contributing to professional burnout as well as some strategies for mitigating professional burnout. The article identifies the factors of occupational burnout after the COVID 19 pandemic based on the experiences of employees from Poland and the USA. The aim of the work is to indicate the first results of research in the field of occupational burnout, which are conducted on the basis of surveys. The questionnaire summary was prepared according to the model of research on burnout in relation to the pandemic situation. The presented results concern research for both production and service companies. And they are the basis for recognizing the factors responsible for occupational burnout for these employees.
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In this article, we examine dividends and share repurchases of S&P 1500 firms during the COVID-19 crisis characterized by the stock market crash and a relatively quick stock price recovery propelled by technology stocks. We find that the great majority of firms either maintain or increase the level of dividends during the crisis period. Yet, the relation between the dividend payout and reported earnings is negative and significant. This relation also holds for other types of payouts, including share repurchases and special dividends. Moreover, we find that both forecasted and realized earnings of up to 1 year into the future are negatively associated with current dividends, implying that existing payout policies are unsustainable in the longer term. Surprisingly, the difference-in-differences test shows that firms strongly affected by the COVID-19 crisis have higher dividend payouts (relative to net earnings) compared to unaffected firms. The same test indicates that strongly affected firms significantly reduce repurchases. © 2023 The Authors. Journal of Financial Research published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of The Southern Finance Association and the Southwestern Finance Association.
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Development of applications based on open API is becoming increasingly popular today. Innovative projects using these technologies provide new opportunities for real-time human health monitoring. Such opportunities are also implemented using Internet of Things (IoT), artificial intelligence (AI) and cloud computing technologies. In the study, we developed an application based on open APIs using smart gadgets and meteorological geographic information system in the process of generating a message about the dangers to human health associated with: the presence of pollen in the air (grass pollen, birch pollen and olive pollen) indicating the level of its concentration in the air;problems with air quality, if the air quality indicator exceeds the permissible standards. The addition of such functions expands the possibilities to provide timely information about potential risks and threats and, accordingly, is an "anthropo-geo-sensor-digital"prerequisite for effective decision-making, prevailing. The implementation of this IoT system has significant methodological and technological potential that can be used to improve the efficiency of Healthcare, both in extreme conditions and in conditions of sustainable existence. First of all, this is relevant during and after the COVID-19 pandemic. The system we have developed can also be seen as one of the ways to innovate in Healthcare, in the educational process in institutions of higher education and in further scientific research on this topic. Further research in this area may be related to data processing in Healthcare systems based on machine learning, deep learning. © 2023 Copyright for this paper by its authors.
ABSTRACT
Professional burnout is one of the significant factors affecting the productivity of the workforce. This has become more common during the COVID-19 pandemic due to the decrease in the psychological safety of employees. Working from home can also negatively affect work-life balance, leading to burnout. Undetected and untreated burnout leads to a decrease in worker productivity and eventually depression and other psychological problems. It is important to create and monitor working conditions to prevent professional burnout. Preventing burnout is always easier to achieve than treating the damaging symptoms. This paper will examine the factors contributing to professional burnout as well as some strategies for mitigating professional burnout. The article identifies the factors of occupational burnout after the COVID 19 pandemic based on the experiences of employees from Poland and the USA. The aim of the work is to indicate the first results of research in the field of occupational burnout, which are conducted on the basis of surveys. The questionnaire summary was prepared according to the model of research on burnout in relation to the pandemic situation. The presented results concern research for both production and service companies. And they are the basis for recognizing the factors responsible for occupational burnout for these employees. © 2022, Czestochowa University of Technology. All rights reserved.
ABSTRACT
Background: While the prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 has remained low among newborns, there is increasing evidence that the COVID-19 pandemic impacted healthcare for families with infants in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). However, little is known about the impact of COVID-19 on families with infants discharged from the NICU. During the initial pandemic shutdown, our Neonatal Follow-Up Program (NFP) transitioned to a virtual platform and implemented a survey about new/worsened obstacles families might be facing due to the pandemic as standard of care. We aimed to: 1) evaluate for patient-level differences in virtual neonatal follow-up visit rates;and 2) characterize the social impact of the pandemic on families followed via a large, urban NFP. Methods: All infants scheduled for NFP visits during our telemedicine epoch (March 13, 2020- July 31, 2020) were eligible for inclusion. We compared the family demographics and medical history of infants whose televisits occurred to those for whom televisits did not occur as scheduled. Secondly, we conducted a descriptive analysis of caregiver responses to the pandemic-specific challenges survey. Given the known disproportionate impact of SARS-CoV-2 on communities of color, we also assessed for differences in responses by self-identified race. Data was manually extracted by three coders from the electronic medical record who showed high interrater agreement. Results: After excluding visits cancelled by the provider team, we found 499 clinic encounters for 678 scheduled visits during the study period (i.e. a show-rate of 73.6%). When comparing patients who completed their virtual visit to those who did not, we found no differences in infants' sex, birthweight or gestational age at birth, nor in their reliance on medical technology at discharge. (Table 1). There were also no differences by caregiver self-reported race/ethnicity, but infants whose visits did not occur were more often covered by public insurance. (Table 1). In addition, 43.9% of caregivers reported that their employment had changed since the onset of the shutdown and 6.1% reported housing changes. (Table 2). Eight percent of families endorsed having trouble accessing at least one basic infant necessity (i.e. formula, diapers or medical supplies) due to cost issues and 10% of families endorsed having trouble accessing such necessities due to availability. Non-Hispanic Black caregivers reported this challenge and other infant food-related challenges more often than non-Hispanic White caregivers. Conclusion: We found socioeconomic disparities with respect to virtual follow-up visit rates after discharge from the NICU during the initial COVID-19 shutdown. In addition to navigating the discharge of their infant, families also reported pandemic-enhanced stressors related to difficulty accessing basic infant needs as well as employment and housing changes. Our study highlights the importance of proactive strategies to screen for and mitigate the unique economic vulnerabilities of families discharged from the NICU even beyond the pandemic. (Table Presented).
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Bitcoin market capitalization recently surpassed $1 trillion. While popular belief holds that a key characteristic of bitcoin is its excessive volatility, this article provides evidence that this is largely a misperception. We show that bitcoin return fluctuations are lower than those of roughly 900 stocks in the S&P1500 and 190 stocks in the S&P500. Moreover, we find that bitcoin is less volatile than commodities such as oil and silver, US Treasuries, AAA-rated corporate bonds, EU carbon credits, and some of the most popular technology and media stocks, including Apple, Twitter, and Netflix. Equally important, we find that during the March 2020 stock market crash triggered by COVID-19, the volatility of bitcoin was lower than that of most of these asset classes. The significant decline in bitcoin volatility over the past decade renders it more investable for conservative investors.
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Objective: Kinet o therapy is proposed as a method of nonpharmacological treatment of knee osteoarthritis (OA) by the EULAR and OARSI recommendations. Since the COVID-19 pandemic was declared by the WHO in March 2020, there have been different restrictions for outpatient rehabilitation clinics in the Republic of Moldova, from banning clinic visits, limited access, or the need for additional precautions for both patient safety and health professionals. This study aimed to assess the restrictions of the kinetotherapy rehabilitation program in patients with osteoarthritis during the pandemic Methods: We performed a qualitative study of patient attitude and the impact of COVID-19 restrictions on their rehabilitation program. The sample (n=28) consisted of patients with osteoarthritis that were admitted to outpatient rehabilitation facilities associated with University Rehabilitation Center. All patients underwent a standard kinetotherapy 10 D program between September 2020-March 2021. The patient's opinions were assessed in semi-structed interview by phone calls, after completing the kinetotherapy program. The qualitative findings of the impact of pandemic restrictions on patients with OA Results: In the study were included 28 patients (9 men and 19 women) The analysis revealed 9 areas concerning challenging reasons in patients with knee OA during the rehabilitation program: certain restrictions across the country determined by infection rate, fear for traveling in public transport or becoming infected during exercise program because they cannot keep a safe distance, high rate of abandon or poor adherence to kinetotherapeutic program due to patient infection or need to respect the self-isolation, preference of individual sessions rather than group sessions increased rate of telerehabilitation, challenges in elderly to use gadgets, post-COVID symptoms caused some limitation for the intensity of the program, increased communication needs of patients Conclusion: Kinetotherapy rehabilitation is an important part of the management of knee osteoarthritis, its realization in pandemic conditions determined several challenges, as brought challenges but also opportunities.
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This paper examines whether differences in the quality of investor protection between countries affect firm riskiness and firm performance during the COVID-19 economic downturn. Using a large cross-country dataset and a broad variety of controls measured at the state and firm level, we find that jurisdictions that offer stronger investor protection experience significantly lower volatility and better performance during the pandemic. This effect is amplified in countries strongly affected by COVID-19. Our results contribute to the ongoing debate in the finance literature about the impact of the quality of investor protection on corporate behaviour and performance.
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Aim. The purpose of the paper was to determine the type of concerns of pregnant women and women in childbed during the announced state of pandemic in the country. Material and methods. The study included a group of 102 women, including 87 (85.3%) pregnant women and 15 (14.7%) puerperal women. A self-written questionnaire containing 18 questions was used for the study. The comparison of the values of the qualitative variables in the groups was performed using the chi-square test or Fisher's exact test. The statistical analysis was performed in the R program, version 4.0.22. Results. In the study group, the respondents' greatest fear was childbirth without an accompanying person. A frequent cause of concern among the respondents was the limitation of follow-up visits to the doctor or midwife providing prenatal care. Limited physical activity during the pandemic also turned out to be a significant concern. Only 11.8% of the respondents did not feel any fear in their current pregnancy. Additionally, among the reasons for their concerns, the respondents mentioned, among others: fear of separation of mother and child after delivery, the need to care for an older child, no visits to specialists, fear of infection with SARS CoV-2 virus. Statistical analysis confirmed a significant correlation between the number of children already owned and the concerns of pregnant women regarding being resourceful in caring for themselves and their child after returning home. Conclusions. The duration of the pandemic is a significant stress factor for a pregnant woman. A significant group of female respondents was concerned about the deterioration of maternity care and infection with the virus during hospital stay. Therefore, the task of medical personnel is to provide mental support and educate patients. © 2021 Kinga Tułacz et al.
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(1) Background: In Italy, about one fourth of all schoolchildren experience a trauma to the permanent dentition. Management of avulsion trauma is challenging and requires adherence to clinical protocols. The aim of this study was to investigate the management knowledge of avulsed teeth among Italian dentists and to promote the guidelines' dissemination through the use of new social media. (2) Methods: The survey was carried out during the COVID-19 lockdown in Italy (March-May 2020). The questionnaire was sent anonymously to a total of 600 dentists. The questionnaire consisted of two parts. Part A-demographic and professional data and Part B-management of traumatic avulsion. (3) Results: The response rate was 50.6% and the mean fraction of correct responses was 0.524. Issues related to the therapeutic management of avulsed teeth were shown to be not well understood by the respondents. Professionals with qualifications in dentistry and those who declared to know the guidelines responded better, while other demographic and professional factors were insignificant. (4) Conclusions: Italian dentists' knowledge of the management of avulsion trauma should be improved. Educational programs and campaigns must be undertaken to improve their awareness and adherence to the Italian and international guidelines.