ABSTRACT
This article seeks to systematically identify and model antecedents of entrepreneurial bootstrapping and bricolage to determine and interpret the relationships and hierarchy between them. Entrepreneurial bootstrapping and bricolage are key dynamic capabilities that help entrepreneurs access, accumulate and enhance resources to adapt to scarce business environments. The article employs a modified total interpretive structural modelling analysis to determine hierarchical inter-relationships between the antecedents and a Matrice d' Impacts Croises Multiplication Applique An Classment analysis to understand their driving and dependence powers. The results highlight that founder characteristics and human capital are placed at the lower levels, making them critical driving elements of the model along with environmental hostility and resource constraints. Entrepreneurial orientation, slack, external financial capital and entrepreneurial frugality are dependent variables, with social capital as a linkage variable. This study will guide entrepreneurs trying to implement resourcefulness behaviours to respond to the coronavirus disease-2019 crisis by prioritising driving antecedents to impact the dependent factors further. © 2023 Entrepreneurship Development Institute of India.
ABSTRACT
More than 6 million people have lost their lives due to COVID-19 across the world (Ghatkopar in Fake negative COVID-19 certificate scam unearthed, 2019, [2];WHO (World Health Organization) in https://covid19.who.int/table, [3]). Recently, fake COVID-19 test certificate scams have spiked up drastically and become one of the reasons for the spread of COVID-19. In light of the current scenario, this paper proposes a decentralized approach called, "D-Test” for COVID-19 testing which allows the hospital and the general public to register themselves at a common platform which follows the concept of CIA triad (Confidentiality, Integrity, and Availability) and allows users to register without any fear of data breach. This platform registers users based on smart contract and enables the user to do the following once registered successfully: (a) Book Testing Slot, (b) Find nearby registered testing laboratories, and c) Generate the COVID-19 reports which could be imported and exported as and when required by the user. This has a higher value of trust because the source of the report can be traced back since usage of Blockchain prevents the likelihood of data tampering by an entity. This framework could help the government(s) keep track of distributing authentic COVID-19 testing certificates, prevent the fake COVID-19 testing certificate scams, and will speed up the process of verifying the users' test reports, thereby saving lives of many citizens around the world. © 2023, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd.
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Ideological differences have had a large impact on individual and community response to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States. Early behavioral research during the pandemic showed that conservatives were less likely to adhere to health directives, which contradicts a body of work suggesting that conservative ideology emphasizes a rule abiding, loss aversion, and prevention focus. We reconcile this contradiction by analyzing semantic content of local press releases, federal press releases, and localized tweets during the first month of the government response to COVID-19 in the United States. Controlling for factors such as COVID-19 confirmed cases and deaths, local economic indicators, and more, we find that online expressions of fear in conservative areas lead to an increase in adherence to public health recommendations concerning COVID-19, and that expressions of fear in government press releases are a significant predictor of expressed fear on Twitter. © 2021 Association for Computational Linguistics.
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Background:The first case of COVID-19 was reported in India on 30th January 2020 with origin from China (PIB 2020, ‘https:// pib.gov.in/pressreleaseiframepage.aspx?prid=1601095’). As on 6th May 2020 the total cases reported in India are 35,043, with 8,889 recoveries and 1,147 deaths (https://www.mohfw.gov.in/ accessed on 6th may at 12:54 PM). However, the rate of infection is lower as compared to other countries. Since the Covid-19 pandemic started spreading in world outside China including India and large scale testing for Covid-19 became available, all the focus suddenly shifted to Covid-19. Other respiratory viruses, which were in existence for many years and testing and management of these infection was always standard of care, started getting neglected. Hence, we analysed the retrospective laboratory results from cases of acute respiratory infection, tested in the month of February 2020, when Covid-19 cases in India were close to negligible. This is to focus on need of testing for other respiratory viruses along with Covid-19 so that these infections can be managed as per standard protocol and do not get neglected in the wake of pandemic. Methods:The Virus research and diagnostic laboratory at Department of Microbiology, King George’s Medical University (VRDL) start- ed testing for Covid-19 on 3rd February 2020. This laboratory routinely tests all patients presenting as Severe Acute Respiratory Ill- ness (SARI) for 12 respiratory viruses including Influenza (Inf) A (both H1N1 and H3N2) and B, Adenovirus (ADV), Respiratory syntitial virus (RSV), Parainfluenza (Parainf) viruses 1, 2, 3 and 4, Measles virus (MEV), Bocavirus, Human metapneumo virus (HMPV) and Rhi- noviruses (Rhino). All patients presenting as Influenza like illness (ILI) are routinely tested for Influenza A and B viruses. If they test negative, other viruses are tested depending on clinical suspicion. The testing is routinely done as per methods described earlier (Singh A.K., Jain A., Jain B., Singh K.P., Dangi T., Mohan M. Viral aetiology of acute lower respiratory tract illness in hospitalised paedi- atric patients of a tertiary hospital: one year prospective study Indian J Med Microbial. 2014;32:13–18). Results:During February 2020, we tested 316 cases of SARI/ ILI for covid-19. None of them tested positive for Covid-19. Samples from these cases were also tested for other respiratory viruses as mentioned above. Total 10 (3.2%, 8 H1N1 (2.5%) and 2 H3N2 (0.6%)) samples tested positive for Influenza A, 2 each tested positive for Influenza B, HMPV and Adenoviruses. One sample each tested posi- tive for RSV and Rhinoviruses. Total 5 samples tested positive for parainfluenza viruses;3 for parainfluenza 1, and 1 each for parain- fluenza 1 and 4 Conclusions :( table). The positivity for covid-19 in India in pandemic time remains less than 4% (https://www.mohfw.gov.in/ ac- cessed on 06 May 2020, 08:00 IST), while the positivity for rest of the respiratory viruses as shown in present analysis is 7.3%. It is essential to see that infection with other respiratory viruses does not get neglected and add to the Covid-19 misery.
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Aim: Quantitative Assessment of Interleukin-6 and Ferritin Levels and its Clinical Correlation among COVID-19 Patients. Methods: The cross-sectional analytical study was conducted in the Department of Pathology, Darbhanga Medical College and Hospital, Darbhanga, Bihar, India for 1 year after taking the approval of the protocol review committee and Institutional Ethics Committee. 120 COVID-19 positive patients, diagnosed upon admission by RT-PCR of oropharyngeal swabs with or without respiratory symptoms were included in the study group. Results: Group A had 55 patients among which 7 patients were asymptomatic and 48 had mild symptoms with RR <24/m and SpO2 >94% in room air, the number of patients with co-morbidities like type 2 diabetes mellitus were 15, with hypertension and cardiac disorders were 10 and with respiratory disorders were 5 in Group A, Group B there were 30 patients among which 9 had mild symptoms and 21 patients had moderate symptoms with RR: 24-30/m (or) SpO2: 90%-94% at room air. The mean levels with standard deviation of Serum IL-6 and serum ferritin in Group A, Group B and Group C patients, respectively has depicted in. table 2. On pairwise comparison by Mann-Whitney U test among the groups it shows that the mean IL-6 levels are significantly different in all the three groups. Kruskal Wallis pairwise comparison shows IL-6 levels to be significantly increased in Group C (35) patients with severe disease compared to Group A and Group B patients with mild and moderate disease respectively (p-value <0.001). Serum Ferritin levels did not show any statistically significant difference among Group A, Group B and Group C;however, ferritin levels were markedly increased in Group C patients with severe disease (p-value=0.44). Conclusion: Serum IL-6 levels independently showed a good correlation with disease severity among COVID-19 patients, and serum ferritin levels was elevated only in severely symptomatic individuals with COVID-19 infections. Hence, Serum IL-6 could have a significant role in assessment of disease severity and Prognosis among COVID-19 patients.