ABSTRACT
Purpose: This is Part 1 of the two special issues on the topic, "School to work transition around the world – the effect of the pandemic recession.” The first part focuses on the determinants of the school-to-work transition (STWT) and the implications of the COVID-19 pandemic on the young worker and their response to uncertain labor market conditions. The second issue will explore the country-specific experiences around the globe in tackling the problem of a smooth STWT. The purpose of this introductory article is to elaborate on the transition of young workers in the labor market. Discussion on the status of various indicators of the youth labor market (unemployment, underemployment and not in employment, education and training [NEET]) is also integrated. The determining factors of school-to-work transition (STWT) and the role of technical and vocational institutions and universities are analyzed. Moreover, the impact of COVID-19 on the labor market is also evaluated. After the pandemic, there was a dreadful change in the job market;this study dives into those diverse factors and carves out the multiple impacts on youth unemployment. Design/methodology/approach: The study analyses relevant literature on STWT, NEET and COVID-19 implications for the labor market, based on the other papers in this special issue. Using the review method, the authors identified similar research articles and reports which helped in strengthening the study's argument. The primary focus of the study was on the smooth transition of young workers in the labor market and the impact of the pandemic on youth unemployment. Hence, literature supported the authors in giving the justifications from various economies and societies. Findings: The paper finds that youth worldwide have suffered from the repercussions of COVID-19, especially in their early career (STWT). Skill mismatch, underemployment, job losses, salary cut downs, health issues, vocational education importance, vulnerable employment, etc. were some of the significant impacts the authors identified by analyzing the various reports and papers. Furthermore, this paper also discusses the role of active labor market policies and hiring incentives for promoting youth employment. Social implications: The paper finds that the times ahead are challenging ones. There is a dearth of productive job opportunities due to slow economic growth. The unemployment rate among youth and adults is high, and labor markets have become more competitive. The young generation is now left with no choice but to upgrade and improve their skill set or some other expertise. On the one hand, technical and vocational education and training (TVET) and universities need to enhance their marketable knowledge and skills, and on the other hand, there is a need for active labor market policies to encourage their participation in the labor markets. Originality/value: This paper strongly contributes to highlighting the professional and societal hit backs faced due to the aftermath of COVID-19. The study summarizes the specific details of STWT and employment issues faced by youth in various parts of the world. © 2022, Emerald Publishing Limited.
ABSTRACT
Background: Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) has been reported in up to 15% ofgeneral population during and after the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. The pandemic has acted as a catalyst for the application of telemedicine in neurology. Objective(s): to evaluate the presence of PTSD symptoms as effect of the lockdown measures in people with MS (PwMS) using an e-health application specifically built for remote management of PwMS, SMcare2.0 application. Method(s): Between March 4, 2020 and July 5, 2020 (T0) PwMS who were using (n=290) the app were asked to fill in the Impact of Event Scale - Revised (IES-R) questionnaire to evaluate the presence of PTSD symptoms. The IES-R has 3 subscales: intrusion, hyperarousal, avoidance. The total IES-R score ranges from 0 to 88. A cut-off value of 33 of the total score was used to define the presence of PTSD symptoms (PTSD+). Only those PwMS who filled-in the questionnaire the first time were asked to answer again it when the lockdown measures were abolished (T1). Clinical and demographic data were extracted from the Italian MS register application and linked to the IES-R results. Baseline clinical characteristics of PwMS (classified on the basis of IES-R score) and the proportion of PTSD+, the subscales and the total score at T0 and T1 were compared. Result(s): During the lockdown 90 PwMS (31% response rate) completed the IES-R (62 F;mean (SD) age 40.1(1.0) years;median (IQR) EDSS score 2.3 (1-8);mean disease duration (SD) 10.7 (0.7)). Mean (SD) baseline subscales values were: intrusion 15.9 (7.1), hyperarousal 10.7 (5.0), avoidance 15.4 (6.7). Mean (SD) total IES-R score was 42.0 (17.0), 63 (70%) patients scored above 33 and were identified as having recently developed PTSD symptoms. No significant difference were found between PTSD+ and PTSD- patients in terms of age, EDSS and disease duration. At T1, when the lockdown measures were removed, the IES-R scores were significantly reduced in comparison to T0 scores (intrusion 8.6 (8.9), hyperarousal 6.0 (5.8), avoidance 8.4 (8.5), total score 4.8 (1.9), p<0.0001). The number of patients classified as PTSD+ was significantly reduced in comparison to T0 (16 (17.8%), p<0.0001). Conclusion(s): Our study demonstrated that PwMS during and after lockdown manifested post-traumatic stress symptoms. Furthermore, our results show how e-data collected can be useful in remotely monitoring patients and can be easily linked to clinical data collected by disease registries.
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Purpose: The choice of Southern Europe is partly based on the observation that the sample includes a number of countries whose economies faced more severe difficulties than elsewhere in Europe. Economically they were less able to absorb the economic shock posed by COVID-19. It is also partly based on the characteristics of the pandemic. A number of countries in the sample were amongst the earliest in Europe to be hit by the pandemic and a several were harder hit in terms of both morbidity and mortality. Design/methodology/approach: This study uses evidence from World Bank enterprise surveys of a sample of firms from six countries in Southern Europe. It examines the early evidence of the effects of COVID-19 on labour markets. The economic consequences potentially cover a wide range of issues. The focus of this study is on firm level evidence of the effect on labour. The evidence and the analysis are provided at a time when the pandemic is still in progress. The authors use both traditional regression analysis and IPWRA to assess the joint effect of loans versus government support on, firstly, the change in sales revenues and, secondly, the number of weeks that the firm would expect to survive with no sales revenues. Findings: The study suggests that, despite efforts to support firms and hoard labour, there is a prospect of a significant number of firm closures with a consequent loss of employment. Temporary firm closures also represent a substantial loss of labour weeks. These are partly related to a significant number of workers subject to furloughs. The empirical findings suggest that COVID-19 cases and deaths have directly affected firm sales but government containment measures, particularly closures, have more strongly affected firms. Losses of sales were unsurprisingly related to losses of employment. Remote working has contributed to sustaining employment but online business has not affected most sectors. Research limitations/implications: The future progress of COVID-19 and government containment measures is uncertain, and the full economic consequences will probably continue to emerge after the end of the pandemic. The full extent of the impact on labour will probably not be the first of these. There are obvious advantages in seeking to learn lessons from the early stages of the pandemic but there are also obvious constraints. The full economic consequences will take longer to emerge than the pandemic itself and the full consequences for employment will take longer to be evident than many other economic effects. Practical implications: Both temporary closures and furloughs impose costs that will be borne by firms, workers and government. The effects of COVID-19 on firms differ across sectors. Adverse effects tend to be higher in hospitality, non-essential retail and travel. That many firms lack the capacity to survive further temporary closures of a similar duration to those in the earlier stages emphasises that the support provided in the near future is of critical importance to control employment losses through permanent firm closures. A long-term perspective suggests neither permanent closure nor laying off workers may be the best response to a temporary crisis in demand. A stakeholder model of the firm would often suggest that it is not an optimal for the point of view of workers or the wider economy either. Both imply a preference for labour hoarding. Social implications: The most affected are sectors with a high proportion of female workers and, in consequence, most of the countries in the sample exhibit an early decline of the already lower than average share of women in employment. Originality/value: The data used have been recently released and this is the first analysis using the data to look at the consequence on firms employment decisions during the Pandemic. The case of Southern Europe is much understudied, though one of the most dramatic as to the consequences of the pandemic. From a methodological point of view, the authors use not only traditional regression analysis, but also the matching ap roach to identify the effect of different policy options on labour demand by firms. © 2021, Emerald Publishing Limited.
ABSTRACT
Introduction: The pandemic crisis accelerated the need for e-Care in the field of MS nursing management for people with multiple sclerosis (pwMS). Telehealth technologies is essential to deliver safe and effective care. We still don't have a qualitative and standardized e-care protocol to assure best practice for nursing remote assessment to improve the Quality of life (QoL) of pwMS. Objectives: Testing the Smcare2.0 App Performance based on the nursing assessment platform allowing patients to input relevant health information about self-care during the covid-19 period. Improving patient empowerment through the video guidelines posted by the nurse. Ensuring social distancing and improving QoL through remote nursing care. Materials and Methods: The SMcare2.0 is developed by the staff of the MS Center at the University of Bari, for an ECTRIMS MS nurse fellowship. We collected data on the use of the SMcare2.0 APP and compared them with the same period in the previous year. Using keywords, the main events managed by healthcare professionals (HCP) during the pandemic period were collected. We administered the Msqol-54 questionnaire before using the App and after one year. Results: From March 2020 to March 2021, 370 people (75%female, 97% RRMS, mean age 38.9 years) downloaded the app, using its services 107351 times. The last DMTs reported was: natalizumab (28%), fingolimod (16%), interferon-beta (24%), glatiramer acetate (10%), dimethyl fumarate (4%), ocrelizumab (14%), azathioprine (2%), and alemtuzumab (2%).The most frequently reported questions by the Nurses were: Disease-Modifying Drugs (DMDs) management (172 times), follow-up tests (MRI / blood exams, 166 times), Covid emergency (145 times), symptoms management (155 times), DMTs-related adverse events and therapy switch (40 times), medical certification (34 times), pregnancy (26 times). The Smcare2.0 APP was also used to perform teleconsultations. During the same period of the previous year, a total of 109 pwMS (70%female, 94% RRMS, mean age 37.8 years) installed the APP, using it 3919 times. Thanks to the MSqol-54, at a first evaluation of the data being processed, we found improvements of the QoL of pwMS. Discussions and Conclusions: During the Covid19 outbreak the use of the Smcare2.0 App allowed nurses to assure social distancing by providing nursing e-Care. Thanks to the Smcare2.0 APP we found a reduction of the barriers to collect the data that provide an objective and holistic view of a patient's clinical status. Thanks to the Smcare2.0 App we want to build an assessment tool that enables the aggregation of datasets traditionally employed in clinical trials. Furthermore, we want to create a standardized nursing e-care protocol. Finally at a first evaluation of the data collected with MSqol54 we found an improvement in the QoL of pwMS.