ABSTRACT
The new global eco-social and economic conditions, aggravated by extreme poverty, accelerated urbanization and intensification of populational mobility into disruptive ecological niches, have had a dramatic impact on the patterns of infectious disease emergence and transmission worldwide. These changing conditions, in spite of all alerts from scientists since the 1990s, have favored the emergence of pandemic or potentially pandemic diseases such as COVID-19 and their related variants. This scenario has been aggravated by the highly restricted global access to COVID-19 vaccine doses, with 75% of doses currently concentrated in just 10 developed countries and by the extremely low availability of the Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (IFA) restricted to few manufacturers, mainly in 2 countries: India and China. This extreme concentration has been intensified by bans and restrictions to vaccine exports by several countries (United States, European Union and India). In this chapter the authors alert on the dramatic consequences of this extreme concentration scenario, since universal access to vaccines is the only way to achieve herd immunity from immunization. They also alert that probably COVID-19 will persist in seasonal outbreaks, in the same way as Influenza, requiring annual immunizations for vaccine and vaccine redesign for new variants, which supports the crucial importance of universal access to vaccines. This need for vaccine development and redesign will require, besides innovation strategies, an exponential increase in funding and novel incentives for vaccine innovation and development ("patent pools” and awards), supported by technological transfer agreements to developing countries' manufacturers. We discuss SARS-CoV-2 variants and nucleic acid COVID-19 vaccine technologies, examining applied patents in the world and BRICS' countries applications. © 2023 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
ABSTRACT
Background. Brazillian authorities reported a total of 16.3 million cases and 454. 000 deaths during COVID-19 pandemic in Brazil by may 2021. It became necessary to educate healthcare professionals on diagnosis and treatment of the syndrome. Game based learning surfaced as an effective alternative, since it promotes critical thinking and problem solving skills. A team of Brazilian and Peruvian students, physicians, designers and programmers gathered to create a decision based computer game that simulates a hospital scenario and allows medical students to analise, make decisions and receive feedback. This work describes the creative process and showcase the initial version of the software. Methods. Professors and students of Medicine, Information Technology (IT), Design and Architecture from Brazil and Peru assembled a team in order to develop the computer game. Clinical cases were created by the medical students and professors, comprising medical procedures for the treatment and management of COVID 19, and a video game script was developed exploring gamification principles of challenge, objectivity, persistence, failure, reward and feedback. Algorithms (image 1) were created, under supervision of professors of Medicine, to define possible courses of action and outcomes (e.g. gain or loss of points, improvement or worsening of the patient). Students of Design created artistic elements, and IT students programmed with a game engine software. This fluxogram, written in portuguese, describes in detail all the possible courses of actions that can be exercised by the player. It is created by a team of Professors of Medicine and medical students, in accordance with evidence-based guidelines. Primarily, this document guides the programmers and designers throughout the development phase of the game. Results. Initially, an expandable minimum viable product was obtained. The game, visualized on image 2, consists in a non-playable character and a playable character (i.e. doctor), with a scenario and a dialogue script simulating a clinical examination of a COVID 19 patient. The player can interact with certain elements within the game, e.g. the computer and other characters, to retrieve test results or start dialogues with relevant information. Hospital scenario and dialogue window between doctor (player in black) and patient (non playable character) are displayer in the game engine software (Unity 2D). On the bottom half of the screen, the dialogue box allows the player to collect the patient's medical history. The player can interact with certain elements to obtain relevant information to make decision and progress in the game. Conclusion. The game allows medical students to practice diagnosis and treatment of COVID 19. Future versions will include assessment reports of player's actions, and a new score system will be implemented. New diseases will be incorporated in the gameplay to match the variety of scenarios offered by real hospitals and patients. Artificial intelligence will be employed to optimize gameplay, feedback and learning.
ABSTRACT
This research aims to analyze the degree of resilience of individual microentrepreneurs who work in the beauty industry in a city in Rio Grande do Norte during the COVID-19 pandemic. For methodological purposes, this study has a descriptive character of a quantitative nature. Virtual interviews were conducted through the WhatsApp app, in compliance with the recommendation of social isolation (WHO, 2020), with ten micro-entrepreneurs in the beauty industry in the city of Mossoro-RN. To understand the reports obtained, we used the technique of Analysis of Nuclei of Sense (ANS), adapted by Mendes (2007). As for the results of the data, new categories emerged associated with the dimensions of human resilience proposed by Perim et al. (2015). Based on the reports presented, in general, the interviewees showed low levels of human resilience. Thus, the study has managerial relevance when considering and analyzing this construct as a personality trait necessary to face moments of crisis and organizational competitiveness. In addition, there is the academic relevance of the research, since there were no studies on resilience of micro-entrepreneurs in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, making this a research gap.
ABSTRACT
A proposal for monitoring and evaluating the performance of Brazilian states against COVID-19 is presented, employing a set of non-linear growth functions. This is necessary given its unprecedented nature in the face of public policies known to Brazilian society in the 21st century. The daily data on the accumulated cases of the 27 Brazilian states were collected on the Ministry of Health of Brazil's website. As of 14-November-2020, the Richards, Weibull, Gompertz and logistic functions, respectively in order, are those that best explain the evolution of COVID-19 in Brazilian states. Moreover, it was identified, through a quadrants system, the States that are being more/less efficient in the short/long term. Thus, it is expected that this monitoring and evaluation framework will allow policy-makers to have a better view of the performance of the actions of Brazilian states in confronting COVID-19 over time.
ABSTRACT
The objective of this article is to analyze how the hotel management of Canoa Quebrada-CE is experiencing the context of the pandemic of the Covid-19. In view of this, we sought to understand the impact of the pandemic on the hotel business and to identify the actions adopted and / or planned by the organizations to adapt to the new scenario. This is a qualitative, descriptive research. To this end, interviews were conducted with eight representatives of the Canoa Quebrada-CE sector hotel. Based on Bardin's Content Analysis (2006), it was observed that managers are assuming little prospective behavior, reacting to the environment of uncertainty and loss of revenue only as a last resort and when forced to make strategic decisions. This study contributes to the analysis and discussion of an emerging theme, which represents a social and economic framework for the hotel sector and the world economy.