Knowledge, attitude, and practice towards COVID-19 among students in Kirkuk Medical College, Iraq

On March 11, 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) designated the new coronavirus COVID-19 to be epidemic. Adherence to infection control methods is strongly affected by an individual's knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP). The study aimed to evaluate medical students' understanding, and attitudes toward COVID-19 at the Kirkuk Medical College in Iraq. From October 16 to October 26, 2020, a cross-sectional online study was conducted, among a sample of students in Kirkuk Medical College, one of the Iraqi governorates. A total of 214 students were included in this research, and the age varied between 20-25 years. The questionnaire was divided into demographic data, knowledge, attitudes, and practices, modified from an online questionnaire regarding COVID-19 previously used. Descriptive statistics and t-tests were conducted. Among the study sample (n=214), age ranged between 20-25 years, 72.9% were females, and 86.9% resided in urban areas. The learning questionnaire's total accuracy rate was 96.3%. 98.1% of the students know that the virus is spreading by respiratory droplets from infected individuals, 30.4% have a good attitude towards COVID-19, and 100% have good practice dodging crowded places and practicing appropriate hand hygiene. The majority of students are knowledgeable of disease transference prevention and good practices. Female gender and urban residency play a positive role in knowledge and practice in respect to COVID-19 but not in what concerns the attitude. It is recommended to continue health education programs to correct the negative attitude among students, especially those who reside in rural areas.Copyright © 2023, Codon Publications. All rights reserved.

Sources, diffusion and prediction in COVID-19 pandemic: lessons learned to face next health emergency.

Scholars and experts argue that future pandemics and/or epidemics are inevitable events, and the problem is not whether they will occur, but when a new health emergency will emerge. In this uncertain scenario, one of the most important questions is an accurate prevention, preparedness and prediction for the next pandemic. The main goal of this study is twofold: first, the clarification of sources and factors that may trigger pandemic threats; second, the examination of prediction models of on-going pandemics, showing pros and cons. Results, based on in-depth systematic review, show the vital role of environmental factors in the spread of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19), and many limitations of the epidemiologic models of prediction because of the complex interactions between the new viral agent SARS-CoV-2, environment and society that have generated variants and sub-variants with rapid transmission. The insights here are, whenever possible, to clarify these aspects associated with public health in order to provide lessons learned of health policy that may reduce risks of emergence and diffusion of new pandemics having negative societal impact.

Fiscal Policy in the COVID-19 Era1

This paper analyses the COVID recession and the large fiscal policy response by modelling scenarios using a macro-econometric model. The COVID recession mainly arose from lower household consumption of certain services under COVID social distancing. The fiscal response to compensate for income losses in those service industries meant that unemployment was around 2 percentage points lower for 3 years than otherwise would have been the case. However, there was over-compensation: for every $1 of income the private sector lost under COVID, fiscal policy provided $2 of compensation. Following the end of social distancing, the aftereffects of over-compensation and over-prolonged loose monetary policy are modelled to have generated excess demand that temporarily added up to 3 percentage points to the annual inflation rate. Also, three forms of over-compensation in the JobKeeper program that led the fiscal response created disincentive effects and inequities. The primary lesson for future pandemics is that fiscal policy should compensate, but not over-compensate, for income losses, both in aggregate and at the program level. The secondary lesson is that monetary policy needs to take more account of the stimulus already provided by the fiscal response, so that interest rates do not remain very low for too long. © 2023 The Authors. Economic Papers;A journal of applied economics and policy published by John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd on behalf of The Economic Society of Australia.

Professional Quality of Life and Fear of COVID-19 Moderated by Perceived Job Market Outlook: Predicting Registered Nurse Turnover Intentions in South Florida during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Background: The nursing shortage and the aging of the nursing workforce is a growing concern for health care institutions. Understanding nurses attitudes toward turnover intentions is a crucial step to develop effective policies and maintain nurse staffing continuity. Objective: This research aims to study the impact of the Professional Quality of Life and Fear of COVID-19 moderated by perceived Job Market Outlook on South Florida registered nurses by predicting turnover intentions. Methods: From March to August, 2021, 202 registered nurses from seven South Florida counties completed the self-reporting Professional Quality of Life, Fear of COVID-19, and perceptions of Job Market Outlook surveys when predicting turnover intentions in a quantitative nonexperimental predictive correlational design research study. Results: Results showed that in the professional quality of life, burnout significantly predicted (p <.001) registered nurses (n=202) turnover intentions during the COVID-19 pandemic. Secondary traumatic stress, compassion satisfaction and fear of COVID-19 did not significantly predict registered nurses' turnover intentions. Hierarchical regression analysis confirmed burnout is significantly more predictive than no model of turnover intentions accounting for more variance at 15.45% (p < .001). Perceived job market outlook did not moderate between the independent variables and the dependent variable turnover intentions. Conclusion: This research reveals the deleterious impact of burnout in the registered nurses' professional quality of life and turnover intentions warranting the need for health care institutions and nursing leadership to collaborate on the needs of the nursing workforce on a micro and macro level. © 2023 Barron et al.

Risk perception and coping strategies along with future outlook of Covid-19 among citizens of Rawalpindi and Islamabad, Pakistan

Objective: To determine the perception of risks and ways of coping with covid19 and to find the future outlook of covid19 from citizens of our area. Methodology: This quantitative cross-sectional survey was conducted in one week from Rawalpindi and Islamabad through online access and included 310 subjects. Data were collected using Likert score-based questionnaire using non probability convenient sampling technique. Both genders older than 18 years were recruited. Data were analyzed using SPSS 21. Result(s): Majority of the participants showed likely response regarding risk perception for being infected by Covid-19 and that Covid-19 was a global disaster. However, 34.5% showed unlikely response that Covid19 will become dangerous over time. The age group of 21 to 24 years mostly agreed that they will cope with it if Covid-19 outbreak will happen again in future. Conclusion(s): Majority of the participants showed likely response regarding risk perception for being infected by Covid-19 and they perceive that listening to the expert advice, changing of things in life, avoiding the public transport and washing hands frequently are the best coping strategies for Covid-19. Most responded that Covid-19 will end in near future and they can cope with it if it outbreaks again in future by practicing SOPs, and that they will be able to live a normal life in future.Copyright © 2023, Pakistan Medical Association. All rights reserved.

Review and outlook of global energy use under the impact of COVID-19.

By collecting and sorting the energy demand data of developing and developed countries, this paper makes a comprehensive analysis of their energy demand, including the change of energy demand and the change trend of energy load in various sectors. The survey scope of the article includes the overall change trend of energy supply, natural gas, oil, electricity, coal, renewable energy (such as wind energy, solar energy, geothermal energy, tidal energy, etc.), and the data change of global carbon dioxide emission. Besides, this paper selects a variety of energy sources for comprehensive analysis to analyze the existing change trend in chronological order. The analysis methods include data statistics of primary energy production and consumption, energy intensity analysis of gross domestic product (GDP), production, and demand balance of oil, natural gas, and coal, and study the trade balance between different types of energy in different countries and regions. The regions examined in this review include the organization for economic cooperation and development (OECD); the group of seven (G7); Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (BRICs); the European Union; Europe; North America; the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS); Asia; Latin America; the Pacific Ocean; the Middle East and Africa. By studying these data, we can make a better summary of the current energy use, so as to conveniently grasp the context of energy development and have a general understanding of the current energy structure. Therefore, individuals and policymakers in the fields of energy trade can think more deeply about the future situation and draw conclusions.

Sovereign credit ratings during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Using 603 sovereign rating actions by the three leading global rating agencies between January 2020 and March 2021, this paper shows that the severity of sovereign ratings actions is not directly affected by the intensity of the COVID-19 health crisis (proxied by case and mortality rates) but through a mechanism of its negative economic repercussions such as the economic outlook of a country and governments' response to the health crisis. Contrary to expectations, credit rating agencies pursued mostly a business-as-usual approach and reviewed sovereign ratings when they were due for regulatory purposes rather than in response to the rapid developments of the pandemic. Despite their limited reaction to the ongoing pandemic, sovereign rating news from S&P and Moody's still conveyed price-relevant information to the bond markets.

Research progress on circular RNA vaccines.

Owing to the success of linear mRNA coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccines, biopharmaceutical companies and research teams worldwide have attempted to develop more stable circular RNA (circRNA) vaccines and have achieved some preliminary results. This review aims to summarize key findings and important progress made in circRNA research, the in vivo metabolism and biological functions of circRNAs, and research progress and production process of circRNA vaccines. Further, considerations regarding the quality control of circRNA vaccines are highlighted herein, and the main challenges and problem-solving strategies in circRNA vaccine development and quality control are outlined to provide a reference for circRNA vaccine-related research.

Propelling steady growth and high-quality development through deeper reform and more comprehensive opening up: Outlook, policy simulations, and reform implementation-A summary of the Annual SUFE Macroeconomic Report (2021-2022)

China's economy underwent a steady recovery in 2021. Investment grew steadily with structural improvement. Exports and imports surged while trade surplus expanded. On the other hand, although labor market conditions improved, income distribution worsened, contributing to sluggish growth in consumption, whereas the gap between consumer price index and producer price index widened, and the profits of enterprises of different sizes diverged, which may go beyond how they are correlated with the locations of the enterprises in the chain of production and trade. While proper liquidity was maintained with prudent monetary policy, risk spillover rose in the financial system, particularly for small and medium-sized banks. Household and local government debts remained at relatively high levels, further dragging down growth in consumption and infrastructure investment. The "dual carbon" goals exerted downward pressure on near-term growth in trading off their long-term benefits. The economy also faced challenges in its external environment in the midst of the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic aboard, trade protectionism, and the readjustment of the global value chain. Moreover, excessive supervision and inadequate implementation disturbed China's economy, resulting in declined market vitality and confidence of market participants. Based on the Institute for Advanced Research-China Macroeconomic Model, the baseline real gross domestic product growth rate is projected to be 5.5% in 2022. Alternative scenario analyses and policy simulations are conducted, in addition to the benchmark forecast, to reflect the influences of various risks and possible favorable situations. The findings suggest that China should deepen reform and open up more comprehensively and initiatively, while special effort should be placed on providing accommodative policy and friendly public opinion environment, to facilitate steady growth and propel high-quality development. A comprehensive macroeconomic governance framework with Chinese characteristics must be developed from systems thinking, to resolve the various issues, internal and external, cyclical and secular, structural and institutional, in an all-inclusive and coherent manner.

Financial and economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on aquaculture in Türkiye and financial policy recommendations.

The public health measures implemented to reduce the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic have had unexpected consequences in a wide range of industries worldwide including aquaculture. The first case of COVID-19 was also reported in March 2020 in Türkiye. The present study aims to determine the financial and economic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the aquaculture in Türkiye by analyzing consolidated financial statements of the industry released by Central Bank of the Republic of Türkiye in September 2021. Within this context, the consolidated financial statements of 2020 were examined using ratio analysis, followed by a comparison of the ratios from 2009 to 2020. As a result of the study, it was determined that the Turkish aquaculture sector continued to grow, the net profit margin improving considerably by 871 % in 2020 compared to the previous year, and the year 2020 achieving the highest profitability performances in the recent 12-year period, despite the severe effects of the pandemic on several industries globally. However, the sector's high financial leverage, inability to produce sufficient revenue to pay its debts, and reliance on foreign manufacturing costs are all concerns that must be managed to maintain economic and financial sustainability. Considering these results, some policy practices related to financial stability are advised so that aquaculture stakeholders can have a stronger financial and economic structure in the face of random shocks such as the Covid-19 pandemic.

Impacts of COVID-19 on the economy and the transportation system in Germany

This chapter describes the impacts of four Covid-19 waves on the German economy and the transport system. Lockdown measures had a big impact in spring 2020 on controlling the first wave while they were less effective in the second and third waves in winter and spring 2020/21. Individual car traffic decreased in the first half of 2020 and recovered in the following months due to increased leisure traffic. Biking and walking are enjoying increased popularity. Aviation and public mass transport suffered from drastic losses of patronage and will have problems with achieving the pre-Covid levels in the forthcoming years. Freight transport on long distance was impacted moderately. Short distance freight transport for courier, express, and parcel services are booming because of the increased online business during the pandemic. The postpandemic development will be characterized by the changed preferences of people for public mass transport. Changing these preferences and restoring confidence in public transport is a main issue of transport policy in the intermediate- and long-term period following the pandemic.

The French official statistics strategy: Combining signaling data from various mobile network operators for documenting COVID-19 crisis effects on population movements and economic outlook

During the COVID-19 crisis, the French National institute of Statistics and Economic Studies (INSEE) used aggregated and anonymous counting indicators based on network signaling data of three of the four mobile network operators (MNOs) in France to measure the distribution of population over the territory during and after the lockdown and to enrich the toolbox of high-frequency economic indicators used to follow the economic situation. INSEE's strategy was to combine information coming from different MNOs together with the national population estimates it usually produces in order to get more reliable statistics and to measure uncertainty. This paper relates and situates this initiative within the long-term methodological collaborations between INSEE and different MNOs, and INSEE, Eurostat, and some other European national statistical institutes (NSIs). These collaborations aim at constructing experimental official statistics on the population present in a given place and at a given time, from mobile phone data (MPD). The COVID-19 initiative has confirmed that more methodological investments are needed to increase relevance of and trust in these data. We suggest this methodological work should be done in close collaboration between NSIs, MNOs, and research, to construct the most reliable statistical processes. This work requires exploiting raw data, so the research and statistical exemptions present in the general data protection regulation (GDPR) should be introduced as well in the new e-privacy regulation. We also raise the challenges of articulating commercial and public interest rationales and articulating transparency and commercial secrets requirements. Finally, it elaborates on the role NSIs can play in the MPD valorization ecosystem.

Does Gratitude Promote Resilience During a Pandemic? An Examination of Mental Health and Positivity at the Onset of COVID-19.

Researchers have emphasized the detrimental effects of COVID-19 on mental health, but less attention has been given to personal strengths promoting resilience during the pandemic. One strength might be gratitude, which supports wellbeing amidst adversity. A two-wave examination of 201 college students revealed anxiety symptom severity increased to a lesser extent from pre-COVID (January-March 2020) to onset-COVID (April 2020) among those who reported greater pre-COVID gratitude. A similar trend appeared for depression symptom severity. Gratitude was also correlated with less negative changes in outlook, greater positive changes in outlook, and endorsement of positive experiences resulting from COVID-19. Thematic analysis showed "strengthened interpersonal connections" and "more time" were the most commonly reported positive experiences. Overall findings suggest gratitude lessened mental health difficulties and fostered positivity at the onset of the pandemic, but more research is needed to determine whether gratitude and other strengths promote resilience as COVID-19 continues.

Factors Predicting Post-Traumatic Positive and Negative Psychological Changes Experienced by Nurses during a Pandemic COVID-19: A Cross-Sectional Study.

It is common knowledge that COVID-19 affects physiopathological changes in all systems of the human body. On the other hand, events related to the COVID-19 pandemic also have a significant impact on the social and mental sphere of human functioning. The aim of this study is to determine the relationship between selected sociodemographic variables and selected subjective cognitive resources, and the positive and negative perception of the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic in a group of nurses working in Poland. The computer-assisted web interviewing method was conducted between 1 and 15 May 2020. Participants were requested to complete the following questionnaires: The Changes in Outlook Questionnaire (CIOQ), The Impact Event Scale-Revised (IES-R), The Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MSPSS), The Safety Experience Questionnaire (SEQ), and The Meaning in Life Questionnaire (MLQ). Three-hundred and twenty fivenurses working all over Poland participated in the study. Their mean age was 39.18 ± 11.16 years. A higher average level was noted among the surveyed nurses in the Positive Change subscale (18.56 ± 4.04). In a multivariate model, taking into account both sociodemographic and cognitive variables, the level of perceived traumatic stress, the level of social support, a sense of security, reflection on safety and a sense of meaning and meaning in life were independent predictors of a positive perception of the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic. Those variables explained as much as 37% of the dependent variable, and the nature of the relationship was positive. While we are still a long way from understanding the full range of the long-term impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on mental health and psychosocial well-being, it is possible that in this challenging context there are many individual resources available to perceive the effects of the current pandemic positively. Therefore, they should be strengthened through the development and implementation of intervention programs to improve the mental state of nurses.

Food System Safety Simulation and Prediction

Food security refers to the state where everyone can stably get enough food. If the food system can meet our nutritional needs at different stages of life in an economical, easy and sustainable way, it can be defined that the food system is safe. People make plans to determine the long-term capabilities and direction of the food system. The 2020 COVID-19 pandemic and the outbreak of the locust plague in eastern Africa have dimmed the economic outlook. Therefore, the Ω model is established which uses the entropy method to quantify the survival or decline of a food system with biodiversity, self-sufficiency, and average dietary energy supply. It is well known that the current state of the food system pays more attention to efficiency and profit. The Ω model adds the influence of environment, diet, gender differences, wealth gap, and political factors on the sustainability and fairness of the food system to the existing food system. The comprehensive evaluation of these four aspects of the food system greatly optimizes the reliability and applicability of the model, and helps decision-makers accurately formulate relevant policies. At the same time, the Ω model evaluates the food systems of developed and developing countries. It selected an important indicator from the three aspects of environment, equity and eating habits for the autoregressive integrated moving average model time series analysis, and set a threshold for the establishment of a fairer and sustainable food system. © 2021 IEEE

The Global Economy during COVID-19 Pandemic: Realizations and Predictions

The COVID-19 crisis, which has been severely hitting the world economy for more than a year, has left the whole world to deal with first health, then economic, and lastly social problems. In that regard, the COVID-19 crisis has outpaced the 1929 Depression, which was the biggest contraction in the world economic history. This study discusses the macroeconomic effects of the COVID-19 outbreak on the global economy. In this context, we discuss the mechanisms by which a pandemic in the health field slows down the functioning of the economy. Then, we analyze the effects of the crisis on households. The effects of the pandemic are discussed in a group of countries that differ according to their level of development. Struggling with the COVID-19 crisis, all countries have intervened in the market through monetary and financial instruments. Countries’ monetary policy decisions affect other countries’ macroeconomic outlook. Therefore, in this study, the monetary and fiscal policy decisions taken by country groups during the pandemic are discussed according to their development levels. With the increasing spread of the pandemic, supply and demand shocks are seen within countries and thus economic contractions occur. Since this contraction influences all large and narrow scale businesses within a short period, the companies dismissed workers which resulted in an alarming increase in unemployment rates all over the world. With the weakening of international trade in this process, the world economy has experienced a recession that cannot be recovered for many years. © Peter Lang GmbH Internationaler Verlag der Wissenschaften Berlin 2021.

Effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on dentists' workforce confidence and workflow.

BACKGROUND: The COVID-19 pandemic has affected the US economy and workforce, including marked effects on small businesses. Researchers have evaluated workers' views of financial confidence and advancement, but there has been limited focus on the dental industry. METHODS: To extend investigations to dentistry, the authors used published scales and pretested questions to determine workforce confidence and workflow changes among dentists. Data were evaluated using descriptive and bivariate statistics. In the wake of the pandemic, surveys were distributed to the memberships of the American Dental Association and American Association of Orthodontists (n = 656). RESULTS: Dentists' top concern was increased cost of providing treatment (57.4%; 95% CI, 53.5% to 61.3%), associated with widely adopted workflow changes including reduced patient volumes (66.0%; 95% CI, 62.4% to 69.6%) and increased safety protocols and equipment (health screening: 75.5%; 95% CI, 72.2% to 78.8%; KN/N95 respirators: 76.7%; 95% CI, 73.5% to 80.0%). However, most respondents did not expect their personal or practice finances to be negatively affected after the pandemic, as only 18.5% (95% CI, 15.4% to 21.7%) predicted their practice's gross revenue would decrease. CONCLUSIONS: Dentists were optimistic in the wake of vaccinations and lifting restrictions. Most expected their finances and practice performance to remain the same or grow in the short term and expected long-term improvements postpandemic. PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS: Results suggest that despite shutdowns and workflow changes, dentists have rebounded financially and anticipate future growth.