A Comparison of Retrieved Respiratory Viral load emitted by infected SARS-CoV-2 patients

Viral RNA in fine (< 5 µm) aerosols from 13 patients infected by the SARS-CoV-2 virus were obtained using the Gesundheit-II (G-II) equipment which collects respiratory emissions. The collection was performed in isolation wards of the National Centre for Infectious Diseases of Singapore under an approved protocol. The patients breathed normally for 30 minutes, talk, and sing for 15 minutes each (with 30 minutes rest in between activity) into a specially designed aerosol collector in two size fractions. The coarse fraction (> 5 µm) and the fine aerosols (< 5 µm) are subsequently collected and subjected to PCR analysis for their viral load quantification. Viral RNA detected from 59% of the patients showed that patients earlier in illness were more likely to emit detectable RNA, and loads differed significantly between breathing, talking, and singing. © 2022 17th International Conference on Indoor Air Quality and Climate, INDOOR AIR 2022. All rights reserved.

Media representations of China amid COVID-19: A corpus-assisted critical discourse analysis

Although there has been an increasing number of studies investigating media representations of the COVID-19 outbreak around the world, less international attention has been given to Chinese media outlets' coverage of the COVID-19 outbreak than that of their western counterparts. This study employs corpus-assisted critical discourse analysis to investigate how China is linguistically represented in a state-run English-language news media. The analysis reveals that China is respectively represented as a victim, a fighter, and a cooperative/supportive country with ideological implications for global solidarity and humanitarianism. This study sheds light on the effective use of discursive strategies in promoting international cooperation and building a national image amid a global health crisis. The value of using corpus-assisted critical discourse analysis to examine national image is also highlighted. © The Author(s) 2023.

FORMULATING A DISCOURSE OF SOLIDARITY AMID COVID-19: A positive discourse analysis of remarks given by spokespersons from China’s foreign ministry

Although in recent years, there has been an increasing number of studies shifting their focus from management function to social power and ideologies in the field of crisis communication, little research attention has been given to the discursive construction of solidarity as a response strategy. To fill this gap, this study employs positive discourse analysis to investigate the discourse of solidarity constructed by China’s foreign ministry spokespersons in 104 remarks amid the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. The findings show that the discourse of solidarity is formulated via three dominant discursive strategies: the use of metaphor, lexical reiteration, and indexicals and deontic modals. The discourse of solidarity constructed by the spokespersons has ideological implications for how collectivism and humanitarianism are applauded and practised in China. This study sheds light on the discursive construction of solidarity as a response strategy in promoting international cooperation and shaping a country’s national image at the time of a global health crisis. © 2023 selection and editorial matter, Fiona Rossette-Crake and Elvis Buckwalter;individual chapters, the contributors.

Offensive, hateful comment: A networked discourse practice of blame and petition for justice during COVID-19 on Chinese Weibo

Using data from user comments to the official social networking account of the Hubei Red Cross Foundation on a participatory web platform, this study attends to the offensive and hateful comments produced by ordinary Internet users to blame the elite authorities for their malfeasance in managing the donation during the COVID-19 in China. Drawing on Discursive Psychology, we focus on the rhetorical strategies that users employ to legitimise their actions as well-founded evidential blame against a norm-breaking act rather than radical extremist speech. The associated hatred among discussants are moral, social judgements. That said, hate speech also helps construct the moral standards of a normalised society.

ADAPTABLE ENGINEERING OF CELLULOSE-BASED VERTICAL FLOW ASSAYS FOR RAPID DIAGNOSTICS - THE CASE OF COVID-19

Paper microfluidics has had a rich history in medical diagnostics owing to their portability, low-cost and capacity for mass manufacture. While nitrocellulose has widespread use in commercial paper-based assays, shortages can become a bottleneck for deployment. Here, we seek to overcome this limitation by enabling swift and efficient production of cellulose-based paper assays with minimal substrate processing via protein engineering. We demonstrate good clinical and lab-based performance for both serological and antigen rapid tests and their compatibility with roll-to-roll mass manufacturing, which validates our proposed workflow for commercialization. © 2021 MicroTAS 2021 - 25th International Conference on Miniaturized Systems for Chemistry and Life Sciences. All rights reserved.

Assuaging COVID-19 Peritraumatic Distress Among Mental Health Clinicians: The Potential of Self-Care.

Undoubtedly, the 2019 novel coronavirus, also known as COVID-19, has put mental health clinicians under stress. Despite the promise of self-care in assuaging stress, very few, if any, studies have investigated the impact of self-care on stress among mental health professionals. This exploratory study examined COVID-19 related distress, self-care, and the predictive relationship between the two. Primary data were collected from a sample of mental health social work clinicians in one southeastern state (N = 1568). Results indicate that participants were experiencing mild peritraumatic distress associated with COVID-19. Participants who were married, identified as heterosexual or straight, financially stable, and in good physical/mental health were experiencing less distress than other mental health clinicians in the sample. Analyses revealed that higher self-care practices predict significantly less distress. Overall, data suggest that self-care can be integral to assuaging distress among mental health clinicians. This study offers insight into how to support mental health practitioners during COVID-19.

Assuaging COVID-19 Peritraumatic Distress Among Mental Health Clinicians: The Potential of Self-Care

Undoubtedly, the 2019 novel coronavirus, also known as COVID-19, has put mental health clinicians under stress. Despite the promise of self-care in assuaging stress, very few, if any, studies have investigated the impact of self-care on stress among mental health professionals. This exploratory study examined COVID-19 related distress, self-care, and the predictive relationship between the two. Primary data were collected from a sample of mental health social work clinicians in one southeastern state (N = 1568). Results indicate that participants were experiencing mild peritraumatic distress associated with COVID-19. Participants who were married, identified as heterosexual or straight, financially stable, and in good physical/mental health were experiencing less distress than other mental health clinicians in the sample. Analyses revealed that higher self-care practices predict significantly less distress. Overall, data suggest that self-care can be integral to assuaging distress among mental health clinicians. This study offers insight into how to support mental health practitioners during COVID-19.

Learning during the pandemic: Perspectives of medical students in Singapore

The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly disrupted medical education, particularly affecting clinical-year students. Educational institutions often had to halt, shorten or impose significant restrictions on their hospital rotations due to strict infection control and social-distancing guidelines implemented in tertiary healthcare institutions, as well as manpower and logistical constraints amid the pandemic. Thus, distance-based learning platforms such as online lectures and case-based teaching were increasingly adopted in place of bedside and face-to-face tutorials. While interactive virtual case-based discussions are generally useful in imparting clinical reasoning skills to medical students, they are unfortunately not able to fully replicate the experience of clerking, examining and managing real patients in the wards, which is a quintessential process towards building clinical acumen and attaining core clinical competencies. Therefore, for final year medical students who are preparing for their Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS) examinations, many are naturally concerned by how learning in this "new normal" may affect their ability to make the transition to become competent junior doctors. As such, we seek to share our learning experiences as the first batch of medical students to have completed our entire final year of clinical education amid the COVID-19 pandemic, and offer 4 practical suggestions to future batches of students on how to adapt and optimise clinical learning under these circumstances: actively engaging in virtual learning, making the most of every clinical encounter, learning how to construct peer teaching/practice sessions, and maintaining physical and psychological well-being.

Grieving in a Pandemic: How COVID-19 Has Impacted Bereavement for Family Caregivers of Hospice Cancer Patients (SCI948)

Objectives: 1. Analyze 1-4 aspects of bereavement that have been impacted by COVID-19 for family caregivers of advanced cancer hospice patients. 2. Evaluate the strategies implemented by family caregivers to overcome isolation and maintain connectedness during the Coronavirus pandemic. Research Objective: As Coronavirus has spread to the US, it has changed family caregivers’ hospice experiences including bereavement. Background: To examine the impact of a global pandemic on connectedness and isolation in bereavement among hospice family caregivers using automated phone diaries. Aim: We examined phone diaries of bereaved hospice family caregivers of cancer patients from a larger multi-site longitudinal study for COVID and non-COVID related references to isolation and connectedness. Methods: Participants were asked to complete daily phone diaries through an automated system from the time they consented to 6 months after the patient’s death. Recordings were selected between March 13 and May 15, 2020 from bereaved caregivers. Summative content analysis using deductive codes was conducted to examine diaries for physical/social isolation and connection. Isolation was defined as having no other person in close physical or social contact during bereavement, while connection was defined as feeling attached to others during bereavement. Results: Bereaved caregivers’ diaries (N=6;bereavement range=2-7 months) were analyzed. Each caregiver completed audio diaries over the bereavement period (range=1 to 42). Of the 59 diaries, 32 (54.24%) made reference to the coronavirus pandemic. Coronavirus references were mentioned by all 6 participants. COVID-related connection was identified 15 times (25.42%), while COVID-related isolation was identified 32 times (54.24%). Non-COVID related connection was identified 20 times (62.5%), while non-COVID related isolation was coded only twice (13.33%). Conclusions and implications: Findings from this study suggest COVID-related social isolation was integral to the bereavement experiences of family caregivers. However, despite the pandemic, caregivers expressed maintaining connectedness to others. This study has implications for hospice support services for bereaved caregivers during the pandemic.