Study the Effects of COVID-19 in Punjab, Pakistan using Space-time Scan Statistic for Policy Measures in Regional Agriculture and Food Supply Chain (preprint)

Food service and retailing sectors play a vital role in economics of Punjab, Pakistan. Pakistan is included in top 50 countries which are estimated to face serious agriculture and food deficiency related challenges due to the world-wide pandemic coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19). The aim of this study was to study the effects of COVID-19 on food security and agriculture in Punjab, Pakistan using space-time scan statistic (STSS). A survey was conducted at 720 points in different districts of the province. The STSS detected “active” and emerging clusters that are current at the end of our study aera – particularly 17 clusters were formed while adding the updated case data. ArcGIS 10.3 software was used to find relative risk (RR) values; the maximum RR value was found to be 42.19 and maximum observed cases 53265 during June 15th – July 1st. Due to the highest number of cases of COVID-19 and RR vales during July, mostly farmers faced many difficulties during the cultivation of cotton and rice. Mostly farmers (72%) observed increase in prices of inputs (fertilizers and pesticides) during lockdown. The timely results (attained through STSS and RR) can inform decision makers and public health officials about where to improve the allocation of resources (including those for farming community), also, where to apply stricter quarantines and travel bans. If the supply chain of agriculture related inputs is disturbed, farmers may find it quite difficult to access markets, which could result in a decline in production and sales of crops and livestock in study area. It is suggested that to protection of food security and to decrease the effect of the lockdown, Punjab government needs to review food policy as well as analyze how market forces will respond to the imbalanced storage facilities and capacity, supply and demand, and price control of products. The findings of this study can also help policy-makers to formulate an effective food security and agriculture adaptation strategy.

Prevalence of depression, anxiety and stress (By DASS 42 Scoring System) among the undergraduate students of Sahiwal Medical College

Objective: The purpose of this study is to observe the prevalence of depression, anxiety and stress among undergraduate MBBS students of Sahiwal Medical College Sahiwal stratified by their gender, class and residences. Study Design: Cross-sectional Survey. Setting: Sahiwal Medical College Sahiwal. Period: 15th March, 2020 to May 15, 2020. Material & Methods: A validated questionnaire was distributed through Whatsapp to different students of all the five MBBS classes. The online survey was done because of countrywide lockdown due to COVID-19 pandemic. Depression Anxiety and Stress Scale (DASS-42) accomplished by 209 students. Results: Depression, anxiety and stress levels of temperate to severe range were found in 48.30, 59.80 and 44.40% of our study group, respectively. Depression was more prevalent in male students (62.50%) while anxiety and stress totals were greater amongst female students (69.40% and 63.60% respectively). First- and final-year students had high prevalence of depression (71.00% and 72.40% respectively) and stress (64.50% and 72.40% respectively) while first year and 2nd year students were more prevalent with anxiety (77.40% and 79.60% respectively) then the others. Hostel residents were found to be high in depression (61.50%) while day scholars were having greater prevalence rates of anxiety and stress (70.40% each). Students who were pleased with their training had lesser depression, anxiety and stress scores than individuals who were not contented. Conclusions: The increased prevalence of depression, anxiety and stress signs amongst college students is disturbing. This displays the necessity for major and ancillary preventive actions, by the improvement of suitable and fitting support facilities for this group. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of Professional Medical Journal is the property of Professional Medical Journal and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)