Coronavirus: Why are Women Paying a Heavier Price?

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Women have shown better COVID-19 outcomes than men – in part thanks to an additional X chromosome and sex hormones like oestrogen, which provoke better immune responses to the virus that causes COVID-19. But any such advantage is reversed when it comes to the social and economic effects of the pandemic; here the brunt falls heaviest on women.

What has disproportionately affected women is insecurity and loss of employment because women tend to work in informal sectors with no financial protection or benefits. Data gathered by UN Women shows that of all healthcare workers infected with COVID-19 in Spain and Italy, 72 percent and 66 percent respectively were women.

Source: Coronavirus: Why are Women Paying a Heavier Price?

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    Three Lessons from the Global South on Combating the Pandemic

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    This article, by Dr Muhammad Musa of BRAC International, a Bangladesh-based NGO, states that top-down measures to curb the spread of the virus – dramatic steps like lockdowns and bans on large gatherings – pose an immediate threat to families in the poorest communities.

    He writes that the key to fixing this situation is community engagement and the involvement of local leaders.

    Source: Three Lessons from the Global South on Combating the Pandemic

      Views 779

      Talking to Community: Behavioural Change in the Age of COVID-19

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      Response to public health emergencies requires changes in regular behavioural patterns. Encouraging these changes requires coordination and an understanding of the culture and communities affected.

      This article, written by Pramudith D. Rupasinghe, describes experiences with Ebola and COVID-19 wherein behavior change was an integral part of working with communities to prevent infection, care for the sick, and learn about the disease in Sri Lanka and Liberia.

      Source: Talking to Community: Behavioural Change in the Age of COVID-19

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        What is the World Doing about COVID-19 Vaccine Acceptance?

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        Even before the COVID-19 crisis, the WHO declared vaccination hesitancy one of the Top 10 threats to global health in 2019.

        A vaccine will help prevent new infections, and more than that, it will help businesses and schools in hard-hit countries get back to normal. Vast amounts of money have been invested in finding a vaccine and media reports update us regularly on the progress of over 200 candidate vaccines under evaluation.This blog shares research on vaccine acceptance worldwide.

        Source: What is the World Doing about COVID-19 Vaccine Acceptance?

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          Who to Trust and How to Overcome COVID-19 Misinformation in Nigeria

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          In Nigeria, as in many countries, social media has allowed anyone to post COVID-19 misinformation as truth and fact, while misleading the public and, in some cases, causing real damage.

          This article reviews some of the major misinformation events in Nigeria during the pandemic and notes the steps being taken to correct that situation.

          Source: Who to Trust and How to Overcome COVID-19 Misinformation in Nigeria

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            COVID-19–Related Infodemic and Its Impact on Public Health: A Global Social Media Analysis

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            The authors of this article followed and examined COVID-19–related rumors, stigma, and conspiracy theories circulating on online platforms, including fact-checking agency websites, Facebook, Twitter, and online newspapers, and their impacts on public health.

            Information was extracted between December 31, 2019 and April 5, 2020, and descriptively analyzed. They performed a content analysis of the news articles to compare and contrast data collected from other sources, and identified 2,311 reports of rumors, stigma, and conspiracy theories in 25 languages from 87 countries. Claims were related to illness, transmission and mortality (24%), control measures (21%), treatment and cure (19%), cause of disease including the origin (15%), violence (1%), and miscellaneous (20%).

            Of the 2,276 reports for which text ratings were available, 1,856 claims were false (82%).

            Misinformation fueled by rumors, stigma, and conspiracy theories can have potentially serious implications on the individual and community if prioritized over evidence-based guidelines. Health agencies must track misinformation associated with the COVID-19 in real time, and engage local communities and government stakeholders to debunk misinformation.

            Source: COVID-19–Related Infodemic and Its Impact on Public Health: A Global Social Media Analysis

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              Immunizing the Public against Misinformation

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              Proliferating misinformation — even when the content is, in a best-case scenario, harmless — can have serious and even social and lethal health ramifications in the context of a global pandemic. In some countries, rumours about impending food scarcity prompted people to stockpile supplies early on in the epidemic and caused actual shortages.

              This article is an interview with Tim Nguyen whose team manages the Information Network for Epidemics (EPI-WIN), which is leading WHO work on managing infodemics.

              Source: Immunizing the Public against Misinformation

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                Teaching Senior Citizens to Spot Misinformation

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                This article explains that COVID-19 has made the topic of misinformation timely and urgent. Discerning reliable health information is especially a matter of life or death for older people who are more vulnerable to the virus, and showcases projects created to ameliorate the situation.

                Tips to spot misinformation and avoid sharing it include evaluating whether news is from a known media outlet; noting the publication date, who wrote the content, and whether the author is reputable; checking if a website has a .gov, .edu, .org or .com suffix; and if a website is selling a product.

                Source: Teaching Senior Citizens to Spot Misinformation

                  Views 588

                  Supporting your Child’s Mental Health as They Return to School during COVID-19

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                  The coronavirus outbreak has caused major disruptions to daily life and children are feeling these changes deeply. While the return to school will be not only welcome but exciting for many students, others will be feeling anxious or frightened. This article offers tips to help children navigate some of the complicated emotions they may be facing with going back to school.

                  Source: Supporting your Child’s Mental Health as They Return to School during COVID-19

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                    How Should Community Health Workers in Fragile Contexts be Supported: Qualitative Evidence from Sierra Leone, Liberia and Democratic Republic of Congo

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                    Community health workers (CHWs) are critical players in fragile settings, where staff shortages are particularly acute, health indicators are poor and progress towards Universal Health Coverage is slow. Like other health workers, CHWs need support to contribute effectively to health programmes and promote health equity.

                    Yet the evidence base of what kind of support works best is weak. The authors present evidence from three fragile settings—Sierra Leone, Liberia and Democratic Republic of Congo on managing CHWs, and synthesise recommendations for best approaches to support this critical cadre.

                    Source: How Should Community Health Workers in Fragile Contexts be Supported: Qualitative Evidence from Sierra Leone, Liberia and Democratic Republic of Congo

                      Views 795