Articles: coronavirus.
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When 2020 began, we had no idea what was to unfold globally as we learnt about the Novel-Coronavirus in Wuhan, in the Hubei province of China. As this virus spread rapidly, it became a matter of time before many countries began to implement measures to try and contain the spread of the disease. COVID-19 as it is referred to, resulted in two main approaches to fighting the viral pandemic, either through a progressive set of measures to slow down the number of identified cases designed to 'flatten the curve' over time (anticipated to be at least six months), or to attack it by the severest of measures including a total lock-down and/or herding exposure to fast track 'immunisation' while we await a vaccine. ⋯ The main restrictions, in addition to social distancing of at least 1.5 m, are closure of entry to Australia (except residents returning), and closure of non-essential venues such as night clubs, restaurants, mass attendee sporting events, churches, weddings, and all social gatherings in any circumstance. With some employers encouraging working from home and others requiring it, in addition to job losses, and many children attending school online from home, the implications on travel activity is extreme. We identify the initial impacts associated with the first month of stricter social distancing measures introduced in Australia.
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As the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic surged in New York City, the city's public hospital system, New York City Health + Hospitals, recognized that innovative technological solutions were needed to respond to the crisis. Our health system recently transitioned to a unified enterprisewide electronic medical record across all of our hospitals. This accelerated our ability to implement a series of technological solutions to the crisis. ⋯ We standardized patient workup using specialty-specific order sets, created dashboards to give insight into enterprisewide bed availability and facilitate transfers from the hardest-hit hospitals, and improved the patient experience by using tablets to connect patients with loved ones. The technology bridged divides between different hospital systems across New York City to encourage the sharing of data and improve patient care. By rapidly expanding its use of information technology, NYC Health + Hospitals was able to respond to the COVID-19 surge and is now better positioned to work in a more integrated fashion in the future.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study
Post-exposure prophylaxis or pre-emptive therapy for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2): study protocol for a pragmatic randomized-controlled trial.
The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) emerged in December 2019 causing the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic. Currently, there is a lack of evidence-based therapies to prevent COVID-19 following exposure to the virus, or to prevent worsening of symptoms following confirmed infection. We describe the design of a clinical trial of hydroxychloroquine for post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) and pre-emptive therapy (PET) for COVID-19. ⋯ These complementary randomized-controlled trials are innovatively designed and adequately powered to rapidly answer urgent questions regarding the effectiveness of hydroxychloroquine to reduce virus transmission and disease severity of COVID-19 during a pandemic. In-person participant follow-up will not be conducted to facilitate social distancing strategies and reduce risks of exposure to study personnel. Innovative trial approaches are needed to urgently assess therapeutic options to mitigate the global impact of this pandemic.