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Odlum A, James R, Mahieu A, Blanchet K, Altare C, Singh N, Spiegel P. Use of COVID-19 evidence in humanitarian settings: the need for dynamic guidance adapted to changing humanitarian crisis contexts. Confl Health 2021; 15:83. [PMID: 34798877 PMCID: PMC8602975 DOI: 10.1186/s13031-021-00418-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/14/2021] [Accepted: 10/29/2021] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND For humanitarian organisations to respond effectively to complex crises, they require access to up-to-date evidence-based guidance. The COVID-19 crisis has highlighted the importance of updating global guidance to context-specific and evolving needs in humanitarian settings. Our study aimed to understand the use of evidence-based guidance in humanitarian responses during COVID-19. Primary data collected during the rapidly evolving pandemic sheds new light on evidence-use processes in humanitarian response. METHODS We collected and analysed COVID-19 guidance documents, and conducted semi-structured interviews remotely with a variety of humanitarian organisations responding and adapting to the COVID-19 pandemic. We used the COVID-19 Humanitarian platform, a website established by three universities in March 2020, to solicit, collate and document these experiences and knowledge. RESULTS We analysed 131 guidance documents and conducted 80 interviews with humanitarian organisations, generating 61 published field experiences. Although COVID-19 guidance was quickly developed and disseminated in the initial phases of the crisis (from January to May 2020), updates or ongoing revision of the guidance has been limited. Interviews conducted between April and September 2020 showed that humanitarian organisations have responded to COVID-19 in innovative and context-specific ways, but have often had to adapt existing guidance to inform their operations in complex humanitarian settings. CONCLUSIONS Experiences from the field indicate that humanitarian organisations consulted guidance to respond and adapt to COVID-19, but whether referring to available guidance indicates evidence use depends on its accessibility, coherence, contextual relevance and trustworthiness. Feedback loops through online platforms like the COVID-19 Humanitarian platform that relay details of these evidence-use processes to global guidance setters could improve future humanitarian response.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alex Odlum
- Geneva Centre of Humanitarian Studies, Boulevard du Pont-d'Arve 28, 1205, Geneva, Switzerland.
| | - Rosemary James
- Geneva Centre of Humanitarian Studies, Boulevard du Pont-d'Arve 28, 1205, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Audrey Mahieu
- Geneva Centre of Humanitarian Studies, Boulevard du Pont-d'Arve 28, 1205, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Karl Blanchet
- Geneva Centre of Humanitarian Studies, Boulevard du Pont-d'Arve 28, 1205, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Chiara Altare
- Center for Humanitarian Health, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, USA
| | - Neha Singh
- Health in Humanitarian Crises Centre, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, UK
| | - Paul Spiegel
- Center for Humanitarian Health, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, USA
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2
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Al-Rawi A, Siddiqi M, Li X, Vandan N, Grepin K. A thematic analysis of Instagram's gendered memes on COVID-19. J Vis Commun Med 2021; 44:137-150. [PMID: 34278917 DOI: 10.1080/17453054.2021.1941808] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
Abstract
We investigate the gendered use of Instagram memes on COVID-19 using a mixed-analysis approach. We find that memes referencing women are mostly related to community support and healthcare, which often express gratitude for frontline workers, while the majority of memes on men refer to news and promotion as well as suffering due to the high death rates and other financial hardships. As for sexual and gender minorities, memes mostly mention community support similar to the case of the memes referencing women. We argue that internet memes offer insight into ongoing trends in the public's perceptions of pandemics, and they should be further examined because they often communicate vital information on gender groups and public health.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ahmed Al-Rawi
- School of Communication, Simon Fraser University, Schrum Science Centre-K 9653, Burnaby, BC, Canada
| | - Maliha Siddiqi
- School of Communication, Simon Fraser University, Schrum Science Centre-K 9653, Burnaby, BC, Canada
| | - Xiaosu Li
- School of Communication, Simon Fraser University, Schrum Science Centre-K 9653, Burnaby, BC, Canada
| | - Nimisha Vandan
- School of Public Health, Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine, Hong Kong University, Hong Kong, Hong Kong
| | - Karen Grepin
- School of Public Health, Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine, Hong Kong University, Hong Kong, Hong Kong
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Marano G, Traversi G, Mazza M. Web-mediated Counseling Relationship in Support of the New Sexuality and Affectivity During the COVID-19 Epidemic: A Continuum Between Desire and Fear. ARCHIVES OF SEXUAL BEHAVIOR 2021; 50:753-755. [PMID: 33479805 PMCID: PMC7819627 DOI: 10.1007/s10508-020-01908-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/11/2020] [Revised: 12/07/2020] [Accepted: 12/11/2020] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Giuseppe Marano
- Institute of Psychiatry and Psychology, Department of Geriatrics, Neuroscience and Orthopedics, Fondazione Policlinico Universitario A. Gemelli IRCCS, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Largo A. Gemelli 8, 00136, Rome, Italy
- U.P. ASPIC Università Popolare del Counseling, Rome, Italy
| | | | - Marianna Mazza
- Institute of Psychiatry and Psychology, Department of Geriatrics, Neuroscience and Orthopedics, Fondazione Policlinico Universitario A. Gemelli IRCCS, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Largo A. Gemelli 8, 00136, Rome, Italy.
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Gaffey MF, Waldman RJ, Blanchet K, Amsalu R, Capobianco E, Ho LS, Khara T, Martinez Garcia D, Aboubaker S, Ashorn P, Spiegel PB, Black RE, Bhutta ZA. Delivering health and nutrition interventions for women and children in different conflict contexts: a framework for decision making on what, when, and how. Lancet 2021; 397:543-554. [PMID: 33503457 DOI: 10.1016/s0140-6736(21)00133-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/17/2019] [Revised: 07/06/2020] [Accepted: 10/01/2020] [Indexed: 01/07/2023]
Abstract
Existing global guidance for addressing women's and children's health and nutrition in humanitarian crises is not sufficiently contextualised for conflict settings specifically, reflecting the still-limited evidence that is available from such settings. As a preliminary step towards filling this guidance gap, we propose a conflict-specific framework that aims to guide decision makers focused on the health and nutrition of women and children affected by conflict to prioritise interventions that would address the major causes of mortality and morbidity among women and children in their particular settings and that could also be feasibly delivered in those settings. Assessing local needs, identifying relevant interventions from among those already recommended for humanitarian settings or universally, and assessing the contextual feasibility of delivery for each candidate intervention are key steps in the framework. We illustratively apply the proposed decision making framework to show what a framework-guided selection of priority interventions might look like in three hypothetical conflict contexts that differ in terms of levels of insecurity and patterns of population displacement. In doing so, we aim to catalyse further iteration and eventual field-testing of such a decision making framework by local, national, and international organisations and agencies involved in the humanitarian health response for women and children affected by conflict.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michelle F Gaffey
- Centre for Global Child Health, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Canada; Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
| | - Ronald J Waldman
- Milken Institute School of Public Health, George Washington University, Washington, DC, USA; Doctors of the World USA, New York, NY, USA
| | - Karl Blanchet
- The Geneva Centre of Humanitarian Studies, University of Geneva, The Graduate Institute, Geneva, Switzerland; Health in Humanitarian Crises Centre, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, London, UK
| | - Ribka Amsalu
- Save the Children, San Francisco, CA, USA; Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, USA
| | - Emanuele Capobianco
- International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Lara S Ho
- International Rescue Committee, Washington, DC, USA; Center for Humanitarian Health, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | | | - Daniel Martinez Garcia
- Women and Child Health Unit, Medical Department, Médecins Sans Frontières, Operational Centre Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
| | | | - Per Ashorn
- Center for Child Health Research, Faculty of Medicine and Health Technology, Tampere University, Tampere, Finland
| | - Paul B Spiegel
- Center for Humanitarian Health, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Robert E Black
- Institute for International Programs, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Zulfiqar A Bhutta
- Centre for Global Child Health, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Canada; Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada; Centre of Excellence in Women and Child Health and Institute for Global Health and Development, The Aga Khan University, Karachi, Pakistan.
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Amorim MMR, Souza ASR, Melo ASDO, Delgado AM, Florêncio ACMCDC, Oliveira TVD, Lira LCS, Sales LMDS, Souza GA, Melo BCPD, Morais Í, Katz L. COVID-19 and Pregnancy. REVISTA BRASILEIRA DE SAÚDE MATERNO INFANTIL 2021. [DOI: 10.1590/1806-9304202100s200002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
Abstract Objectives: reviewing the available literature on COVID-19 infection and the maternal and perinatal outcomes. Methods: this is a narrative review of the literature carried out from March to September 2020, usingthe MESH: coronavirus, Covid 19, SARS-CoV-2, pregnancy, gravidity, pregnancy complications and pregnancy complications infectius. All study designs, reviews, recommendations and technical notes were included, without distinction of language and that would bring the approach of the new coronavirus in the gestational and perinatal scenario. Results: the COVID-19 pandemic has had devastating effects, affecting millions of people and claiming almost a million lives worldwide. Initially, pregnant women were not seen as a risk group for the disease, however as the proportion of women affected during the pregnancy-puerperal cycle increased, several studies were published showing an increased risk of complications. Brazilian studies have also warned of a high number of maternal deaths, associated with the presence of comorbidities but, above all, with the social determinants of the disease and serious failures in care. Conclusion: the need for new studies with an adequate research design was observed, as many studies are only letters or small series of cases, in addition expert recommendations, without the necessary scientific rigor.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | - Leila Katz
- Instituto de Medicina Integral Prof. Fernando Figueira, Brasil
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Tang K, Gaoshan J, Ahonsi B, Ali M, Bonet M, Broutet N, Kara E, Kim C, Thorson A, Thwin SS. Sexual and reproductive health (SRH): a key issue in the emergency response to the coronavirus disease (COVID- 19) outbreak. Reprod Health 2020; 17:59. [PMID: 32326943 PMCID: PMC7179791 DOI: 10.1186/s12978-020-0900-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 69] [Impact Index Per Article: 17.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/16/2020] [Accepted: 03/25/2020] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
The novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak was first declared in China in December 2019, and WHO declared the pandemic on 11 March 2020. A fast-rising number of confirmed cases has been observed in all continents, with Europe at the epicentre of the outbreak at this moment.Sexual and reproductive health (SRH) and rights is a significant public health issue during the epidemics. The novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) is new to humans, and only limited scientific evidence is available to identify the impact of the disease COVID-19 on SRH, including clinical presentation and outcomes of the infection during pregnancy, or for persons with STI/HIV-related immunosuppression. Beyond the clinical scope of SRH, we should not neglect the impacts at the health system level and disruptions or interruptions in regular provision of SRH services, such as pre- and postnatal checks, safe abortion, contraception, HIV/AIDS and sexually transmitted infections. Furthermore, other aspects merit attention such as the potential increase of gender-based violence and domestic abuse, and effects of stigma and discrimination associated with COVID-19 and their effects on SRH clients and health care providers. Therefore, there is an urgent need for the scientific community to generate sound clinical, epidemiological, and psycho-social behavioral links between COVID-19 and SRH and rights outcomes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kun Tang
- School of Medicine, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China.
| | | | | | - Moazzam Ali
- UNDP/UNFPA/UNICEF/WHO/World Bank Special Programme of Research, Development and Research Training in Human Reproduction (HRP), Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Mercedes Bonet
- UNDP/UNFPA/UNICEF/WHO/World Bank Special Programme of Research, Development and Research Training in Human Reproduction (HRP), Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Nathalie Broutet
- UNDP/UNFPA/UNICEF/WHO/World Bank Special Programme of Research, Development and Research Training in Human Reproduction (HRP), Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Edna Kara
- UNDP/UNFPA/UNICEF/WHO/World Bank Special Programme of Research, Development and Research Training in Human Reproduction (HRP), Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Caron Kim
- UNDP/UNFPA/UNICEF/WHO/World Bank Special Programme of Research, Development and Research Training in Human Reproduction (HRP), Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Anna Thorson
- UNDP/UNFPA/UNICEF/WHO/World Bank Special Programme of Research, Development and Research Training in Human Reproduction (HRP), Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Soe Soe Thwin
- UNDP/UNFPA/UNICEF/WHO/World Bank Special Programme of Research, Development and Research Training in Human Reproduction (HRP), Geneva, Switzerland
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