A systematic assessment on COVID-19 preparedness and transition strategy in Bangladesh

Local management of the COVID-19 pandemic in Norway: a longitudinal interview study of municipality chief medical officers

OBJECTIVE

To explore the experiences and views of Norwegian Municipality Chief Medical Officers (MCMOs) on preparedness, collaboration, and organization during the COVID-19 pandemic to gain insight into local crisis management of value for future pandemic responses.

DESIGN

Longitudinal qualitative interview study. We conducted semi-structured digital interviews with nine MCMOs working in different municipalities in Norway from September to December 2020. Five MCMOs were re-interviewed from January to April 2021. We used thematic analysis to analyze the data.

RESULTS

Through the analysis, three major themes were identified in the material; 1) The view of preparedness changed from being low-priority and dormant to the desire to strengthen preparedness as a permanent measure; 2) The nature of the pandemic forced a change in internal and external communication and collaboration for the MCMOs towards direct dialogue, teamwork and digital networking; 3) The pandemic changed the role and position of the MCMO within the municipal organization. Although most MCMOs were given a leading role in the municipal pandemic response, some MCMOs experienced that they were not positioned to fully exercise their intended role. In our material, de-authorization of the MCMO role seemed to coincide with the increasing size and organizational complexity of the municipality.

CONCLUSIONS

The Norwegian pandemic response and outcome have been regarded as successful internationally. Although the MCMOs managed to implement flexible and quick responses facilitated by teamwork, dialogue, and joint sensemaking, they also identified several challenges and shortcomings of the Norwegian pandemic preparedness requiring organizational and financial changes to sustain future health system resilience.

Monitoring and evaluation practices and operational research during public health emergencies in southeast Asia region (2012-2022) - a systematic review

This systematic review aimed to explore the monitoring and evaluation (M&E) and operational research (OR) practices during public health emergencies (PHE) in the southeast Asian region (SEAR) over the last decade. We searched electronic databases and grey literature sources for studies published between 2012 and 2022. The studies written in English were included, and a narrative synthesis was undertaken. A total of 29 studies were included in this review. Among these 25 studies documented M&E and four studies documented OR practices. The majority of the studies were from India and Bangladesh, with no evidence found from Sri Lanka, Bhutan, Myanmar, and Timor-Leste. M&E of surveillance programs were identified among which PHE due to COVID-19 was most prevalent. M&E was conducted in response to COVID-19, cholera, Nipah, Ebola, Candida auris, and hepatitis A. OR practice was minimal and reported from India and Indonesia. India conducted OR on COVID-19 and malaria, whereas Indonesia focused on COVID-19 and influenza. While most SEAR countries have mechanisms for conducting M&E, there is a noticeable limitation in OR practices. There is a compelling need to develop a standard framework for M&E. Additionally, enhancing private sector engagement is crucial for strengthening preparedness against PHE. Furthermore, there is a necessity to increase awareness about the importance of conducting M&E and OR during PHE.

Public opinion on COVID-19 pandemic in Bangladesh: Disruption to public lives and trust in government's immunisation performance

OBJECTIVES

The COVID-19 pandemic has stretched Bangladesh government's capability for disaster engagement. As normalcy is interrupted, people's confidence in the government in ending the crisis needs evaluation, especially considering the past vaccination successes in Bangladesh and growing worldwide vaccine hesitancy amidst the COVID-19 misinfodemic. This study assessed the level of public life disruption due to the pandemic at the micro-level and how much impact it had on people's trust in the government's capacity for successful national immunisation.

METHODS

Given the infectious nature of the pandemic, the study conducted an online survey of 2291 respondents, distributed proportionally across sex and income groups. We conducted bivariate analyses and fitted generalised linear models to assess disruption to respondents' lives, and their trust in the government's immunisation ability, which were measured using multiple parameters.

RESULTS

Nearly 50% of the respondents reported multifaceted disputations in their daily lives, with 90% suffering financially. Trust in the government was very low at the time of the survey as only 11.3% of respondents had faith that the government could successfully conduct a mass vaccination campaign. Rural residents and non-earning members of families found their lives to be less disrupted. Comparatively higher income families and highly educated individuals had lesser confidence in the government's inoculation capabilities.

CONCLUSIONS

For the vaccine campaign to be successful, effective risk communication and timely display of data-driven decision-making efforts targeting the groups who are more sceptical of immunisation campaigns could be of significance to the Bangladesh government.

Health sector corruption in the times of COVID-19 pandemic in Bangladesh: Newspapers as mirrors of society

Objective

This paper aimed to identify and explore the major areas of health-sector corruption during COVID-19 pandemic as revealed in the print media. Findings are expected to mitigate health sector corruption in the country and contribute to strengthening the health systems.

Method

2588 news articles on health topics were identified through scanning six leading newspapers in Bangladesh during Mar. 2020 to Mar. 2021. Of these, 97 news articles focusing on corruption in health system were selected for analysis.

Findings

Findings reveal an all-embracing corruption at every stage, starting from procurement of medical supplies, to testing for COVID-19 to treatment and management of COVID-19 cases. The news papers reported about the low quality and general-purpose masks given to the frontline health workers, putting their personal protection from the virus at risk. Due to lack of stewardship and an effective monitoring system, quite a few private facilities were providing fake COVID-19 certificates, medicines and medical equipment at very high prices. For example, one particular hospital provided almost two thousand COVID-19 test certificates without testing. Although PPEs were originally sold at BDT 2000 per piece, double the amount was proposed for buying PPEs. Meropenem injection of the same quality was purchased by different government hospitals at unusually high prices. Among the measures taken to contain corruption during COVID-19 included filing cases, issuing arrest warrants and asking for submission of wealth statement and source of income of the accused persons. However, some of the accused eventually got released on bail.

Conclusion

The media, as a mirror of the society, successfully made visible the underhand corruption that was happening even during the pandemic, fulfilling its obligations to the society. They faced quite some challenges in revealing related news, especially from the government whose initial reaction was of denial and indifference.Due to lack of transparency and accountability in the sector, the patients as well as the healthcare providers had to suffer a lot.

COVID-19 in Bangladesh: Wave-centric assessments and mitigation measures for future pandemics

The ongoing pandemic COVID-19 caused by Severe Acute Respiratory Coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) has wreaked havoc globally by affecting millions of lives. Although different countries found the implementation of emergency measures useful to combat the viral pandemic, many countries are still experiencing the resurgence of COVID-19 cases with new variants even after following strict containment guidelines. Country-specific lessons learned from the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic can be utilized in commencing a successful battle against the potential future outbreaks. In this article, we analyzed the overall scenario of the COVID-19 pandemic in Bangladesh from Alpha to Omicron variant and discussed the demographic, political, economic, social, and environmental influences on the mitigation strategies employed by the country to combat the pandemic. We also tried to explore the preparedness and precautionary measures taken by the responsible authorities, the choice of strategies implemented, and the effectiveness of the response initiated by the government and relevant agencies. Finally, we discussed the possible strategies that might help Bangladesh to combat future COVID-19 waves and other possible pandemics based on the experiences gathered from the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

Knowledge, attitudes, practices, and its associated factors toward COVID-19 pandemic among Bangladeshi older adults

BACKGROUND

The newly emerged COVID-19 has an unprecedented impact on all classes of people, particularly the elderly. The knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) of older adults toward COVID-19 are currently unknown. This study aimed to investigate the KAP and its associated factors toward COVID-19 among older adults in Bangladesh.

METHODS

A cross-sectional survey was conducted from April to May 2021 among Bangladeshi older adults. Face-to-face interviews were used to collect data from five selected divisions in Bangladesh using simple random sampling. The questionnaire consisted of socio-demographic characteristics, disease conditions, and KAP toward COVID-19. Descriptive statistics, t-tests, one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA), and logistic regression analyses were performed.

RESULTS

Out of 900 respondents, the majority of older adults (82.9%) indicated that COVID-19 is a viral disease and the major clinical symptom of COVID-19 (86.5%). Only 22.1% of participants always washed their hands with soap or hand sanitizer, and 27.6% wore a mask to protect against the virus when going outside the home. Overall, 55.2% had adequate knowledge, 50.2% had positive attitudes toward COVID-19 and only 22.7% had good practices. Out of 30 scores, mean score values were 20.8±6.7 in the knowledge section, 21.2±4.3 in the attitude section, and 11.3±6.7 in the practice section out of 30. In binary logistic regression analysis, factors associated with poor knowledge, and practices were being male, aged >70 years, having a primary education, less income <5000BDT, and multimorbidity (p < 0.05). Participants having poor knowledge of COVID-19 had higher likelihood of negative attitudes (OR: 6.79, 95% CI = 4.87-9.47, p < 0.001) and poor practices (OR: 9.15, 95% CI = 6.94-13.16, p < 0.001).

CONCLUSION

The findings highlight the need for immediate implementation of health education programs and adequate intervention programs for COVID-19 which integrates consideration of associated factors to improve the level of older adults' knowledge, attitudes, and practices.

Identifying the preparedness components in COVID-19: Systematic literature review

In 2019, the COVID-19 pandemic posed a major challenge to the world. Since the world is constantly exposed to communicable diseases, comprehensive preparedness of countries is required. Therefore, the present systematic review is aimed at identifying the preparedness components in COVID-19. In this systematic literature review, PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, ProQuest, Science Direct, Iran Medex, Magiran, and Scientific Information Database were searched from 2019 to 2021 to identify preparedness components in COVID-19. Thematic content analysis method was employed for data analysis. Out of 11,126 journals retrieved from searches, 45 studies were included for data analysis. Based on the findings, the components of COVID-19 preparedness were identified and discussed in three categories: governance with three subcategories of characteristics, responsibilities, and rules and regulations; society with two subcategories of culture and resilience; and services with three subcategories of managed services, advanced technology, and prepared health services. Among these, the governance and its subcategories had the highest frequency in studies. Considering the need to prepare for the next pandemic, countries should create clear and coherent structures and responsibilities for crisis preparedness through legal mechanisms, strengthening the infrastructure of the health system, coordination between organizations through analysis and identification of stakeholders, culture building and attracting social participation, and service management for an effective response.

Metrics and indicators used to assess health system resilience in response to shocks to health systems in high income countries-A systematic review

Health system resilience has never been more important than with the COVID-19 pandemic. There is need to identify feasible measures of resilience, potential strategies to build resilience and weaknesses of health systems experiencing shocks. The purpose of this systematic review is to examine how the resilience of health systems has been measured across various health system shocks. Following PRISMA guidelines, with double screening at each stage, the review identified 3175 studies of which 68 studies were finally included for analysis. Almost half (46%) were focused on COVID-19, followed by the economic crises, disasters and previous pandemics. Over 80% of studies included quantitative metrics. The most common WHO health system functions studied were resources and service delivery. In relation to the shock cycle, most studies reported metrics related to the management stage (79%) with the fewest addressing recovery and learning (22%). Common metrics related to staff headcount, staff wellbeing, bed number and type, impact on utilisation and quality, public and private health spending, access and coverage, and information systems. Limited progress has been made with developing standardised qualitative metrics particularly around governance. Quantitative metrics need to be analysed in relation to change and the impact of the shock. The review notes problems with measuring preparedness and the fact that few studies have really assessed the legacy or enduring impact of shocks.

Beliefs, barriers and hesitancy towards the COVID-19 vaccine among Bangladeshi residents: Findings from a cross-sectional study

Background

COVID‐19 vaccination acceptance is important, and combating hesitancy which is generally based on the individuals’ beliefs and perceptions is essential in the present pandemic. This study assesses COVID‐19 vaccine hesitancy and associated factors, beliefs and barriers associated with COVID-19 vaccination.

Methods

A cross-sectional study was carried out among 492 Bangladeshi residents (76% male; mean age = 24.21 ± 4.91 years; age range = 18–50 years) prior to the nationwide mass COVID-19 vaccination campaign (September 28, 2021). A semi-structured e-questionnaire included three sections (demographic variables, beliefs around the vaccination, and perceived barriers regarding COVID-19 vaccination).

Results

More than a quarter of participants (26.42%) were hesitant, 70.33% reported to accept the vaccine, and 3.25% refused to be vaccinated. While (54%) believed that mass vaccination would be the most effective method to combat the COVID-19 pandemic, concerns regarding the side effects of the vaccine (58%), inadequate vaccine trials before human administration (43%), commercial profiteering (42%), and mistrust of the benefits of the vaccine (20%) were also reported. In addition, other barriers including a short supply of vaccines, unknown future adverse effects (55%), low confidence in the health system (51%), doubts regarding its effectiveness (50%) and safety (45%), and insufficient information regarding potential adverse effects (44.7%) were reported. In bivariate analysis, variables such as current political affiliation, previous vaccination history, and health status were significantly associated with the COVID-19 vaccine uptake variable (acceptance, hesitancy, refusal). Regression analysis showed that participants who identified with the opposing current political parties, and not having been vaccinated since the age of 18 years were significantly more likely to report vaccine hesitancy.

Conclusions

The current findings relating to COVID-19 vaccination demonstrate that government and policy makers need to take all necessary measures to ensure the effectiveness of the vaccination program among the Bangladeshi people.

Assessment of public intention to get vaccination against COVID-19: Evidence from a developing country

OBJECTIVES

Widespread acceptance of the COVID-19 vaccine will be the next important step in fighting the novel coronavirus disease. Though the Pakistani government has successfully implemented robust policies to overcome the COVID-19 pandemic; however, studies assessing public intention to get COVID-19 vaccination (IGCV) are limited. The aim of this study is to deal with this literature gap and has also expanded the conceptual framework of planned behaviour theory. We have introduced three new considerations (risk perceptions of the pandemic, perceived benefits of the vaccine, and unavailability of vaccine) to have a better understanding of the influencing factors that encourage or discourage public IGCV.

METHODS

Results are based on a sample collected from 754 households using an inclusive questionnaire survey. Hypotheses are tested by utilizing the structural equation modelling approach.

RESULTS

The results disclose that the intention factors, that is, attitude, risk perceptions of the pandemic, and perceived benefits of the vaccine, impart positive effects on public IGCV. In contrast, the cost of the vaccine and the unavailability of the vaccine have negative effects. Notably, environmental concern has an insignificant effect.

CONCLUSIONS

Research findings emphasize the importance of publicizing the devastating impacts of COVID-19 on society and the environment, ensuring vaccination availability at an accessible price while simultaneously improving public healthcare practices.

Clinical profile and short-term outcomes of RT-PCR- positive patients with COVID-19: a cross-sectional study in a tertiary care hospital in Dhaka, Bangladesh

OBJECTIVE

The COVID-19 pandemic is still raging worldwide. While there is significant published evidence on the attributes of patients with COVID-19 from lower-income and middle-income countries, there is a dearth of original research published from Bangladesh, a low-income country in Southeast Asia. Based on a case series from a tertiary healthcare centre, this observational study has explored the epidemiology, clinical profile of patients with COVID-19 and short-term outcomes in Dhaka, Bangladesh.

DESIGN AND SETTING

A total of 422 COVID-19-confirmed patients (via reverse transcription-PCR test) were enrolled in this study (male=271, female=150, 1 unreported). We have compiled medical records of the patients and descriptively reported their demographic, socioeconomic and clinical features, treatment history, health outcomes, and postdischarge complications.

RESULT

Patients were predominantly male (64%), between 35 and 49 years (28%), with at least one comorbidity (52%), and had COVID-19 symptoms for 1 week before hospitalisation (66%). A significantly higher proportion (p<0.05) of male patients had diabetes, hypertension and ischaemic heart disease, while female patients had asthma (p<0.05). The most common symptoms were fever (80%), cough (60%), dyspnoea (41%) and sore throat (21%). The majority of the patients received antibiotics (77%) and anticoagulant therapy (56%) and stayed in the hospital for an average of 12 days. Over 90% of patients were successfully weaned, while 3% died from COVID-19, and 41% reported complications after discharge.

CONCLUSION

The diversity of clinical and epidemiological characteristics and health outcomes of patients with COVID-19 across age groups and gender is noteworthy. Our result will inform the clinicians and epidemiologists of Bangladesh of their COVID-19 mitigation effort.

Preparedness and response to covid-19 in Woreta Town, North West Ethiopia

Preparedness and early response are proved to be best solutions for a pandemic situation. Well prepared countries have succeeded in containing the transfer of the disease and minimized its adverse impact. Ethiopia has adopted Covid-19 preparedness and response plan. Its implementation has brought good outcomes. The purpose of this study was to explore deeper in to a grass roots situation. It focused particularly on Covid-19 preparedness and response in Woreta town, Northwest Ethiopia. The study employed a qualitative approach. Data were collected from Covid-19 prevention task force members, health care workers and community members using a semi-structured interview. The data collection was conducted from September to October 2020. A framework approach and open code 4.02 software were used in the analysis. The results showed that various structures, including a Covid-19 task force, are created to take preparatory and response measures in the area. As the enforcement of preventive measures is declining, residents continue to be less engaged in their practice of Covid-19 instructions. Generally, the preparedness and response were low in health facilities and in the community. Thus, the local government has to strengthen a persistent and well-informed risk communication by broadening its social base. The existing politicization, rumor, denial and suspicion associated to COVID-19 can only be addresses by implementing a transparent and persuasive communication strategy. The health workers need to renew their effort to transmit health messages. The task force has to consider the pandemic as a strategic problem rather than a short time issue. So, it has to develop a plan to guide its activity. It also need to strengthen its partnership to better enforce preventive guidelines. On the other hand, community members shall not be deceived by the coming of COVID-19 vaccines. Rather they have to focus on prevention mechanisms.

Systematic Assessment of COVID-19 Pandemic in Bangladesh: Effectiveness of Preparedness in the First Wave

Background: To develop an effective countermeasure and determine our susceptibilities to the outbreak of COVID-19 is challenging for a densely populated developing country like Bangladesh and a systematic review of the disease on a continuous basis is necessary. Methods: Publicly available and globally acclaimed datasets (4 March 2020-30 September 2020) from IEDCR, Bangladesh, JHU, and ECDC database are used for this study. Visual exploratory data analysis is used and we fitted a polynomial model for the number of deaths. A comparison of Bangladesh scenario over different time points as well as with global perspectives is made. Results: In Bangladesh, the number of active cases had decreased, after reaching a peak, with a constant pattern of death rate at from July to the end of September, 2020. Seventy-one percent of the cases and 77% of the deceased were males. People aged between 21 and 40 years were most vulnerable to the coronavirus and most of the fatalities (51.49%) were in the 60+ population. A strong positive correlation (0.93) between the number of tests and confirmed cases and a constant incidence rate (around 21%) from June 1 to August 31, 2020 was observed. The case fatality ratio was between 1 and 2. The number of cases and the number of deaths in Bangladesh were much lower compared to other countries. Conclusions: This study will help to understand the patterns of spread and transition in Bangladesh, possible measures, effectiveness of the preparedness, implementation gaps, and their consequences to gather vital information and prevent future pandemics.

Public Trust in COVID-19 Prevention and Responses Between January and May 2020 in Bangladesh

BACKGROUND AND AIMS

Although the Government of Bangladesh (GoB) developed some policy initiatives during the first phase of COVID-19, their efforts were questioned due to indecision, late policy decisions and implementation, and a proliferation of fake testing and fake news. As such, this research aims to examine public trust in preparedness and response measures undertaken by both the GoB and private sector organisations in Bangladesh between January and May 2020.

METHODS

A cross-sectional survey method was applied to a sample of Bangladeshi residents using a questionnaire distributed between April and June 2020. Three hundred and seven respondents participated in an online questionnaire that was disseminated on online outlets, such as e-mail, Facebook Messenger, and WhatsApp. The survey questionnaire was distributed to potential respondents, and continuous-chain messages were provided. Data were analyzed using exploratory factor analysis (EFA).

FINDINGS

Of the 307 participants, 77% were male and 23% were female. Findings suggest that the participants showed greater approval of private sector responses than of governmental preparedness and response activities. For preparedness activities, participants were negative about both the GoB efforts to organize and provide personal protective equipment (PPE) for doctors in time as a safeguard against COVID-19, and also the lack of coordination and informed decision-making in relation to facing COVID-19. Respondents were asked to share their perception of the suitability of GoB pandemic management plans, as evidenced by plan effectiveness during the COVID-19 pandemic.

CONCLUSION

A lower level of trust was demonstrated by the Bangladeshis with regard to preparedness and response measures taken in Bangladesh. Based on participants' concerns and suggestions and a review of drawback of policy responses in the early stage, a set of recommendations are provided for future pandemics like public health emergency risk management in Bangladesh.

Reactions to the media coverage during the first wave of COVID-19 in Bangladesh

Background

The news media play a critical role in disseminating accurate and reliable information during an outbreak like COVID-19, especially in LMICs. Studying how people react and reflect on the information provided and how it affects their trust in health systems is essential for effective risk communication. This study was undertaken to explore and analyse newspaper readers’ reactions to the unfolding news of the COVID-19 outbreak in Bangladesh and how this affected and shaped their compliance with the mitigation measures advised by the Government.

Methods

We collected readers’ comments on relevant news and features on the COVID-19 outbreak (n = 1,055) which were posted in the online versions of the four top circulating Bangla newspapers and one online news portal published during Jan.–Apr. 2020. A search protocol was developed and a team of three researchers searched and extracted data for content analysis according to some pre-determined study themes.

Results

Data analysis revealed several characteristics with implications for risk-communication: a faith-based and fatalistic attitude to the unfolding pandemic, a “denial” syndrome in the initial stage, a returning expatriate-bashing for specific countries, and a concern about the safety of the frontline health workers. The readers were resentful of the all-pervasive corruption in the health sector even in times of a pandemic and the Government's poorly coordinated, fragmented, and delayed COVID-19 response. The pandemic severely shook their trust in the already weak health system and perceived it to be incompetent, corrupt, and non-responsive. They had deplorable personal and family experiences while seeking treatment for COVID-19 patients. Expert committees were formed to advise the Government, but few recommendations were implemented on the ground. This helpless scenario made people sharply critical of the political leadership, especially for the failure of providing stewardship at the moment of crisis.

Conclusions

The COVID-19 related information reaching the people, including misinformation, disinformation, and rumours was equivocal in the early months of the pandemic and failed to build the trust and transparency that is necessary for an inclusive response across constituencies. The Government should pay attention and weightage to people's perceptions about its COVID-19 response and take appropriate measures to re-build trust for implementing pandemic control measures.

No one left behind: risk communication to the street vendors during COVID-19 social distancing

Purpose

COVID-19 presents a serious and unprecedented challenge around the globe. Street vendors are the most vulnerable group during this pandemic regarding livelihood loss and contagion risk. This research aims to examine the roles of risk communication work in enhancing COVID-19 risk perceptions and adoption of COVID-19 preventive behaviors among street vendors.

Design/methodology/approach

The data were collected from the street vendors in urban Vietnam. A binary probit model was used for analyzing the relationships among exposure to risk communication, risk perception and adoption of preventive behaviors.

Findings

The analysis reveals the outreach of risk communication work to the street vendors. A rather large proportion of the respondents perceive high risks associated with COVID-19. All respondents adopt COVID-19 preventive behaviors; however, the proportion of regular adoption is moderate and even very low for most behaviors. Their frequent exposure to risk communication significantly raises their risk perceptions and encourages their regular adoption of preventive behaviors, particularly regarding the measures that are affordable and less detrimental to their livelihood.

Originality/value

This research is among the first attempts to examine risk communication to the vulnerable group, how they perceive risks and the extent to which they adopt preventive behaviors during a public health crisis. This research draws some implications for risk communication and social welfare policies to obtain sustainable development goals.

Capability components of supply chain resilience for readymade garments (RMG) sector in Bangladesh during COVID-19

Purpose

The readymade garments (RMG) industry acts as one of the foremost vital catalysts for financial as well as social advancement of Bangladesh. Due to the harsh impact of COVID-19, RMG sector has been confronting a never-seen-before phenomenon. Since the supply chain has seriously been influenced, concern raises among industry and policymakers on how to support against disturbances resulting from pandemics. Accordingly, this research aims to explore the vulnerability and capability factors of RMG sector in Bangladesh, their relationship and how these variables affect supply chain resilience.

Design/methodology/approach

A qualitative research design has been employed. In the first stage, content analysis has been performed. Since COVID-19 is a new experience, newspapers were the source to become acquainted with the vulnerability and capability factors following the guidelines provided by Pettit et al. (2010). In the second stage, in-depth interviews with key informants were conducted to investigate the relationship among the variables and how these factors may influence supply chain resilience.

Findings

This study identifies fourteen capability factors and their sub-factors of RMG industry in Bangladesh in order to improve the resilience capacity against the vulnerabilities in the context of COVID-19 pandemic.

Research limitations/implications

This research is based on the setting of particular industry in Bangladesh, where respondents are immersed in a unique culture. Special care is required to generalize the results to other segments and phenomena.

Practical implications

The framework recognizes the balanced and unbalanced strength with the capability's components and find the relation between capabilities and vulnerabilities within the fashion industry. By creating the resilience network with the four conceivable positions, companies can find themselves with their capability's components and natural vulnerabilities.

Originality/value

This study investigates diverse components of capability figure against vulnerabilities to create the supply chain resilience. This paper, moreover, develops with four conceivable positions with their capabilities against existing vulnerabilities which brings timely contribution considering the context of COVID-19.

COVID-19 Vaccination Intent and Willingness to Pay in Bangladesh: A Cross-Sectional Study

This article reports the intent to receive a SARS-COV-2 vaccine, its predictors and willingness to pay in Bangladesh. We carried out an online cross-sectional survey of 697 adults from the general population of Bangladesh in January 2021. A structured questionnaire was used to assess vaccination intent. The questionnaire included sociodemographic variables and health belief model constructs which may predict vaccination intent. Among the participants, 26% demonstrated a definite intent, 43% probable intent, 24% probable negative, and 7% a definite negative intention. Multivariable logistic regression analyses suggest an association between definite intent and previous COVID-19 infection (OR: 2.86; 95% CI: 1.71-4.78), perceiving COVID-19 as serious (OR: 1.93; 1.04-3.59), the belief that vaccination would make them feel less worried about catching COVID-19 (OR: 4.42; 2.25-8.68), and concerns about vaccine affordability (OR: 1.51; 1.01-2.25). Individuals afraid of the side effects (OR: 0.34; 0.21-0.53) and those who would take the vaccine if the vaccine were taken by many others (OR: 0.44; 0.29-0.67) are less likely to have a definite intent. A definite negative intent is associated with the concern that the vaccine may not be halal (OR: 2.03; 1.04-3.96). Furthermore, 68.4% are willing to pay for the vaccine. The median amount that they are willing to pay is USD 7.08. The study findings reveal that the definite intent to receive the SARS-CoV-2 vaccination among the general population varies depending on their COVID-19-related health beliefs and no significant association was found with sociodemographic variables.

Population-Level Preparedness About Preventive Practices Against Coronavirus Disease 2019: A Cross-Sectional Study Among Adults in Bangladesh

This study assessed the preparedness regarding the preventive practices toward the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) among the adult population in Bangladesh. Data were collected through an online survey with a sample size of 1,056. We constructed four variables (individual, household, economic, and community and social distancing) related to preparedness based on the principal component analysis of eight items. We employed descriptive statistics and multiple linear regression analysis. The results showed that the accuracy rate of the overall preparedness scale was 68.9%. The preparedness level related to economic, individual, household, and community and social distancing was 64.9, 77.1, 50.4, and 83.2%, respectively. However, the economic preparedness significantly varied by sex, education, occupation, attitude, and worries related to COVID-19. Individual preparedness was significantly associated with education, residence, and attitudes. The household preparedness significantly varied by education, residence, and worries, while the respondent's community and social distancing-related preparedness significantly varied by sex, region, residence, and attitude. This study implies the necessity of the coverage of financial schemes for the vulnerable group. Increased coverage of health education regarding personal hygiene targeting the less educated and rural population should be ensured.

A systematic assessment on COVID-19 preparedness and transition strategy in Bangladesh

RATIONALE, AIMS, AND OBJECTIVES

The COVID-19 pandemic of 2020 has overpowered the most advanced health systems worldwide with thousands of daily deaths. The current study conducted a situation analysis on the pandemic preparedness of Bangladesh and provided recommendations on the transition to the new reality and gradual restoration of normalcy.

METHOD

A complex adaptive system (CAS) framework was theorized based on four structural dimensions obtained from the crisis and complexity theory to help evaluate the health system of Bangladesh. Data sourced from published reports from the government, non-governmental organizations, and mainstream media up to June 15, 2020 were used to conduct a qualitative analysis and visualize the spatial distribution of countrywide COVID-19 cases.

RESULTS

The findings suggested that Bangladesh severely lacked the preparedness to tackle the spread of COVID-19 with both short- and long-term implications for health, the economy, and good governance. Absence of planning and coordination, disproportionate resource allocations, challenged infrastructure, adherence to bureaucratic delay, lack of synchronized risk communication, failing leadership of concerned authorities, and incoherent decision-making have led to a precarious situation that will have dire ramifications causing many uncertainties in the coming days.

CONCLUSIONS

Implementation of response protocols addressing the needs of the community and the stakeholders from the central level is urgently needed. The development of mechanisms for dynamic decision-making based on regular feedback and long-term planning for a smooth transition between the new reality and normalcy should also be urgently addressed in Bangladesh.

Underreporting COVID-19: the curious case of the Indian subcontinent

COVID-19 has spread across the globe with higher burden placed in Europe and North America. However, the rate of transmission has recently picked up in low- and middle-income countries, particularly in the Indian subcontinent. There is a severe underreporting bias in the existing data available from these countries mostly due to the limitation of resources and accessibility. Most studies comparing cross-country cases or fatalities could fail to account for this systematic bias and reach erroneous conclusions. This paper provides several recommendations on how to effectively tackle these issues regarding data quality, test coverage and case counts.