Characterize health and economic vulnerabilities of workers to control the emergence of COVID-19 in an industrial zone in Vietnam

Abstract

The detection of first COVID-19 infected industrial worker in Vietnam on 13 April 2020 prompted timely effort to examine the health problems, behaviors, and health services access of industrial workers to inform effective and appropriate COVID-19 control measures, minimizing the risk of industrial sites becoming the next disease cluster. A search strategy involving search terms corresponding to 'health', 'industrial worker', and 'Vietnam' was applied to search for related papers published in English on Web of Science, PubMed, and Google Scholar. Duplicates were removed, and relevant data were extracted from the full text of remaining publications. Results showed that underlying health problems, including respiratory system problems, were common among industrial workers. Many suffered occupational diseases and/or work-related injuries. Self-treatment (without medication) was the most used method when having health problems (by 28.2-51% of participants), followed by visiting commune health centers (24%) and self-medication (20.3%). Findings suggest a high risk of disease spreading among industrial workers and of them suffering more severe conditions when infected. Economic vulnerabilities may be the reason for workers' reluctance to taking time off work to attend hospital/clinic. These imply a need for involving local pharmacies, commune health centers, traditional health providers or village health collaborators as local health gatekeepers who are the first point of detecting and reporting of suspected COVID-19 cases, as well as a channel where accurate information regarding COVID-19, protective equipment, and intervention packages can be delivered. Having COVID-19 testing centers at or near industrial sites are also recommended.

Stressors of COVID-19 and stress consequences: The mediating role of rumination and the moderating role of psychological support

“…Additionally, the current study did not collect information regarding students’ field of study nor socioeconomic status. Prior studies have identified both healthcare related fields of study and socioeconomic status to be relevant factors in COVID-19-related stress and behaviors ( Tan et al, 2020 , Tran et al, 2020 ) and future studies may incorporate this to examine how repeated exposure to minute details regarding the physiology of the virus may influence their stressors. Future studies may also examine the robustness of the model presented in this paper in other populations that may be exposed to qualitatively different COVID-19 stressors in both frequency and intensity (e.g., frontline healthcare workers).…”

E-mental health mindfulness-based and skills-based ‘CoPE It’ intervention to reduce psychological distress in times of COVID-19: study protocol for a bicentre longitudinal study

“…The data of previously published studies which investigated mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic clearly showed an increased mental health burden. [5][6][7][8][9][10][11] The lack of a daily routine and COVID-19related fears and uncertainties may affect psychological well-being including depression, anxiety, sleep disorders, aggression, drug abuse or even suicidal behaviour. 4 Today's healthcare systems, public health strategists and Open access policymakers must respond to these needs.…”

“…4 The psychological impact caused by the COVID-19 pandemic on people's mental health has been investigated in several studies. [5][6][7][8][9][10][11] In fact, one study conducted during the initial stage of the COVID-19 pandemic in China showed that 53.8% of respondents rated the psychological impact of the pandemic as moderate or severe; 16.5% reported moderate to severe depressive symptoms; 28.8% reported moderate to severe anxiety symptoms; and 8.1% reported moderate to severe stress levels. 6 Moreover, a longitudinal study investigating the mental health burden of the general population in China revealed that perceived psychological impact of the pandemic, depressive symptoms, anxiety symptoms and stress levels persist for up to 1 month after the outbreak of the virus.…”

Moving from rhetoric to action: how Africa can use scientific evidence to halt the COVID-19 pandemic

“…Management of COVID-19 outbreaks in the situation of population displacement such as refugee and IDPs camps and in prisons and urban slums which are common in Africa is a major challenge. Other high-risk situations include in large-scale industries which employ a large number of semi-skilled workers [ 44 ]. The high transmissibility of the virus, overcrowding and inadequate access to social services such as water and sanitation will rapidly facilitate transmission of the virus and constrain implementation of preventive measures such as social distancing in such situations.…”

“…African countries should, therefore, invest in the development of special public health strategies for prevention and control of outbreaks in such settings [ 36 ]. Establishment of COVID-19 information and testing centres near such areas is recommended to improve rapid access of the high-risk populations to COVID-19 prevention and control services [ 44 ].…”