Europe's Covid-19 outliers: German, Austrian and Swiss policy responses during the early stages of the 2020 pandemic

Desson, Zachary; Lambertz, Lisa; Peters, Jan; Falkenbach, Michelle; Kauer, Lukas

doi:10.1016/j.hlpt.2020.09.003

Cited by 86 publications

(99 citation statements)

References 7 publications

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“…), different states followed different styles of lockdown for example strict lockdown—stay at home order and lenient lockdown—not to leave the house without a reason, closure of churches, recommendation on wearing of face masks, good medical preparedness, developed a reliable testing system, stock of testing kits, early testing and tracing as their crisis management. They partnered with government (National & Federal state), public and private hospitals, medical professionals, virologists, public health experts, laboratories, community, self-discipline, and citizens [ 94 , 95 , 96 , 97 , 98 , 99 ].…”

Section: Scientific Review Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Multistakeholder Participation in Disaster Management—The Case of the COVID-19 Pandemic

et al. 2021

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The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic is affecting society’s health, economy, environment and development. COVID-19 has claimed many lives across the globe and severely impacted the livelihood of a considerable section of the world’s population. We are still in the process of finding optimal and effective solutions to control the pandemic and minimise its negative impacts. In the process of developing effective strategies to combat COVID-19, different countries have adapted diverse policies, strategies and activities and yet there are no universal or comprehensive solutions to the problem. In this context, this paper brings out a conceptual model of multistakeholder participation governance as an effective model to fight against COVID-19. Accordingly, the current study conducted a scientific review by examining multi-stakeholder disaster response strategies, particularly in relation to COVID-19. The study then presents a conceptual framework for multistakeholder participation governance as one of the effective models to fight against COVID-19. Subsequently, the article offers strategies for rebuilding the economy and healthcare system through multi-stakeholder participation, and gives policy directions/decisions based on evidence to save lives and protect livelihoods. The current study also provides evidence about multidimensional approaches and multi-diplomatic mechanisms during the COVID-19 crisis, in order to examine dimensions of multi-stakeholder participation in disaster management and to document innovative, collaborative strategic directions across the globe. The current research findings highlight the need for global collaboration by working together to put an end to this pandemic situation through the application of a Multi-Stakeholder Spatial Decision Support System (MS-SDSS).

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Section: Scientific Review Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Multistakeholder Participation in Disaster Management—The Case of the COVID-19 Pandemic

et al. 2021

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“…Several studies have recently examined the responses to the COVID-19 pandemic in different countries. They adopted different perspectives, analyzing the effectiveness of governmental policies ( Dergiades et al, 2020 ; Desson et al, 2020 ), epidemiological responses ( Jefferies et al, 2020 ), testing, contact tracing and isolation ( Salathe et al, 2020 ), lockdown policy ( Faber et al, 2020 ), preparation of the healthcare sector ( Barro et al, 2020 ), as well as key learned lessons ( Han et al, 2020 ). However, empirical studies of how such measures are perceived by the healthcare staff, and of how the pandemic has affected their work situation from their own perspective, are still scarce.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Lessons From the First Wave of COVID-19: Work-Related Consequences, Clinical Knowledge, Emotional Distress, and Safety-Conscious Behavior in Healthcare Workers in Switzerland

Riguzzi¹,

Gashi²

2021

Front. Psychol.

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The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) imposes an unusual risk to the physical and mental health of healthcare workers and thereby to the functioning of healthcare systems during the crisis. This study investigates the clinical knowledge of healthcare workers about COVID-19, their ways of acquiring information, their emotional distress and risk perception, their adherence to preventive guidelines, their changed work situation due to the pandemic, and their perception of how the healthcare system has coped with the pandemic. It is based on a quantitative cross-sectional survey of 185 Swiss healthcare workers directly attending to patients during the pandemic, with 22% (n = 40) of them being assigned to COVID-19-infected patients. The participants answered between 16th June and 15th July 2020, shortly after the first wave of COVID-19 had been overcome and the national government had relaxed its preventive regulations to a great extent. The questionnaire incorporated parts of the “Standard questionnaire on risk perception of an infectious disease outbreak” (version 2015), which were adapted to the case of COVID-19. Clinical knowledge was lowest regarding the effectiveness of standard hygiene (p < 0.05). Knowledge of infectiousness, incubation time, and life-threatening disease progression was higher, however still significantly lower than regarding asymptomatic cases and transmission without physical contact (p < 0.001). 70% (95%-confidence interval: 64-77%) of the healthcare workers reported considerable emotional distress on at least one of the measured dimensions. They worried significantly more strongly about patients, elderly people, and family members, than about their own health (p < 0.001). Adherence to (not legally binding) preventive guidelines by the government displayed patterns such that not all guidelines were followed equally. Most of the participants were faced with a lack of protective materials, personnel, structures, processes, and contingency plans. An increase in stress level was the most prevalent among the diverse effects the pandemic had on their work situation. Better medical equipment (including drugs), better protection for their own mental and physical health, more (assigned) personnel, more comprehensive information about the symptoms of the disease, and a system of earlier warning were the primary lessons to be learned in view of upcoming waves of the pandemic.

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“…1.4 Literature on work-related consequences, policy, and adherence to guidelines The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on healthcare systems, as well as the reactions by healthcare institutions and governments, have been the subject of several recent studies from different countries. These studies have focused on topics such as the initial preparation and first reaction after the outbreak, [20] strategies of contact tracing and isolation as the pandemic evolved, [21] protective equipment for healthcare staff, [22] work risks in the healthcare sector, [23] lockdown measures, [24] governmental policy effectiveness, [25,26] and key lessons to be learned. [27] Nevertheless, our study closes a gap by focusing specifically on healthcare workers/students and their experiences, assessment, and knowledge as a source of quantitative empirical information, while such data is still scarce: Spiller et al [12] found that hours worked by Swiss healthcare workers had increased during the height of the first pandemic wave but afterward did not fully converge back to the levels before the pandemic.…”

Section: Literature On Knowledge Risk Perception and Emotional Distmentioning

confidence: 99%

Healthcare workers’ knowledge, risk perception, safety-relevant practices, and work situation during the COVID-19 pandemic: A quantitative survey from Switzerland

Riguzzi¹,

Gashi²,

Bischofberger³

2021

JNEP

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Objective: To determine the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on healthcare workers and healthcare students in higher education and to assess their clinical knowledge, media use, risk perception, perception of governmental measures, and adherence to preventive guidelines to provide policymakers with field-based evidence.Methods: This cross-sectional quantitative survey was conducted by two-stage cluster sampling among Swiss healthcare workers, who performed patient care during the first pandemic wave, and who also pursued an education at a university of applied sciences at the same time (a Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in nursing or an executive degree in healthcare). 75 individuals participated between 5th May and 1st June 2020. Their data was analyzed by bivariate hypothesis testing and multiple logistic regression.Results: Considerable levels of task-related and emotional stress were prevalent, accompanied by a large proportion of respondents who did not have sufficient protective materials or necessary decisions in place to effectively protect themselves or others from infection with COVID-19. Knowledge was considerably limited, especially regarding the efficacy of standard hygiene as a preventive measure. The preparation of the government and the healthcare sector was perceived as insufficient.Conclusions: Comprehensive management of infodemic challenges and foresighted development of education, human resources, clinical processes, and protective materials are highly recommended.

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Europe's Covid-19 outliers: German, Austrian and Swiss policy responses during the early stages of the 2020 pandemic

Cited by 86 publications

References 7 publications

Multistakeholder Participation in Disaster Management—The Case of the COVID-19 Pandemic

Multistakeholder Participation in Disaster Management—The Case of the COVID-19 Pandemic

Lessons From the First Wave of COVID-19: Work-Related Consequences, Clinical Knowledge, Emotional Distress, and Safety-Conscious Behavior in Healthcare Workers in Switzerland

Healthcare workers’ knowledge, risk perception, safety-relevant practices, and work situation during the COVID-19 pandemic: A quantitative survey from Switzerland

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