Nepal’s first case of COVID-19 and public health response

Shrestha, Ranish; Shrestha, Sunil; Khanal, Pratik; Kc, Bhuvan

doi:10.1093/jtm/taaa024

Cited by 94 publications

(97 citation statements)

References 4 publications

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“…To combat pandemic COVID-19, Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, and Afghanistan had limited planning, whereas Nepal, Bhutan, and Sri Lanka were equipped with a well-planned attribute [ [17] , [18] , [19] , [20] , [21] ]. All the countries had measures to build up public awareness.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…But the recovery rate is highest for Sri Lanka among the SA countries. Nepal has only a handful of cases of COVID-19, which indicate their well-organized planning during the earlier stage of the outbreak [ 17 ]. They formed monitoring teams and health desks at border checkpoints and cities, screened incoming persons at their only international airport, increased isolation and quarantine facilities, trained health workers, personal protective equipment, and testing facilities.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…They initiated steps to prevent the COVID-19 epidemic even before the first case was detected on the 27th of January 2020. The health care system in Sri Lanka is relatively strong, with 3.9 hospital beds per 1000 population [ 17 ]. The government of Sri Lanka acted swiftly to contain the transmission, with very stringent public health measures and social distancing: complete island-wide lockdown, contact tracing and isolation, and quarantine of all inbound passengers were all adopted almost simultaneously.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Spatiotemporal patterns and trends of community transmission of the pandemic COVID-19 in South Asia: Bangladesh as a case study

Islam¹,

Sayeed²,

Rahman³

et al. 2021

Biosafety and Health

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South Asian (SA) countries have been fighting with the pandemic novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) since January 2020. Earlier, the country-specific descriptive study has been done. Nevertheless, as transboundary infection, the border sharing, shared cultural and behaviour practice, effects on the temporal and spatial distribution of COVID-19 in SA is still unveiled. Therefore, this study has been revealed the spatial hotspot along with descriptive output on different parameters of COVID-19 infection. We extracted data from the WHO and the worldometer database from the onset of the outbreak up to 15 May 2020. Europe has the highest case fatality rate (CFR; 9.22%), whereas Oceania has the highest (91.15%) recovery rate from COVID-19. Among SA countries, India has the highest number of cases (85,790), followed by Pakistan (38,799) and Bangladesh (20,065). However, the number of tests conducted was minimum in this region in comparison with other areas. The highest CFR was recorded in India (3.21%) among SA countries, whereas Nepal and Bhutan had no death record due to COVID-19 so far. The recovery rate varies from 4.75% in the Maldives to 51.02% in Sri Lanka. In Bangladesh, community transmission has been recorded, and the highest number of cases were detected in Dhaka, followed by Narayanganj and Chattogram. Dhaka and its surrounding districts, Faridpur and Madaripur district of Bangladesh, is in the hotspot on the spatiotemporal tendency. But no cold spot was pointed out in Bangladesh. Three hotspots and three cold spots at different confidence levels were detected in India. Findings from this study suggested the “test, trace, and isolation” approach for earlier detection of infection to prevent further community transmission of COVID-19.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Spatiotemporal patterns and trends of community transmission of the pandemic COVID-19 in South Asia: Bangladesh as a case study

Islam¹,

Sayeed²,

Rahman³

et al. 2021

Biosafety and Health

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“…Nepal, a South Asian country, is no exception and is affected by the outbreak with overwhelming effects on its economy and health system. The Government of Nepal initiated its response against COVID-19 immediately after its rst reported case in the last week of January in a Nepalese traveller from China [1,2]. As of June 29, 13248 cases and 29 deaths had been reported in the country despite nationwide lockdown imposed from March 24, which continued for nearly ten weeks [3].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Mental health impacts among health workers during COVID-19 in a low resource setting: a cross-sectional survey from Nepal

Khanal

Devkota

Dahal

et al. 2020

Preprint

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130

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Background: Health care workers exposed to COVID-19 might be at increased risk of developing mental health problems. The study aimed to identify factors associated with anxiety, depression and insomnia among health workers involved in COVID-19 response in Nepal. Methods: This was a cross-sectional web-based survey conducted between April 26 and May 12, 2020. A total of 475 health workers participated in the study. Anxiety and depression were measured using a 14-item Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS: 0- 21) and insomnia was measured by using a 7-item Insomnia Severity Index (ISI: 0-28). Multivariable logistic regression analysis was done to determine the risk factors of mental health outcomes. Results: Overall, 41.9% of health workers had symptoms of anxiety, 37.5% had depression symptoms and 33.9% had symptoms of insomnia. Stigma faced by health workers was significantly associated with higher odds of experiencing symptoms of anxiety (AOR: 2.47; 95% CI: 1.62-3.76), depression (AOR: 2.05; 95% CI: 1.34-3.11) and insomnia (AOR: 2.37; 95% CI: 1.46-3.84). History of medication for mental health problems was significantly associated with a higher likelihood of experiencing symptoms of anxiety (AOR: 3.40; 95% CI:1.31-8.81), depression (AOR: 3.83; 95% CI: 1.45-10.14) and insomnia (AOR: 3.82; 95% CI: 1.52-9.62) while inadequate precautionary measures in the workplace was significantly associated with higher odds of exhibiting symptoms of anxiety (AOR: 1.89; 95% CI: 1.12-3.19) and depression (AOR: 1.97; 95% CI: 1.16-3.37). Nurses (AOR: 2.33; 95% CI: 1.21-4.47) were significantly more likely to experience anxiety symptoms than other health workers. Conclusion: The study findings revealed a considerate proportion of anxiety, depression and insomnia symptoms among health workers during the early phase of the pandemic in Nepal. Health workers facing stigma, those with history of medication for mental health problems, and those reporting inadequate precautionary measures in their workplace were more at risk of developing mental health outcomes. A focus on improving mental wellbeing of health workers should be immediately initiated with attention to reduction of stigma, ensuring an adequate support system such as personal protective equipments, and family support for those with history of mental health problems.

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“…The rst case in Nepal was diagnosed and reported on 25th January 2020 [4] As of 6th July, 2020, total infected, active case and death toll due to COVID 19 in Nepal was 15784, 6547 and 34 respectively [5]. Government of Nepal has increased the provision of isolation beds in the country, locked down the whole country, and sealed international borders including the open border with India [5,6] Measures to prevent and control coronavirus disease-19 (COVID- 19) include regular handwashing, physical distancing and covering mouth and nose using a face mask, thereby reducing spread of droplets. It is advised to wear masks in public during this pandemic for reducing the risk of infection transmission [7].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

General public’s knowledge and practices on face mask use during the COVID-19 pandemic: a cross-sectional exploratory survey from Dharan, Nepal

Alam

Palaian

Shankar

et al. 2020

Preprint

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Background: Measures to prevent and control coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19) include regular handwashing, physical distancing and covering mouth and nose using a face mask, thereby reducing spread of droplets. Use of facemask is considered as a cheap, effective and safe method with minimum disruption in day-to-day life. This study assessed the knowledge and practice of Nepalese general public on face mask use during lockdown period of COVID-19 pandemic. Method: A cross-sectional study using a self-developed, validated questionnaire (Cronbach alpha 0.556) was conducted in Dharan, eastern Nepal during May, 2020. Pharmacists from ten pharmacies, spread throughout Dharan city, after relevant training by the principal investigator, administered and recorded the responses from a selected sample stratified across age, gender, education and place of residence. Completed questionnaires were checked for consistency, coded and entered in IBM SPSS Version 26 and data was tested for normality using one-sample K-S test. Descriptive analyses were performed for demographic parameters and inferential statistics performed for outcome variables calculating median scores among different subgroups which were further compared using appropriate non-parametric tests at alpha=0.05. Results: Altogether 381 individuals, males [211 (55.4%)] and females [170 (44.6%)] participated. Ninety-three (24.5%) respondents were between 20-30 years of age and least number 3(0.8%) were above 70 years; 127 (33.3%) participants were housewives. Maximum 200 (52.5%) participants were educated between classes VIII to XII; seven (1.8%) were having postgraduate education; 129 (33.9%) participants were hill tribes. Knowledge scores were good (median score 16; maximum score 18). Around 20% of participant had never used face mask before the pandemic; majority of population (80%) were aware about the ongoing pandemic. Majority were aware about washing hands (92.6%) before using mask, covering mouth and nose (78.7%), and avoiding touching the mask while wearing (42.3%). Knowledge scores were significantly higher among men (p=0.038), among younger age groups (p=0.010), and among persons with greater education (p=0.048). Conclusion: The knowledge scores were good and public were aware about proper use of face masks. Educational interventions could be targeted to those with lesser knowledge, and steps to promote sustained face mask use can be beneficial.

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Nepal’s first case of COVID-19 and public health response

Cited by 94 publications

References 4 publications

Spatiotemporal patterns and trends of community transmission of the pandemic COVID-19 in South Asia: Bangladesh as a case study

Spatiotemporal patterns and trends of community transmission of the pandemic COVID-19 in South Asia: Bangladesh as a case study

Mental health impacts among health workers during COVID-19 in a low resource setting: a cross-sectional survey from Nepal

General public’s knowledge and practices on face mask use during the COVID-19 pandemic: a cross-sectional exploratory survey from Dharan, Nepal

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