Despite widespread reports of a she-cession, most women managed to keep their jobs during the COVID-19 pandemic, suggests a paper to be discussed at the Brookings Papers on Economic Activity on March 24. That was a mixed blessing, however, because womenmuch more so than menbore the brunt of caring for children and elderly parents.
Far more mothers, and other women who are caregivers, have been stressed, frustrated, and anxious because they did not leave their jobs than have been forced to exit the workforce or cut back their hours, Claudia Goldin of Harvard University writes in Understanding the Economic Impact of COVID-19 on Women.
Usually, recessions affect male employment more than female employment because more men work in cyclically sensitive sectors such as manufacturing and construction, while more women work in usually more-stable service sectors. But the pandemic recession of 2020 hit services harder than previous recessions. Women working in restaurants, hospitality, retail, and personal care, saw their workplaces shuttered. The jobs most affected by the pandemic meant that people without college degrees, both women and men, were more likely to lose their jobs than people with college degrees, who often could work from home.
In May 2020, more than 60 percent of male and female college graduates were working at home due to COVID but only about 25 percent of women without a college degree and just 14 percent of men without a college degree were. Differences between the two education groups in remote work declined over time but have remained substantial and increased again during the Omicron wave.
The pandemic produced both a he- and a she-cession, Goldin writes. Relative to previous recessions, women have been harder hit. But the largest differences in pandemic effects on employment are found between education groups rather than between genders within educational groups.
Goldin compared the percentage of people at work during the pandemic with the percentage a year or two earlier for the same season. At work differs in one important way from employment. People with jobs but on furlough because of the pandemic, for instance, are not included in at work. A fall 2020-to-fall 2018 comparison, for example, adjusts for seasonal employment variation and for an anomalous spike in womens labor force participation in the months just before the pandemic began.
The pandemic produced both a he- and a she-cession.
Goldin looked at men and women and college graduates and non-graduates, aged 2054. Female college graduates at work fell by 2.7 percentage points; male college graduates at work declined by 2.6 percentage points. Female non-college graduates at work decreased by 5.7 percentage points; male non-college graduates at work fell by 5.5 percentage points.
The big differences are by education rather than gender, and that makes it more similar to previous recessions, Goldin writes.
With schools and daycare centers closed, women, much more so than men, spent additional time caring for children. For example, childcare (including schooling) by college-graduate women who worked full time, could work remotely, and had elementary school-aged children in two-parent households more than doubledfrom 8.7 hours a week before the pandemic to 17.3 hours in the early months of the pandemic. Childcare hours for custodial fathers in the same group spiked during those early months, probably to around 15.8 per week, but greatly decreased as work resumed. Because total childcare hours remained about as high, childcare hours increased for women by fall 2020.
Goldin closes her paper by speculating on whether increased workplace flexibility will benefit women after the pandemic, provided schools and daycare remain open. Possibly, mothers might be able to take on more-lucrative jobs that once required considerable travel away from home. But, if the new normal reduces womens in-person face-time with colleagues and clients relative to men, they could pay a career price in the form of reduced bonuses and pay increases and fewer promotions, she writes.
Goldin, Goldin. 2022. Understanding the economic impact of COVID-19 on women. BPEA Conference Draft, Spring.
A University of Iowa study published this month in the Journal of Telemedicine and Telecare found that an at-home telemonitoring program was an effective and sustainable way to manage COVID-19 for patients.
The goals of the program, as outlined in the study, were to avoid unnecessary hospitalizations, identify declining patients, escalate care when needed, and provide support to patients and families.
"Despite the low intensity of the intervention, our results support the use of telehealth to effectively monitor patients with COVID-19 at home," wrote researchers.
WHY IT MATTERS
As researchers explained, 1,128 University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics patients who had been diagnosed with COVID-19 met the criteria for the home-monitoring program, orHMP.
Enrolled patients were risk-stratified based on age and underlying comorbidities.
High-risk patients were given a monitoring kit that includeda pulse oximeter, an automated blood pressure cuff, vital signs and symptoms log sheet, contact information to report worsening symptoms, and instructions in English, Spanish and French.
A call line was established for patients to use outside regular business hours, and patients were instructed to call if they developed oxygen saturation under 92%, new shortness of breath, decrease in systolic blood pressure or other worsening symptoms.
Most patients, researchers found, did well with the system. Only 6.2% required hospitalizationand 1.2% a stay in the intensive care unitfrom the time of HMP enrollment. One patient, who had been inan emergency department beforehand, died while being monitored.
Hospitalizations were much more frequent for high-risk patients.
"Our observed rates of hospitalization and mortality were very low compared with national and regional averages at the time of this study," said researchers.
Although the patient population was racially and ethnically diverse, the study team noted that the mean patient age was lower than what is described in similar studies, and the majority of patients had zero or one risk factors for severe illness.
"It is not clear whether similar interventions would be sufficient in these settings where the rate of patient adverse outcomes would be much higher," said the study.
THE LARGER TREND
Health systems have been strategizing throughout the pandemic about the best ways to keep patients out of the hospital, given COVID-19's strain on resources.
Research published in December 2020 found that remote patient-monitoring (RPM) capabilities contributed to favorable COVID-19 patient outcomes at the Mayo Clinic.
But the potential for RPM goes beyond acute conditions. For instance, Dr. Waqaas Al-Siddiq, chairman, CEO and founder of Biotricity, told Healthcare IT News earlier this month that telehealth can help patients with chronic disease, as well.
"When you have a chronic condition, you need to maintain contact with providers to stay on track. And the added stress of living in a pandemic is enough to worsen a chronic condition, which has been reported. Patients need more care, not less," said Al-Siddiq.
ON THE RECORD
The University of Iowa researchers concludedthat their"study highlights a novel method of providing healthcare in a technology-driven world, reducing the utilization of hospital resources, while also allowing timely identification of disease progression and rapid escalation to inpatient care when necessary."
"It is also important to know that, in the event of a future pandemic, we have a tested method of risk-assessing patients and providing healthcare while minimizing healthcare worker exposures," they said.
Kat Jercich is senior editor of Healthcare IT News.Twitter: @kjercichEmail: kjercich@himss.orgHealthcare IT News is a HIMSS Media publication.
Colorados COVID-19 cases and the percentage of tests coming back positive both ticked up over the last week, though they remained near all-time lows.
The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment reported 2,488 new cases in the week ending Sunday, up from 1,598 the previous week the first week-over-week increase in new infections since the omicron surge peaked in January.
But last weeks figure was similar to the number of cases seen in late June 2021, a relatively placid point in the pandemic.
The percentage of tests coming back positive rose slightly on Tuesday and Wednesday, though it remained well below the states goal of no more than a 5% positivity rate. The higher the positivity rate is, the more likely it is that the state is missing some cases.
Hospitalizations appeared to decrease more slowly this week, dropping from 151 on March 15 to 135 on Tuesday. The states decision to only update the number of people hospitalized with confirmed COVID-19 once a week made it more difficult to see a pattern, however.
Its not clear if the slight rise in cases represents a real increase in transmission or a fluke, said Beth Carlton, an associate professor of environmental and occupational health at the Colorado School of Public Health. Right now, the odds of encountering the virus while going about daily life in Colorado are still low, but if the numbers continue to trend up, people might want to consider taking precautions again, she said.
It is possible well see an increase in cases and hospital demand in the days and weeks ahead, though its very unlikely to be as severe as the most recent wave, she said.
The good news is that relatively few people are hospitalized for COVID-19 now, so if the virus does start spreading more widely, the system is in a better position to handle an increase, Carlton said.
The amount of the virus found in wastewater has remained relatively stable, according to the states tracking dashboard. The Centers for Disease Control and Preventions wastewater surveillance showed that virus levels were falling in 12 Colorado locations and rising in nine. Testing wastewater often provides the first clue to whether the virus is advancing or retreating, because people who are infected excrete the viral particles whether they have symptoms or not.
Public health experts have been watching a recent increase in COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations in the United Kingdom. Its not clear how much of the increase is due to the BA.2 variant replacing omicron, the decision to lift all pandemic restrictions, or waning immunity.
The CDC estimates BA.2 now accounts for about 35% of cases in the country, though the state health departments latest data showed the variant was only present in about 7% of Colorado samples as of late February. The variant is a cousin of omicron, and early data suggests people who recently had an omicron infection are unlikely to be reinfected within two months though its not clear how much longer that immunity may last.
To figure out how concerning a variant might be, scientists consider how contagious it is, how well it gets around the immunes systems defenses and how likely it is to make people seriously ill, Carlton said. For BA.2, the main concern is increased transmissibility, she said.
BA.2 is just going to root out those remaining susceptibles who werent recently vaccinated or infected with omicron, she said.
While cases are still slowly declining nationwide, theyve risen over the last two weeks in Arkansas, Nevada, New York, Vermont and Rhode Island, according to data compiled by The New York Times. Hospitalizations are still falling in every state.
On Sunday, Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nations top infectious disease doctor, said he expects an uptick, but not a surge. Most disease models also have projected that if another wave comes, it wont be as bad as the last one though omicron set such a high bar that a variant that falls short of it could still be disruptive.
The virus trajectory in the United States has often, but not always, followed the pattern in Europe, said Dr. Meagan Fitzpatrick, an infectious disease transmission modeler at the University of Maryland School of Medicine. What any given state or region will experience depends on how many people currently have immunity to the omicron variant and what precautions theyre taking to reduce the odds of exposure, she said.
Its too early to know how much of an increase the United States might expect, though the size of the most recent wave is cause for optimism, since so many people will have at least some protection, Fitzpatrick said. The best thing to do is monitor trends in your area, and then decide on precautions like socializing outdoors or wearing masks in a setting where its not important to see other peoples faces, like the grocery store, she said.
I know we all want to be done, she said. But its still not a great idea to get COVID if it can be avoided.
LAFAYETTE, Ind. (WLFI) News 18 continues to track how the COVID-19 pandemic is impacting the food industry in Greater Lafayette. While restaurants have faced many challenges, the catering business is also attempting to recover from the pandemic.
For The Outpost in Lafayette, business dropped significantly when the pandemic hit. The venue lost 95 percent of its scheduled bookings, but office manager Monica Rowland says now, theyre seeing substantial progress.
The Outpost has been able to reschedule nearly all of the events it lost in 2020, according to Rowland. Right now, bookings are at around 90 percent of where they were prior to the pandemic.
Rowland says the uncertainty of the past two years has been difficult, and finding unique ways to keep some business on the books during that span has been key.
We were very creative, doing boxed lunches and things like that, Rowland said. We were able to try to keep business going as much as we possibly could.
The venue was able to keep staff members employed throughout the pandemic. They transferred those employees to the owners other two establishments, Old Buffalo and Sgt. Prestons.
Rowland says the biggest challenge now is handling the supply chain slowdowns. Many of the items the facility orders are either taking significantly longer to arrive or are unavailable altogether, making it hard to keep up with demand. As a result, the facility is increasing its prices until the market stabilizes.
While the last two years have been challenging, Rowland says The Outpost has been able to use the down time to improve the facility.
We were able to install some new dance floors that we have, Rowland said. Ordered some new chairs, did some upgrades to our bathroom. Kind of freshening it up a lot."
Rowland says the upgraded facility is also set to open back up for food tastings heading into the spring wedding season, which it hasnt been able to do since the start of the pandemic. She added that they are looking to hire some additional catering staff as the peak season approaches.
Home > Press Releases > Georgia Southern enlisted to help fight COVID-19 in Georgias confinement facilities
March 23, 2022
Georgia Southern University has established the Institute for Health Logistics & Analytics to manage a new $7.2 million contract and partner with the Georgia Department of Public Health to better fight COVID-19 in the states jails, prisons and other confinement facilities.
The project has two initial purposes: to improve detection and mitigation of COVID-19 to reduce the risk of transmission among confinement facility staff and residents, and to reimburse Georgia confinement facilities for costs they have incurred from approved COVID-19 mitigation activities they have already implemented.
Experts estimate that state facilities have spent millions on COVID-19 mitigation efforts such as testing and supplies; personal protective equipment (PPE); reporting, monitoring, analysis and evaluation of control measures to reduce the spread of COVID-19; and expenses associated with meeting resident/detainee/inmate needs resulting from COVID-19-related limited/restricted mobility and/or access to the facility.
This pandemic has impacted the entire country in ways that few thought of before they ever heard of COVID-19, said Jessica Schwind, Ph.D., associate professor of epidemiology in Georgia Southerns Jiann-Ping Hsu College of Public Health and the newly named director of the Institute for Health Logistics & Analytics.
COVID-19 disease has been particularly troublesome in confinement facilities, where physical separation is impossible, many different people are forced to be together, germs can easily be spread from person to person in the air or on numerous common surfaces, Schwind said. Managers of these facilities have done an admirable job we are going to help them be even more effective.
This project is supported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention of the United States Department of Health and Human Services through the ELC Detection and Mitigation of COVID-19 in Confinement Facilities Grant Program as part of a financial assistance award to the Georgia Department of Public Health.
The institute and the Georgia Department of Public Health (DPH) are encouraging all correctional confinement facilities in Georgia to implement COVID-19 testing and mitigation strategies to reduce the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Facilities eligible to apply for COVID-19 mitigation projects include adult prisons and jails, juvenile confinement facilities, police lock-ups, and community confinement facilities.
The Institute for Health Logistics & Analytics will assist with the review and reimbursement of confinement mitigation projects and expenditures in enrolled facilities across the state of Georgia.
This contract and the new Institute for Health Logistics & Analytics are great examples of what we mean when we say Georgia Southern is focused on public impact research, said Carl L. Reiber, Ph.D., Georgia Southerns provost and vice president for academic affairs. Dr. Schwinds expertise is in fighting communicable diseases and she has spent the last two years guiding Georgia Southerns response to the pandemic. Im delighted her expertise will be used throughout the state.
For more information, visit the institutes website.
A person is considered fully vaccinated if theyve received two doses of the mRNA vaccines from Pfizer or Moderna, or if theyve received one dose of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine. Everyone 12 and older who has been fully vaccinated should also get a booster, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
People are eligible to get a booster shot five months after their second Pfizer or Moderna shot, or two months after their Johnson & Johnson shot.
It is very important for people who are eligible to get boosted, Dr. Sabrina Assoumou, an assistant professor of medicine at Boston University School of Medicine and an attending physician in the section of Infectious Diseases at Boston Medical Center, said Wednesday. You need that booster to get to that higher level of protection.
DPH data shows that older residents have been more likely to get boosters. Seventy-six percent of fully vaccinated people who are 75-plus have gotten boosted. At the other end of the spectrum, only 29 percent of fully vaccinated 12- to 15-year-olds have gotten boosted. (Vaccines have been authorized for 5- to 11-year-olds but not boosters. No vaccines have been authorized yet for children under 5, though Moderna said Wednesday it would file an application for children 6 months to 5 years old.)
The states booster rate among fully vaccinated residents is better than the national average, which is 44 percent, the DPH noted in a report last Thursday.
But experts and officials say that a resurgence of cases and hospitalizations in the United Kingdom and other European countries underscores the need for more people to step up for vaccinations and boosters. Factors suspected of driving the trends in Europe include the lifting of pandemic restrictions, the waning of immunity from vaccinations and prior infections, and the arrival of the more-contagious BA.2 subvariant. Similar factors are at play in the United States, experts say. And recent data has shown BA.2 is on the rise nationally and in New England.
What happens in Europe tends to foreshadow what happens here, Assoumou said. The best way to be ready for a possible increase in cases ... is to first get vaccinated and boosted.
Assoumou said some people may not realize how crucial the booster shots are, especially for the elderly and people with underlying conditions. Other people may be hoping for protection from a prior infection, unaware that the CDC recommends they still get a booster. Still others may have problems getting time off to get shots or may worry about missing work due to side effects.
We need to get the word out there and also make it easier to get vaccinated, she said.
People may be confused by changing public health messages as scientists and officials have scrambled to cope with an unprecedented, unpredictable pandemic, she said. She noted one example of a confusing message: the official designation of people as fully vaccinated when they are supposed to get booster shots. She said she expected that in the future the definition of fully vaccinated would include the boosters.
The Biden administration is reportedly now pondering authorizing a second booster shot for people 65 and older, as BA.2 concerns swirl. Assoumou said it seemed like it would be a really hard sell lets get that first booster in.
Dr. Paul Sax, clinical director of the Division of Infectious Diseases at Brigham and Womens Hospital, said, The data from multiple countries strongly support getting a third dose [a booster] in particular for optimal protection against all forms of Omicron, including BA.2. This is particularly important for older people [anyone over 50] and those with multiple medical problems.
The good news its safe and rapidly provides protection, so its not too late, he said in an e-mail.
The state Executive Office of Health and Human Services said in a statement that Massachusetts is a national leader in vaccination rates and Massachusetts residents have ready access to vaccines, rapid tests, and therapeutics all the resources needed to stay safe from severe illness. The Administration will continue to work with the healthcare community and the federal government to monitor all of the latest developments.
The DPH advises people that they should get fully vaccinated and boosted; get tested if they think they have COVID-19; and talk to their doctor about treatments if they test positive.
Martin Finucane can be reached at martin.finucane@globe.com. Daigo Fujiwara can be reached at daigo.fujiwara@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @DaigoFuji.
Published on March 23, 2022
As demand for COVID-19 testing and vaccinations continues to decline, the city will temporarily cease operations beginning Monday, March 28.
If, at any time, public demand returns for these services, the city has the ability to respond quickly and reinstate the sites. New surges most recently in Europe and Hong Kong and new variants, such as Omicron BA.2, are being closely monitored.
The city will continue to offer:
These testing and vaccination operations will conclude beginning the week of March 28:
The COVID-19 hotline will remain active to assist anyone needing information or access to resource lists for the community. Call 817-392-8478.
Access to testing and vaccinations remains widely available through Tarrant County Public Healthand at many private entities such as pharmacies, hospitals and doctors offices.
To learn more, contact the COVID-19 hotline by email orat 817-392-8478.
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On March 23, Cornell University raised its COVID-19 operational level to yellow Low to Moderate Risk after reporting 151 new positive COVID-19 cases March 22 the highest number of new cases since Cornell dropped its mask mandate March 14.
In a statement to the Ithaca community, Cornell credited multiple factors for the outbreak.
COVID-19 cases on the Ithaca campus are increasing beyond our predictions, indicating a substantial prevalence of the virus on campus, the statement said. This rising transmission is likely due to a number of factors, including relaxing mask requirements, the emergence of the BA.2 variant, and increased social activities.
The Low to Moderate Risk operating status calls for immediate voluntary actions to be taken, like wearing high-quality masks at parties and participating in surveillance testing.
The increase in cases comes 12 days after Cornell dropped its mask mandate for most on-campus locations. High-quality masks were still required to be worn in classrooms, laboratories, public transportation and testing sites.
At Ithaca College, COVID-19 cases remain low, with four total active student cases as of March 23. On March 4 shortly before the college went on spring break the college lifted its mask mandate, to mixed community response by students and faculty.
At the end of the Fall 2021 semester, both Cornell and Ithaca College experienced enormous COVID-19 surges that made national headlines. The colleges responded by mandating booster shots.
Thursday, the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) reported*:
*Of the deaths reported Thursday, MDH says 11 are from March 2022, five are from February 2022, three from January 2022 and one from December 2021.
MDH also reported the following data regarding hospital capacity**:
**For this data set, MDH defines COVID beds in use as being the number of patients who are currently positive with COVID-19 occupying a staffed inpatient bed in Minnesota. This does not include patients that were once positive but are now negative.
Additionally, MDH said:
View the complete updatevia the interactive infographicbelow or here.
Meanwhile, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported, as of Thursday, four counties in Minnesota remained at a high level of COVID-19 community transmission. Another 31 counties are considered at a substantial spread.
View the complete update via the interactive map below or here.
Pennsylvanias worst allergy season is upon us.
Some people will surely wonder if theyre coming down with COVID-19.
In that first couple of days, a little bit of a sore throat, which can occur with allergies, and that nasal congestion and runny nose, they can appear similar, said Dr. Timothy Craig, an allergy specialist at Penn State Health Milton S. Hershey Medical Center.
Fortunately, there are major differences between seasonal allergy and COVID-19 symptoms that can help people distinguish.
For one, people coming down with COVID-19 often lose their sense of smell, which doesnt happen with season allergies. For another, sneezing is common with allergies but rare with COVID-19.
Beyond that, seasonal allergies dont produce the severe sore throat, fever and body aches common with COVID-19, according to Craig.
If youre a long-time allergy sufferer, timing can also help you make the call: If youre feeling the same allergy-type symptoms you normally feel this time of year, odds are its allergies rather than COVID-19, he said.
That said, theres one major, dangerous symptom thats common to COVID-19, and a sign of need for immediate medical attention: Severe shortness of breath or difficulty breathing.
For the record, here are the main COVID-19 symptoms:
Central Pennsylvania recently entered the spring allergy season, with the main pollen coming from trees. The arrival is signaled by the pink buds on tree branches.
The first phase involves maples, followed by species including oaks and birches, according to Craig.
Because of the intense concentration of trees in the Appalachian mountain range, the tree pollen season is the worst of the year for allergy sufferers in this part of the country, according to Craig. It will last until around mid-May. Then grass will take over as the main pollen source. That can last until July or a little longer if we get a lot of rain.
The next major pollen surge will come in late summer, triggered by ragweed. Ragweed season used to be associated with an Aug. 15 starting date, but that has moved forward as a result of global warming, Craig noted.
While the tree pollen season is just beginning, its already time for allergy sufferers to begin taking medication, he said.
Anybody who hasnt started taking their medication who is tree allergic should definitely get on it, because its easier to treat your symptoms preemptively than to wait until you get symptoms and try to get rid of them, Craig said.
More:
Pa. National Guard ends COVID-19 mission at least for now
Moderna says its COVID-19 vaccine works for kids under 6
