Articles: covid-19.
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Observational Study
Monitoring COVID-19 in Belgian general practice: A tool for syndromic surveillance based on electronic health records.
COVID-19 may initially manifest as flu-like symptoms. As such, general practitioners (GPs) will likely to play an important role in monitoring the pandemic through syndromic surveillance. ⋯ The syndromic surveillance tool for COVID-19 in primary care provides rapidly available data useful in all phases of the COVID-19 pandemic to support data-driven decision-making. Potential enhancements were identified for a prospective surveillance tool.
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The Pulmonary Embolism Rule-Out Criteria (PERC), developed to minimize unnecessary testing in low-risk pulmonary embolism (PE) cases, lacks clear validation in the context of COVID-19. ⋯ The study demonstrates that the sensitivity and negative predictive value of the PERC are comparable in COVID-19 positive and negative patients. Furthermore, the incidence of PE among patients presenting to the emergency department did not significantly differ based on COVID-19 status. While this study highlights the relevance of the PERC in clinical decision-making, caution is advised as the PERC may not always provide reliable results when used as the sole diagnostic test.
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Using electronic health records, we derived and internally validated a prediction model to estimate risk factors for long COVID and predict individual risk of developing long COVID. ⋯ Older age, higher BMI, severe COVID-19 infection, female sex, deprivation and comorbidities were predictors of long COVID. Vaccination against COVID-19 and testing positive while Delta or Omicron variants were dominant predicted reduced risk.
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Rapid identification of effective treatments for use in the community during a pandemic is vital for the well-being of individuals and the sustainability of healthcare systems and society. Furthermore, identifying treatments that do not work reduces research wastage, spares people unnecessary side effects, rationalises the cost of purchasing and stockpiling medication, and reduces inappropriate medication use. Nevertheless, only a small minority of therapeutic trials for SARS-CoV-2 infections have been in primary care: most opened too late, struggled to recruit, and few produced actionable results. Participation in research is often limited by where one lives or receives health care, and trial participants may not represent those for whom the treatments are intended. ⋯ The PRINCIPLE and PANORAMIC trials represent models of innovation and inclusivity, and exemplify the potential of primary care to lead the way in addressing pressing global health challenges.
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Healthcare education encountered unprecedented challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic, but the necessary responses have also provided learning opportunities for the future. ⋯ Any pandemic poses unique challenges to the delivery of healthcare education. These surveys report educators' and students' views on online teaching and learning strategies, highlighting novel mechanisms to improve student engagement and ultimately impact on graduate outcomes.