The MIT Press & UC Berkeley launched an open access, rapid-review overlay journal that accelerates peer review of COVID-19-related research and delivers real-time, verified scientific information that policymakers and health leaders can use. Scientists and researchers are working overtime to understand the SARS-CoV-2 virus and are producing an unprecedented amount of preprint scholarship that is publicly available online but has not been vetted yet by peer review for accuracy. Traditional peer review can take four or more weeks to complete, but RR:C19’s editorial team, led by editor-in-chief, Stefano M. Bertozzi, Professor of Health Policy and Management and Dean Emeritus of the School of Public Health at University of California Berkeley, produces expert reviews in a matter of days. Using artificial intelligence tools, a global team identifies promising scholarship in preprint repositories, commission expert peer reviews, and publishes the results on an open access platform in a completely transparent process. The journal strives for disciplinary and geographic breadth, sourcing manuscripts from all regions and across a wide variety of fields, including medicine; public health; the physical, biological, and chemical sciences; the social sciences; and the humanities.
Authentic Learning of Clinical Skills Through AIMST University Model of Ambulatory Care and In-patient Care Simulation.
AIMST University, Malaysia
The lockdown in Malaysia since 18th March 2020 has created a sudden vacuum in the face to face learning opportunity of clinical skills. We had to design and deliver authentic learning of clinical-skills in a simulated environment in the faculty of Medicine, AIMST University, for the under-grad medical students studying in the MBBS program. This is a gist of the principles we have followed to achieve that to the best of the collective ability of the faculty. Guiding Principles in Brief: Structuring of Clinical Teaching-Learning (through years 3 to 5 of MBBS) has been done by adopting RIME framework. We have been following the RIME model since 2019. Briefly, it is to teach and learn, — recording (R) clinical history and physical examination in year-3; — interpreting (I) the clinical case details and the investigation reports in year-4; and — planning management (M) of the case; — how to give follow up advice by patient education (E) in year-5 of the MBBS course. Choice of the Mode of Teaching-Learning: This has been based on the predominant domain as per the revised Bloom’s taxonomy and Miller’s prism/pyramid. Academic freedom was given to each clinical unit to base their choice of the level of clinical experience based on availability of resources, feasibility and priorities. The guiding principle for the choice of learning experience was Dale’s cone of experience. For example, the clinical units with access to real ambulatory cases arranged to get the cases to the simulated bedside discussions. Other units, used hybrid models to the extent possible combining, i) standardized patients, who could give clinical history in a consistent manner, ii) normal volunteers for the students to practice physical examination, and iii) high fidelity simulators to learn perceptual skills of visual, auditory and tactile senses. Ambulatory Care Simulation: Ambulatory (outpatient) care is medical care provided on an outpatient basis, including diagnosis, observation, consultation, treatment, intervention, and rehabilitation services. The goal is to learn the skills of focused case assessment and advising the patient on home based management of the problem. It is feasible to use some of the clinical students to play the roles of ambulatory cases with a bit of guidance and coaching on key features of the case scenario. The others would then interact with them in layperson’s language to elicit the case history. Several symptoms do not have any abnormal physical findings and are diagnosed based on history alone. These are easy to begin the program of ambulatory care simulation. “AIMST University Model” of simulated In-patient environment: Cognitive realism is more important than physical realism in creating authentic learning environment. Therefore, each clinical unit has planned sustainable and practicable in-patient simulation based on the principles of design stated earlier. We have created a 4 bedded in-patient cubicle to create a realistic milieu. On day-0, the briefing is done on the objectives of the in-patient simulation exercises, which would spread over 3 to 5 days. The students who play the roles of in-patient cases will be initially coached on case details. From day-1, they would plan to narrate their daily progress until they are discharged. The clinical conditions are chosen from the common diseases prevalent in Malaysia. On day-1, the rest of the students are allotted a new patient for clerking. Appropriate Mannequins or videos will be supplemented to present the physical findings of the patient allotted. After an hour of clerking, the clinical instructor will take ward rounds and analyze each case presentation in detail, especially focusing on differential diagnosis, further investigations and initial treatment plan. On day-2, the daily progress report, and the lab reports & images will be the basis for discussions. The focus will be narrowing the diagnostic possibilities, planning further work up if needed, and modifying treatment plan based on test results. This may go on for a day or two more as planned by the unit. On the final day of the simulation exercise, the students will discuss discharge plans and instructions to the patients. Evaluation of the Ambulatory and In-patient simulation: Evaluation of the learning outcomes are assessed daily, using the RIME evaluation format already available with the major clinical units. In addition, feedback has been obtained from the students, from the role-players and from the clinical instructors on the usefulness of the simulated clinical environment in achieving the expected outcomes. The encouraging feedback has consolidated our efforts to persist with the AIMST-model during 2021, the second year of pandemic-associated disruption in face-to-face learning in real-life clinical settings. In conclusion, to the best of our knowledge, our model of longitudinal clinical-clerkship simulation over 4 to 5 days, is an original contribution to Medical Education.
PRIYA — India’s first female superhero, embarks on a mission to stop the spread of Covid-19 in the comic book “Priya’s Mask.” She befriends a little girl named Meena to show her the sacrifices made by frontline healthcare workers and instill the power of courage and compassion during this difficult time. Along with her tiger Sahas, Priya explains the importance of wearing a mask and working together to help end the pandemic around the world. She teams up with Pakistan’s female superhero, Burka Avenger, to foil her arch enemy from infecting her city with the potent virus. Released as an online comic book, the edition reached millions of people in India and the worldwide.
The short animated film, “Priya’s Mask” is an important testament to the courage of women healthcare workers and will help educate people about the virus. An international array of actors and leaders lend their voices to this important film including Vidya Balan, Mrunal Thakur, Sairah Kabir and Rosanna Arquette.
Additional Details
This first story was specifically constructed to address the problem of blaming victims of sexual violence and provided a character, Priya, who could inspire change throughout communities by appealing to audiences — especially youth — with an empathetic narrative. Priya’s story became a powerful voice a in the global movement for women’s rights and a symbol of solidarity against gender-based violence and continuing with the #MeToo movement. The creators of the comic book were honored by UN Women as “gender equality champions.”
In response to the limited availability of personal protective equipment in Ecuador, the designer developed a method for making low-cost but effective COVID masks at home using algae as a filter.
Design Innovation Initiative Uses Creativity to Help Medical Proffesionals Fight COVID-19
Kent State Today
Kent State University’s Design Innovation (DI) Initiative is responding to the COVID-19 crisis by prototyping and producing face shields and masks to help fill the gap being experienced by medical personnel on the front lines.
The team is utilizing the 3D printing and laser-cutting resources in place at Kent State to produce much-needed and increasingly scarce personal protective equipment (PPE) to donate to Kent State’s first responders at the Kent State Police Department and DeWeese Health Center. The remainder will go to the Cleveland-based nonprofit MedWish International, which will distribute the supplies to Northeast Ohio’s hospital workers and first responders who are in dire need. MedWish repurposes medical supplies and equipment.
We have adapted our Joy of Creative Engagement program to an online format to reach the affected population of isolated caregivers and their senior clients.
We teach caregivers how to use music and storytelling with seniors who may suffer from memory impairment, depression, and feelings of isolation during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Early artistic responses to Covid-19 offer fascinating insights into key issues arising from the crisis, argue ART/DATA/HEALTH researchers Elodie Marandet, Harriet Barratt, and Aristea Fotopoulou.
This Too Shall Pass: Creativity in the Time of COVID-19
The Science & entertainment exchange with Cultural programs of the national academy of sciences
This Too Shall Pass: Creativity in the Time of Covid-19 is a series of online discussions organized by Cultural Programs of the NAS and by the Science & Entertainment Exchange to explore creative responses in all disciplines to the pandemic.
Programs included:
July 1, 2020 Claudius Conrad, Andrew Janss, and Indre Viskontas
August 5, 2020 Clifford Johnson, Mike Smith and Molly Webster
October 2020 Lauren Gunderson, Deric Hughes, and Kevin O’Brien
In response to the Covid-19 surge, Boston Hope Hospital was created. This field hospital based at the Boston Convention Center was designed to care for patients recovering from Covid after hospital discharge, as well as homeless patients who were Covid+ in need of respite care and isolation. Boston Hope Music project brought over 100 musicians from the around the city together who submitted “musical doses” of electronically. These were curated into over 25 playlists that patients could access via Samsung tablets three times a day to promote healing. These playlists are now available to the general public on a dedicated website. In addition, musicians visited the Boston Hope Hospital to play music for the healthcare providers to help promote wellness and wellbeing for the front line.
3-D Simulation Shows Why Social Distancing Is So Important
New York Times
Simulation, created using research data from the Kyoto Institute of Technology, offers one view of what can happen when someone coughs indoors. A cough produces respiratory droplets of varying sizes. Larger droplets fall to the floor, or break up into smaller droplets.
Humanizing Epidemiology: Non-medical Investigations into Epi/Pandemic Phenomena
Nature
Since the current global outbreak has emerged, most of the prestigious scientific publishers including ours (Springer Nature) have raised open-calls and free material in order to fight COVID-19. all these efforts logically are addressed to the medical societies and related disciplines. However, we are convinced that the contributions of academics, policymakers and other stakeholders from other areas, including the humanities, arts and social sciences (HASS), should not be overlooked. Therefore, I am pleased to announce this open call for research article collection that aims to examine the innovative role and contributions of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences -HASS- disciplines, as well as interdisciplinary efforts, in shaping the global response to public health crises. To this end, this collection intends to bring together a range of perspectives, empirical and theoretical, qualitative and quantitative, which draw on methods and approaches from, among other areas: cultural studies, new-media arts, history, digital humanities, law, media and communication studies, political sciences, psychology, sociology, social policy, science and technology studies. Further, Interdisciplinary perspectives are welcomed, whether between HASS disciplines, or at the interface between HASS scholarship and the physical and clinical sciences, or engineering, mathematics, computer science.
Additional Details
Prospective authors should submit a 200-word abstract and a short biography to the Collection Editors in the first instance. Authors whose proposals are deemed suitable will be invited to submit full papers at any point up until the end of June 2021.
Guest Editor: Diaa Ahmed Mohamed Ahmedien (Faculty of Art Education, Helwan University, Cairo, Egypt)
Co-Guest Editor: Michael Ochsner (ETH, Zurich, Switzerland)
Advisory board: Jon Hovi (University of Oslo, Norway), Adele Langlois (University of Lincoln, UK), Tony Waters (California State University, Chicago, USA), Merryn McKinnon (Australian National University, Australia), Chisomo Kalinga (University of Edinburgh, Scotland, UK), Ann H Kelly (King’s College London, UK), Jochen Buechel (Charite Berlin, Germany), Lin Wang (University of Cambridge, UK), Shinichi Egawa (Tohoku University, Japan).
Pandemic outbreaks as public health crises have the potential to reshape human life, from herpes, and Legionnaires’ disease to HIV and Ebola. Each virus or bacteria has its unique biological properties by which it interacts with and affects populations. Human coronaviruses, for instance, have been known since the 1960s. In the past two decades, however, several new dangerous human coronaviruses have emerged, namely, SARS-CoV in 2002, MERS-CoV in 2012, and currently, SARS-CoV-2 is the cause of the disease known as COVID-19, which has put global public health institutions on high alert. Each pandemic brings its own political, economic, cultural, social and ethical challenges. Although efforts to combat such outbreaks are primarily driven by clinical and medical professionals, the contributions of academics, policymakers and other stakeholders from other arenas, including the humanities, arts and social sciences (HASS), should not be overlooked.
Against this backdrop, this research collection aims to examine the role and contributions of the HASS disciplines, as well as interdisciplinary efforts, in shaping the global response to public health crises. To this end, this collection intends to bring together a range of perspectives, empirical and theoretical, qualitative and quantitative, which draw on methods and approaches from, among other areas: cultural studies, new-media arts, history, digital humanities, law, media and communication studies, political sciences, psychology, sociology, social policy, science and technology studies.
Our goal is to identify specific domains of pandemic preparedness and response that benefit from an applied medical humanities approach, and produce detailed descriptions of the forms of output that result from this engagement. Applied Medical Humanities for Public Health will identify, synthesize, and translate humanities-based responses to COVID-19 from around the world so that these projects may together provide a blueprint for education and research on pandemic preparedness and response in humanities disciplines.
Kirsten Ostherr (reported by Inside Higher Education)
In times of crisis, when we face complex challenges like global pandemics, we need a collaborative response that transcends disciplinary boundaries and offers novel approaches to vexing problems. In the current moment, biologists, engineers and others in fields with established pipelines for translational research have sprung into action, working together to create life-saving diagnostics and therapeutics to help with the COVID-19 pandemic. Yet it isn’t always so obvious how scholars in the humanities can contribute to the front-line response.
Additional Details
Kirsten Ostherr, PhD, MPH is the Gladys Louise Fox Professor of English at Rice University in Houston, Texas, where she is a media scholar, health researcher, and technology analyst. Her research on trust and privacy in digital health ecosystems has been featured in Slate, The Washington Post, Big Data & Society, and Catalyst. She has recently published research on medical humanities and artificial intelligence in The Journal of Medical Humanities, and her writing on COVID-19 has been featured in Inside Higher Ed and in American Literature. She is currently leading a multidisciplinary project called “Translational Humanities for Public Health” that will identify humanities-based (and humanities-inspired) responses to the COVID-19 pandemic, to document and help others build upon these creative efforts. Kirsten is the author of Medical Visions: Producing the Patient through Film, Television and Imaging Technologies (Oxford, 2013) and Cinematic Prophylaxis: Globalization and Contagion in the Discourse of World Health (Duke, 2005). She is editor of Applied Media Studies (Routledge, 2018), and co-editor of Science/Animation, a special issue of the journal Discourse (2016). Kirsten is currently writing a book called Quantified Health: Learning from Patient Stories in the Age of Big Data.
Longevicity: Social Inclusion for the Elderly Through Walkability
University of Milano-Bicocca
The LONGEVICITY project is based on a strong collaboration among Artificial Intelligence and Design, developing new research and solutions allowing an active aging through the fruition of walkable cities. Because of the Covid 19 emergency, many elderly have been forced to stop an active fruition of the cities. The purpose of the project is to extend our research on affective walkability issues, measuring the level of stress (via wearable sensors and an Affective Computing approach) of aged walkers during the preservation of interpersonal distances, joint with the design of new public areas coming from architecture and design.
Blog with practical advice regarding how to use music as a coping strategy to enhance wellbeing at this stressful time.
Suzanne Hanser writes, “In Greater Good Magazine, Dacher Keltner provides an answer. He says, ‘Choose awe: Wander outdoors looking for awe, reflect on people whose courage and kindness give you the chills, listen to music that lifts you up. If you open yourself up to feeling awe, our research suggests you’ll gain strength for facing our collective challenges. And perhaps lead us out of the toxic dimension of these times, to an age of awe.’
I like to think that we can do this – enter the age of awe – when we really listen and allow ourselves to feel the awe of music. Music can echo our feelings, helping us identify and acknowledge how we feel. It can also change our moods, soothing or exciting us, validating or empowering us. Back in March, my first blog post after learning about COVID-19 addressed how to use the “iso-principle” to create music playlists to modulate emotions and manage moods. This concept is based on matching your feelings with music and slowly changing the music with the intention of changing your mood.”
Additional Details
Suzanne B Hanser, EdD, MT-BC is Professor and Chair Emerita of the Music Therapy Department at Berklee College of Music. Dr. Hanser is Past President of both the World Federation of Music Therapy and the National Association for Music Therapy. She established the music therapy program at the Leonard P. Zakim Center for Integrative Therapies at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, and is also a Resident Scholar at the Women’s Studies Research Center at Brandeis University. Dr. Hanser is the author of The New Music Therapist’s Handbook, and co-author of Manage Your Stress and Pain, book and CD, with Dr. Susan Mandel, and Integrative Health through Music Therapy: Accompanying the Journey from Illness to Wellness. In 2006 Dr. Hanser was named by the Boston Globe as one of eleven Bostonians Changing the World. She is the recipient of a National Research Service Award from NIA, the Sage Publications Prize, and the American Music Therapy Association’s Lifetime Achievement Award.
This project involves a team of about 25 art, medical and instructional support faculty and staff plus art students. The project lead is Lynsey Ekema. Initially we 3D printed 1000 face shields. Now we are printing a version of the reusable (can be sterilized) Montana Mask for the health care workers at Augusta University Hospital.
Additional Details
Link to the project page: https://www.augusta.edu/innovation/covid19
Link to 2nd story in campus online newspaper: https://jagwire.augusta.edu/augusta-university-and-local-companies-team-up-to-develop-500-reusable-medical-masks/
The Arts & Design Research Incubator (ADRI) at Penn State seeks to improve lives through research and application of arts and design practices to health and well-being. The ADRI is part of the College of Arts and Architecture at Penn State. We constructed this repository of arts-based wellness activities and resources in response to the COVID-19 global pandemic, as many of us struggle to navigate the uncertainties of this reality, now and into the future. This is a work in progress. Please look around, download and share, and do feel welcome to reach out to us with feedback, questions, and additional content suggestions. We hope you stay safe and well.
While NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory usually works on Mars Rover Perseverance and redirection of asteroids, in times of crisis they focus their collective energy for the greater good. Learn about what it was like when NASA had to pivot during the pandemic. Dan Goods is passionate about creating moments in people’s lives where they are reminded of the gift and privilege of being alive. He leads an extraordinary team of creatives, called The Studio, at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory transforming complex concepts into meaningful stories that can be universally understood. Their work is seen in public spaces, art museums, and is in outer space.
Additional Details
Dan Goods was recently honored with NASA’s Exceptional Public Service Award. In the past he was selected as “One of the most interesting people in Los Angeles” by the LA Weekly. In 2002, he graduated valedictorian from the graphic design program at Art Center College of Design. He currently lives in Altadena, CA with his wife and three kids. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx
Performing Public Health: Remote Cultures Conversation Series
Center for Arts in Medicine, University of Florida
The Remote Cultures Conversation Series documents various interpretations and practices of how artists and arts communities are supporting public health efforts. We recently hosted our first conversation centered on experiences of uniquely precarious artists in performing public health (please see project website for further details), i.e. the lived-experiential knowledges they possess of how best to combat social isolation, shifts in social routines, creative practices to engage and maintain well-being, and/or statements/discussion of the lack of any change to routine whatsoever. This project is part of a larger effort in collaboration with the University of Florida’s Center for Arts in Medicine’s COVID-19 Arts Response, which houses the Performing Public Health initiative, as well as a COVID-19 Arts Repository, advisory briefs, and links to a white paper entitled “Creating Healthy Communities: Arts and Public Health in America.”
Additional Details
What are “Remote Cultures”?
In this context, “Remote Cultures” refer to the cultures evolving in response to the public health measures implemented due to the Coronavirus pandemic. Remote Cultures vary among different populations and communities, including Unique Precarities (particular experiences, knowledges, needs, and abilities of marginalized groups) and individuals’ adaptations to the novel public health measures implemented during this pandemic.
Minibinders, Small Antiviral Proteins for SARS-CoV-2 Therapeutics
Baker Lab, Institute of Protein Design
This artwork shows a comparison between minibinders (small antiviral proteins, shown in shades of red) and antibodies (blue) that bind to the spike proteins on the surface of the SARS-CoV-2 virus. Prof David Baker’s group at the Institute of Protein Design commenced the computational design of minibinders in January 2020 around the time when community transmission of the virus began. By the end of May, they had identified minibinders that were able to strongly bind the spike proteins and neutralize the virus. Minibinders are 20-fold smaller than antibodies, and can be scaled up in production at a lower cost. While antibodies have only two binding sites to its target, minibinders in an equal mass offer 20-fold more potential neutralizing sites. The small size and higher stability of minibinders offer a possible advantage of nasal formulations for drug delivery and eliminating the need for refrigeration during storage and transport. These minibinders are currently in development for their potential use as SARS-CoV-2 therapeutics. This example highlights the power of computer-generated protein design, especially during a pandemic when time is critical.For more information refer to https://www.bakerlab.org/index.php/2020/09/09/covid-minibinders/
As the Covid-19 epidemic emerged, so too did an abundance of how-to hand washing videos. Starting in late January 2020, one in particular played on a continuous, hypnotic loop in the dining hall that my partner and I shared with hundreds of others in Singapore. Always running, hands in motion, suds, instruction, rinsing, sensation, ablution. My partner’s and my time as artists-in-residence in Southeast Asia transformed into one of sheltering-in-place for months on end. With a hazard so invisible and communicable, and within a global mesh where everything is shared, the significance of safety, of self, and of contact became more pressing and at the same time more difficult to discern. The ritual choreography of hand washing became deeply embedded in our bodies and minds over those months, while forms of protection, isolation, and communion continue to mutate.
My partner’s and my time as artists-in-residence in Southeast Asia transformed into one of sheltering-in-place for months on end. With a hazard so invisible and communicable, and within a global mesh where everything is shared, the significance of safety, of self, and of contact became more pressing and at the same time more difficult to discern. The ritual choreography of hand washing became deeply embedded in our bodies and minds over those months, while forms of protection, isolation, and communion continue to mutate.
