In-person schooling has proved contentious and difficult to study throughout the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic. Data from a massive online survey in the United States indicates an increased risk of COVID-19-related outcomes among respondents living with a child attending school in-person. School-based mitigation measures are associated with significant reductions in risk, particularly daily symptoms screens, teacher masking, and closure of extra-curricular activities. A positive association between in-person schooling and COVID-19 outcomes persists at low levels of mitigation, but when seven or more mitigation measures are reported, a significant relationship is no longer observed. Among teachers, working outside the home was associated with an increase in COVID-19-related outcomes, but this association is similar to other occupations (e.g., healthcare, office work). While in-person schooling is associated with household COVID-19 risk, this risk can likely be controlled with properly implemented school-based mitigation measures.

In-person schooling has proved contentious and difficult to study throughout the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic. Data from a massive online survey in the United States indicates an increased risk of COVID-19-related outcomes among respondents living with a child attending school in-person. School-based mitigation measures are associated with significant reductions in risk, particularly daily symptoms screens, teacher masking, and closure of extra-curricular activities. With seven or more mitigation measures, the association between in-person schooling and COVID-19-related outcomes all but disappears. Teachers working outside the home were more likely to report COVID-19-related outcomes, but this association is similar to other occupations (e.g., healthcare, office work). In-person schooling is associated with household COVID-19 risk, but this risk can likely be controlled with properly implemented school-based mitigation measures.One sentence summaryLiving with children attending in-person school is linked to a higher risk of COVID-19 outcomes, which school-based interventions can mitigate.

Objective. To design, implement, and evaluate the utility of a situational judgment test (SJT) to assess empathy in first-year student pharmacists as part of an end-of-year capstone experience. Methods. First-year students completed a five-minute SJT in lieu of a multiple mini interview (MMI) during the end-of-year capstone. For each SJT item, students selected the two most appropriate response options from a list of five. Various strategies to score the SJT were compared to evaluate the psychometric properties of the test. Student performance on the SJT was examined in relationship to performance on other measures, (eg, MMI stations, personality assessments, and admissions data). Results. A total of 135 first-year pharmacy students completed an average of 9.5 items. Scoring keys based on subject matter experts' and student responses demonstrated high reliability. There was a positive, weak relationship between student performance on the SJT and performance on the adaptability station used in the capstone, and an inverse, weak relationship with students' agreeableness scores. Conclusion. This study suggests that the SJT may be a feasible and efficient assessment strategy in pharmacy education. Additional research is needed to inform SJT design, implementation, and interpretation.

Objectives: To examine the association of non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs) with anxiety and depressive symptoms among adults and determine if these associations varied by gender and age.Methods: We combined survey data from 16,177,184 adults from 43 countries who participated in the daily COVID-19 Trends and Impact Survey via Facebook with time-varying NPI data from the Oxford COVID-19 Government Response Tracker between 24 April 2020 and 20 December 2020. Using logistic regression models, we examined the association of [1] overall NPI stringency and [2] seven individual NPIs (school closures, workplace closures, cancellation of public events, restrictions on the size of gatherings, stay-at-home requirements, restrictions on internal movement, and international travel controls) with anxiety and depressive symptoms.Results: More stringent implementation of NPIs was associated with a higher odds of anxiety and depressive symptoms, albeit with very small effect sizes. Individual NPIs had heterogeneous associations with anxiety and depressive symptoms by gender and age.Conclusion: Governments worldwide should be prepared to address the possible mental health consequences of stringent NPI implementation with both universal and targeted interventions for vulnerable groups.