Addressing COVID-19 in Afghanistan: What are the efforts and challenges?

Lucero‐Prisno, Don Eliseo; Ahmadi, Attaullah; Essar, Mohammad Yasir; Xu, Lin; Adebisi, Yusuff Adebayo

doi:10.7189/jogh.10.020341

Cited by 35 publications

(39 citation statements)

References 3 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…2 Globally, as of February 9, 2021, there have been 106,125,682 confirmed cases of COVID-19, including 2,320,497 deaths, were reported to WHO. 3 Afghanistan, like most countries, was hit hard by the relentless spread of corona virus, 4 especially as the healthcare system of this war-torn country was already overburdened before. 5 In Afghanistan, the first case of COVID-19 was reported on February 24, 2020, in a 35-year-old man who had recently visited Qom, Iran.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Public Willingness and Hesitancy to Take the COVID-19 Vaccine in Afghanistan

Nemat

Bahez

Salih

et al. 2021

The American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

COVID-19 has been causing a global threat to almost all countries for more than one year. Vaccination of the majority of any country’s population is considered to be an effective way of controlling the spread and mortality of this infection. Therefore, it is important to assess the public’s willingness to be vaccinated against COVID-19. In this study, we evaluated the public willingness and hesitancy to take the vaccine in Afghanistan, during December 2020 and January 2021. Sociodemographic data, awareness on vaccine production, vaccine availability, willingness and hesitancy to take the COVID-19 vaccine were collected. The Statistical Package for Social Studies (SPSS) version 25 was used for data analysis. A total of 806 complete responses were received. Majority of the respondents were ≤ 40 years old (89.8%) and male (72.7%). Less than two-thirds (509; 63%) of the participants reported willingness to take the vaccine when it becomes available, whereas almost one-third (297; 37%) of them were hesitant to take the COVID-19 vaccine. More female than male respondents were willing to take the vaccine (χ2 = 13.176, P value = 0.001). A significant portion of the public were not willing to take the COVID-19 vaccine. In a country like Afghanistan, which already has a low coverage of vaccination, this could pose a challenge for the vaccination program against COVID-19 to be effective. The Ministry of Public Health should work on public trust and change people’s mindset about vaccine reality and efficacy to prevent the rejection of this health intervention.

show abstract

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Public Willingness and Hesitancy to Take the COVID-19 Vaccine in Afghanistan

Nemat

Bahez

Salih

et al. 2021

The American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…As at 30 November 2020, over 60 million cases have been reported with about 1 million deaths, with spike in the number of cases and hence a second wave being reported in many countries including the United States of America, Canada and many European countries 4 . Despite concerted efforts to curb the spread of the disease, the pandemic continues to strain healthcare systems globally 5 , 6 , 7 . The unprecedented nature of COVID-19 presents therapeutic challenges implying that no specific treatment has been reinstated for the management of the disease and thus necessitating the use of empirical approaches 1 .…”

Section: Commentarymentioning

confidence: 99%

Uneven power dynamics must be levelled in COVID-19 vaccines access and distribution

Alaran¹,

Adebisi²,

Badmos³

et al. 2021

Public Health in Practice

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

COVID-19 is one of the major global health threats of the 21 st century, causing unprecedented humanitarian crises worldwide. Despite concerted efforts to curb the spread of the disease, the pandemic continues to strain healthcare systems globally and a safe, highly effective, and globally acceptable and equitable vaccination program, together with pre-existing precautionary measures, is essential to effectively contain the outbreak. We commented on the need to level any uneven power dynamics in COVID-19 vaccine access and distribution. The COVID-19 vaccine distribution must not allow for sovereignty which is tightly linked to historical imbalances in power and resources to result into discrimination between rich and poor countries. Poor countries must be supported in ensuring access to COVID-19 vaccine by levelling the power dynamics that perpetuate inequality and fuel inequity. We must ensure equity, fairness and transparency in COVID-19 distribution and gain public trust in COVID-19 vaccine through participatory community engagement. COVID-19 vaccine distribution and access must be equitable and not politicized.

show abstract

“…COVID-19 is a global public health emergency of international concern 1 which has spread to many countries around the world including African countries. 2 The first case of COVID-19 in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) was a Congolese returnee from France, identified on March 10, 2020 in Kinshasa.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

COVID-19: The Current Situation in the Democratic Republic of Congo

Juma¹,

Mushabaa

Salam³

et al. 2020

The American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

COVID-19 is a highly contagious disease that has affected all African countries including the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Formidable challenges limit precautionary measures which were instituted by the government to curb the pandemic. Insufficient COVID-19 testing laboratories, limited medical and personal protective equipment, and an inadequate number of health workers leave the country ill-equipped in the fight against the pandemic. Lack of assistance from the government to those who lost their jobs due to lockdown forced these individuals to go outside to find provisions, thus increasing the spread of the virus. Moreover, the fragile healthcare system is overburdened by civil conflicts and other epidemics and endemics amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The conflicts have led to thousands of deaths and hundreds of thousands of displacements and deprived many people of basic health services. The 11th outbreak of Ebola has been increasing at an alarming pace, and it is expected to soar because of a shortfall of funds and insufficient numbers of health workers. The DRC with the cooperation of regional powers needs to address these challenges in a manner similar to that used in the previous Ebola epidemics. Moreover, the government should have a balance in shifting the available resources between COVID-19 and other diseases. Until a vaccine is available, the DRC needs to be prudent when lifting restrictions to prevent explosion of new cases.

show abstract

Addressing COVID-19 in Afghanistan: What are the efforts and challenges?

Cited by 35 publications

References 3 publications

Public Willingness and Hesitancy to Take the COVID-19 Vaccine in Afghanistan

Public Willingness and Hesitancy to Take the COVID-19 Vaccine in Afghanistan

Uneven power dynamics must be levelled in COVID-19 vaccines access and distribution

COVID-19: The Current Situation in the Democratic Republic of Congo

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About