COVID-19 outbreak in Sri Lanka: an epidemiological response

Liyanapathirana, Athula; Ferdinando, Ruwan; Palihawadana, Paba

doi:10.4038/jccpsl.v26i5.8350

Cited by 5 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 1 publication

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“…27 The first wave in Sri Lanka was mainly controlled through strict adherence to preventive behaviors. 28,29 Once the vaccines were introduced, combining vaccination with other preventive behaviors was considered the mainstay of prevention and control of COVID-19. MSGs directly participated in many of the preventive activities conducted by the health authorities at the village level.…”

Section: Lessons Learned: Barriers and Facilitating Factorsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Empowering Communities During the COVID-19 Pandemic Through Mothers’ Support Groups: Evidence From a Community Engagement Initiative in Sri Lanka

Wijesinghe¹,

Gunawardana²,

Weerasinghe³

et al. 2023

Glob Health Sci Pract

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During the COVID-19 response, mothers' support groups (MSGs) aimed to promote community health and well-being through community engagement activities, including sharing information, education, and communication materials about COVID-19; creating a supportive environment for infection prevention and control practices; distributing essential food items and medicine to people in need; and organizing recreational and social support activities. nA key strength of using MSGs was the wellestablished trust and relationships within communities and their direct access to communities. Other facilitating factors were the support received from existing community partnerships and training and capacity-building from district health education officer networks.n Key barriers to conducting these activities included reluctance of public health workers to work together with MSGs, competing stakeholder agendas, and lack of support for appreciation of MSG activities from local health authorities.

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Section: Lessons Learned: Barriers and Facilitating Factorsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Empowering Communities During the COVID-19 Pandemic Through Mothers’ Support Groups: Evidence From a Community Engagement Initiative in Sri Lanka

Wijesinghe¹,

Gunawardana²,

Weerasinghe³

et al. 2023

Glob Health Sci Pract

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“…In addition, it creates massive health and economic impacts on almost all countries in the world (Kuruppu & Zoysa). Sri Lanka also has been designated as a risk country vulnerable to the pandemic as of April 2020 (Liyanapathirana, Ferdinando, & Palihawadana, 2020). On occasion, the Sri Lankan government has announced lockdowns for highly affected areas or the whole country to reduce public gatherings and prohibit festivals and celebrations (De Mel & Kapilan, 2020).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Do people change their buying behavior during crises? Insights from the COVID-19 pandemic in Sri Lanka

Nawarathne¹,

Galdolage

2022

AJMM

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Purpose: Panic buying occurs in many countries, including Sri Lanka, due to the recent COVID-19 pandemic, leading to inventory shortages, supply chain disruptions, and many problems in the day-to-day lifestyle of people. This is a relatively new and unexplored area of consumer behavior, especially in the Sri Lankan context. Therefore, this study aims to explore consumer panic buying behavior in relation to Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG), during the COVID-19 pandemic situation in Sri Lanka. Design/methodology/approach: Given the scarcity of available literature and the aim of uncovering genuine customer insights, the study used a qualitative methodological approach. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with twenty-five participants selected using the non-probabilistic purposive sampling method in the Western Province, Sri Lanka. Data were analyzed using the thematic analysis approach. Findings: The study found a change in customers' normal buying behavior during the COVID-19 pandemic, especially at the beginning of the pandemic period. Seven fundamental changes were recognized related to purchasing quantity, mode of purchasing, price sensitivity, shopper, purchasing time, purchasing location, and choice of brands. Additionally, four themes were generated as reasons for adopting such panic buying behavior of FMCG: fear of fear, protective behaviors, social influence, and social trust. Originality: The study adds new knowledge by identifying changes in consumer purchasing behavior, particularly in a pandemic situation, as well as the reasons for such changes, which is a rare phenomenon in the previous literature. Implications: The study informs policymakers on how to implement appropriate policies and strategies to deal with panic buying situations. Retailers can use this expertise to effectively address the various demand conditions without disrupting their internal business practices. Keywords: Panic buying behavior; Pandemic; COVID-19, Sri Lanka

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Designing and Validating a Survey for National-Level Data During the COVID-19 Pandemic in Sri Lanka: Cross-Sectional Mobile Phone Surveys

Phadnis,

Perera,

Lea

et al. 2024

JMIR Form Res

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Background The COVID-19 pandemic has generated a demand for timely data, resulting in a surge of mobile phone surveys for tracking the impacts of and responses to the pandemic. Mobile phone surveys have become a preferred mode of data collection across low- and middle-income countries. Objective This study piloted 2 population-based, cross-sectional mobile phone surveys among Sri Lankan residents in 2020 and 2021 during the COVID-19 pandemic. The surveys aimed to gather data on knowledge, attitudes, and practices, vaccine acceptability, availability, and barriers to COVID-19 testing, and use of a medicine distribution service. Methods The study used Surveda, an open-source survey tool developed by the NCD (noncommunicable disease) Mobile Phone Survey Data 4 Health Initiative, for data collection and management. The surveys were conducted through interactive voice response using automated, prerecorded messages in Sinhala, Tamil, and English. The sample design involved random sampling of mobile phone numbers, stratified by sex, proportional to the general population. Eligibility criteria varied between surveys, targeting adults aged 35 years and older with any noncommunicable disease for the first survey and all adults for the second survey. The data were adjusted to population estimates, and statistical analysis was conducted using SAS (SAS Institute) and R software (R Core Team). Descriptive statistics, Rao-Scott chi-square tests, and z tests were used to analyze the data. Response rates, cooperation rates, and productivity of the sampling approach were calculated. Results In the first survey, n=5001, the overall response rate was 7.5%, with a completion rate of 85.6%. In the second survey, n=1250, the overall response rate was 10.9%, with a completion rate of 61.9%. Approximately 3 out of 4 adults reported that they avoided public places (888/1175, 75.6%), more than two-thirds avoided public transportation (808/1173, 68.9%), and 9 out of 10 practiced physical distancing (1046/1167, 89.7%). Approximately 1 out of 10 Sri Lankan persons reported being tested for COVID-19, and the majority of those received a polymerase chain reaction test (112/161, 70%). Significantly more males than females reported being tested for COVID-19 (98/554, 17.8% vs 61/578, 10.6%, respectively; P<.001). Finally, the majority of adult Sri Lankan people reported that they definitely or probably would get the COVID-19 vaccination (781/1190, 65.7%). Conclusions The surveys revealed that, overall, the adult Sri Lankan population adhered to COVID-19 mitigation strategies. These findings underscore the use of mobile phone surveys in swiftly and easily providing essential data to inform a country’s response during the COVID-19 pandemic, obviating the need for face-to-face data collection.

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COVID-19 outbreak in Sri Lanka: an epidemiological response

Cited by 5 publications

References 1 publication

Empowering Communities During the COVID-19 Pandemic Through Mothers’ Support Groups: Evidence From a Community Engagement Initiative in Sri Lanka

Empowering Communities During the COVID-19 Pandemic Through Mothers’ Support Groups: Evidence From a Community Engagement Initiative in Sri Lanka

Do people change their buying behavior during crises? Insights from the COVID-19 pandemic in Sri Lanka

Designing and Validating a Survey for National-Level Data During the COVID-19 Pandemic in Sri Lanka: Cross-Sectional Mobile Phone Surveys

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