Covid_19 Awareness: Most important activities through out 2020

By S Adeeb Mujtaba Ali

Welcome to Revisiting session

Isolation  the state of being in a place or situation that is separate from others Merriam Webster 

Physical distancing: the tendency to avoid close contact with others

Body language exposes our relationship to others. There is the confident demeanor of the self-assured, the plodding gait of the downhearted and the physical distancing that characterizes fear.

— Marcia Manna

… JFK was notable for his physical distancing—part of his immense, glamorous reserve. He hated crowds—of course, with good reason—while expertly playing them like a grand piano.

— Robert Whitcomb

specifically, medical

: the practice of maintaining a greater than usual physical space between oneself and other people or of avoiding direct contact with people or objects in public places during the outbreak of a contagious disease in order to minimize exposure and reduce the transmission of infection : SOCIAL DISTANCING

The main thing that we can all do, is what is called social distancing. I like to use the phrase 'physical distancing.' … Now you're going to be spending much more time in your house, spending time away from people … to limit transmission of the COVID virus. Physical distancing takes away the idea we can still talk to loved ones …

— Adam Rosh

The WHO added that they were now using the term "physical distancing" rather than "social distancing" to describe the importance of maintaining space between people in order to avoid the spread of the virus.

— Manon Da

Merriam Webster

Quarantine: a state, period, or place of isolation in which people or animals that have arrived from elsewhere or been exposed to infectious or contagious disease are placed.

Oxford language

Know that medication except for vaccination and anti-viral drugs would not work against a virus.

It is not important that drugs or remedies which worked for one person will work on another person, since we all are individual with specific body type and body requirements.

Corona virus is found to be mutating rapidly therefore a single vaccine or its single dose won't suffice.

Please say no to other drugs specially steroids they will worsen the situation.

Instead of panicking, work on building your immunity. 

Eat healthy, excercise, stay fit, follow covid norms. 

Do not travel to places where more covid cases are reported.

A healthy immune system can only be trusted in the present times.

What is immunity and immune system?

In simple terms, immunity is the ability of our body which fights with disease causing agents.

 Immune system comprises of all the tools which builds up immunity.

If each one of us do our bit sincerely, we can make a difference and overcome the situation.

COVID_19 - Lockdown - Education.

 By S Adeeb Mujtaba Ali 

Offline and Hybrid courses were taken online

A herculean task which was implemented overnight by managing and collaborating educators, learners and the functional resources (online platforms). 

Pro's

Interactive teaching - learning process, student centred, flexible, convenient.

Con's

Not suitable for all the learner's, dependable on internet and electronic devices (Desktop, Laptop, Smartphone, Tablet etc)

Realisation of significance of  new-age skills to work on online platform 

Several Edtech are collaborating with schools, college and universities for continued and smooth flow of teaching-and-learning process.

Pro's 

Good interpretation and delivery of data. Pre recorded or pre loaded courses and course material. 

Con's

Neither all the educators nor all the learner's have knowledge of the technology. A major drawback. 

Individuals investment for self up-skilling or learning.

Individuals who wants to equip themselves with more degrees, certificates and qualification will invest on their own. No enforcement of rules.

Pro's

Freedom to choose the courses based on type kind and duration. No strict deadlines or any other kind of restrictions.

Con's

Only the previlaged sections of society will have access to higher education, the tech savvy individuals can grasp things faster than slow technology learner's. 

Change in Learning formats based on different segments of learner's.

A basic orientation followed by EdTech is they are student centred. Based on the learning requirements, ability and liking of learner's the courses are curated.

Pro's

Revolves around the need, requirements and liking of the learner's. Learner enjoy the sessions. Flexible and convenient.

Con's

Their will be a huge gap created between the learner's based on the courses opted. Since it's student centred, their is a high level of specificity and options are narrow in terms of job.

In conclusion, their could be many pro's and con's about edtech, a root fact we should not forget is, edtech and non traditional education model was our saviour during the pandemic crisis. Hence, instead of being critical or having opinions and if's and but's we should accept and adapt to the change gracefully.

COVID_19 and elderly mental health

By S Adeeb Mujtaba Ali

The World Health Organization announced coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) viral infection as a pandemic on March 11, 2020. India is a nation with a large population of over 1.3 billion population, on January 30, 2020, India, announced its (covid-19) first occurrence. The Government of India has decided to impose a countrywide lockdown beginning March 25, 2020, for a period of three weeks until April 14, 2020, social connections and mobility were restricted. In this sense, older adults faced difficulties such as a lack of attendants to assist them with everyday activities, difficulty in obtaining medical assistance, and fear of an adverse path in current morbidity.

Many who are elderly and live in a typical joint family arrangement were able to enlist the help of other family members to cope with new challenges. Since four to five people live under one roof in a typical Indian family. In certain households, one or more individuals over the age of 60 are found, one under the age of 18, and two others in the middle age groups. Three generations are mostly seen living together, with 75% of them sharing the same house. This setup increases the risk of infection through aerosols. It was also reported that neighbors were accomodating the younger adults to quarantine in their premises to protect and save the elderly from infection.

However, the percentage of older people who live alone is steadily rising because their children moved to another city or country to earn a livelihood or to have better standards of living. This senior citizens rely on contracted housekeepers and primary care doctors in their communities for their everyday needs.

According to media reports, the number of individuals seeking support for mental health problems rose by 20% during the first week of the three-week lockdown.

Many Indians are stigmatized by mental disorders, and many tend to pursue treatment by herbal medicine. Multiple national and international actors have participated in mental health advocacy programs, openly announcing their mental illnesses and the benefits of psychotropic drugs, resulting in increased social recognition of mental health services in India.

 The latest COVID-19 virus pandemic has resulted in a surge in demand for psychiatric assistance. There are approximately 8000 mental health practitioners in India, the majority of whom work in cities. Mental health professionals are not readily available to aging people. They are prone to feelings of isolation and powerlessness. And if they survive the pandemic, they worry that the social order will be disrupted. 

In this scenario, the measures taken up by the governments and non-government bodies are commendable like moderating the news, crime cases, arrangement of virtual communication platforms for the elderly on zoom and Whatsapp calls, counseling helplines created by a cohort of mental health professionals, etc. 

Such online measures,  prove to be fruitful, especially for the aged, those with mobility problems, anxiety, and depression, those who lack access to healthcare, and those who live in rural areas. When harnessed, internet access for older adults will assist in the formation of online community groups, video therapy, and the development of medical and rehabilitation resources. The COVID-19 pandemic may thus turn out to be a blessing in disguise, hastening the deterioration of healthcare resources and access for India's population, especially the elderly.

Reference:

• Vahia, V. N., & Shah, A. B. (2020). COVID-19 pandemic and mental health care of older adults in India. International psychogeriatrics, 32(10), 1125–1127. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1041610220001441

COVID_19 and child anxiety

By, S Adeeb Mujtaba Ali

In the present article I would like to cover a topic which holds high significance. It is Covid_19 and children. Ever since  2020 commenced, children were exposed to many global issues, and no physical access to school was a huge addition to build up anxiety. Counselors have been doing their very best to help families and children steer through this distasteful situation in their best capacity.

A dive into strategies employed by Counselors to help children:

Fair, open and clear communication

Children by nature are curious about the happenings around them. They absorb from their surroundings and try to act accordingly. Plus they also need some one around with whom they can continue to share and exchange information. By keeping a window open for exchange of information with Children and explain them things clearly along with understanding the situation is always helpful. 

It is better to explain a child about existence of virus in the environment, that can cause infection through teaching learning aids, making them understand the sensitivity of the situation, importance of social distancing by self practicing, is the best model. Than compared to shutting them and enforcing  to do something without explanation is harsh and unwarranted. In this closed communication model child might not learn the actuals of COVID_19. Therefore have a clear communication it will help.

Worry Train your child: 

Yes, train your child to not to worry. A person (a child) see a worry as a dragon, so better teach your child to how to tame the dragon? An approach suggested by Jane Garland and Sandra Clark in their book -Taming Worry Dragons: A Manual for Children, Parents and Other Coaches.

Some of the skills suggested by senior child Counselors are:

Schedule, get involved in some creative activities and have a me time/ family time routine.

1) Schedule:

Teach your child to have a 'worry time' to think of all the negative possibilities. After this worry time, they are not suppose to worry rest of the time. 

This is a proven formula and suggested by experienced children counselors. One of the way the worry dragon can be tamed.

2) Involve in creative activities

Make them draw, write, play with colors, or make illustration of their worry dragons. This is again a very constructive activity to help your child open up and express themselves in a better way.

3) A routine

 Have a routine, family time, me time where child can feel and sense harmony. To feel protected and secure. A very warm and comfortable approach against the worry dragon. 

These are some of the strategies which helps in combating worries and anxiety in children.

It helps them to stay calm and composed, informed and grounded when they loose a loved one due to COVID_19.

Excerpt credits

Celine Cluff is a registered clinical counselor practicing in Kelowna, British Columbia, Canada. She holds a master’s degree in psychoanalytic studies from Middlesex University in London and is currently completing her doctorate in occupational psychology. Her private practice focuses on family therapy, couples therapy and parenting challenges. Contact her at celine.cluff@yahoo.com.

Victoria Kress is a professor at Youngstown State University in Ohio. She is a licensed professional clinical counselor and supervisor, national certified counselor and certified clinical mental health counselor. She has published extensively on many topics related to counselor practice. Contact her at victoriaEkress@gmail.com.

COVID_19 and higher education since 2020

 By S Adeeb Mujtaba Ali

COVID_19  pandemic has not only successfully devasted economies throughout the globe but also disturbed the smooth-flowing education system in both developing and developed countries. It is plightful to know that around 1.5 billion primary, secondary and tertiary school-going students do not have physical access to schools. COVID_19 impact however was not only dramatic but also transformative. Transformative in the sense it has made educators/tutors come up with strategies to let not pandemics affect the teaching-learning process. But in the emerging market, it has given an additional challenge like finances and infrastructure. 

Key points to be noted:

•  Due to pandemic university courses are made online.
• A new teaching-learning model can be expected in near future.

Among the different levels of education facing their own challenges, it's higher education that has to revolutionize. Even though the students here are old enough to explore technology and navigate platforms but are the Universities following the traditional campus education system, ready to makeshift, in order to approach and engage students, in terms of technology familiar manpower and infrastructure? 

At present platforms like Zoom, Google meet, WebEx, etc are serving as major support and a major lifeline to universities, however, it was noticed that the educators- lecturers or professors are still struggling with the technology. They are still trying to get themselves familiarised with these platforms to host online classes or other virtual activities. Not only this, but the struggle is also in maintaining a classroom setting environment and rapport with learners. The experts advise them to find a solution because now this is new normal and in order to maintain quality of education without compromising they should buckle up. Apparently, the most constructive solution to deal with such an issue is to either make digital platforms like Coursera work for them or work with them.

 According to HolonIQ (a market intelligence firm), higher education comprises only 2% of the $2.2 trillion global higher education marketplace (ripening for disruption). 

Even before the onset of COVID_19, it's been observed that students were more inclined towards online courses offered by the universities in comparison with their traditional courses. Universities that started taking online courses as a threat are now trying to acquaint themselves with the online teaching and learning process. Since COVID_19 has introduced Edtech as new normal. 

The online solutions since 2020 were adopted unprecedentedly by educators across the globe which are however considered as an experiment at an infancy stage. It is expected to flourish in the coming days and the association between tech companies and universities will grow strong beyond the pandemic crisis.

The present situation, no doubt has been painful but it has also helped all the stakeholders (society, policymakers, educators, and learners) to understand and realize the shortcomings of our education system not only in developing countries but also in developed countries. 

In conclusion, like the first industrial revolution, which was responsible for  present education system, the emergence of digitalized education model is expected from COVID_19.

Excerpt on COVID_19

 By S Adeeb Mujtaba Ali

The havoc created by pandemic is leaving everyone around with anxiety, stress and overwhelming experience due to social distancing and isolation from peers. But one shouldn't forget that these are necessary precautions/requirements to be observed in order to prevent the spread of virus.

One should learn to deal and cope up with stress and anxiety, panic and depression during this period. As by doing so, it will not only help you to recover faster but also help the care takers around you become more resilient.

Quick look into affects of stress:

Experiences like fear, worries, frustration, sleeplessness, change in appetite, desires, interest, feeling of numbness, short temper, sadness, insecure feeling, irritation to small stimuli, losses concentration and reasoning ability.

The patients are also reported to exhibit physical reactions like skin rashes, digestive problems, body pains, headaches. Worsened chronic health and mental health problems.

In addition, it was also noticed that people increased the consumption of alcohol, tobacco etc.

However, it's natural process which cannot be disturbed. Only with time and patience, precautions and medication we can have victory over COVID-19

Let's see some of the healthy ways to deal with stress:

1) First and foremost limit the use of social media. Ofcourse when at home with no socialization it's but obviously that we tend to engage ourselves with social media. But Dear all stop the excessive use of technology.

2) Take good care of yourself. Groom yourself, take care of your body, meditate, excercise, eat balanced food, keep yourself hydrated, take plenty of sleep. Limit or avoid smoking, tobacco and alcohol consumption.

3) Continue your routine medication, get vaccinated (it boosts your immunity) and other screenings as prescribed by family doctor/ physician according to your health condition.

4) Try to reconnect with long lost activities, a hobby, do something which makes you feel happy and merry around.

5) In this time of social distancing stay connected with near and dears through calls, video chat, attend virtual events (Workshop, conference, gathering etc)

6) Help those in need- financial support, physical support etc.

 In conclusion, keep high hopes. We shall overcome. Stay positive and spread positivity.  Stay home, stay safe, stay connected.

COVID-19 is new normal. A culture which has made us realise and embrace many things (positive and negative) which I guess we would not have had experienced in its absence.

Google doodles from last year #covid_19

Google doodles from 2020 same month. 

Love Respect and Prayers for all frontliners. We owe you 🙏