The global impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the education of healthcare professionals, especially in low- and middle-income countries

Abstract

The COVID-19 disaster has appreciably increased morbidity and mortality, as well as the delivery of healthcare, across countries exacerbated by the contagious nature of the virus. Numerous public health measures were instigated across countries at the start of the pandemic to try and limit its spread without effective medicines and vaccines. Introduced measures included lockdown activities, social distancing instructions, quarantining measures, wearing of personal protective equipment (PPEs), handwashing and sanitizers as well as the closure of borders. Instigated measures also included the closure of universities appreciably affecting the education of healthcare professionals (HCPs), including physicians and pharmacists, across countries. The extent of lockdown and other activities instigated during the early stages of the virus varied appreciably across countries leading to differences in observed morbidity and mortality rates. For instance, comprehensive measures introduced early among several Asian countries including Korea, Malaysia, Taiwan, and Vietnam as well as among several African countries including Ghana, Malawi and Namibia, limited the number of deaths certainly when compared with Western European countries including Italy, Spain and the UK.

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http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/

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https://strathprints.strath.ac.uk/80107/