A Look Behind the Scenes at COVID-19: National Strategies of Infection Control and Their Impact on Mortality

• Main Authors: Samir Haj Bloukh, Zehra Edis, Annis A. Shaikh, Habib M. Pathan
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2020-08-01
• Series: International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
• Subjects: COVID-19; SARS-CoV-2; human coronavirus; pre-existing conditions; public health strategy; prevention
• Online Access: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/17/15/5616
• ISSN: 1661-7827; 1660-4601

(1) Background: The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) began spreading across the globe in December and, as of 9 July 2020, had inflicted more than 550,000 deaths. Public health measures implemented to control the outbreak caused socio-economic havoc in many countries. The pandemic highlighted the quality of health care systems, responses of policymakers in harmony with the population, and socio-economic resilience factors. We suggest that different national strategies had an impact on mortality and case count. (2) Methods: We collected fatality data for 17 countries until 2 June 2020 from public data and associated these with implemented containment measures. (3) Results: The outcomes present the effectiveness of control mechanisms in mitigating the virus for selected countries and the UAE as a special case. Pre-existing conditions defined the needed public health strategies and fatality numbers. Other pre-existing conditions, such as temperature, humidity, median age, and low serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D) concentrations played minor roles and may have had no direct impact on fatality rates. (4) Conclusions: Prevention, fast containment, adequate public health strategies, and importance of indoor environments were determining factors in mitigating the pandemic. Development of public health strategies adapted to pre-existing conditions for each country and community compliance with implemented policies ensure the successful control of pandemics.