• International Journal of Computer Science & Network Security
• /
• v.21 no.4
• /
• pp.93-102
• /
• 2021

The world is facing an unprecedented economic, social and political crisis with the spread of COVID-19. The Corona Virus (COVID-19) and its global spread have resulted in declaring a pandemic by the World Health Organization. The deadly pandemic of 21st century has spread its wings across the globe with an exponential increase in the number of cases in many countries. The developing and underdeveloped countries are struggling hard to counter the rapidly growing and widespread challenge of COVID-19 because it has greatly influenced the global economies whereby the underdeveloped countries are more affected by its devastating impacts, especially the life of the low-income population. Information and Communication Technology (ICT) were particularly useful in spreading key emergency information and helping to maintain extensive social distancing. Updated information and testing results were published on national and local government websites. Mobile devices were used to support early testing and contact tracing. The government provided free smartphone apps that flagged infection hotspots with text alerts on testing and local cases. The purpose of this research work is to provide an in depth overview of emerging technologies and recent ICT developments to combat COVID-19 Pandemic. Finally, the author highlights open challenges in order to give future research directions.

• Journal of Korean Academy of Rural Health Nursing
• /
• v.18 no.2
• /
• pp.125-133
• /
• 2023

Purpose: This study aimed to understand and explore the experiences and meanings of life changes and loneliness caused by the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) among older people living in rural areas. Methods: This study adopted an individual interview approach. A total of 33 older adults were interviewed using semi-structured questions between October and December; 2020. The collected data were analyzed using thematic analysis. Results: Four main themes and ten sub-themes emerged. One main theme was "the never-ending anxiety of a changed world", the second theme was "disconnecting from the world through social distancing", the third theme was "working to overcome COVID-19", and forth "health is the most important thing in life." Conclusion: Based on the results of this study, we confirmed the urgent need for psycho-social support to relieve loneliness and social isolation of older people in rural areas during the spread of infectious diseases.

• KSII Transactions on Internet and Information Systems (TIIS)
• /
• v.16 no.6
• /
• pp.1953-1972
• /
• 2022

The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in a profound impact on large-scale gatherings throughout the world. Social distancing has become one of the most common measures to restrict the spread of the novel Coronavirus. Islamic pilgrimage attracts millions of pilgrims to Saudi Arabia annually. One of the mandatory rituals of pilgrimage is the symbolic stoning of the devil. Every pilgrim is required to perform this ritual within a specified time on three days of pilgrimage. This ritual is prone to congestion due to strict spatiotemporal requirements. We propose a pedestrian simulation model for implementing social distancing in the stoning ritual. An agent-based simulation is designed to analyze the impact of inter-queue and intra-queue spacing between adjacent pilgrims on the throughput and congestion during the stoning ritual. After analyzing several combinations of intra-queue and inter-queue spacings, we conclude that 25 queues with 1.5 meters of intra-queue spacing result in an optimal combination of throughput and congestion. The Ministry of Hajj in Saudi Arabia may benefit from these findings to manage and plan pilgrimage more effectively.

• International Journal of Internet, Broadcasting and Communication
• /
• v.14 no.3
• /
• pp.85-90
• /
• 2022

In this study, keywords from representative online portal sites such as NAVER, Google, and Youtube were collected based on text mining analysis technique using TEXTOM to check the changes in the restaurant industry before and after COVID-19. The collection keywords were selected as dining out, food service industry, and dining out culture. For the collected data, the top 30 words were derived, respectively, through the refinement process. In addition, comparative analysis was conducted by defining data from 2018 to 2019 before COVID-19, and from 2020 to 2021 after COVID-19. As a result, 8272 keywords before COVID-19 and 9654 keywords after COVID-19, a total of 17926 keywords, were derived. In order for the food service industry to develop after the COVID-19 pandemic, it is necessary to commercialize the recipes of restaurants to revitalize the distribution of home-use food products that replace home-cooked meals such as meal kits. Due to the social distancing caused by COVID-19, the dining out culture has changed and the trend has changed, and it has been confirmed that the consumption culture has changed to eating and delivering at home more safely than visiting restaurants. In addition, it has been confirmed that the consumption culture of existing consumers is changing to a trend of cooking at home rather than visiting restaurants.

• Korean Journal of Community Nutrition
• /
• v.29 no.3
• /
• pp.234-252
• /
• 2024

Objectives: This study examined the intake of energy and macronutrients among elementary, middle, and high school students according to household income before the COVID-19 pandemic (2016-2019), during the social distancing period (2020-2021), and after the social distancing measures were lifted (2022). Methods: We included 5,217 students aged 5-18 from the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES) conducted between 2016 and 2022. Dietary intake was assessed using one-day 24-hour dietary recalls. We estimated the least squares means (LS-means) of intake according to household income for each period using a weighted linear regression model, adjusted for age and sex. Differences in LS-means between the periods were analyzed using the t-test. Results: During the social distancing period, the LS-means of energy intake among students decreased significantly by 143.2 kcal/day compared to pre-pandemic levels (P < 0.001). Students from low-income households experienced a more pronounced decrease in energy intake (-379.1 kcal/day, P < 0.001) and macronutrient intake compared to those from other income groups. Energy intake at school significantly declined for all income groups during the social distancing period compared to before the pandemic. No significant changes in home energy intake were observed among low-income students, whereas there was an increase for students from higher-income groups. Before the pandemic, 8.5% of students from low-income households reported insufficient food due to economic difficulties; this figure rose to 21.3% during the pandemic. Conclusions: During the pandemic, students from low-income families experienced significantly lower intake of energy and macronutrients compared to pre-pandemic levels. The most substantial reductions were noted among low-income students, largely due to the lack of compensation for decreased school-based intake with increased intake at home.

• Journal of the Economic Geographical Society of Korea
• /
• v.24 no.2
• /
• pp.127-142
• /
• 2021

This study identifies the characteristics of changes in the subway passengers and the number of COVID-19 confirmed cases in Seoul. We classify subway stations by applying the principal components extracted based on the correlation between them, and analyzed the passenger traffics and geographical characteristics of each cluster. We extract the "top decile" and "lowest decile" stations among the subway stations that the number of subway passengers have decreased in 2020 compared to 2019, and then examine the population and land use characteristics of station areas both station groups. As the result of cluster analysis according to principal component scores, we obtain 6 cluster types. Subway stations belong to the top deciles which have shown the larger decrease in the passenger traffics tend to more sensitive to COVID-19 shocks. Stations belonging to the top tenth percentile of reduced traffic have a high distribution of daytime traffic, and the hinterland of the station has relatively high land use related to commercial and cultural, religious, and social activities. Therefore, it is expected that the regional resilience around subway stations will also show differences in degree by type.

• Archives of Craniofacial Surgery
• /
• v.22 no.2
• /
• pp.99-104
• /
• 2021

Background: To fight the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, many countries have implemented social distancing and lockdowns. We investigated the changes in the trauma patterns of emergency plastic surgeries in the midst of a pandemic. Methods: A retrospective review of the medical records of all patients treated for emergency plastic surgeries was performed at our hospital in Seoul. We conducted the analysis between March 1 and June 30, 2020, and compared the data obtained with that of the same period in 2019. We also investigated changes in trauma patterns according to the social distancing level from July 2020 to February 2021. Results: There was a total of 800 emergency plastic surgery patients from March to June 2020, which was less than the 981 in the corresponding period in 2019. The proportion of patients aged 7-17 years and ≥ 80 in 2020 showed a significant decrease. In 2020, patients presenting with facial trauma decreased and hand trauma, markedly laceration, increased significantly. In 2020, more injuries happened at home, whereas significantly fewer injuries happened on the streets. In 2020, slipping and sports injury decreased, whereas penetrating injury increased significantly. In the changes observed according to the social distancing level, there were significant differences in age classification, facial open wound, and the mechanism of injury. Conclusion: Social distancing has caused a change in emergency plastic surgeries. To ensure safe and appropriate treatment, strict epidemiologic workup and protective equipment are required.

• Journal of the Korean Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
• /
• v.34 no.1
• /
• pp.21-29
• /
• 2023

This paper reviews the global effect of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic on the mental health of children and adolescents in South Korea, the U.S., Japan, and China. We reviewed research on deteriorated mental health, including increased suicide, suicidal thoughts, and self-harm. Various studies have shown that students' mental health issues, such as depression and anxiety, have worsened during the COVID-19 pandemic. Furthermore, the number of students who committed suicide has significantly increased in the U.S. and Japan. Factors such as prior mental health status, change in daily routine, reduced physical activity, excessive screen time, overuse of electronic devices, and reduced social support have been reported to have a significant effect. The chain of deteriorating mental health among the youth began at the onset of COVID-19, social distancing, and school closure. As youths began to stay at home instead of going to school, they lost opportunities to connect with their friends or teachers, who could provide support outside of their homes. Young people spent less time on physical activity and more time online, which damaged their sleeping schedule and daily routine. In preparing for the post-pandemic phase, we should thoroughly analyze the long-term effects of the pandemic on youth mental health, while simultaneously tackling current imminent issues.

• Journal of the Korean Applied Science and Technology
• /
• v.40 no.3
• /
• pp.496-506
• /
• 2023

The purpose of this study was to identify the relationship between social-emotional isolation, depression, and smartphone addiction of college students who experienced social distancing caused by COVID-19 and to identify the factors influencing smartphone addiction of college students. Total of 220 students from four universities participated in this study, and data collection was conducted by organizing a questionnaire in a Google form. Data were analyzed using the SPSS/WIN 28.0. There were significantly correlation among smartphone addiction of college students, social-emotional isolation (r=.44, p<.001) and depression (r=.51, p<.001). The factors affecting smartphone addiction of college students were gender (β=.176, p=.001), weekend smartphone usage time 7-9 hours (β=.387, p=.001), 10-12 hours (β=.313, p=.006), 12 hours or more (β=.299, p=<.001), depression (β=.302, p<.001), and social-emotional isolation (β=.210, p=.004). The regression model was statistically significant (F=15.81, p<.001). The explanatory power of the model was 43% (adj R²=.43, p<.001). Therefore, in order to prevent smartphone addiction of college students, it is necessary to develop and utilize a mental health promotion program that can reduce social-emotional isolation and depression.

• Journal of Korean Academy of Rural Health Nursing
• /
• v.19 no.1
• /
• pp.12-24
• /
• 2024

Purpose: This study examines the levels of adherence to quarantine guidelines, mental health, and instrumental activities of daily living among elderly individuals during the COVID-19 pandemic, and to identify correlations among these variables. Methods: A survey was conducted from February 28, 2023, to May 19, 2023, among 210 elderly individuals aged 65 and above residing in rural areas. The relationships among adherence to quarantine guidelines, mental health, and instrumental activities of daily living were tested using Pearson's correlation coefficients. Results: Loneliness was positively correlated with subdomains, including familial loneliness, social loneliness, and a sense of belonging, whereas depression was significantly negatively correlated with adherence to quarantine guidelines(cough etiquette, ventilation, mask wearing, and environmental disinfection) and rules of social distancing. Conclusion: Analyzing the various factors influencing adherence to quarantine guidelines among the elderly and developing and implementing intervention programs are essential for future research.