Employee monitoring of remote workers could increase when things return to normal, said Roshni Raveendhran, a UVA assistant professor of business administration. Employee monitoring software can do things like track productivity, block websites and monitor activity and track keystrokes.
UVA’s COVID-19 dashboard recognizes the challenge that exists with active and recovered cases, attempting to estimate these numbers, as the researchers behind the dashboard believe it is a “more important metric to track than confirmed cases.”
“It seems that California did a good job flattening the curve in April,” said Jennifer Jane Roe, director of UVA’s Center for Design and Health. “That suggests, at least in respect to urban design, people were complying with public health guidelines. But with this exponential rise in Covid, it’s a behavioral problem, as well as a policy one, and it’s also possible that the strain has become more virulent.”
Lawmakers say they plan to propose legislative fixes next month to speed unemployment claims in Virginia, which ranks last in the country for quickly processing applications that require staff review. “All of the legislation … is aimed at helping things go more smoothly, with the goal of starting to get the wheels moving for you but also preparing Virginia to weather a storm like this in the future,” said Del. Sally Hudson, D-Charlottesville, a UVA labor economist.
“Yes, there is no question that the relief money is essential for any number of individuals and businesses that have been hit hard by the impacts on the virus on the economy,” Eric Leeper, economist and Paul Goodloe McIntire Professor of Economics at UVA, said. “But there are serious problems with the way Congress goes about legislating this kind of relief.”
“The mRNA vaccine is a brand-new approach to vaccination and is way more effective than the traditional ways of making vaccines,” said Dr. Bill Petri, an infectious diseases professor at the University of Virginia.
The coronavirus pandemic stopped many from stepping into a doctor’s office for necessary care or a checkup. However, a UVA Health physician is urging those who hesitated to seek medical care in 2020 to make it a priority for 2021. “It is time to cautiously and appropriately seek care in 2021,” said Dr. Andrew Wolf, professor of medicine.
As the COVID-19 vaccines continue to roll out for doctors, nurses and first responders, Dr. Bill Petri, a UVA infectious disease professor, says this will help the community reach herd immunity.
A flurry of headlines this week flooded social media, documenting a seemingly concerning case of COVID-19 in a San Diego nurse who fell ill about a week after receiving his first injection of Pfizer’s coronavirus vaccine. Experts said the sickness is nothing unexpected: The protective effects of vaccines are known to take at least a couple of weeks to kick in. Reporting that a half-vaccinated person contracted the virus is “really the equivalent of saying someone went outside in the middle of a rainstorm without an umbrella and got wet,” said Dr. Taison Bell, a UVA critical care physician.&nbs...
Locally, the NAACP wants to create virtual listening sessions, virtual town halls, using trusted spokespeople within the community. Those trusted people could be from the medical community, including Dr. Ebony Jade Hilton, a UVA associate professor of anesthesiology and critical care, to address the barriers that people have for not taking the vaccine and the issues that date back to the syphilis studies up to the present.
(By Dr. William Petri, professor of medicine) This week I was vaccinated against COVID-19 with the Pfizer mRNA vaccine, which brought to mind some frequently asked questions about the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines. As I interact with patients in the hospital, some mothers and expectant mothers have asked whether it is safe for them to take the vaccine.
(Commentary by Ashon Crawley, associate professor of religious studies and African American and African studies) Little Richard called himself, over and over again, the architect of rock and roll. Many take this assertion to mean that he thought of himself as an influence in the genre, but as Tavia Nyong’o argued this spring after the artist’s death, influence is “perhaps too weak a word.”
(Co-written by Mary Kate Cary, adjunct professor of politics and senior fellow at the Miller Center) We experienced the election season from a unique perspective. We each taught college courses on the 2020 campaigns while they were underway, and as a result had a sort of three-month-long, focus-group-like conversation with the newest American voters.
(Commentary by Christine Rosen, fellow at UVA’s Institute for Advanced Studies in Culture) As President-elect Joe Biden begins formulating his domestic policy agenda for the next four years, he might want to look beyond the end of his term in 2024 to 2026. That is the year the United States celebrates the 250th birthday of the Declaration of Independence, and as the nation prepares to celebrate that milestone, Biden has an opportunity to help heal some of the civic and institutional wounds that have been festering in the country for far too long.
After the pandemic shuttered UVA’s annual Family Holiday Concerts this year, director Michael Slon and several others created a concert featuring previous performances by the University Singers and the Charlottesville Symphony at UVA. Hear it at https://youtu.be/095NAUvUhfU. You also can check it out on the University Singers’ YouTube channel at https://bit.ly/universitysingers.
UVA Health will soon offer a free, virtual diabetes program. The program, called “Prevent T2,” is meant for those who are 18 years of age or older who have been diagnosed as prediabetic within the past year and have not been diagnosed for Type 1 or Type 2 diabetes.
Santa visited babies in the UVA Medical Center’s Neonatal Intensive Care Unit to spread holiday cheer on Tuesday. Dr. Robert Sinkin is the division head of Neonatology at UVA, and he’s also one of Santa’s helpers. He hopes to make Christmas joyful, even in the hospital.
UVA Children’s hosted its annual Season’s Treatings event for patients and families spending time in the hospital during the holidays. Just like everything else this year, the event has been forced to adapt due to COVID-19.
Health care workers at 24 hospitals, including UVA Health, got a treat on Monday. Sheetz employees went to hospitals in Pennsylvania, Ohio, Maryland, North Carolina, Virginia and West Virginia to unload nearly nine tons of food. The meals included snacks and drinks for medical personnel, including doctors, nurses and hospital staff.
The number of COVID-19 patients being treated at the UVA Medical Center is increasing as more area residents catch the virus, but hospital officials say they are not being overwhelmed.