Impact Of Covid-19 On Peoples Lives Assignment Sample

Introduction

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The COVID-19 affects people from all walks of life, but it has the greatest influence on those in society's most marginalized groups. It continues to affect a wide range of individuals, such as the elderly, persons with disabilities, infants, and members of indigenous groups (Pelicioni and Lord, 2020). There has been a large number of deaths throughout the globe because to COVID-19, an unique threat to public health, food production, as well as the workplace. The projected 690 million people who now are undernourished might increase to 132 million over the course of the year, putting a significant strain on the global food supply. Due to global financial slump, and over a million businesses are at risk of closing.

About 3 billion of the world's 3.3 billion employed individuals are in danger of becoming unemployed. Those that have lost access to public safety and proper health care and unable to employ their economic assets are particularly susceptible (Marsden et al., 2020). There are many persons who are unable to care for their family as they lack the means to earn an income during lockdowns. As during COVID-19 epidemic, employees were ordered to work from home full time, changing the usual concept of WFH, which was normally only employed for certain types of work, seldom, or given special personnel circumstances. Without a steady source of income, most people are forced to choose between being hungry or eating less and receiving less nutritious food. COVID-19's influence on people's livelihoods is analyzed in the following essay.

Analysis of the impact of COVID-19 on people’s livelihoods

Covid-19 has a significant influence on household food production and availability because to income reductions, increasing food costs, and limitations on the mobility of people, commodities, and goods in combination with other factors (Liu, Lv, and Tang, 2021). The pandemic had also exposed the food system's vulnerability. As a result of policy initiatives such as border closures, trade restrictions, as well as other forms of confinement, food supply branches have been disrupted domestically and internationally. Farmers are often unable to obtain inputs or sell their products on the open market because of these measures. Millions of individuals fear losing their jobs and put their own lives at jeopardy because of the epidemic (Power et al., 2020). It is estimated that more than a billion people worldwide face hunger and malnourishment as a direct result of the global economic crisis because of the clear loss of breadwinners. In order to feed the world, millions of agricultural workers—both paid and unpaid—experience high levels of poverty, malnutrition, and illness due to a lack of safety and labour protections as well as other forms of abuse. With fluctuating pay and no social assistance, individuals are encouraged to continue working in risky situations and put their families and communities because of the low and fluctuating pay (Li et al., 2020). When confronted with a shortage of revenue, they may resort to less-than-ideal means of coping, including the distress disposal of investments, predatory lending, or the use of child labor. This group of workers is particularly vulnerable due to the obvious dangers they face in their daily lives, as well as the difficulty those who have accessing government aid programs. Protecting all agri-food industry workers from primary farmers to those who prepare and distribute food and those who sell it on the street—as well as providing them with better wages and benefits is essential to preserving people's lives and maintaining food security.

There is a convergence of food security, public health, and employment and labour worries in the COVID-19 dilemma. This problem can only be solved on a human scale if we adhere to good health and safety practises at work and ensure that everyone has access to decent work and the protection of their labour rights across all industries. In order to save lives and businesses, quick and deliberate action should indeed be taken to increase social protection toward universal health care including economic aid for those most afflicted. Workers in the informal sector, and also those who were younger, elderly, or migratory, all fall under this umbrella. Low-wage employees and caregivers are mostly female, thus they need particular attention and support from policymakers. In addition to cash transfers, child allowances and healthy school meals, housing and food assistance initiatives, and financial aid for small and midsize enterprises, there are a range of methods to assist (Hu, 2020). Developing and implementing such rules requires close collaboration with businesses and workers. With COVID-19, nations already dealing with humanitarian crises or disasters might expect a major effect. Humanitarian assistance and prompt reaction are thus critical in the midst of the outbreak. The COVID-19 pandemic seems to have a devastating effect on all segments of the population, but perhaps the most vulnerable members of society are most at risk (Power et al., 2020). Persons in marginalised groups, such as the elderly, adolescents, disabled people, and indigenous peoples, tend to be particularly hard hit. According to preliminary findings, the virus is having the greatest impact on the health and financial well-being of the poor. Some of the most vulnerable people to the spread of the virus are those who are homeless. People lacking access to running water, migrants, refugees, or those who have been displaced by the pandemic are also at a greater risk of suffering as a result of the pandemic and also its aftermath.

Elderly People

Chronic illnesses including hypertension, cardiovascular disease, and diabetes put the elderly at higher risk of infection with COVID-19. Elderly people are not only more vulnerable to health issues, but they are also less able to sustain themselves on their own (Marsden et al., 2020). And though social segregation is vital to keep the illness from spreading, it may also enhance the social isolation of the elderly, just when they most need a helping hand.

COVID-19, when seen as a disease of the old, fosters unfavourable assumptions about the elderly. The fact that older people are seen as less valuable than younger people might lead to the delivery of services being impacted by age-based discrimination (Suryahadi, Al Izzati, and Suryadarma, D., 2020). It is a legal requirement of governments to offer medical assistance to persons in need in compliance with international human rights law. When ventilators are so few, it is vital to implement triage procedures and rules based on medical, empirical, and ethical factors, rather than making arbitrary decisions based on age.

Disabled individuals

Sometimes in the best of conditions, persons with disabilities face challenges to health care access given the lack of accessibility, availability, and expense, as well as stigma and discrimination (Galanti et al., 2020). A number of other difficulties, including as service and support interruptions, pre-existing health disorders that raise their risk of severe illness or death, and also being excluded access health information including mainstream healthcare, all amplify the chance of infection from COVID-19 for disabled individuals (Dubey et al., 2020). Individual self-care as well as other COVID-19 prevention strategies may pose difficulties for people with impairments. Personal hygiene and prescribed cleaning of surfaces and houses, for example, could be challenging for certain people with disabilities to execute. Because of physical limitations, environmental obstacles, or interrupted services, it might be hard to keep dwellings clean and wash hands often. Social separation may not be possible for everyone since they need aid and support from others on a daily basis to do basic self-care duties.

Youth

Young people all throughout the world have been asked to join the fight for their own safety and the safety of society as a whole. It is in their power to support those in need and to raise public health awareness in their communities via the efforts of young people. The virus's effect on public health, culture, and the economy will be greatly reduced if young people are actively engaged in the fight against it. Unemployment among young people is particularly high, and those who do find work typically do that in the gig economy, under uncertain conditions, or in the service industries, all of which are expected to be particularly hard hit by COVID-19(Xiong et al., 2020). The closing of schools and colleges in several jurisdictions has resulted in an absence of education for more than a billion young people. Teachers, educational leaders, and local and national governments should be commended for their efforts in dealing with the exceptional circumstances. Many at-risk youngsters, such as undocumented immigrants and those living on the streets, face perilous circumstances. Many of them are already in situations where their basic needs have not been met in terms of health, education, job, and well-being, making them easy to neglect if governments don't pay special attention.

Indigenous Peoples 

As a result of a rise in contagious and non-communicable diseases, lack of access to vital services, and a lack of culturally appropriate treatment, indigenous people are especially vulnerable at this time. Prevention begins with making information available in indigenous languages so that all indigenous peoples may benefit from services and facilities tailored to their needs (Gloster et al., 2020). There are a lot of indigenous people who don't have access to the social safety net, which increases their vulnerability, especially if they rely on the larger economy for their income. As a result, governments should ensure that temporary financial assistance measures include indigenous peoples or other marginalised groups. Additionally, indigenous peoples are seeking for their own solutions. Indigenous policies and awareness, as well as preventive efforts, are being used by them.

Impact of the lockdown on people’s lives

To prevent the spread of COVID-19, states and municipal governments-imposed limitations on human contact beginning in March 2020, which had significant health, environmental, and financial repercussions (Purwanto et al., 2020). When it came to social interactions, Italians were taught to keep at least a two-meter spacing between each other and to steer clear of crowded spaces and pointless activities. As a result of the lockdown, children and teenagers were obliged to remain at home and practice so-called "remote learning" during the lockdown. Often in the young population, the effects of these confinement measures resulted in an increase in sedentary behavior and a higher risk of acquiring or worsening chronic health disorders both physically and mentally. Despite the fact that the virus seems to have had less of an impact on them, the COVID-19 pandemic has left them vulnerable to the consequences of poor nutrition, social isolation, mental illness, screen addiction, and a lack of access to quality education and sports. Obesity and nutritional inadequacies are on the rise as a result of the imbalanced diet that many people adopted during the COVID-19 pandemic (Power et al., 2020). In both affluent and developing nations, social and economic inequality is a key factor in poor results, and the COVID-19 pandemic emergency has highlighted these inequities even more. 

As a result of the bad food prevalent in medium and high-income nations, people in these regions are more likely to become obese. Contrast this with low-income nations, which are more likely to have both underweight and overweight populations. Malnutrition raises infection-related mortality and morbidity, and it also has a large financial effect on health care systems and services (Suryahadi, Al Izzati, and Suryadarma, D., 2020). Immune system function and body integrity both need increased food requirements during an illness. Nutrition, in fact, is well acknowledged to have a significant influence in influencing the immunological response. During infancy and early childhood, a person's development is at its peak. As a result, an unhealthy diet may well have a negative impact on the development of the physical and weight-for-height aspects of a child's growth. In addition, even though strong eating habits are formed during infancy, a lack of nutrition during childhood could have long-term consequences.

“Impacts of Working from Home During COVID-19 Pandemic on Physical and Mental Well-Being of Office Workstation Users”

The COVID-19 outbreak has touched all element of the professional and personal life. Work-from-home policies were implemented by businesses, companies and institutions as a result to the federal and local containment efforts. When telecommuting methods started to improve in the early 2000s, individuals were able to work from home, which removed the need for commuting, provided them more flexibility with their schedules, and helped them to obtain a better work-life balance (Galanti et al., 2020). COVID-19's full-time work-from-home mandate changed the conventional definition of WFH, which had previously been employed exclusively for certain types of work, on a limited basis, or for employees in unique circumstances. Many companies believe that WFH will become more common after the epidemic since businesses have already invested in remote work solutions for their personnel. Companies are increasingly looking at how much money they may save by reducing the amount of office space they require.

WFH has been shown to help businesses as well as workers directly. There are several advantages to working from home, but the most essential one is that it minimizes travel time and allows workers to spend more time with their families. Employees at WFH, particularly those in open-plan workplaces, may pick and choose when they want to come to work and when they don't. Workers who have access to WFH may take a rest from their desks and concentrate on creating a work-life balance that benefits their physical and emotional well-being that is unique to them. Eventually, when WFH is implemented, workers may have had more control over environmental factors, such as lighting, humidity, air quality, temperature, noise, ergonomics, and so on. Worker satisfaction is directly linked to their level of comfort, which is influenced by IEQ elements. WFH provides employees the freedom and responsibility to set up their own workspaces at home, allowing them to work in an environment with better “indoor environmental quality” (IEQ) than those found in open-plan offices or cubicles common in traditional offices (Yamamura and Tsustsui, 2021). Home offices may actually deliver better air quality than typical workplaces, according to a recent study.

WFH has tremendous advantages, however there are many disadvantages to working full-time while raising a family. There is indeed a lack of social interaction and physical mobility among employees who work from home, including a reduction in the number of steps taken to go to and from various meeting sites (Savi?, 2020). Working a full-time work at a computer for lengthy periods of time may lead to eye strain, fatigue, and other disorders connected to the eyes. The symptoms of mental illness, such as social isolation and depression, might be exacerbated in persons who live alone but are on full-time WFH. Some individuals may find it difficult to distinguish between their professional and personal lives, which could contribute to an increase in anxiety and stress. It's not uncommon for parents to worry about finding a good work-life balance because they have to cram housekeeping and errands in between meetings. It is common for parents to forego their sleep habits and stay up late or get up early in order to get more work done during these hours when their children are not present. Long-term conflict between job and family might lead to emotional exhaustion.

The sudden switches to WFH and other circumstances connected with the COVID-19 pandemic present an unparalleled opportunity to investigate the effect of WFH on physically and mentally well-being. Social and behavioral variables have the greatest influence on health, but they are not the only ones (Galanti et al., 2020). Anxiety and depression are common side effects of being quarantined at home for long periods of time during a pandemic, and this can lead to alterations in daily routines and diet. As a result of WFH, changes in the physical activity and food consumption may combine with other stressors, which may directly damage physical and mental health. Closed schools and daycare facilities mean that parents who work also must manage home educating their children, in terms of dealing with a more hectic office atmosphere and a rise in distractions. 

WFH as during COVID-19 pandemic has indeed emphasized the necessity for physical space in home office settings, in addition to behavioral and social adjustments. Although some professionals have specialized workstations in their homes, some may have to combine them with children who must attend the school from home or established temporary desks like the dining table or work in a variety of places during the day (Xiong et al., 2020). Pandemic-induced reductions in business travel and increased reliance on computers to schedule meetings rather than meeting in person at various locations allow employees to spend longer hours at their workstations. Having to sit for long periods of time due to poor body mechanics caused by a lack of an appropriate physical workstation may cause more pain and suffering (Bäuerle et al., 2020). Employees may well not pay a lot of attention to regulating the IEQ atmosphere at home as they typically do in office work settings that have central heating and air conditioning. An unproductive work atmosphere may harm both physical and emotional health, and also the overall productivity of employees.

Conclusion

To sum up, it can be stated that reduced family income, rising food prices, and restrictions on people's, commodities' and products' migration, among many other issues, all have a substantial impact on household food production and availability in Covid-19. Working in hazardous conditions and putting their families at risk is encouraged by low and variable wages as well as a lack of social help. Furthermore, they may resort to less ideal means of coping, such as the selling of assets in distress, predatory lending, or employing children. As a consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic, it has affected every aspect of the professional and personal life. In reaction to federal and municipal attempts to minimize the spread of the illness, companies, enterprises, and institutions urged their staff to work from home. Many workers' work-life balance has been harmed as a result of lockdowns implemented in reaction to the Covid-19 incident.