covid 19

Semester Project Part 1 & Part 2 Instructions
Part 1 Instructions:
1. Read the case study “Where is the evidence? Confronting public panic about COVID-19.” on
the following pages.
2. Choose one of the three callers whose conversation with Malik interests you the most. and
answer the associated questions 1-4.
3. Type all your answers (caller 1 or 2 or 3, questions #1-4 only. We will work on #5 in Part 4 next
week) in a WordPad document (.rtf files) or Microsoft WORD document (.doc or .docx files).
4. Double spaced, Calibri font, font size 12.
5. Type in complete sentences, and meet the conventions of standard American English.
6. Copying other student’s work is plagiarism and will receive Zero grade.
7. Review and proofread before submitting your project to the Blackboard assignment dropbox.
More than 2 misspellings or grammar errors will result in grade deduction.
Part 2 Instructions:
1. Type your answer to question # 5 from the same caller you picked last week in a WordPad
document (.rtf files) or Microsoft WORD document (.doc or .docx files).
2. Your answers must include In-text citations and corresponding entries in your reference list at
the end of the document. APA style. I’ve posted video guides on how to do in-text citations in
Bb.
3. Do NOT copy sentences or parts of sentences from your sources. Try to extract relevant
information from the references, analyze them and then write up your own original sentences.
Note, the Bb dropbox automatically detects plagiarism for every submission. A direct copy of
other student’s work or incorrect citing of a reference is plagiarism and can result in Zero grade.
4. Review and proofread before submitting your project to the Blackboard assignment dropbox.
More than 2 misspellings or grammar errors will result in grade deduction.
5. 1 ½ -2 pages, typed, double spaced, Calibri font, font size 12.
6. Type in complete sentences, and meet the conventions of standard American English.
Case copyright held by the National Center for Case Study Teaching in Science, University at Buffalo, State University of New York. Originally published April 16, 2020. Please see our usage guidelines, which outline our policy concerning permissible reproduction of this work.
Credit: Licensed image © Vetre Antanaviciute-meskauskiene | Dreamstime, id 177489106.
NATIONAL CENTER FOR CASE STUDY TEACHING IN SCIENCE
This COVID-19 outbreak is the largest pandemic since the Spanish flu of 1918. We watch closely as the World Health
Organization declares the global number of COVID-19 cases to have reached almost 2 million. Today, April 14, 2020, there
are over 1.8 million cases in over 200 countries including more than 100,000 deaths. Malik turned off the news. He
couldn’t believe it. He’d never seen anything like it and hoped he never would again. The whole world had shut down,
everything was closed, even the borders were closed and would be for months. They weren’t even supposed to go out
in public and the government was asking everyone to stay home as much as possible.
Being a public health nurse, Malik knew this was serious and that it was important to follow the directives to social
distance and self-isolate. He also knew this was even more important for him given that his 72-year-old father (whom
he had brought home to stay with him during the pandemic) was asthmatic, making him especially susceptible to this
new respiratory virus. Malik turned to his father, “I’m so glad I was reassigned to answering phone calls on this new
COVID-19 hotline. This way I can work from home.”
“I know you would have liked to help your friends on the frontlines at the hospital,” his father replied.
Malik shook his head. “But what if I carried the virus home to you, Dad? Don’t worry, it’s really not worth the risk.
And this way, I can answer people’s questions with actual facts and evidence to put a stop to all of those crazy ideas
flying around on social media. It’s certainly not helping
us in containing the outbreak. There are some really
wild rumours out there about the virus that I would like
to put a stop to.”
Malik remembered the first two coronavirus outbreaks,
SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome) in 2003 when
he was still completing his nursing degree and MERS
(Middle East respiratory syndrome) in 2012. But this
pandemic was different. There were so many more
cases and it was spreading so fast. “I guess it should be
no surprise given that it’s happened twice before,” he
thought to himself.
Malik was to start answering calls in the morning, so he
thought he better brush up on his understanding of the
virus. The only thing he remembered from his microbiology class was that the name “corona” came from the
fact that these viruses looked like they had a crown from
all the protein spikes in the viral membrane. He started
searching for information in his favorite databases and
came across some great images.
Where’s the Evidence?
Confronting Public Panic About COVID-19
by
Laura Pickell
Department of Biology
Cégep Heritage College, Gatineau, QC, Canada
Figure 1. Probable structure of SARS-CoV-2, the virus causing (coronavirus disease) COVID-19. Viruses in the betacoronavirus family
are tiny, 65–125 nm, have a single-stranded RNA genome and are
enveloped. The spike proteins in the phospholipid envelope allow the
virus to bind to and enter the host cells. The viral genome codes for
viral proteins, including spike proteins, polyproteins, nucleoproteins,
membrane proteins, viral RNA polymerase and proteases. (Image
credit: Shereen et al., 2020; cc by-nc-nd 4.0.)
NATIONAL CENTER FOR CASE STUDY TEACHING IN SCIENCE
“Where’s the Evidence?” by Laura Pickell Page 2
Malik yawned. All of this reading was making him tired, but he wanted to look up the clinical symptoms of
COVID-19 before he went to bed. He found that a typical patient presented with fever, headache, malaise and cough.
“Wow,” he thought to himself, “that sounds just like the flu or a cold.” He kept reading: “…and pneumonia, which
sometimes leads to respiratory distress and death.” “Ok. Maybe not that part.” Malik closed his computer and went up to
get ready for bed. “Well, I guess I’ll see what kind of calls I get tomorrow.”
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Figure 2. Probable SARS-CoV-2 replication cycle. Viral replication begins with the spike protein binding to the ACE2 receptor
on the host cell. The S protein changes shape initiating endocytosis and the fusion of the viral envelope with the cell membrane
resulting in entry of the virus into the cell. The viral RNA is replicated by the viral RNA polymerase and translated into viral
proteins using the host machinery. New virions are assembled in the ER and Golgi before being transported and released, ready
to infect the next cell. ACE2, angiotensin-converting enzyme 2; ER, endoplasmic reticulum; ERGIC, ER–Golgi intermediate
compartment (Image credit: Shereen et al., 2020; cc by-nc-nd 4.0.)
Reference
Shereen, M.A., et al. 2020. COVID-19 infection: origin, transmission, and characteristics of human coronaviruses.
Journal of Advanced Research 24 91-98. <https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jare.2020.03.005>.
Caller 1
Read the conversation between Malik and the first caller. Then answer the following questions using the listed research
articles and websites along with any other resources you find on your own.
Conversation
Malik: Good morning. You’ve reached the COVID-19 hotline. My name is Malik. What can I help you with this
morning?
Caller 1: Yes… Hi, umm… I read on Facebook that this new virus was actually genetically engineered by scientists
and released as a biological weapon on purpose. Is this true? How do we know where the virus came from?
Questions
1. Summarize the caller’s concerns in 2-4 sentences.
2. Identify the caller’s questions and rephrase them into scientific questions you can answer.
3. Pick at least 3 sources from the list below (do not use sources other than what are listed below) to summarize
the scientific information that will help answer the caller’s questions. (Just summarize the scientific
information here. No need to think about how to communicate that effectively to a patient who might not
have much science background yet. We will work on that next week in question 5. )
4. Indicate the type of sources used to answer the caller’s questions and why it is important to use such
evidence-based sources rather than popular sources such as those found on social media.
5. How will you respond to the caller’s concerns and questions? What will you say to the caller?
Research Articles
Andersen, K.G., et al. 2020. The proximal origin of SARS-CoV-2. Nature Medicine 26: 450–2. <https://doi.
org/10.1038/s41591-020-0820-9>.
He, F., Y. Deng, and W. Li. 2020. Coronavirus disease 2019: what we know? Journal of Medical Virology (ahead of
print). <https://doi.org/10.1002/jmv.25766>.
Lai, C.C., et al. 2020. Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and coronavirus disease-2019
(COVID-10): the epidemic and the challenges. International Journal of Antimicrobial Agents 55(3). <https://doi.
org/10.1016/j.ijantimicag.2020.105924>.
Li, R., et al. 2020. Substantial undocumented infection facilitates the rapid dissemination of novel coronavirus (SARSCoV2). Science (ahead of print). <https://doi.org/10.1126/science.abb3221>.
Zhou, P., et al. 2020. A pneumonia outbreak associated with a new coronavirus of probable bat origin. Nature
579(7798): 270–3. <https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-020-2012-7>.
Health Organization Websites
Note: if you use the following websites, please cite the source with a direct link to the webpage where
you see the information and include the date of when the webpage was last updated.
World Health Organization (WHO). <https://www.who.int/>
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). <https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/faq.html>
National Institutes of Health (NIH). <https://www.nih.gov/>
Johns Hopkins Medicine <https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/coronavirus >
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NATIONAL CENTER FOR CASE STUDY TEACHING IN SCIENCE
“Where’s the Evidence?” by Laura Pickell
Caller 2
Read the conversation between Malik and the third caller. Then answer the following questions using the listed
research articles and websites along with any other resources you find on your own.
Conversation
Malik: Good morning. You’ve reached the COVID-19 hotline. My name is Malik. What can I help you with this
morning?
Caller 3: (Coughing in the background.)
Malik: Hello? Hello? Are you ok?
Caller 3: (Cough) Sorry. I have this coronavirus, but the doctors just told me to self-quarantine and wait for
it to pass. But a friend of mine told me that some sort of drug that’s already out there, chlorosomething or other, is a cure for this thing. I have some old antibiotics in my medicine cabinet. Do
you think they would help? I also read that gargling with saltwater will kill the germs and prevent
them from leaking more into my lungs. What do you think?
Questions
1. Summarize the caller’s concerns in 2-4 sentences.
2. Identify the caller’s questions and rephrase them into scientific questions you can answer.
3. Pick at least 3 sources from the list below (do not use sources other than what are listed below) to summarize
the scientific information that will help answer the caller’s questions. (Just summarize the scientific
information here. No need to think about how to communicate that effectively to a patient who might not
have much science background yet. We will work on that next week in question 5. )
4. Indicate the type of sources used to answer the caller’s questions and why it is important to use such
evidence-based sources rather than popular sources such as those found on social media.
5. How will you respond to the caller’s concerns and questions? What will you say to the caller?
Research Articles
https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/2772922?
utm_campaign=articlePDF&utm_medium=articlePDFlink&utm_source=articlePDF&utm_content=jama.2020.
22240
https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/nejmoa2012410
https://www.acpjournals.org/doi/full/10.7326/M20-4207
News article from National Institute of Health
https://www.nih.gov/news-events/news-releases/hydroxychloroquine-does-not-benefit-adults-hospitalizedcovid-19#:~:text=A%20National%20Institutes%20of%20Health,clinical%20benefit%20to%20hospitalized%
20patients.
Health Organization Websites
Note: if you use the following websites, please cite the source with a direct link to the webpage where you
see the information and include the date of when the webpage was last updated.
World Health Organization (WHO). <https://www.who.int/>
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). <https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/faq.html>
National Institutes of Health (NIH). <https://www.nih.gov/>
Johns Hopkins Medicine <https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/coronavirus >
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Caller 3
Read the conversation between Malik and the fourth caller. Then answer the following questions using the listed
research articles and websites along with any other resources you find on your own.
Conversation
Malik: Good morning. You’ve reached the COVID-19 hotline. My name is Malik. What can I help you with this
morning?
Caller 4: Hey. Listen, so I’ve heard that only old people are affected by this coronavirus and that most of us younger
ones have nothing to worry about. So why is it that we have to stay home and avoid going out or hanging
out with our friends? What’s the big deal?
Questions
1. Summarize the caller’s concerns in 2-4 sentences.
2. Identify the caller’s questions and rephrase them into scientific questions you can answer.
3. Pick at least 3 sources from the list below (do not use sources other than what are listed below) to summarize
the scientific information that will help answer the caller’s questions. (Just summarize the scientific
information here. No need to think about how to communicate that effectively to a patient who might not
have much science background yet. We will work on that next week in question 5. )
4. Indicate the type of sources used to answer the caller’s questions and why it is important to use such
evidence-based sources rather than popular sources such as those found on social media.
5. How will you respond to the caller’s concerns and questions? What will you say to the caller?
Research Articles
He, F., Y. Deng, and W. Li. 2020. Coronavirus disease 2019: what we know? Journal of Medical Virology (ahead of
print). <https://doi.org/10.1002/jmv.25766>.
Ludvigsson, J.F. 2020. Systematic review of COVID-19 in children shows milder cases and a better prognosis than
adults. Acta Paediatrica (ahead of print). <https://doi.org/10.1111/apa.15270>.
Public Health Agency of Canada. 2020. Coronavirus disease (COVID-19): outbreak update. [Webpage]. <https://
www.canada.ca/en/public-health/services/diseases/2019-novel-coronavirus-infection.html>.
Shereen, M.A., et al. 2020. COVID-19 infection: origin, transmission, and characteristics of human coronaviruses.
Journal of Advanced Research 24: 91–8. <https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jare.2020.03.005>.
Sun, P., et al. 2020. Understanding of COVID-19 based on current evidence. Journal of Medical Virology (advanced
online publication). <https://doi.org/10.1002/jmv.25722>.
Health Organization Websites
Note: if you use the following websites, please cite the source with a direct link to the webpage where you
see the information and include the date of when the webpage was last updated.
World Health Organization (WHO). <https://www.who.int/>
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). <https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/faq.html>
National Institutes of Health (NIH). <https://www.nih.gov/>
Johns Hopkins Medicine <https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/coronavirus >
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