April 17, 2020

Researchers Igor Burstyn, PhD, associate professor, and Tran Huynh, PhD, MPH, CIH, assistant professor, both in the department of Environmental and Occupational Health at the Dornsife School of Public Health, are compiling data on the experiences of residents during the coronavirus pandemic in the Philadelphia area.

Burstyn and Huynh are urging people to complete their newly developed survey, which is available in three different languages — English, Spanish, and Vietnamese — in order to effectively assess the needs of communities and support them better during this time of crisis.

"We are all affected by COVID-19 to some degree and are coping in different ways,” says Burstyn. “The aim of our work is to document experiences so that common threads that emerge can help us be more resilient now and in the future.”

The fifteen-minute survey will specifically examine how people’s work and health (physical and mental) are changing. The researchers have outlined four specific goals:

1. Document the impact of change in employment due to COVID-19 and resulting stay-at-home orders on Philadelphia 
2. Determine whether some jobs conferred elevated risk of contracting COVID-19 or developing respiratory symptoms relative to others, such as jobs designated as essential (doctors, nurses, grocery store workers, construction) and those that involve daily personal interactions (nail salon workers, barbers, teachers)
3. Determine who in the community was most impacted by mood changes or stress and elucidate both its causes associated with disruption of life caused by the epidemic and protective coping mechanisms (reliance on neighbors, family, religious organizations)
4. Assess whether effects observed at the time of the epidemic have lasting consequences to health and well-being

Participate:

In these difficult times, when everyone's lives are being affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, you can do something important for your family, friends, neighbors and community. Please take time to participate in our survey of the impacts of COVID-19. We need reliable information on the impact on work and health (physical and mental health) to effectively assess the needs of communities and support them better. We all have shown great solidarity toward one another and we hope that this extends to taking part in this study.

Thank you for helping us help you! Do not hesitate to share this survey link with your friends, family and colleagues. Your responses will be kept confidential and anonymous.

Please click on the link to complete the survey:

Take the survey (English)

Take the survey (Spanish)

Take the survey (Vietnamese)

For more information, contact Igor Burstyn at ib68@drexel.edu.