Global resource shortages during COVID-19: Bad news for low-income countries

• Published in: PLoS neglected tropical diseases 2020-07, Vol.14 (7), p.e0008412-e0008412
• Main Authors: McMahon, Devon E, Peters, Gregory A, Ivers, Louise C, Freeman, Esther E
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Betacoronavirus; Coronavirus Infections - economics; Coronavirus Infections - epidemiology; Coronaviruses; Countries; COVID-19; Dermatology; Developing Countries; Economic aspects; Engineering and Technology; Epidemics; Global health; Health aspects; Health Resources - supply & distribution; Hospitals; Humans; Income; Low income areas; Low income groups; Medicine and Health Sciences; News; NGOs; Nongovernmental organizations; Pandemics - economics; People and Places; Personal protective equipment; Personal Protective Equipment - supply & distribution; Pneumonia, Viral - economics; Pneumonia, Viral - epidemiology; Protective clothing; Public health; SARS-CoV-2; Shortages; Social aspects; Social Sciences; Supply and demand; Supply chains; Tropical diseases; United States; Ventilators, Mechanical - supply & distribution; Viewpoints; Viral diseases; Viruses
• ISSN: 1935-2735; 1935-2727; 1935-2735
• DOI: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0008412

About the Authors: Devon E. McMahon Affiliations Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, United States of America, Department of Dermatology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts, United States of America ORCID logo http://orcid.org/0000-0002-3649-9208 Gregory A. Peters Affiliation: Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, United States of America ORCID logo http://orcid.org/0000-0003-0026-9985 Louise C. Ivers Affiliations Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, United States of America, Center for Global Health, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts, United States of America ORCID logo http://orcid.org/0000-0003-2314-9230 Esther E. Freeman * E-mail: [e-mail] Affiliations Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, United States of America, Department of Dermatology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts, United States of America, Medical Practice and Evaluation Center, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston Massachusetts, United States of America ORCID logo http://orcid.org/0000-0001-7751-9466 Citation: McMahon DE, Peters GA, Ivers LC, Freeman EE (2020) Global resource shortages during COVID-19: Bad news for low-income countries. Hospitals in low-income countries rely on the same supply chains as hospitals in wealthy countries to import medical supplies but have significantly less bargaining power to secure resources [6]. [...]resource grabs by high-income countries will likely have devastating effects on low-income countries as COVID-19 continues to spread globally [6, 7]. Strengthening Health Systems While Responding to a Health Crisis: Lessons Learned by a Nongovernmental Organization During the Ebola Virus Disease Epidemic in Sierra Leone.