African Federation for Emergency Medicine resources for managing COVID-19 in low resourced settings

Despite containment efforts, infection with SARS-CoV-2 has reached pandemic status. More than three-quarters of the world's nations and territories have been affected, and cases are being found in previously unaffected areas each day [1]. At the time of writing, there were 7,039,918 confirmed cases worldwide, and 404,396 deaths [1]; these numbers are expected to grow in the coming months. Although data surrounding the novel coronavirus are rapidly evolving, initial estimates depict a dire situation: 20% of infections lead to severe or critical disease [2]. Mortality has varied across settings, but early data suggest a case fatality rate near 4% [4,5]. It is increasingly likely that the countries with the least capacity to respond will soon be affected on a large scale [6]. There, highly vulnerable populations, compromised by malnutrition and comorbid diseases (HIV, tuberculosis, etc.), face a greater risk of developing severe and critical disease [3]. Early recognition, resuscitation and referral have proven key to effective responses, yielding lower mortality [7]. These processes are, however, significantly more challenging in low-resource settings (LRS) [3,6]. Most LRS have scarce critical care resources, with limitations in the availability of oxygen and other basics, as well as healthcare provider shortages [8,9]. Immediate targeted efforts are needed to assist these settings in managing large numbers of acutely ill COVID-19 patients.....