The effects of Covid-19 will continue to surface over the next decade, with changes in customers’ expectations, digital experiences, work, technology, and business resiliency altering business permanently, says a new report from market research firm Forrester.

Despite modern healthcare and the implementation of extensive pandemic management protocols, the effects of Covid-19 will cause profound near-, medium-, and long-term impacts said the report titled “The New, Unstable Normal: How Covid-19 Will Change Business And Technology Forever.”

“The pandemic has fundamentally changed the way we do business. It has forced firms and policymakers to do things that were previously considered impossible,” Stephanie Balaouras, VP and Group Director at Forrester, said in a statement.

“As a result, business leaders are quickly embracing new, iterative ways to engage with customers, adapting to new ways of working, investing in technology innovation, and revisiting their business resiliency plans for long-term success.”

The research showed that the pandemic has affected global consumers in different ways, with their risk sensitivity and desire for convenience varying across the region, age, and culture.

In the medium term, financial strain and lack of in-person group interaction will cause consumers to feel a lack of meaning and purpose. This will influence spending on trusted brands that connect them to a greater cause.

In the long term, consumers will opt for brands that offer the most control over buying experiences.

Secondly, businesses will ride the digital engagement wave to create hybrid experiences.

In the short term, as values-based consumers question the ethics of brands and as all experiences become digital in some way, new design practices will emerge that blend emotion and insights, said the report.

Moreover, the pandemic has revealed the ability to do things that once seemed infeasible, including shifting entire workforces to remote working.

Remote working will boost regions around global economic hubs in the medium term as firms shed more than a quarter of their city-center office space, said the report.

Tech and business leaders that accelerate digital outputs — by retiring technical debt — will in the short term acquire a robust digital operating platform and the needed flexibility to overhaul business models.

In the long term, leaders will invest in enterprise risk management capabilities to better evaluate and respond to risk in real-time, said the report.

Of the estimated 12 million people that have tested positive for Covid-19 globally since the outbreak, only 6 percent are children. Children also make up for less than 3 percent of the hospitalized patients, though the hospitalization rate is higher in children less than five years, compared to older children. There are many reasons speculated as to why Covid-19 has had a lesser impact on children.

One explanation is that the virus can’t attach to body linings (e.g. nasal mucosa) as the receptors are less in children; another is that children are protected by antibodies produced by other viruses they are exposed to, and these antibodies are protective, points out Dr. Swati Garekar, Consultant, Paediatric Cardiology, Fortis Hospital, Mulund.

Yet another reason is that children are staying at home during the pandemic, and hence are less likely to be exposed to people who may be Covid-19 positive, she adds.

India is the second-most populous country in the world and has a demographic profile of a young nation with 26 percent (367million out of 1.4billion) being children less than 15 years of age. This could have translated into a huge number of Covid-19 positive cases. However, the Indian population’s recovery rate from Covid-19 is faster than in most countries, and the death rate is much lower too.

There have been several reports that highlight a peculiar illness affecting children these days; in which, children have had a persistent fever (more than three days), rash, red eyes, stomach pain, and nausea/vomiting, informs Dr. Garekar. “Sore throat and cough/cold are much less common. Blood tests show generalized inflammation and the heart is involved in a major way. Here the typical adult finding of bad Pneumonia is missing. There may or may not be a positive COVID-19 test (PCR or the antibody test) and they may have had close contact with a COVID-19 patient. The involvement of the heart is the most worrisome” laments the expert.

“The heart muscles could have weakened and the coronary artery walls may have been damaged. Special intravenous medicines (steroids and Immunoglobulins) are required to bring the disease under control. These medicines are most effective when given early in the course of the disease.”

The peculiar disease affecting multiple organs in children has been termed ‘Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children’ (MIS-C), she says.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) and the Centre for Disease Control (CDC) US, has now given it a distinct definition. MIS-C was first reported from Europe and then the US. It seems to be occurring at the end wave of the epidemic that is 2-4 weeks after peak infection rate is seen in the population.

Dr. Garekar advises parents to contact a paediatrician if their child has a persistent fever, along with a rash or red eyes or stomach ache/ vomiting. Suspicion of MIS-C should be aroused and investigated in sick children. Typically, the Paediatrician will rapidly rule out more likely causes like Typhoid, Dengue Fever, Malaria, etc, she says.

“Another mimicker is ‘Kawasaki Disease’. Kawasaki Disease affects the younger population (less than 5years of age), here platelet counts are high, unlike MIS-C. Also, Heart muscle damage is more frequent in MIS-C. Heart involvement can be picked up by Echocardiography and certain blood markers of Heart inflammation. Early diagnosis and treatment will ensure early recovery and less chance of long term damage. In short, there is no reason to panic, but parental vigilance is the key,” she concludes.