Challenges encountered in comparing international policy responses to COVID-19 and their effects

BACKGROUND: A variety of policies have been implemented around the world in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. This study originally aimed to identify and compare policy responses of different countries and their effects on the pandemic. It quickly evolved into an identification of the heterogeneity among existing policies and the challenges in making meaningful comparisons of the impact of these policies. METHODS: The process of collecting and comparing data from different sources was analysed through inductive thematic analysis to understand the obstacles that impede research designed to compare COVID-19 data and related policies. RESULTS: We identified the following obstacles: (1) no single reputable source of information and too much noise; (2) a lack of standards for how to measure and report data across countries; (3) variations in the content, implementation and enforcement of policies; and (4) politics, instead of science, leading the efforts in pandemic management. CONCLUSION: Heterogeneity in existing policies makes it challenging to compare the effects of various policies worldwide on the COVID-19 pandemic. Our findings call for an automatically updated informatics infrastructure across the globe for collecting and maintaining standardized data from multiple sources. There is a strong need for steadfast utilization of scientific and technical experts to inform and influence health policy. Increased investment in public health and emergency planning is essential to overcome the current pandemic, as well as future public health emergencies. Focused leadership and collaboration from world leaders in a unified mission to decrease the mortality and morbidity of the COVID-19 pandemic is imperative.