Research stays at the Medical Biometry Institute, Freiburg
From 01.06.2023 to 30.08.2023, Ms Yvette Montcho (PhD student) and Dr Jonas Doumatè (Junior researcher) will stay at the University of Freiburg in the frame of the HRH-SEMCA. They will stay at the Institute of Medical Biometry and Statistics for three months, where they will conduct their research under Prof Martin Wolkewitz’s supervision.
Ms Yvette Montcho is working on the impacts of non-pharmaceutical interventions on COVID-19 dynamics in Germany through a statistical modeling approach. She will (1) assess to what extent non-pharmaceutical interventions have reduced the spread of SARS-COV-2 in German hospitals and (2) evaluate the timing of NPIs during the COVID-19 epidemic course in Germany.
On his side, Dr Jonas Doumatè will be conducting an age-stratified estimation of the case-fatality ratio for COVID-19 in Germany with a times series analysis. This work aims to estimate the lag interval between the confirmed COVID-19 cases and deaths as well as the severity of the pandemic dominated by variants of concern (VOC). It intends to show how the optimal lag interval varies with respect to age strata and wave and then analyse the effect of these parameters on the case-fatality ratio (CFR) during the first five waves of the COVID-19 pandemic in Germany.
The stay aims to improve the two researchers' background in modelling epidemics and also allow them to create long-lasting professional connections and network with young scientists from Germany.
Moreover, from 30.06.2023 to 04.07.2023, Prof. Romain Glèlè Kakaï, the head of HRH-SEMCA, stayed in Freiburg, where he discussed with Prof. Martin Wolkewitz several aspects of the implementation of HRH-SEMCA’s work packages. Furthermore, through meetings, Ms Yvette Montcho and Dr Jonas Doumatè have presented their ongoing studies. An in-depth discussion session with Profs. Wolkewitz and Glèlè Kakaï allowed both researchers to improve their work.