Zhu Jiren, Zhu Jieming, Guo Yan
School of Architecture, Harbin Institute of Technology, Shenzhen, Shenzhen, China.
Department of Urban Planning, Tongji University, Shanghai, China.
Habitat Int. 2022 Sep;127:102627. doi: 10.1016/j.habitatint.2022.102627. Epub 2022 Jul 14.
The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic revealed the crucial role of social distancing and hygiene practices in reducing virus transmission and thus revealed the high risk of infection in urban informal housing. Through an empirical study of Singapore's infectious situation and antiepidemic measures, this paper shows that the number of infected migrant workers living in dormitories was three hundred times greater than the number of infected local urban residents, not only because of the migrants' 'vulnerable' position but also because their living conditions fostered widespread transmission of the virus. The dwelling conditions of migrant dormitories, such as overcrowded living spaces, widely shared sanitation facilities, and poor hygiene practices, present great challenges to standard prevention strategies and control measures. Adverse health impacts resulting from the lockdown of dormitories during the COVID-19 pandemic suggest the importance of planning intervention in the dwelling conditions of informal housing, and indicate a need for the governments' active reforms of building codes and health care systems to promote the health of disadvantaged groups and then create more inclusive and healthy cities for all the society.
新冠疫情的爆发揭示了保持社交距离和卫生习惯在减少病毒传播方面的关键作用，从而也揭示了城市非正规住区存在的高感染风险。通过对新加坡感染情况和抗疫措施的实证研究，本文表明，居住在宿舍的感染外来务工人员数量比当地城市居民感染数量多三百倍，这不仅是因为外来务工人员处于“弱势”地位，还因为他们的生活条件助长了病毒的广泛传播。外来务工人员宿舍的居住条件，如居住空间拥挤、卫生设施广泛共用以及卫生习惯不佳等，给标准预防策略和控制措施带来了巨大挑战。新冠疫情期间宿舍封锁所产生的不利健康影响表明，对非正规住区居住条件进行规划干预很重要，也表明政府需要积极改革建筑规范和医疗保健系统，以促进弱势群体的健康，进而为全社会创建更具包容性和健康的城市。
