MMSL X:X | DOI: 10.31482/mmsl.2025.005

MAPPING CHALLENGES, STRATEGIS, AND PREPAREDNESS NEEDS OF ESSENTIAL SERVICES DURING THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC AND FUTURE VIRAL SERVICESOriginal article

Vanda Bostik ORCID...4,5, Aneta Markova ORCID...1*, Radka Prazdna ORCID...1, Adela Mojzisova ORCID...3, Petra Bendova ORCID...2, Ivana Havrankova ORCID...2, Zuzana Truhlarova ORCID...2, Pavel Zikl ORCID...2
1 Department of Special Education, Faculty of Education, University of South Bohemia in Ceske Budejovice, Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic
2 Institute of Primary, Pre-primary and Special Education, Faculty of Education, University of Hradec Kralove, Hradec Kralove, Czech Republic
3 Institute of Social and Special Educational Sciences, Faculty of Health and Social Sciences, University of South Bohemia in Ceske Budejovice, Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic
4 Faculty of Social Sciences, Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic
5 Department of Epidemiology, Military Faculty of Medicine, University of Defence, Hradec Kralove, Czech Republic

This study is based on a detailed analysis of the challenges faced by various social services in the Czech Republic during the COVID-19 pandemic. The study took into account a combination of several different data sources and included an analysis of recommendations issued during the pandemic, data from preliminary research conducted among social service providers, a questionnaire survey, and two-phase qualitative focus group interviews. Data on residential, outpatient, and field social services in the Czech Republic were collected. The main objective of the research was to map the difficulties these services faced, their working strategies and responses during the pandemic, and their requirements for possible future crises caused by viral diseases. Based on the results of the study, we proposed a number of recommendations regarding the approach of social service providers in the event that a similar situation was to recur in the future.

Keywords: Social services; social work; Czech Republic; pandemic; COVID-19 disease; infection; lockdown; state administration system

Received: November 4, 2024; Revised: June 23, 2025; Accepted: August 15, 2025; Prepublished online: September 1, 2025 

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