Data Collection Procedure and Ethical Considerations
Institutional approval and ethical clearance were initially secured from the institution and their respective Research Ethics Committees. Data collection was conducted from August 2021 to January 2022. For the retrospective aspect, a list of previously admitted patients at the start of the study, had blood typing, and had RT-PCR was initially requested. Afterwards, the medical records of these patients were screened and reviewed before extracting and recording pertinent information in the abstraction form. For patients who were still admitted at the start of the study, a list was secured from the different hospital unit. Eligible patients, or their legally authorized representative, were invited to participate and were provided full disclosure before securing written informed consent. The medical records of these patients were then reviewed and pertinent demographic, medical and clinical, and COVID-19 infection data were collected and recorded in the abstraction form. These patients were then followed-up during their hospitalization for COVID-19 disease outcomes.