Summary

Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on health care workers in a tertiary care hospital emergency department

Chico-Sánchez P, Gras-Valentí P, Mora-Muriel JG, Algado-Sellés N, Sánchez-Payá J, Llorens P

Affiliation of the authors

Unidad de Epidemiología, Servicio de Medicina Preventiva, Hospital General Universitario de Alicante, Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria y Biomédica de Alicante (ISABIAL), Alicante, Spain. Comisión de Infecciones, Hospital General Universitarios de Alicante, Alicante, Spain. Servicio de Urgencias, Hospital General Universitario de Alicante, Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria y Biomédica de Alicante (ISABIAL), Alicante, Spain..

DOI

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Quote

Chico-Sánchez P, Gras-Valentí P, Mora-Muriel JG, Algado-Sellés N, Sánchez-Payá J, Llorens P. Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on health care workers in a tertiary care hospital emergency department. Emergencias. 2020;32:227-32

Summary

Objective.

To evaluate the effectiveness of a coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) prevention and control program for health care workers in a tertiary care hospital emergency department (ED).

Methods.

We recorded the number of confirmed COVID-19 workers in the ED on March 2, 2020, and April 12, 2020. Workers were screened if they had symptoms or were traced as contacts. Variables recorded were age, sex, staff position, work area, and reason for contact. We used the ????2 test to compare ED workers to workers in other

areas of the health care system.

Results.

Of the 3900 health care workers (279 in the ED), 1744 cases (92 in the ED) were included for analysis. A total of 736 workers (52 in the ED) had symptoms, and 151 had positive test results (9 from the ED). Two of the infections in the ED workers (22.2%) were attributed to patient contact and 7 (77.8%) to nonwork-related contact

either in the workplace or in the community. The prevalence of COVID-19 among ED workers was 3.2% (9/279). The prevalence among other health system workers was 3.9% (142/3621). The differences in COVID-19 prevalence between the 2 groups was not significant. Nor was there a significant difference in the reasons for contact with the

virus between the 2 groups.

Conclusion. Based on the prevalence of COVID-19 among ED workers and other health care workers, the reasons for risk of contact with the virus, and the time frame for gathering the data, we conclude that the prevention and control measures in the ED have been effective.

 

More articles by the authors

Algado-Sellés N, Chico-Sánchez P, Gras-Valentí P, Llorens P, Mora-Muriel JG, Sánchez-Payá J

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