The epidemiology and dynamics of COVID-19 disease transmission among healthcare workers of a tertiary healthcare setting in India

Autor: Mahendra Singh, Anushikha Dhankar, Megha Sharma, Shreya Agarwal, Prasan K Panda, Yogesh Bahurupi, Pradeep Aggarwal
Jazyk: angličtina
Rok vydání: 2022
Předmět:
Zdroj: Journal of Family Medicine and Primary Care, Vol 11, Iss 8, Pp 4562-4567 (2022)
Druh dokumentu: article
ISSN: 2249-4863
DOI: 10.4103/jfmpc.jfmpc_1799_21
Popis: Context: The novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) that has emerged as a pandemic now has put health care workers (HCWs) at great risk as they are the warriors in frontlines screening and treating the infected patients. When a COVID-19-positive HCW is identified, its contacts need to be traced to check the spread of the infection among patients and other HCWs. Aims: This study was aimed to study epidemiology and risk factors associated with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS CoV-2) infection among HCWs and to quantify the risk of infection among HCWs in a tertiary level health care setting. Settings and Design: This cross-sectional study enrolled all the HCWs who were exposed to a patient with COVID-19 in a tertiary level health care center, Rishikesh, Uttarakhand from 1st May to 30th July, 2020. Methods and Material: All the exposed HCWs were followed up for 14 days after the last exposure to a patient with confirmed COVID-19 infection. Epidemiological data were obtained using structured interviews. Statistical Analysis Used: The data were analyzed using SPSS 23.0. Frequencies and proportions were calculated for descriptive variables, and risk ratios were calculated for risk factors affecting the transmission of disease. Results: We observed that 1,141 HCWs of the tertiary level health care hospital were exposed to COVID-19 patients during the study period. A total of 22 HCWs were tested COVID-19 positive among these exposed HCWs. Univariate analysis revealed a high risk of exposure to be significantly associated with a higher secondary attack rate of SARS CoV-2. Conclusions: The study demonstrates the risk of COVID-19 transmission through asymptomatic carriers. Therefore, periodic testing of all health care workers is necessary to ensure early mitigation of the shortage of health care providers.
Databáze: Directory of Open Access Journals
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