Multidrug-resistant strains are frequent causes of nosocomial infections. The majority of nosocomial infections, particularly in critical care units (ICU), have been linked to A. baumannii, which has major clinical significance. The current paper attempts to identify the potential risk and prognosis factors for acquiring an infection due to A. baumannii compared to that of other nosocomial bacteria. In our study, we employed antibiotics generally prescribed for the initial course of treatment such as colistin, meropenem, amikacin, trimethoprime-sulfamethoxazole, levofloxacin, gentamicin, ciprofloxacin, and piperacillin-tazobactam. We found that the isolated A. baumannii were resistant at a high rate to meropenem, piperacillin–tazobactam, amikacin, levofloxacin, and ciprofloxacin, while they were partially susceptible to trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole. Our study revealed that A. baumannii was most susceptible to gentamicin and colistin at 85.8% and 92.9%, respectively, whereas the combination of colistin and trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole was 100% active. The patients were the primary source of infection with A. baumannii, followed by inanimate objects present in the ICU and hospital premises, and then the hospital staff who were taking care of the ICU patients. Gentamicin and colistin were the most sensitive antibiotics; of the 13 tested in total, the rate of drug resistance was above 50%. The very high rate of antibiotic resistance is alarming.

Background The COVID-19 pandemic extended to reach most countries in the world during a few months. The preparedness of health care institutions and health care workers (HCWs) is crucial for applying effective prevention and control measures. Objective This study aims to assess HCWs’ and institutional preparedness in facing the new emerging COVID-19 infection at the early phase of the pandemic and to explore HCWs’ risk perception, concerns, and risk acceptance. Methods A cross-sectional survey was conducted among hospital HCWs in King Khalid and New Najran hospitals, Saudi Arabia, at the early phase of the pandemic, during March and April 2020. Results Overall, 563 completed questionnaires were received (n=382, 67.9% from King Khalid and n=181, 32.1% from New Najran). The majority were female participants (78.6%); nurses constituted 74.7% of the sample. The age range of the participants was 20-63 years, with the mean age of physicians and nurses being 36.5 (SD 9.15) years and 31.8 (SD 7.48) years, respectively. Among participants, 65.8% attended training programs for COVID-19 infection, of whom 69.9% were satisfied with this training. Almost all (97.4%) of the participants reported reading the official circulars assigned for guidelines, case definition, and infection control measures regarding COVID-19 infection; 97.1% received basic infection control training; 98.9% checked for the best-fitted size of an N95 mask; and 89.4% were influenza vaccinated. Of the participants, 82.6% reported that they have sufficient knowledge about the COVID-19 pandemic, 82.0% reported being confident that they can protect themselves and their patients when dealing with COVID-19 cases, 92.9% reported that they understand the risk of COVID-19 infection for patients and health care staff, and 83.2% reported agreement of accepting the risk of getting the infection being a part of their job. The study participants attained a mean 20.26 (SD 2.60) knowledge score on a scale of 26 maximum points (77.9%); of them, 74.5% attained 20 points or more (>75%), indicating good working knowledge about the COVID-19 pandemic. Exploring the participants’ perception about the preparedness of their institutions toward the COVID-19 pandemic, 70.8% agreed that institutional precautionary measures to COVID-19 in the workplace are sufficient, 71.6% agreed that all personal protective equipment is provided and always available in the workplace, and 90.6% mentioned that the staff in their institutions have had adequate training. Exploring risk perception and the affective aspect of the pandemic on HCWs, 79.0%, 35.2%, and 64.2% of the participants felt that they, their families, and the Najran community are at high risk of getting an infection of COVID-19, respectively, and 54.7% and 55.1% were concerned about their personal and family health, respectively. Conclusions The findings revealed good knowledge about the COVID-19 pandemic among HCWs in Najran hospitals, Saudi Arabia. Concerns and worries were expressed regarding working with the highly infectious patients with COVID-19. Participants appreciated important aspects of institutional preparedness. Experience gained from the previous Middle East respiratory syndrome–related coronavirus outbreak may explain good knowledge, risk acceptance, self-efficacy, and good and rapid institutional preparedness at the early stage of the pandemic.

The unprecedented pandemic has been causing devastating damage to the human life and livelihood. The SARS CoV-2 viral strains are currently responsible for the serious of infection waves and high mortality rate. The management of disease requires well developed medical infrastructure such as central oxygen suction, ventilator facility to support the patients with severe complications. Therefore, early diagnosis and monitoring are mandatory in order to control the disease progression and its clinical complications. Current study, we retrospectively analyzed the clinical parameters of the COVID-19 positive patients, and found that the body mass index ratio, oxygen saturation level and the neutrophil, lymphocyte ratio were continuously monitored. Any significant increase in the above said parameters may be correlated with adverse disease progression and patient mortality rate. In this way, developing countries could cut down the necessity for medical infrastructure.