Prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 Infection Among Health Care Workers in a Tertiary Community Hospital

Abstract

Even though acute anxiety has received substantial rhetorical attention during the COVID-19 pandemic, to our knowledge it has not been subject to scientific inquiry until now. Although this study cannot confirm that any search was linked to a specific acute anxiety event or panic attack, it provides evidence of the collateral psychological effects stemming from COVID-19, and motivates several data-driven recommendations.First, surveillance should continue as changes during the pandemic may spark new increases in acute anxiety that necessitate a response. Second, in light of the pandemic, resource providers should better address acute anxiety. For instance, Illinois launched "Call4Calm," a hotline to help people cope with acute COVID-19 anxiety, and such programs could be expanded nationally. Third, more must be done to link those needing help with help. A "panic attack" Google query does not return any links to helplines, even though Google has pioneered the "OneBox" approach to mental health queries, highlighting life-saving results at the top of a user's search results (including suicide and addiction hotlines) rather than hoping searchers find actionable information by chance alone. The Google OneBox should be expanded to promote resources for acute anxiety, like SAMHSA's Disaster Distress Helpline, to meet potential increased demand during COVID-19 now and in the future.Time-sensitive decision-making during a pandemic underscores the importance of fostering an agile empirical approach that can continually monitor health threats, 6 including the ability to study an outcome without a priori anticipatory data collection. Mining internet searches may improve strategies to discover and subsequently address the collateral mental health consequences of COVID-19.

Seroprevalence of severe acute respiratory coronavirus virus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) antibodies by risk of exposure in a community health system

“…In discussion, we failed to demonstrate an increased risk of infection with COVID-19 among staff at the highest risk of exposure within a community health system during a time of moderate community prevalence. Our findings are consistent with other studies which have used various definitions of "high-risk" but failed to demonstrate an increased risk of COVID-19 in those at highest risk of exposure within the health system [1][2][3]7 Similar to a large cohort in New York, we did demonstrate that HCS who perceived a high risk of exposure at work, were more likely to develop SARS-CoV-2 antibodies. 2 Further study on perceived exposure among HCS exposure seems warranted.…”

Seroprevalence of antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 in a large national hospital and affiliated facility in Tokyo, Japan

“…In a tertile hospital in the US, rate of SARS-CoV-2 infection among HCW was lower than that among the general public in the surrounding region. 8 …”

Beurteilung des Infektionsrisikos durch SARS-CoV-2 für medizinisches Personal – Erkenntnisse aus der Praxis

“…Zudem ist nicht bekannt, ob sich das medizinische Personal in Zusammenhang mit seiner beruflichen Tätigkeit oder außerhalb derer infiziert hatte [ 11 , 16 , 17 ]. Diesen Aspekt unterstreichen auch Jeremias und Mitarbeiter, die fanden, dass in einer Klinik der Grundversorgung kein Unterschied an Infizierten zwischen Bereichen mit hohem und niedrigem Infektionspotenzial zu finden war [ 19 ]. Allerdings fanden die Autoren auch, dass die Rate an infiziertem Personal in der Klinik deutlich geringer als außerhalb des Krankenhauses war (9,9 % gegen 16,7 %).…”

“…Allerdings fanden die Autoren auch, dass die Rate an infiziertem Personal in der Klinik deutlich geringer als außerhalb des Krankenhauses war (9,9 % gegen 16,7 %). Im Gegensatz zu anderen Ländern ist die vom RKI angegebene Infektionsrate des medizinischen Personals in Deutschland deutlich niedriger: „In Brescia province, the center of Italy’s outbreak, 10 to 15 percent of doctors and nurses have been infected and put out of commission, according to a doctor there“, und weiter: „Out of Spain’s 40.000 confirmed coronavirus cases, 5.400 – nearly 14 percent – are medical professionals“ [ 2 , 19 ].…”

“…Die WHO empfiehlt das Tragen von filtrierenden Masken, wenn Aerosole generiert werden (Übersicht bei [ 24 ]). Ebenso ist in der Literatur zu finden: „In conclusion, PPE, when available and properly used, confers protection and lowers infection rates of COVID-19 among health care workers when compared with reported infection rates in the general public“ [ 19 ].…”