The Effects of COVID-19 on Healthcare Workers and Non-Healthcare Workers in Mexico: 14 Months into the Pandemic

Abstract

Background and Objectives: Healthcare workers (HCWs) play important roles in mitigating the COVID-19 pandemic and are more likely to become infected with COVID-19. Mexico, among other countries, had a high incidence and prevalence of cases and deaths from this disease. Material and Methods: This retrospective study evaluated the clinical characteristics as well as the geographical distribution of cases, deaths, and active cases of COVID-19 in HCWs and non-HCWs using official information from the Ministry of Health of Mexico. Results: A total of 235,343 cases of COVID-19 were reported in healthcare workers, and 2,094,191 cases were reported in non-healthcare workers. A total of 76.0% of cases in healthcare workers occurred in those who were between 25 and 50 years of age, and 71.4% of deaths occurred in those who were 50 to 69 years of age. Among healthcare workers, the most frequent comorbidities were obesity (15.2%), hypertension (10.9%), and diabetes (6.8%). Nurses were the group with the most cases (39.7%), followed by other healthcare workers (30.6%), physicians (26%), and dentists (1.6%). Physicians were the group with the most deaths (46%), followed by other professionals (30%), nurses (19%), and dentists (3%). Conclusion: These findings are likely the result of healthcare workers in Mexico being at a greater risk of exposure to SARS-CoV-2.

Prevalence of SARS‐CoV‐2 infection among oral health care workers worldwide: A meta‐analysis

“…This systematic review included 73 935 participants (54 585 dentists and 19 350 dental assistants/technicians) from 14 countries. Four studies were performed in Asia, 29–32 eight in Europe, 32–39 three in South America 40–42 and two in North America 43–45 . The mean age of participants ranged from 38 to 46 years, and the number of females ranged from 58% to 89%.…”

“…Four studies were performed in Asia, [29][30][31][32] eight in Europe, [32][33][34][35][36][37][38][39] three in South America [40][41][42] and two in North America. [43][44][45] The mean age of participants ranged from 38 to 46 years, and the number of females ranged from 58% to 89%. Systemic conditions or comorbidities varied across studies.…”

Exploring Radiologists’ Burnout in the COVID-19 Era: A Narrative Review

“…During the COVID-19 pandemic, work-related stress ramped up because of mandatory changes [ 48 , 83 , 84 , 85 , 86 , 87 , 88 , 89 , 90 , 91 , 92 , 93 , 94 ]. Several surveys [ 61 , 64 , 65 , 67 , 68 , 70 , 71 , 95 ] conducted during the COVID-19 outbreak in different countries have revealed a sensible impact of it on radiologists’ life in terms of anxiety, fear of spreading the infection, difficulty sourcing PPE, shifts in workload due to an increase in emergency procedures, and feeling that the crisis had affected their family relationships and damaged their own and their colleagues’ professional activity.…”

SARS-CoV-2 TEST OUTCOMES AMONG DENTISTS AND DENTAL HYGIENISTS WITH COVID-19-LIKE COMPLAINTS - A RETROSPECTIVE ANALYSIS FROM THE NETHERLANDS

“… 23 A survey form Mexico found the prevalence of COVID-19 among dentist, 14 months into the pandemic, to be 1.6%. 24 A study on COVID-19 seroprevalence in UK oral healthcare workers concluded that enhanced personal protection equipment and infection control practices reduced the risk of occupational exposure to SARS-CoV-2 to background population levels. 25 Based this data it is not possible to know whether dentist were infected with the virus during patient care.…”