healthcareCOVID: a national cross-sectional observational study identifying risk factors for developing suspected or confirmed COVID-19 in UK healthcare workers
Objective To establish the prevalence, risk factors and implications of suspected or confirmed coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) infection among healthcare workers in the United Kingdom (UK). Design Cross-sectional observational study. Setting UK-based primary and secondary care. Participants Heal...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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PeerJ Inc.
2021-02-01
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| Online Access: | https://peerj.com/articles/10891.pdf |
| _version_ | 1797420919427170304 |
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| author | Justin Kua Reshma Patel Eveliina Nurmi Sarah Tian Harpreet Gill Danny J.N. Wong Calvin Moorley Dmitri Nepogodiev Imran Ahmad Kariem El-Boghdadly |
| author_facet | Justin Kua Reshma Patel Eveliina Nurmi Sarah Tian Harpreet Gill Danny J.N. Wong Calvin Moorley Dmitri Nepogodiev Imran Ahmad Kariem El-Boghdadly |
| author_sort | Justin Kua |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Objective To establish the prevalence, risk factors and implications of suspected or confirmed coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) infection among healthcare workers in the United Kingdom (UK). Design Cross-sectional observational study. Setting UK-based primary and secondary care. Participants Healthcare workers aged ≥18 years working between 1 February and 25 May 2020. Main outcome measures A composite endpoint of laboratory-confirmed diagnosis of SARS-CoV-2, or self-isolation or hospitalisation due to suspected or confirmed COVID-19. Results Of 6,152 eligible responses, the composite endpoint was present in 1,806 (29.4%) healthcare workers, of whom 49 (0.8%) were hospitalised, 459 (7.5%) tested positive for SARS-CoV-2, and 1,776 (28.9%) reported self-isolation. Overall, between 11,870 and 21,158 days of self-isolation were required by the cohort, equalling approximately 71 to 127 working days lost per 1,000 working days. The strongest risk factor associated with the presence of the primary composite endpoint was increasing frequency of contact with suspected or confirmed COVID-19 cases without adequate personal protective equipment (PPE): ‘Never’ (reference), ‘Rarely’ (adjusted odds ratio 1.06, (95% confidence interval: [0.87–1.29])), ‘Sometimes’ (1.7 [1.37–2.10]), ‘Often’ (1.84 [1.28–2.63]), ‘Always’ (2.93, [1.75–5.06]). Additionally, several comorbidities (cancer, respiratory disease, and obesity); working in a ‘doctors’ role; using public transportation for work; regular contact with suspected or confirmed COVID-19 patients; and lack of PPE were also associated with the presence of the primary endpoint. A total of 1,382 (22.5%) healthcare workers reported lacking access to PPE items while having clinical contact with suspected or confirmed COVID-19 cases. Conclusions Suspected or confirmed COVID-19 was more common in healthcare workers than in the general population and is associated with significant workforce implications. Risk factors included inadequate PPE, which was reported by nearly a quarter of healthcare workers. Governments and policymakers must ensure adequate PPE is available as well as developing strategies to mitigate risk for high-risk healthcare workers during future COVID-19 waves. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T07:09:51Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-ecdbeee670b247b5bd5befe5eb92e9af |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2167-8359 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T07:09:51Z |
| publishDate | 2021-02-01 |
| publisher | PeerJ Inc. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | PeerJ |
| spelling | doaj.art-ecdbeee670b247b5bd5befe5eb92e9af2023-12-03T09:18:15ZengPeerJ Inc.PeerJ2167-83592021-02-019e1089110.7717/peerj.10891healthcareCOVID: a national cross-sectional observational study identifying risk factors for developing suspected or confirmed COVID-19 in UK healthcare workersJustin Kua0Reshma Patel1Eveliina Nurmi2Sarah Tian3Harpreet Gill4Danny J.N. Wong5Calvin Moorley6Dmitri Nepogodiev7Imran Ahmad8Kariem El-Boghdadly9Department of Targeted Intervention, Centre for Perioperative Medicine, UCL Division of Surgery and Interventional Science, University College London, University of London, London, United KingdomDepartment of Targeted Intervention, Centre for Perioperative Medicine, UCL Division of Surgery and Interventional Science, University College London, University of London, London, United KingdomDepartment of Anaesthesia, University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, London, UKDepartment of Anaesthesia, Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust, London, UKDepartment of Anaesthesia, Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust, London, UKHealth Services Research Centre, National Institute of Academic Anaesthesia, Royal College of Anaesthetists, London, UKSchool of Health and Social Care/Adult Nursing & Midwifery Studies, London South Bank University, London, UKNational Institute for Health Research Global Health Research Unit on Global Surgery, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UKDepartment of Anaesthesia, Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust, London, UKDepartment of Anaesthesia, Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust, London, UKObjective To establish the prevalence, risk factors and implications of suspected or confirmed coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) infection among healthcare workers in the United Kingdom (UK). Design Cross-sectional observational study. Setting UK-based primary and secondary care. Participants Healthcare workers aged ≥18 years working between 1 February and 25 May 2020. Main outcome measures A composite endpoint of laboratory-confirmed diagnosis of SARS-CoV-2, or self-isolation or hospitalisation due to suspected or confirmed COVID-19. Results Of 6,152 eligible responses, the composite endpoint was present in 1,806 (29.4%) healthcare workers, of whom 49 (0.8%) were hospitalised, 459 (7.5%) tested positive for SARS-CoV-2, and 1,776 (28.9%) reported self-isolation. Overall, between 11,870 and 21,158 days of self-isolation were required by the cohort, equalling approximately 71 to 127 working days lost per 1,000 working days. The strongest risk factor associated with the presence of the primary composite endpoint was increasing frequency of contact with suspected or confirmed COVID-19 cases without adequate personal protective equipment (PPE): ‘Never’ (reference), ‘Rarely’ (adjusted odds ratio 1.06, (95% confidence interval: [0.87–1.29])), ‘Sometimes’ (1.7 [1.37–2.10]), ‘Often’ (1.84 [1.28–2.63]), ‘Always’ (2.93, [1.75–5.06]). Additionally, several comorbidities (cancer, respiratory disease, and obesity); working in a ‘doctors’ role; using public transportation for work; regular contact with suspected or confirmed COVID-19 patients; and lack of PPE were also associated with the presence of the primary endpoint. A total of 1,382 (22.5%) healthcare workers reported lacking access to PPE items while having clinical contact with suspected or confirmed COVID-19 cases. Conclusions Suspected or confirmed COVID-19 was more common in healthcare workers than in the general population and is associated with significant workforce implications. Risk factors included inadequate PPE, which was reported by nearly a quarter of healthcare workers. Governments and policymakers must ensure adequate PPE is available as well as developing strategies to mitigate risk for high-risk healthcare workers during future COVID-19 waves.https://peerj.com/articles/10891.pdfCoronavirusCOVID-19SARS-CoV-2Healthcare workersMedical workers |
| spellingShingle | Justin Kua Reshma Patel Eveliina Nurmi Sarah Tian Harpreet Gill Danny J.N. Wong Calvin Moorley Dmitri Nepogodiev Imran Ahmad Kariem El-Boghdadly healthcareCOVID: a national cross-sectional observational study identifying risk factors for developing suspected or confirmed COVID-19 in UK healthcare workers PeerJ Coronavirus COVID-19 SARS-CoV-2 Healthcare workers Medical workers |
| title | healthcareCOVID: a national cross-sectional observational study identifying risk factors for developing suspected or confirmed COVID-19 in UK healthcare workers |
| title_full | healthcareCOVID: a national cross-sectional observational study identifying risk factors for developing suspected or confirmed COVID-19 in UK healthcare workers |
| title_fullStr | healthcareCOVID: a national cross-sectional observational study identifying risk factors for developing suspected or confirmed COVID-19 in UK healthcare workers |
| title_full_unstemmed | healthcareCOVID: a national cross-sectional observational study identifying risk factors for developing suspected or confirmed COVID-19 in UK healthcare workers |
| title_short | healthcareCOVID: a national cross-sectional observational study identifying risk factors for developing suspected or confirmed COVID-19 in UK healthcare workers |
| title_sort | healthcarecovid a national cross sectional observational study identifying risk factors for developing suspected or confirmed covid 19 in uk healthcare workers |
| topic | Coronavirus COVID-19 SARS-CoV-2 Healthcare workers Medical workers |
| url | https://peerj.com/articles/10891.pdf |
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