Journal Article

Epidemiology of and Risk Factors for COVID-19 Infection among Health Care Workers: A Multi-Centre Comparative Study

Wei, Jia-Te, Zhao, Lin, Liu, Zhi-Dong, Fan, Zheng-Wei, Cao, Wu-Chun

2020

Overview

Healthcare workers (HCWs) worldwide are putting themselves at high risks of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) by treating a large number of patients while lacking protective equipment. We aim to provide a scientific basis for preventing and controlling the COVID-19 infection among HCWs. We used data on COVID-19 cases in the city of Wuhan to compare epidemiological characteristics between HCWs and non-HCWs and explored the risk factors for infection and deterioration among HCWs based on hospital settings. The attack rate (AR) of HCWs in the hospital can reach up to 11.9% in Wuhan. The time interval from symptom onset to diagnosis in HCWs and non-HCWs dropped rapidly over time. From mid-January, the median time interval of HCW cases was significantly shorter than in non-HCW cases. Cases of HCWs and non-HCWs both clustered in northwestern urban districts rather than in rural districts. HCWs working in county-level hospitals in high-risk areas were more vulnerable to COVID-19. HCW cases working in general, ophthalmology, and respiratory departments were prone to deteriorate compared with cases working in the infection department. The AR of COVID-19 in HCWs are higher than in non-HCWs. Multiple factors in hospital settings may play important roles in the transmission of COVID-19. Effective measures should be enhanced to prevent HCWs from COVID-19 infection.

• Publisher: MDPI AG,MDPI
• Subject: Betacoronavirus / Coronavirus Infections - epidemiology / Coronaviruses / COVID-19 / Disease transmission / Epidemics / Epidemiology / Fatalities / Health Personnel / Hospitals / Humans / Infections / Occupational Exposure / Pandemics / Pneumonia, Viral - epidemiology / Regression analysis / Risk Factors / SARS-CoV-2 / Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 / Spacetime