Transactions of the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene
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Trans. R. Soc. Trop. Med. Hyg. · Jul 2021
Preparedness and response of a tertiary hospital to the COVID-19 pandemic in Nigeria: challenges, opportunities and lessons.
Africa was the last continent to be affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Much of the discourse on Africa's response captured in scientific journals revolves around nations, public health agencies and organizations, but little is documented about how individual healthcare facilities have fared. ⋯ The lessons learned will be useful to similar facilities. More information about health facility response at various levels is needed to comprehensively assess Africa's response to the pandemic.
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Trans. R. Soc. Trop. Med. Hyg. · May 2021
Risk factors and frequency of COVID-19 among healthcare workers at a tertiary care centre in India: a case-control study.
There is a paucity of data on risk factors for infection among healthcare workers (HCWs) from India. Our objective was to evaluate the risk factors and frequency of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection among HCWs. ⋯ The frequency of SARS-CoV-2 infection was 16% among HCWs. Being a sanitation worker, inappropriate PPE use and lack of HCQ prophylaxis predisposed HCWs to SARS-CoV-2 infection.
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Trans. R. Soc. Trop. Med. Hyg. · Mar 2021
Predicting the impact of COVID-19 interruptions on transmission of gambiense human African trypanosomiasis in two health zones of the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Many control programmes against neglected tropical diseases have been interrupted due to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, including those that rely on active case finding. In this study we focus on gambiense human African trypanosomiasis (gHAT), where active screening was suspended in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) due to the pandemic. We use two independent mathematical models to predict the impact of COVID-19 interruptions on transmission and reporting and achievement of the 2030 elimination of transmission (EOT) goal for gHAT in two moderate-risk regions of the DRC. ⋯ Our models predict an increase in the number of new infections in the interruption period only if both active screening and passive surveillance were suspended, and with a slowed reduction-but no increase-if passive surveillance remains fully functional. In all scenarios, the EOT may be slightly pushed back if no mitigation, such as increased screening coverage, is put in place. However, we emphasise that the biggest challenge will remain in the higher-prevalence regions where EOT is already predicted to be behind schedule without interruptions unless interventions are bolstered.
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Trans. R. Soc. Trop. Med. Hyg. · Jan 2021
SARS-CoV-2: how safe is it to fly and what can be done to enhance protection?
With lockdown restrictions over coronavirus disease 2019 being relaxed, airlines are returning to the skies. Published evidence of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) coronavirus 2 transmission on aircraft is limited, but in-flight transmission of respiratory infections such as tuberculosis, influenza and SARS has been well described. Risk factors include proximity to index patients and sitting in aisle seats. Personal protection on aircraft could be enhanced by always wearing a well-fitting face mask and face shield or sunglasses, wiping surfaces and hands with alcohol-based sanitizers, not touching the face, not queuing for washrooms, changing seats if nearby passengers are coughing and choosing a window rather than an aisle seat.