Effective control of SARS-CoV-2 transmission between healthcare workers during a period of diminished community prevalence of COVID-19

Journal article

Previously, we showed that 3% (31/1032)of asymptomatic healthcare workers (HCWs) from a large teaching hospital in Cambridge, UK, tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 in April 2020. About 15% (26/169) HCWs with symptoms of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) also tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 (Rivett et al., 2020). Here, we show that the proportion of both asymptomatic and symptomatic HCWs testing positive for SARS-CoV-2 rapidly declined to near-zero between 25th April and 24th May 2020, corresponding to a decline in patient admissions with COVID-19 during the ongoing UK ‘lockdown’. These data demonstrate how infection prevention and control measures including staff testing may help prevent hospitals from becoming independent ‘hubs’ of SARS-CoV-2 transmission, and illustrate how, with appropriate precautions, organizations in other sectors may be able to resume on-site work safely.

Authors: Jones, NK; Rivett, L; Sparkes, D; Forrest, S; Sridhar, S

• Publication status: Published
• Peer review status: Peer reviewed
• Publisher: eLife Sciences Publications
• Journal: eLife
• Volume: 9
• Article number: e59391
• Publication date: 2020-06-30
• Acceptance date: 2020-06-19
• DOI: 10.7554/elife.59391
• EISSN: 2050-084X
• ISSN: 2050-084X
• Pmid: 32558644
• Language: English
• Keywords: FFR