Airborne protection for staff is associated with reduced hospital-acquired COVID-19 in English NHS trusts.
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Authors
Lawton, T
Butler, M
Peters, C
Publication Date
2022-02Journal Title
J Hosp Infect
ISSN
0195-6701
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Language
eng
Type
Article
This Version
VoR
Metadata
Show full item recordCitation
Lawton, T., Butler, M., & Peters, C. (2022). Airborne protection for staff is associated with reduced hospital-acquired COVID-19 in English NHS trusts.. J Hosp Infect https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhin.2021.11.018
Abstract
INTRODUCTION: The rate of hospital-acquired coronavirus disease 2019 has reduced from 14.3% to 4.2% over the last year, but substantial differences still exist between English National Health Service (NHS) hospital trusts. METHODS: This study assessed rates of hospital-acquired infection (HAI), comparing NHS hospital trusts using airborne respiratory protection (e.g. FFP3 masks) for all staff, as a marker of measures to reduce airborne spread, with NHS hospital trusts using mainly droplet precautions (e.g. surgical masks). RESULTS/DISCUSSION: The use of respiratory protective equipment was associated with a 33% reduction in the odds of HAI in the Delta wave, and a 21% reduction in the odds of HAI in the Alpha wave (P<0.00001). It is recommended that all hospitals should prioritize airborne mitigation.
Keywords
COVID-19, Infection control, Nosocomial infections, Personal protective equipment, Respiratory protective devices, COVID-19, Hospitals, Humans, Masks, SARS-CoV-2, State Medicine
Identifiers
PMC8631043, 34861313
External DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhin.2021.11.018
This record's URL: https://www.repository.cam.ac.uk/handle/1810/332552
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