Background
To evaluate how a national policy of testing for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS‐CoV‐2) regardless of symptoms was implemented during outbreaks in Dutch nursing homes ...in the second wave of the pandemic and to explore barriers and facilitators to serial testing.
Methods
We conducted a mixed‐method study of nursing homes in the Netherlands with a SARS‐CoV‐2 outbreak after 15 September 2020. Direct care staff and management from 355 healthcare organizations were invited to participate in a digital survey. A total of 74 out of 355 (20.9%) healthcare organizations participated and provided information about 117 nursing homes. We conducted 26 in‐depth interviews on the outbreak and the testing strategy used. We also conducted four focus group meetings involving managers, physicians, nurses, and certified health assistants. Recordings were transcribed and data were thematically analyzed.
Results
One hundred and four nursing homes (89%) tested residents regardless of their symptoms during the outbreak, and 85 nursing homes (73%) tested the staff regardless of their symptoms. However, interviews showed testing was sometimes implemented during later stages of the outbreak and was not always followed up with serial testing. Barriers to serial testing regardless of symptoms were lack of knowledge of local leaders with decisional making authority, lack of a cohort ward or skilled staff, and insufficient collaboration with laboratories or local public health services. Important facilitators to serial testing were staff willingness to undergo testing and the availability of polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests.
Conclusions
Serial testing regardless of symptoms was only partially implemented. The response rate of 21% of nursing home organizations gives a risk of selection bias. Barriers to testing need to be addressed. A national implementation policy that promotes collaboration between public health services and nursing homes and educates management and care staff is necessary.
We report a severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 superspreading event in the Netherlands after distancing rules were lifted in nightclubs, despite requiring a negative test or vaccination. ...This occurrence illustrates the potential for rapid dissemination of variants in largely unvaccinated populations under such conditions. We detected subsequent community transmission of this strain.
Celotno besedilo
Dostopno za:
DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, ODKLJ, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
Sars-CoV-2 outbreaks resulted in a high case fatality rate in nursing homes (NH) worldwide. It is unknown to which extent presymptomatic residents and staff contribute to the spread of the virus.
To ...assess the contribution of asymptomatic and presymptomatic residents and staff in SARS-CoV-2 transmission during a large outbreak in a Dutch NH.
Observational study in a 185-bed NH with two consecutive testing strategies: testing of symptomatic cases only, followed by weekly facility-wide testing of staff and residents regardless of symptoms. Nasopharyngeal and oropharyngeal testing with RT-PCR for SARs-CoV-2, including sequencing of positive samples, was conducted with a standardised symptom assessment.
185 residents and 244 staff participated. Sequencing identified one cluster. In the symptom-based test strategy period, 3/39 residents were presymptomatic versus 38/74 residents in the period of weekly facility-wide testing (P-value < 0.001). In total, 51/59 (91.1%) of SARS-CoV-2 positive staff was symptomatic, with no difference between both testing strategies (P-value 0.763). Loss of smell and taste, sore throat, headache or myalga was hardly reported in residents compared to staff (P-value <0.001). Median Ct-value of presymptomatic residents was 21.3, which did not differ from symptomatic (20.8) or asymptomatic (20.5) residents (P-value 0.624).
Symptoms in residents and staff are insufficiently recognised, reported or attributed to a possible SARS-CoV-2 infection. However, residents without (recognised) symptoms showed the same potential for viral shedding as residents with symptoms. Weekly testing was an effective strategy for early identification of SARS-Cov-2 cases, resulting in fast mitigation of the outbreak.
Assessing the impact of a virtual antibiotic team (VAT) on appropriateness of antibiotic prescribing behavior of older care physicians, regarding urinary tract (UTI), respiratory tract (RTI), and ...skin and soft tissue infections (SSTI), in residents of long-term care facilities (LTCF).
Before-after trial; introduction of a VAT consisting of a clinical microbiologist, older care physician, and a pharmacist.
Eight LTCFs in Amsterdam, the Netherlands.
The VAT was introduced on April 1, 2019. Meetings were held via weekly teleconferencing. VAT advised about treatment indication, antibiotic choice, and additional diagnostics. Data were retrospectively extracted from resident files regarding infection episodes for which antibiotics had been prescribed during 12 months before (period I) and 11 months after VAT introduction (period II). Appropriateness of antibiotic prescriptions was assessed using national guidelines and an algorithm developed for antimicrobial stewardship in nursing homes. Antibiotic prescription rates per 100 person-years (py) were estimated and compared between periods using incidence rate ratio (IRR) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs). Proportions of appropriate antibiotic prescriptions were compared between periods using the chi-squared test.
A total of 524 infection episodes for which antibiotics were prescribed were identified: 284 in period I and 240 in period II. Antibiotic prescription rates before VAT introduction were 73 per 100 py in period I and decreased to 68 in period II (IRR 0.9, 95% CI 0.8-1.1). Of all prescriptions, 23.9% were assessed as appropriate during period I, which increased to 40.4% in period II (P < .001). Appropriate antibiotic use increased after VAT introduction for RTI (12.5% to 48.2%, P < .001) and SSTI (47.5% to 74.3%, P = .02) but remained similar for UTI (23.5% to 28.8%, P = .29).
After implementation of VAT in LTCFs, appropriate antibiotic use increased significantly overall, and for RTI and SSTI particularly. Improving prescribing behavior regarding UTI might need extra strategies.
We aimed to assess the contribution of a- and presymptomatic residents and healthcare workers in transmission of SARS-CoV-2 in nursing homes. We conducted two serial point-prevalence surveys, ...including standardized symptom assessment and nasopharyngeal and oropharyngeal testing for SARS-CoV-2, among 297 residents and 542 healthcare workers of three Dutch nursing homes (NHs) with recent SARS-CoV-2 introduction. At the first point-prevalence survey, 15 residents tested positive of which one was presymptomatic and three remained asymptomatic. At the second point-prevalence survey one resident and one healthcare worker tested SARS-CoV-2 positive and both remained asymptomatic. Although a limited number of SARS-CoV-2 positive cases were identified, this study confirms a- and presymptomatic occurrence of Covid-19. We additionally describe factors that may contribute to the prevention of transmission. Taken together, our study complements the discussion on effective SARS-CoV-2 screening in NHs.
PDF
