Preventive measures among health care personnel
A team of researchers from Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, the University of Bern and the University of Trieste studied the effectiveness of internal hospital preventive measures during the pandemic. The result is a mathematical model for the transmission of SARS-CoV-2. Regular testing proved to be the most effective prevention method.
Specific risks and pragmatic protection of healthcare staff were still little researched at the beginning of the pandemic. Now, a team of experts from Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, the University of Bern, and the University of Trieste (It) has studied the internal and external factors of a hospital in a special scientific model to evaluate which specific protective measures will work best for hospital staff during the pandemic.
The study concludes that regular testing within at least seven days, even in people without symptoms, can counter uncontrolled spread of the virus as the most effective measures.
The question also arose as to whether healthcare workers are more often infected with Covid-19 than the rest of the population. Using the study model, it was demonstrated that the rate of PCR-positive test results in the study group was indeed higher than could be explained by environmental levels, such as infections at home and infections in public places.
A group of just over 300 volunteers from university hospitals was studied. It also showed, for example, that most asymptomatic SARS-CoV-2 carriers could only be identified after more than 32 cycles.
Source: Insel Group - Inselspital, University Hospital Bern
