Healthcare (Jan 2022)

A SARS-CoV-2 Infection High-Uptake Program on Healthcare Workers and Cancer Patients of the National Cancer Institute of Naples, Italy

  • Anna Crispo,
  • Piergiacomo Di Gennaro,
  • Sergio Coluccia,
  • Sara Gandini,
  • Concetta Montagnese,
  • Giuseppe Porciello,
  • Flavia Nocerino,
  • Maria Grimaldi,
  • Mariangela Tafuri,
  • Assunta Luongo,
  • Emanuela Rotondo,
  • Alfonso Amore,
  • Francesco Labonia,
  • Serena Meola,
  • Stefanie Marone,
  • Giovanni Pierro,
  • Simona Menegozzo,
  • Leonardo Miscio,
  • Francesco Perri,
  • Maurizio Rainisio,
  • Attilio A. M. Bianchi,
  • Ernesta Cavalcanti,
  • Marco Cascella,
  • Egidio Celentano

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare10020205
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 10, no. 2
p. 205

Abstract

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Background: From the beginning of 2020, Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) quickly spread worldwide, becoming the main problem for the healthcare systems. Healthcare workers (HCWs) are at higher risk of infection and can be a dangerous vehicle for the spread of the virus. Furthermore, cancer patients (CPs) are a vulnerable population, with an increased risk of developing severe and lethal forms of Coronavirus Disease 19 (COVID-19). Therefore, at the National Cancer Institute of Naples, where only cancer patients are treated, a surveillance program aimed to prevent the hospital access of SARS-CoV-2 positive subjects (HCWs and CPs) was implemented. The study aims to describe the results of the monitoring activity for the SARS-CoV-2 spread among HCWs and CPs, from March 2020 to March 2021. Methods: This surveillance program included a periodic sampling through nasopharyngeal molecular swabs for SARS-CoV-2 (Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction, RT-PCR). CPs were submitted to the molecular test at least 48 h before hospital admission. Survival analysis and multiple logistic regression models were performed among HCWs and CPs to assess the main SARS-CoV-2 risk factors. Results: The percentages of HCWs tested with RT-PCR for the detection of SARS-CoV-2, according to the first and the second wave, were 79.7% and 91.7%, respectively, while the percentages for the CPs were 24.6% and 39.6%. SARS-CoV-2 was detected in 20 (1.7%) HCWs of the 1204 subjects tested during the first wave, and in 127 (9.2%) of 1385 subjects tested in the second wave (p p = 0.8). The multivariate logistic analysis provided a significant OR for nurses (OR = 2.24, 95% CI 1.23–4.08, p < 0.001) compared to research, administrative staff, and other job titles. Conclusions: Our findings show that the positivity rate between the two waves in the HCWs increased over time but not in the CPs; therefore, the importance of adopting stringent measures to contain the shock wave of SARS-CoV-2 infection in the hospital setting was essential. Among HCWs, nurses are more exposed to contagion and patients who needed continuity in oncological care for diseases other than COVID-19, such as suspected cancer.

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