Ethnic and Racial Disparities in Self-Reported Personal Protective Equipment Shortages Among New York Healthcare Workers During the COVID-19 Pandemic
Armaan Sodhi, MPH,
Stanford Chihuri, MPH,
Christina W. Hoven, DrPH, MPH,
Ezra S. Susser, MD, DrPH,
Charles DiMaggio, PhD,
David Abramson, PhD,
Howard F. Andrews, PhD,
Megan Ryan, MS,
Guohua Li, MD, DrPH
Affiliations
Armaan Sodhi, MPH
Department of Epidemiology, Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, New York, New York
Stanford Chihuri, MPH
Department of Anesthesiology, Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons, New York, New York
Christina W. Hoven, DrPH, MPH
Department of Epidemiology, Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, New York, New York; New York State Psychiatric Institute, New York, New York
Ezra S. Susser, MD, DrPH
Department of Epidemiology, Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, New York, New York; New York State Psychiatric Institute, New York, New York
Charles DiMaggio, PhD
Department of Surgery, New York University Langone Medical Center, New York, New York; Department of Population Health Science, New York University Langone Medical, New York, New York
David Abramson, PhD
Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences, School of Global Public Health, New York University, New York, New York
Howard F. Andrews, PhD
New York State Psychiatric Institute, New York, New York; Department of Biostatistics, Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, New York, New York
Megan Ryan, MS
New York State Psychiatric Institute, New York, New York
Guohua Li, MD, DrPH
Department of Epidemiology, Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, New York, New York; Department of Anesthesiology, Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons, New York, New York; Address correspondence to: Guohua Li, MD, DrPH, 622 West 168th Street, PH5-505, New York NY 10032.
Introduction: To assess the association of race and ethnicity with self-reported personal protective equipment shortages during the COVID-19 pandemic among healthcare workers in New York. Methods: The COVID-19 Healthcare Personnel Study of New York was a prospective cohort study of HCWs with baseline data collected in April 2020 and follow-up data collected in February 2021. Multivariable logistic regression modeling was used to estimate the adjusted OR and 95% CIs of personal protective equipment shortages associated with race and ethnic minority status. Results: Healthcare workers of racial and ethnic minority status (n=361) were more likely than non-Hispanic White respondents (n=1,858) to report having experienced personal protective equipment shortages in the last week at baseline (36.0% vs 27.5%; p=0.001) and follow-up (13.6% vs 8.8%; p=0.005). With adjustment for demographic and clinical characteristics, racial and ethnic minority status was associated with 44% and 49% increased odds of experiencing PPE shortages at baseline (adjusted OR=1.44; 95% CI=1.10, 1.88) and follow up (adjusted OR=1.49; 95% CI=1.01, 2.21), respectively. Conclusions: Healthcare workers of racial and ethnic minority status in New York experienced more pervasive personal protective equipment shortages than their non-Hispanic White counterparts during the COVID-19 pandemic.
