BMJ Paediatrics Open (Sep 2020)

Successful management plan of COVID-19 in a pediatric hemato-oncology department: a single-centre experience

  • Giuseppe Menna,
  • Pio Stellato,
  • Annalisa Granata,
  • Antonia De Matteo,
  • Carlo Capelli,
  • Matteo Paparo,
  • Rosanna Parasole,
  • Immacolata Ricciardi,
  • Francesco Paolo Tambaro,
  • Ornella Leone,
  • Lucia Quaglietta,
  • Nicola Silvestri

DOI
https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjpo-2020-000818
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 4, no. 1

Abstract

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COVID-19 pandemic raised concern about management of patients with paediatric cancer. We present the operating system that the Hemato-Oncology Department of the Santobono-Pausilipon Hospital applied. We divided our department in three zones: surveillance and screening; quarantine and COVID free, in order to screen admitted patients and to reduce the risk of cross infection. From 3 April until 29 May 2020 (56 days), 662 patients and caregivers underwent rapid serological tests for a total of 1397 assays. No patient or parent with SARS-CoV2 infection was found, demonstrating the effectiveness of COVID-19 screening process.