Covid-19 group identifies gaps in knowledge and availability of surveillance data on hospital-acquired infections
A Royal Society Covid-19 advisory group has called for transparent access to data on coronavirus infections acquired in hospital to enable vital research to prevent a second wave.
In a report, published on 6 July, the Data Evaluation and Learning for Viral Epidemics group—known as Delve, said that, although surveillance systems and hospital-based research studies had recently been set up in England, “there remain gaps in our knowledge and in availability of surveillance data on hospital-acquired infections”.
The group estimates that between 26 April and 7 June, 10 per cent of all Covid-19 infections in England were among patient-facing healthcare workers and resident-facing social care workers.
An estimated further 1 per cent of infections were acquired by inpatients in hospital, with additional infections among care home residents, the group says.
The report sets out a suggested framework for strengthening surveillance and monitoring of hospital-acquired infections. Suggestions include setting up a research platform for feeding data obtained from surveillance, monitoring and outbreak investigations into epidemiological and modelling research and evaluation.
Such research would then be used to evaluate which interventions are cost-effective and feasible in preventing hospital and social care transmission in the long-term.
Other recommendations include establishing a standardised risk-based protocol for testing individuals within hospitals; centralised surveillance and monitoring of Covid-19 infections in hospitals; connected Covid-19 data systems across community, care institutions and hospitals; standardised, tiered infection prevention and control guidelines; and regional or local outbreak investigations.
“We now better understand the risks of Covid-19 transmission within hospital and care settings although improved data are needed,” said Anne Johnson, a professor of infectious disease epidemiology at University College London and a member of Delve.
“Now we need to learn from our experience and use our greater understanding of how the pandemic has played out, to ensure we are better prepared to prevent and manage new outbreaks and a potential second wave, protecting everyone.”