Preparedness and response to Pediatric CoVID-19 in European Emergency Departments: a survey of the REPEM and PERUKI networks

Abstract

Study objective:We aimed to describe the preparedness and response to the COVID-19 pandemic in referral EDs caring for children across Europe. Methods: We did a cross-sectional point prevalence survey, which was developed and disseminated through the pediatric emergency medicine research networks for Europe (REPEM) and the United Kingdom and Ireland (PERUKI). We included a pre-determined number of centers based on each country population: five to ten EDs for countries with > 20 million inhabitants and one to five EDs for the other countries. ED directors or named delegates completed the survey between March 20th and 21st to report practice in use one month after the outbreak in Northern Italy. We used descriptive statistics to analyse data. Results: Overall 102 centers from 18 countries completed the survey: 34% did not have an ED contingency plan for pandemics and 36% had never had simulations for such events. Wide variation on PPE items was shown for recommended PPE use at pre-triage and for patient assessment, with 62% of centers experiencing shortage in one or more PPE items. COVID-19 positive ED staff was reported in 25% of centers. Only 17% of EDs had negative pressure isolation rooms. Conclusion:We identified variability and gaps in preparedness and response to the COVID-19 epidemic across European referral EDs for children. Early availability of a documented contingency plan, provision of simulation training, appropriate use of PPE, and appropriate isolation facilities emerged as key factors that should be optimized to improve preparedness and inform responses to future pandemics.

Impact of SARS-CoV-2 Pandemic and Strategies for Resumption of Activities During the Second Wave of the Pandemic: A Report From Eight Paediatric Hospitals From the ECHO Network

“…The paediatric staff of four hospitals helped the staff of adult units to cover shortages. The present data, as previously reported, confirm that the COVID-19 emergency proved to be more logistical than clinical in children, requiring more organizational efforts than medical assistance (21,22). At the same time, the eight hospitals that completed the survey experienced substantial decreases in all admissions, in comparison to the same period in 2019, especially to emergency departments, consistent with previous reports.…”

Kebijakan Pemerintah Indonesia Dalam Menyikapi COVID-19 Antara Pendekatan Adaptif Dan Saintifik

“…Besides that, it also detected transmission, which led to an increase in new cases that impacted health workers' readiness (Chen et al, 2020). Bressan et al (2020) evealed that the government, in responding to COVID-19, must identify the gaps and readiness the government has. The social restriction policy alone has not been able to suppress the spread of the epidemic, and this policy is considered an uncertain policy because it changes over an indefinite period (Galvin et al, 2020).…”

Changes Adopted in Asian Pediatric Hospitals during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Report from the Pediatric Acute and Critical Care COVID-19 Registry of Asia

“…11 12 As such, hospital-wide infection control measures aimed at mitigating the transmission risk of the virus are of vital importance. Reports have emerged on the preparedness response of pediatric emergency departments, 13 14 15 the creation of dedicated triage areas for hospital attendees, 16 regular surveillance of health care workers for symptoms and nasopharyngeal swabs, 16 workflows for centralized control room reporting of new/exposed cases, 17 and rigorous surface decontamination protocols. 18 Nevertheless, there remains a paucity of description on infection control measures adopted in pediatric hospitals and the changes pertaining specifically to the provision of respiratory support during the COVID-19 pandemic.…”