TY - JOUR
T1 - Preparedness and Response to Pediatric COVID-19 in European Emergency Departments
T2 - A Survey of the REPEM and PERUKI Networks
AU - Country Leads
AU - Bressan, Silvia
AU - Buonsenso, Danilo
AU - Farrugia, Ruth
AU - Parri, Niccolo'
AU - Oostenbrink, Rianne
AU - Titomanlio, Luigi
AU - Roland, Damian
AU - Nijman, Ruud G
AU - Maconochie, Ian
AU - Da Dalt, Liviana
AU - Mintegi, Santiago
AU - Hachimi-Idrissi, Said
N1 - © 2020 by the American College of Emergency Physicians.
PY - 2020
Y1 - 2020
N2 - STUDY OBJECTIVE: We aim to describe the variability and identify gaps in preparedness and response to the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic in European emergency departments (EDs) caring for children.METHODS: A cross-sectional point-prevalence survey was developed and disseminated through the pediatric emergency medicine research networks for Europe (Research in European Pediatric Emergency Medicine) and the United Kingdom and Ireland (Paediatric Emergency Research in the United Kingdom and Ireland). We aimed to include 10 EDs for countries with greater than 20 million inhabitants and 5 EDs for less populated countries, unless the number of eligible EDs was less than 5. ED directors or their delegates completed the survey between March 20 and 21 to report practice at that time. We used descriptive statistics to analyze data.RESULTS: Overall, 102 centers from 18 countries (86% response rate) 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 personal protective equipment (PPE) items was shown for recommended PPE use at pretriage and for patient assessment, with 62% of centers experiencing shortage in one or more PPE items, most frequently FFP2 and N95 masks. Only 17% of EDs had negative-pressure isolation rooms. Coronavirus disease 2019-positive ED staff was reported in 25% of centers.CONCLUSION: We found variation and identified gaps in preparedness and response to the coronavirus disease 2019 epidemic across European referral EDs for children. A lack in early availability of a documented contingency plan, provision of simulation training, appropriate use of PPE, and appropriate isolation facilities emerged as gaps that should be optimized to improve preparedness and inform responses to future pandemics.
AB - STUDY OBJECTIVE: We aim to describe the variability and identify gaps in preparedness and response to the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic in European emergency departments (EDs) caring for children.METHODS: A cross-sectional point-prevalence survey was developed and disseminated through the pediatric emergency medicine research networks for Europe (Research in European Pediatric Emergency Medicine) and the United Kingdom and Ireland (Paediatric Emergency Research in the United Kingdom and Ireland). We aimed to include 10 EDs for countries with greater than 20 million inhabitants and 5 EDs for less populated countries, unless the number of eligible EDs was less than 5. ED directors or their delegates completed the survey between March 20 and 21 to report practice at that time. We used descriptive statistics to analyze data.RESULTS: Overall, 102 centers from 18 countries (86% response rate) 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 personal protective equipment (PPE) items was shown for recommended PPE use at pretriage and for patient assessment, with 62% of centers experiencing shortage in one or more PPE items, most frequently FFP2 and N95 masks. Only 17% of EDs had negative-pressure isolation rooms. Coronavirus disease 2019-positive ED staff was reported in 25% of centers.CONCLUSION: We found variation and identified gaps in preparedness and response to the coronavirus disease 2019 epidemic across European referral EDs for children. A lack in early availability of a documented contingency plan, provision of simulation training, appropriate use of PPE, and appropriate isolation facilities emerged as gaps that should be optimized to improve preparedness and inform responses to future pandemics.
KW - Betacoronavirus
KW - COVID-19
KW - Child
KW - Coronavirus Infections/diagnosis
KW - Critical Pathways
KW - Cross-Sectional Studies
KW - Emergency Service, Hospital/organization & administration
KW - Europe/epidemiology
KW - Facilities and Services Utilization
KW - Health Care Surveys
KW - Humans
KW - Infection Control/standards
KW - Ireland/epidemiology
KW - Pandemics
KW - Patient Isolation
KW - Personal Protective Equipment/supply & distribution
KW - Pneumonia, Viral/diagnosis
KW - Prevalence
KW - SARS-CoV-2
KW - Triage/standards
KW - United Kingdom/epidemiology
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85086393936&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.annemergmed.2020.05.018
DO - 10.1016/j.annemergmed.2020.05.018
M3 - Article
C2 - 32419713
SN - 0196-0644
VL - 76
SP - 788
EP - 800
JO - Annals of emergency medicine
JF - Annals of emergency medicine
IS - 6
ER -