COVID-19 Surveillance and Investigations in Workplaces - Seattle & King County, Washington, June 15-November 15, 2020.
MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep
; 70(25): 916-921, 2021 Jun 25.
Article
in En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-34166336
ABSTRACT
Workplace activities involving close contact with coworkers and customers can lead to transmission of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19 (1,2). Information on the approach to and effectiveness of COVID-19 workplace investigations is limited. In May 2020, Public Health - Seattle & King County (PHSKC), King County, Washington established a COVID-19 workplace surveillance and response system to enhance COVID-19 contact tracing and identify outbreaks in workplaces. During June 15-November 15, 2020, a total of 2,881 workplaces in King County reported at least one case of COVID-19. Among 1,305 (45.3%) investigated workplaces,* 524 (40.3%) met the definition of a workplace outbreak. Among 306 (58.4%) workplaces with complete data,§ an average of 4.4 employee COVID-19 cases¶ (median = three; range = 1-65) were identified per outbreak, with an average attack rate among employees of 17.5%. PHSKC and the Washington State Department of Health optimized resources by establishing a classification scheme to prioritize workplace investigations as high, medium, or low priority based on workplace features observed to be associated with increased COVID-19 spread and workforce features associated with severe disease outcomes. High-priority investigations were significantly more likely than medium- and low-priority investigations to have two or more cases among employees (p<0.001), two or more cases not previously linked to the workplace (p<0.001), or two or more exposed workplace contacts not previously identified during case interviews (p = 0.002). Prioritization of workplace investigations allowed for the allocation of limited resources to effectively conduct workplace investigations to limit the potential workplace spread of COVID-19. Workplace investigations can also serve as an opportunity to provide guidance on preventing workplace exposures to SARS-CoV-2, facilitate access to vaccines, and strengthen collaborations between public health and businesses.
Full text:
1
Collection:
01-internacional
Health context:
2_ODS3
/
4_TD
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Occupational Health
/
Public Health Surveillance
/
COVID-19
Type of study:
Screening_studies
Aspects:
Determinantes_sociais_saude
Limits:
Humans
Country/Region as subject:
America do norte
Language:
En
Journal:
MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep
Year:
2021
Document type:
Article