Biosafety Issues in Patient Transport during Covid-19

A Case Study on the Portuguese Emergency Services

Bibliographic Data

ID15480679
AuthorsPierre Vandenberghe (UCLouvain), Luís Ladeira (0000-0001-8324-3806, National Legal Medicine Institute), M Sánchez Gil (0000-0002-5014-7946, National Legal Medicine Institute), Margarida Gil (Instituto Nacional de Emergência Médica, Rua Almirante Barroso, 36, 1000-013 Lisboa, Portugal), Ivo Cardoso (National Legal Medicine Institute), Fátima Rato (0000-0002-0434-4316, National Legal Medicine Institute), Jessica S Hayes (0000-0003-2443-1895, Ollscoil na Gaillimhe – University of Galway), Máire A Connolly (0000-0003-4322-2837, Ollscoil na Gaillimhe – University of Galway), Jean‐Luc Gala (0000-0002-7749-573X, UCLouvain, corresponding author)
Year2024
Volume21
Issue1
Pages99-99
Publication date2024-01-16
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueInternational Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1661-7827 • E-ISSN: 1660-4601
PublisherMultidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute (PUBLISHER • CH)
DOI10.3390/ijerph21010099
PMID38248562
OpenAlexW4390910554
LanguageEN
Citations received1
References cited25

During the COVID-19 pandemic, first responders faced significant biosafety challenges, especially while handling patient transport, potentially exposing them to infection. The PANDEM-2 (European project on pandemic preparedness and response) project, funded by the Horizon 2020 program, sought to investigate the challenges confronting Emergency Medical Systems throughout the EU. First responders from Portugal's National Institute of Medical Emergency (INEM) were considered as a representative operational model of the national first responder agencies of European member states because they played a critical role during the COVID-19 pandemic. As a result, they were asked to complete an online survey about their COVID-19 pandemic-related professional activities. The survey focused on their perspectives on current biosafety guidelines and their operational practices. It covered opinions on existing protocols, technical concerns during patient transport, and issues after the patients arrived at the hospital. The key findings revealed concerns about risk assessment, the inadequacy of guidelines, and disparities in equipment access. This survey emphasizes the importance of developing streamlined, adaptable biosafety protocols, better coordination between prehospital and in-hospital services, and the development of scalable, cost-effective biosafety solutions. Based on our findings, we propose improvements to national and European biosafety directives and advocate for streamlined adaptation during pandemics

Biosafety · Business · Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19 · Medical emergency · Pandemic · Political science · Preparedness · Scope (computer science · Computer Science · COVID-19 and healthcare impacts · COVID-19 epidemiological studies · Disaster Response and Management · Medicine

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