Risk of hospital admission with coronavirus disease 2019 in healthcare workers and their households: nationwide linkage cohort study (28 October 2020)

Summary

Healthcare workers and their families account for 17% of hospital admissions for COVID-19 in the working age population (18-65 years), finds new research published in the BMJ. Shah et al. assessed the risk of hospital admission for COVID-19 among patient facing and non-patient facing healthcare workers and their household members.

The study revealed that healthcare workers in patient-facing roles were around three times more likely to be hospitalised with the virus than the general population. The authors call for an urgent focus on how COVID-19 spreads around hospitals to prevent a similar toll in future waves of the pandemic. They also call for hospitals to consider re-deploying staff with vulnerable family members away from high-risk zones.