Department of Infectious Diseases, Asan Medical Center, University of Ulsan College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
Office for Infection Control, Asan Medical Center, Seoul, Korea.
J Korean Med Sci. 2022 Jan 10;37(2):e14. doi: 10.3346/jkms.2022.37.e14.
Preventive measures are needed to reduce the risk of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection among healthcare workers (HCWs). Notably, hospital staff are usually exposed when they are unmasked. There are limited data on the risk of transmission during mealtimes at hospital staff cafeterias. We aimed to evaluate the risk of transmission in cafeterias.
From January 2020 through September 2021, we analyzed the risk of SARS-CoV-2 transmission through closed-circuit television and radio-frequency identification tracking and follow-up testing when 33 HCWs, who were eventually diagnosed as coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), ate in staff cafeterias during the infectious period. The seats were arranged so the HCWs would sit on either side without facing each other. There were no plastic barriers installed, and HCWs were encouraged not to talk during meals.
Three of the 119 individuals who ate at seats next (about 30 cm) to index during the period of transmission and underwent follow-up SARS-CoV-2 polymerase chain reaction tests were diagnosed with COVID-19 (2.5%; 95% confidence interval, 0.5-7.4%). Among the 98 HCWs who were investigated about talking during meals, there was a higher attack rate among those who spoke with each other than among those who did not (12.5% [3/24] vs. 0% [0/74], = 0.013).
The risk of transmission in a hospital's employee cafeterias is not high with side-by-side seating, especially in the absence of conversation.
需要采取预防措施来降低医护人员（HCWs）感染严重急性呼吸综合征冠状病毒 2 型（SARS-CoV-2）的风险。值得注意的是，医院工作人员在不戴口罩时通常会暴露。在医院员工自助餐厅就餐时发生传播的风险数据有限。我们旨在评估自助餐厅的传播风险。
从 2020 年 1 月至 2021 年 9 月，我们通过闭路电视和射频识别跟踪和随访检测，分析了 33 名最终被诊断为 2019 年冠状病毒病（COVID-19）的 HCWs 在感染期在员工自助餐厅就餐时的 SARS-CoV-2 传播风险。座位安排使 HCWs 面对面而坐，彼此相邻。没有安装塑料屏障，鼓励 HCWs 在就餐时不要交谈。
在传播期间坐在（约 30 厘米）相邻座位上的 119 名用餐者中，有 3 人（2.5%；95%置信区间，0.5-7.4%）被诊断患有 COVID-19。在 98 名接受关于就餐时交谈调查的 HCWs 中，与彼此交谈者相比，交谈者的发病率更高（12.5%[3/24]比 0%[0/74]， = 0.013）。
相邻而坐时，医院员工自助餐厅的传播风险不高，尤其是在没有交谈的情况下。
