Centre for Applied Molecular Technologies (CTMA), Institute for Clinical and Experimental Research (IREC), Université Catholique de Louvain, Tour Claude Bernard, Avenue Hippocrate, 54-55, bte B1.54.01, 1200 Bruxelles, Belgium.
School of Health Sciences, College of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences, University of Galway, H91 TK33 Galway, Ireland.
Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2024 Sep 23;21(9):1261. doi: 10.3390/ijerph21091261.
The COVID-19 pandemic posed significant challenges to public health, exposing first responders to high biosafety risks during medical assistance and containment efforts. The PANDEM-2 study aimed to address these critical biosafety issues by emphasising the importance of frequently updated, harmonised guidelines. This study reviewed scientific publications, lessons learned, and real-world experiences from the COVID-19 pandemic to identify biorisk gaps in three critical areas: (i) patient transportation and management, (ii) sample handling and testing, and (iii) data management and communication by laboratory staff. At the onset of the pandemic, first responders faced several challenges, including the rapid expansion of emergency medical services, conversion of non-medical structures, increased internal and cross-border transport of infected patients, frequent changes in biosafety protocols, and a shortage of personal protective equipment. In response, this study developed a versatile and easily adaptable toolkit, including biosafety guidance and recommendations linked to updated national and international online repositories. It establishes the groundwork for a minimum standard that can be tailored to various pandemic response scenarios, using monkeypox as a fictive test case. The toolkit enables rapid access to updated information via QR codes and mobile devices, improving biorisk response by providing an adaptable and standardised approach for caregivers involved in national and cross-border responses.
新冠疫情对公共卫生造成了重大挑战，使急救人员在医疗救助和防控工作中面临高生物安全风险。PANDEM-2 研究旨在通过强调频繁更新和协调一致的指南来解决这些关键的生物安全问题。本研究回顾了新冠疫情期间的科学出版物、经验教训和实际情况，以确定三个关键领域的生物风险差距：（i）患者的运输和管理，（ii）样本的处理和检测，以及（iii）实验室工作人员的数据管理和沟通。在疫情初期，急救人员面临着几个挑战，包括紧急医疗服务的迅速扩大、非医疗结构的改造、感染患者的内部和跨境运输增加、生物安全协议的频繁变化以及个人防护设备的短缺。针对这些挑战，本研究开发了一个多功能且易于适应的工具包，包括与更新的国家和国际在线知识库链接的生物安全指南和建议。它为建立一个最低标准奠定了基础，该标准可以根据各种大流行应对情景进行调整，使用猴痘作为虚拟测试案例。该工具包通过 QR 码和移动设备提供了对更新信息的快速访问，为参与国家和跨境应对的护理人员提供了一种适应性强且标准化的方法，从而改善了生物风险应对。
