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Karim Javanmardi1 
, Hosein Feizollahzadeh2 , Neda Gilani3 , Abbas Dadashzadeh *4 , Javad Dehghannejad5
, Hosein Feizollahzadeh2 , Neda Gilani3 , Abbas Dadashzadeh *4 , Javad Dehghannejad5
1- School of Nursing & Midwifery، Urmia University of Medical Sciences Urmia, Iran
2- Department of Medical Surgical Nursing, School of Nursing and Midwifery ، Tabriz University of Medical Sciences، Tabriz، Iran
3- Medical Education Research Center, Health Management and Safety Promotion Research Institute, Department of Statistics and Epidemiology, Faculty of Health, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran
4- Department of Medical Surgical Nursing, School of Nursing and Midwifery, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran ,ddshzd@yahoo.com
5- Department of Medical Surgical Nursing, School of Nursing and Midwifery, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran
2- Department of Medical Surgical Nursing, School of Nursing and Midwifery ، Tabriz University of Medical Sciences، Tabriz، Iran
3- Medical Education Research Center, Health Management and Safety Promotion Research Institute, Department of Statistics and Epidemiology, Faculty of Health, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran
4- Department of Medical Surgical Nursing, School of Nursing and Midwifery, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran ,
5- Department of Medical Surgical Nursing, School of Nursing and Midwifery, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran
Abstract: (9 Views)
Background: Pre-hospital paramedics providing immediate care to patients with contagious disease were at high risk of infection. This study aimed to assess the exposure risk and risk management of pre-hospital paramedics during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 335 paramedics from 49 emergency medical stations in two cities located in northwestern of Iran who were recruited through census. Data was collected using a World Health Organization questionnaire to assess the COVID-19 exposure risk of health workers.
Results: The results showed that the highest risk of exposure (86.0%) was in the domain of occupational exposure and that 55.2% of paramedics were at high risk of exposure to COVID-19. Among paramedics, 95.2% used personal protective equipment when caring for patient and 93.1% when performing aerosol-generating procedures.
Discussion: The results of this study highlight that pre-hospital paramedics have a high exposure risk in designated COVID-19 missions, while this exposure is reduced through infection prevention measures.
Conclusion: A significant number of pre-hospital paramedics were found to be at high exposure risk to COVID-19 during ambulance missions. Therefore, adherence to contact and droplet precautions, taking airborne precautions during aerosol-generating procedures, access to appropriate PPE, proper use of PPE, and appropriate training courses may lead to exposure risk management and improve their safety.
Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 335 paramedics from 49 emergency medical stations in two cities located in northwestern of Iran who were recruited through census. Data was collected using a World Health Organization questionnaire to assess the COVID-19 exposure risk of health workers.
Results: The results showed that the highest risk of exposure (86.0%) was in the domain of occupational exposure and that 55.2% of paramedics were at high risk of exposure to COVID-19. Among paramedics, 95.2% used personal protective equipment when caring for patient and 93.1% when performing aerosol-generating procedures.
Discussion: The results of this study highlight that pre-hospital paramedics have a high exposure risk in designated COVID-19 missions, while this exposure is reduced through infection prevention measures.
Conclusion: A significant number of pre-hospital paramedics were found to be at high exposure risk to COVID-19 during ambulance missions. Therefore, adherence to contact and droplet precautions, taking airborne precautions during aerosol-generating procedures, access to appropriate PPE, proper use of PPE, and appropriate training courses may lead to exposure risk management and improve their safety.
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This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC-By-NC), which permits use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited and is not used for commercial purposes.
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