Infection control for SARS in a tertiary neonatal centre.

Abstract

The Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) is a newly discovered infectious disease caused by a novel coronavirus, which can readily spread in the healthcare setting. A recent community outbreak in Hong Kong infected a significant number of pregnant women who subsequently required emergency caesarean section for deteriorating maternal condition and respiratory failure. As no neonatal clinician has any experience in looking after these high risk infants, stringent infection control measures for prevention of cross infection between patients and staff are important to safeguard the wellbeing of the work force and to avoid nosocomial spread of SARS within the neonatal unit. This article describes the infection control and patient triage policy of the neonatal unit at the Prince of Wales Hospital, Hong Kong. We hope this information is useful in helping other units to formulate their own infection control plans according to their own unit configuration and clinical needs.

• Authors: P C Ng, K W So, T F Leung, F W T Cheng, D J Lyon, W Wong, K L Cheung, K S C Fung, C H Lee, A M Li, K L E Hon, C K Li, T F Fok
• Journal: Archives of disease in childhood. Fetal and neonatal edition (Arch Dis Child Fetal Neonatal Ed) Vol. 88 Issue 5 Pg. F405-9 (Sep 2003) ISSN: 1359-2998 [Print] England
• PMID: 12937045 (Publication Type: Journal Article)

Chemical References

• Medical Waste Disposal

Topics

• Cross Infection (prevention & control)
• Disinfection
• Equipment Contamination (prevention & control)
• Equipment Design
• Female
• Hand Disinfection
• Hong Kong
• Hospitals, Maternity
• Humans
• Infant, Newborn
• Infection Control (instrumentation, organization & administration)
• Infectious Disease Transmission, Patient-to-Professional (prevention & control)
• Intensive Care Units, Neonatal
• Intensive Care, Neonatal (organization & administration)
• Medical Waste Disposal (methods, standards)
• Organizational Policy
• Pregnancy
• Pregnancy Complications, Infectious (prevention & control)
• Protective Clothing
• Risk Assessment
• Risk Factors
• Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (nursing, prevention & control)
• Transportation of Patients (organization & administration)
• Triage (organization & administration)
• Visitors to Patients