فهرست نشریات علمی دسترسی آزاد ایران

BACKGROUND: Hospital‑onset coronavirus disease‑2019 (COVID‑19) infection has been reportedand is probably linked to ineffective implementation of infection prevention and control measures.Contaminated surfaces and air are considered a key part of the transmission dynamics of severe acuterespiratory syndrome, Middle East respiratory syndrome, influenza, and other organisms in hospitals.This study aimed to assess the extent and persistence of surface contamination with COVID‑19.MATERIALS AND METHODS: It was a hospital‑based cross‑sectional study conducted for a periodfor 2 weeks from December 03, 2020, to December 16, 2020, in Kathua district of J and K, India. Theenvironmental samples were taken from the patient care area that included COVID isolation wardand intensive care unit (ICU) as per the guidelines of WHO Protocol “Surface sampling of COVID‑19:A practical “how to” protocol for health care and public health professionals after seeking copyrightpermission from the WHO. Universal standard precautions were strictly followed. Descriptive analysiswas done using the MS‑Excel and expressed in numbers and percentages.RESULTS: A total of 140 surface samples were taken, 70 each from the COVID ICU and isolationward. The results of ten samples from the ICU turned out to be positive and 20 samples were positivefrom the isolation ward. Eleven (78.6%) out of the 14 samples taken from the corners of the ICU andisolation ward were found to be positive.CONCLUSION: Our study revealed surface contamination in the hospital setting both in COVIDICU and isolation ward particularly from the corners of the COVID ICU and isolation ward followedby the samples taken from the linen. Strict adherence to COVID appropriate behavior, increasedfrequency of disinfection in high‑risk areas, and sensitization of the staff are mandatory to minimizethe infection risk.