For the Valencian Society of Preventive Medicine and Public Health, the latest document on “Organizational Measures of Healthcare Assistance in Response to Covid-19”issued by the Ministry of Health, “includes various recommendations that do not convince specialists of Preventive Medicine of the hospitals and that have not been agreed at all with them”.
The president of the SVMPSP, Juan Francisco Navarro, explains that “regarding the services of emergenciesthe document proposes that the double circuits disappear for the care of Covid and non-Covid patients, which allowed patients with infectious respiratory disease to be cared for in specially prepared areas, and the rest of the patients in conventional areas.”
In addition, they state that the aforementioned document defends the maintenance of “the separation in waiting room of patients presenting with symptoms”, adding that “it is virtually impossible, with an illness transmitted by aerosols and in crowded emergency rooms, to avoid the transmission of infection.”
Specialists in Preventive Medicine and Public Health insist that “this is particularly risky in this month of May, where other respiratory viruses, such as the flu, have a high incidence and compete with that of Covid, causing many infections transmitted by cough. and the sneeze.”
“We believe, rather to the contrary, that they should continue to maintain, as the Emergency services have done so far, a Selective screening and separate circuits at the emergency room entrancenot with respiratory patients remaining in the same general waiting room, but rather being treated selectively in Covid areas where the safety of health workers and patients is guaranteed,” they highlighted.
From the SVMPSP they explain that “the same recommendations are issued in the document for Primary Care centers. We believe that in these centers, with the limitations of space that exist, similar principles should be maintained: avoid joint waiting areas of Covid and non-Covid patients and care in differentiated consultations.”
The document also states that “it is not considered necessary, in general, to carry out screening prior to admission or to certain care actions”, such as surgery or certain invasive tests.
In this regard, the Valencian Society of Preventive Medicine and Public Health recalls that “patient care is normally carried out in double rooms and that screening prior to admission in situations of high incidence of Covid (currently 780/100,000 in those over 60 years), seeks to protect roommates and caregivers.”
On the other hand, they point out that “the realization of Covid screening tests in surgical patients, it is performed on patients with poor health or high-risk interventions, in which suffering from Covid might cause a poor recovery or even death. These recommendations are endorsed by all the scientific societies in Spain, and are the ones that are being applied in Valencian hospitals. There is, therefore, no need to eliminate general screening of patients, but to apply them when necessary.”
Finally, the document indicates that Preventive Medicine services may be reinforced by authorizing PC modules intended to reinforce the vaccination program, but “this measure only allows hire health professionals who have already completed their shift, so that they double shifts and do followingnoon modules for vaccination activities. Preventive Medicine services have the competence and legal responsibility for the surveillance and control of all types of hospital infections, including Covid.
“Since March 2020 they have carried out incessant work to prevent the transmission of Covid to patients and workers in the 30 hospitals in the Valencian Community network. Despite the fact that the work needs once morest Covid continue or even increase, the SMPs have suspended, since May 1, like many other services, the reinforcements of Covid personnel” – concludes Juan Francisco Navarro.
Health transfers that they are “recommendations” not impositions
From the Ministry of Health they emphasize that as the document collects they are “recommendations” not impositions. And what it is regarding is gradually recovering all those spaces that have been used due to the pandemic, such as rehabilitation gyms that were part of the double circuit.
Even so, they indicate that if any center considers that it has to continue maintaining the double circuit and can maintain it, it can do so.
In the case of separation in the waiting roominsist that currently the use of mask is mandatory in hospitals, so there would be no problem in establishing that measure.