TY - JOUR
T1 - The utility and sustainability of US Ebola treatment centers during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic
AU - Herstein, Jocelyn J.
AU - Biddinger, Paul D.
AU - Gibbs, Shawn G.
AU - Hewlett, Angela L.
AU - Le, Aurora B.
AU - Schwedhelm, Michelle M.
AU - Lowe, John J.
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© The Author(s), 2022. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of The Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America.
PY - 2023/4/22
Y1 - 2023/4/22
N2 - Objective: In response to the 2014-2016 West Africa Ebola virus disease (EVD) epidemic, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) designated 56 US hospitals as Ebola treatment centers (ETCs) with high-level isolation capabilities. We sought to determine the ongoing sustainability of ETCs and to identify how ETC capabilities have affected hospital, local, and regional coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) readiness and response. Design: An electronic survey included both qualitative and quantitative questions and was structured into 2 sections: operational sustainability and role in the COVID-19 response. Setting and participants: The survey was distributed to site representatives from the 56 originally designated ETCs, and 37 (66%) responded. Methods: Data were coded and analyzed using descriptive statistics. Results: Of the 37 responding ETCs, 33 (89%) reported that they were still operating, and 4 had decommissioned. ETCs that maintain high-level isolation capabilities incurred a mean of $234,367 in expenses per year. All but 1 ETC reported that existing capabilities (eg, trained staff, infrastructure) before COVID-19 positively affected their hospital, local, and regional COVID-19 readiness and response (eg, ETC trained staff, donated supplies, and shared developed protocols). Conclusions: Existing high-level isolation capabilities and expertise developed following the 2014-2016 EVD epidemic were leveraged by ETCs to assist hospital-wide readiness for COVID-19 and to support responses by other local and regional hospitals However, ETCs face continued challenges in sustaining those capabilities for high-consequence infectious diseases.
AB - Objective: In response to the 2014-2016 West Africa Ebola virus disease (EVD) epidemic, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) designated 56 US hospitals as Ebola treatment centers (ETCs) with high-level isolation capabilities. We sought to determine the ongoing sustainability of ETCs and to identify how ETC capabilities have affected hospital, local, and regional coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) readiness and response. Design: An electronic survey included both qualitative and quantitative questions and was structured into 2 sections: operational sustainability and role in the COVID-19 response. Setting and participants: The survey was distributed to site representatives from the 56 originally designated ETCs, and 37 (66%) responded. Methods: Data were coded and analyzed using descriptive statistics. Results: Of the 37 responding ETCs, 33 (89%) reported that they were still operating, and 4 had decommissioned. ETCs that maintain high-level isolation capabilities incurred a mean of $234,367 in expenses per year. All but 1 ETC reported that existing capabilities (eg, trained staff, infrastructure) before COVID-19 positively affected their hospital, local, and regional COVID-19 readiness and response (eg, ETC trained staff, donated supplies, and shared developed protocols). Conclusions: Existing high-level isolation capabilities and expertise developed following the 2014-2016 EVD epidemic were leveraged by ETCs to assist hospital-wide readiness for COVID-19 and to support responses by other local and regional hospitals However, ETCs face continued challenges in sustaining those capabilities for high-consequence infectious diseases.
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U2 - 10.1017/ice.2022.43
DO - 10.1017/ice.2022.43
M3 - Article
C2 - 35189995
AN - SCOPUS:85152244434
SN - 0899-823X
VL - 44
SP - 643
EP - 650
JO - Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology
JF - Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology
IS - 4
ER -