A new analysis has found that 6% of adults hospitalized with COVID-19 early in the pandemic were healthcare workers, and 28% of those patients were sent to intensive care, reports the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Investigators examined health data for more than 6,700 adults hospitalized between March 1 and May 31, across 13 states. Among the 6% of patients that worked in the healthcare sector:
- 36% were in nursing-related occupations,
- 73% had obesity,
- 28% were admitted to an intensive care unit,
- 16% required invasive mechanical ventilation, and
- 4% died.
The findings, published Tuesday in the CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, highlight the need for continued infection prevention and control in healthcare settings as well as community mitigation efforts to reduce transmission, the researchers wrote.
Data came from COVID-NET, which conducts surveillance of laboratory-confirmed COVID-19–associated hospitalizations among people of all ages in 99 counties in 14 U.S. states.
In related coronavirus news
COVID mortality higher in nursing homes with more minority residents Nationwide, 63% of nursing homes with a relatively high share of Black residents reported one or more COVID-19 deaths, as did 55% of nursing homes with a relatively high share of Hispanic residents, finds a new analysis by the Kaiser Family Foundation. That compares with 40% and 44% of nursing homes with a lower share of Black and Hispanic residents, respectively, the authors reported. The analysis included almost 14,000 nursing homes.
