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Risk factors for severe acute respiratory coronavirus virus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) seropositivity among nursing home staff

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  28 October 2021

Avnika B. Amin*
Affiliation:
Department of Epidemiology, Emory University Rollins School of Public Health, Atlanta, Georgia
Joseph T. Kellogg
Affiliation:
Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, Georgia
Carly Adams
Affiliation:
Department of Epidemiology, Emory University Rollins School of Public Health, Atlanta, Georgia
William C. Dube
Affiliation:
Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, Georgia
Matthew H. Collins
Affiliation:
The Hope Clinic of the Emory Vaccine Center, Division of Infectious Diseases, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, Georgia
Benjamin A. Lopman
Affiliation:
Department of Epidemiology, Emory University Rollins School of Public Health, Atlanta, GeorgiaDepartment of Environmental Health, Emory University Rollins School of Public Health, Atlanta, Georgia
Theodore M. Johnson II
Affiliation:
Department of Epidemiology, Emory University Rollins School of Public Health, Atlanta, GeorgiaDivision of General Internal Medicine, Department of Medicine, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GeorgiaDepartment of Family and Preventive Medicine, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, Georgia
Joshua Weitz
Affiliation:
School of Biological Sciences, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GeorgiaSchool of Physics, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, Georgia
Scott K. Fridkin
Affiliation:
Department of Epidemiology, Emory University Rollins School of Public Health, Atlanta, GeorgiaDivision of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, Georgia
*
Author for correspondence: Avnika B. Amin, Department of Epidemiology, Emory University Rollins School of Public Health, 1518 Clifton Road NE, Atlanta, GA 30329. E-mail: avnika.amin@alumni.emory.edu

Abstract

Objectives:

To estimate prior severe acute respiratory coronavirus virus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection among skilled nursing facility (SNF) staff in the state of Georgia and to identify risk factors for seropositivity as of fall 2020.

Design:

Baseline survey and seroprevalence of the ongoing longitudinal Coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) Prevention in Nursing Homes study.

Setting:

The study included 14 SNFs in the state of Georgia.

Participants:

In total, 792 SNF staff employed or contracted with participating SNFs were included in this study. The analysis included 749 participants with SARS-CoV-2 serostatus results who provided age, sex, and complete survey information.

Methods:

We estimated unadjusted odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CIs) for potential risk factors and SARS-CoV-2 serostatus. We estimated adjusted ORs using a logistic regression model including age, sex, community case rate, SNF resident infection rate, working at other facilities, and job role.

Results:

Staff working in high-infection SNFs were twice as likely (unadjusted OR, 2.08; 95% CI, 1.45–3.00) to be seropositive as those in low-infection SNFs. Certified nursing assistants and nurses were 3 times more likely to be seropositive than administrative, pharmacy, or nonresident care staff: unadjusted OR, 2.93 (95% CI, 1.58–5.78) and unadjusted OR, 3.08 (95% CI, 1.66–6.07). Logistic regression yielded similar adjusted ORs.

Conclusions:

Working at high-infection SNFs was a risk factor for SARS-CoV-2 seropositivity. Even after accounting for resident infections, certified nursing assistants and nurses had a 3-fold higher risk of SARS-CoV-2 seropositivity than nonclinical staff. This knowledge can guide prioritized implementation of safer ways for caregivers to provide necessary care to SNF residents.

Information

Type
Original Article
Creative Commons
Creative Common License - CCCreative Common License - BY
This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution licence (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Copyright
© The Author(s), 2021. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of The Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America
Figure 0

Table 1.Skilled Nursing Facility Bed Size, Staff Enrollment, Inclusion in Analysis, and SARS-CoV-2 Seropositivity, by Facility September–October, 2020.

Figure 1

Table 2.Healthcare Personnel Characteristics by Serostatus, and Unadjusted Odds Ratios for Potential Risk Factors, September–October 2020

Figure 2

Table 3.Final Model Results With Age, Sex, Job Role, Cumulative COVID-19 Incidence per 100 Population, Cumulative Facility Resident COVID-19 Burden, and Whether or Not Participants Worked at Other Facilities

Supplementary material: File

Amin et al. supplementary material

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