Published in:
01-07-2021 | COVID-19 | Editorials
Supporting vulnerable physicians at high risk from COVID-19 during the pandemic: a call for action
Authors:
Mandeep Singh, MBBS MD MSc, Dolores McKeen, MD MSc
Published in:
Canadian Journal of Anesthesia/Journal canadien d'anesthésie
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Issue 7/2021
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Excerpt
Because of its high infectivity and risks for devastating sequalae, coronavirus disease (COVID-19) caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) continues to be a challenge for healthcare workers (HCWs).
1 The potentially overwhelming burden of disease also greatly stresses healthcare system capacity and requires extraordinary organizational planning. Anesthesiologists are particularly vulnerable to the risk of viral transmission that can occur through aerosol and droplet transmission, and less commonly from contaminated surfaces,
2 as was seen in the previous severe acute respiratory syndrome outbreak.
3 Airway management that anesthesiologists and others perform requires close contact with infected patients and risks viral exposure during aerosol-generating medical procedures such as endotracheal intubation and extubation.
4 …