Journal List > J Bacteriol Virol > v.46(2) > 1034209

TOOLS
Lee, Jang, Choi, and Park: Emerging Infectious Diseases Require Biosafety Awareness and Procedures
Communication

J Bacteriol Virol 2016;46(2):104-107.

Published online: 9 February 2016

DOI: https://doi.org/10.4167/jbv.2016.46.2.104

Emerging Infectious Diseases Require Biosafety Awareness and Procedures

Kyung-Min Lee1, 2, §, Won-Jong Jang1, 3, §, Yeon-Joo Choi1, 3, Kyung-Hee Park1, ∗

1Department of Microbiology, College of Medicine, Konkuk University, Seoul, Korea

2International Vaccine Institute, Seoul, Korea

3Institute of Global Disease Control, Konkuk University, Seoul, Korea

§ These authors contributed equally to this work.

∗Corresponding author: Kyung-Hee Park, M.D., Ph.D. Department of Microbiology, College of Medicine, Konkuk University, 120 Neungdong-ro, Gwangjin-gu, Seoul, 05029, Korea. Phone: +82-2-2030-7811, Fax: +82-2-2030-7845, e-mail: kyunghee.park@kku.ac.kr

∗∗ We give special thanks to Chong Hwan Ser for reviewing this manuscript. This paper was written as part of Konkuk University's research support program for its faculty on sabbatical leave in 2014.

Received 8 April 20163 May 2016       Accepted 17 May 2016

Copyright © 2016 Journal of Bacteriology and Virology

This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/) which permits unrestricted non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Abstract

In 2015, there was a Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) outbreak in Korea. Interestingly, most of the cases were nosocomial infection and significant numbers of healthcare workers (HCWs) were infected. There were various causes, but this study focused on HCWs and their ability to self-protect from infectious materials. HCWs did not receive sufficient instruction or training on biosafety, including how to use personal protection equipment and risk assessment at the beginning of the outbreak. Previous experience from an outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome or Ebola showed that HCWs must self-protect from infection sources, but HCW infection occurred again with this MERS outbreak. Therefore, the concept of biosafety self-protection must be emphasized so that HCWs can protect themselves from

Keywords: Healthcare worker, Biosafety, Risk assessment, Middle East respiratory syndrome, Infectious diseases outbreak

REFERENCES

1). Ministry of Health and Welfare and Korea Centers for Disease Control Prevention. First report of MERS case in Korea. May 20, 2015. http://www.mers.go.kr/mers/html/jsp/Menu_C/list_C1.jsp?menuIds=&fid=21&q_type=title&q_value=%EB%A9%94%EB%A5%B4%EC%8A%A4&cid=62905&pageNum=1.
2). World Health Organization. Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV)-Republic of Korea. July 14, 2015. http://www.who.int/csr/don/14-july-2015-mers-korea/en/.
3). Zaki AM, van Boheemen S, Bestebroer TM, Osterhaus AD, Fouchier RA. Isolation of a novel coronavirus from a man with pneumonia in Saudi Arabia. N Engl J Med. 2012; 367:1814–20.
crossref
4). Ben Embarek PK, Van Kerkhove MD. Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV): current situation 3 years after the virus was first identified. Wkly Epidemiol Rec. 2015; 90:245–50.
5). Pavli A, Tsiodras S, Maltezou HC. Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV): prevention in travelers. Travel Med Infect Dis. 2014; 12:602–8.
crossref
6). U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, Center for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institutes of Health. Biosafety in Microbiological and Biomedical Laboratories (BMBL). 5th ed.Washington D.C.: CDC/NIH;2009.
7). World Health Organization. SARS outbreak contained Worldwide. July 5, 2003. http://www.who.int/media-centre/news/releases/2003/pr56/en/.
8). Booth CM, Matukas LM, Tomlinson GA, Rachlis AR, Rose DB, Dwosh HA, et al. Clinical features and short-term outcomes of 144 patients with SARS in the greater Toronto area. JAMA. 2003; 289:2801–9.
crossref
9). Cooper BS, Fang LQ, Zhou JP, Feng D, Lv H, Wei MT, et al. Transmission of SARS in three Chinese hospitals. Trop Med Int Health. 2009; 14(Suppl 1):71–8.
crossref
10). Fischer WA 2nd, Hynes NA, Perl TM. Protecting healthcare workers from Ebola: personal protective equipment is critical but is not enough. Ann Intern Med. 2014; 161:753–4.
11). World Health Organization. Barriers to rapid containment of the Ebola outbreak. August 11, 2014. http://www.who.int/csr/disease/ebola/overview-august-2014/en/.
12). World Health Organization. Health worker Ebola infections in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone. A preliminary report. May 21, 2015. http://www.who.int/csr/disease/ebola/en/.
13). World Health Organization. Getting back to work: Training health staff for life and work after Ebola. July, 2015. http://www.who.int/features/2015/ebola-training-liberia/en/.
14). Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Preparing Healthcare Workers to Work in Ebola Treatment Units (ETUs) in Africa. http://www.cdc.gov/vhf/ebola/hcp/safety-training-course/index.html.
15). Lee KM, Choi YJ, Park KH, Jang WJ. The Management of Laboratory Biological Safety in Korea. J Bacteriol Virol. 2014; 44:342–51.
crossref
16). Johns Hopkins Develops Biopreparedness Training for Emergency Departments. Global Biodefense. February 17, 2015. http://globalbiodefense.com/2015/02/17/johns-hopkins-develops-biopreparedness-training-emergency-departments/#sthash.p3QSB43f.dpuf.
17). Risi GF, Bloom ME, Hoe NP, Arminio T, Carlson P, Powers T, et al. Preparing a community hospital to manage work-related exposures to infectious agents in BioSafety level 3 and 4 laboratories. Emerg Infect Dis. 2010; 16:373–8.
crossref
18). Martins A, Coelho AC, Vieira M, Matos M, Pinto ML. Age and years in practice as factors associated with needlestick and sharps injuries among health care workers in a Portuguese hospital. Accid Anal Prev. 2012; 47:11–5.
crossref
TOOLS
Similar articles