Optimal strategies to screen health care workers for COVID-19 in the US: a cost-effectiveness analysis.

ABSTRACT: Transmission of SARS-CoV-2 in health care facilities poses a challenge against pandemic control. Health care workers (HCWs) have frequent and high-risk interactions with COVID-19 patients. We undertook a cost-effectiveness analysis to determine optimal testing strategies for screening HCWs to inform strategic decision-making in health care settings. We modeled the number of new infections, quality-adjusted life years lost, and net costs related to six testing strategies including no tests. We applied our model to four strata of HCWs, defined by the presence and timing of symptoms. We conducted sensitivity analyses to account for uncertainty in inputs. When screening recently symptomatic HCWs, conducting only a PCR test is preferable; it saves costs and improves health outcomes in the first

SUBMITTER: Maya S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8437316 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature