On 26 July ECDC published the Rapid Risk Assessment COVID-19 outbreaks in long-term care facilities in the EU/EEA in the context of current vaccine coverage, following several outbreaks that occurred in these settings during the past six months in several EU/EEA countries, resulting in some cases of severe disease and deaths.
Rapid risk/outbreaks assessment aim at supporting the countries and the European Commission in their preparedness and response to a public health threat. They provide a timely summary and risk assessment of a public health threat for EU/EEA countries related to a specific event. They also include potential options for response. As outbreaks or public health events develop, ECDC may issue updated risk assessments.
Each year on 5 May, the “SAVE LIVES: Clean Your Hands” campaign takes place as part of a major global effort led by the World Health Organization to mobilise people around the world to increase adherence to hand hygiene in all healthcare settings, thus protecting healthcare workers and patients from healthcare-associated infections caused by various pathogens.
This surveillance protocol seeks to enable countries to report their existing national surveillance data on COVID-19 in LTCFs easily and regularly. This will enable ECDC to report national trends in the EU/EEA, with the aim of providing all EU/EEA countries with timely information to support their preparedness activities for LTCFs.
This document aims to provide guidance to EU/EEA healthcare facilities and healthcare providers on infection prevention and control (IPC) measures for the management of suspected and confirmed cases of COVID-19 infection in healthcare settings, including long-term care facilities. It also offers guidance on the management of specimens at laboratories in the EU/EEA.