New Delhi: The use of face shields along with personal protective equipment (PPE) has reduced the chances of Covid-19 infections among community health workers in India, according to a new study published in the peer-reviewed Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA).
The study, conducted by two Chennai-based doctors — Emmanuel Bhaskar, professor of medicine at Sri Ramachandra Medical College and Research Institute, and Santhanam Arun from the Community Research Network — found “no SARS-CoV-2 infections among community health workers after the addition of face shields to their PPE”.
“The face shields may have reduced ocular (through the eyes) exposure or contamination of masks or hands, or may have diverted movement of air around the face,” said the study, published on 17 August.
However, it also highlighted that the workers’ chances of catching the virus were minimised due to their “unique living circumstances” — no contact with family, coworkers or the public. Their only possible sources of infection were asymptomatic contacts of Covid-19 patients.
“Further investigation of face shields in community settings is warranted,” the doctors concluded.
How the study was conducted
The study was conducted in Chennai on 62 community health workers who were assigned in May to counsel asymptomatic contacts of patients who had tested positive for the novel coronavirus.
Good Journalism matters,
more so in a crisis
Coronavirus, economy, tension with China are events unrivalled in recent times.
They demand clear, fair & questioning reporting, writing & pictures.
ThePrint consistently brings you the stories that matter, from where they happen.
We can sustain this only if you pay for what you read & watch.
“The health workers were housed in separate rooms of hostels and provided food; they did not visit their homes or public places outside work. Pre-work training was done with no more than three persons attending any session,” the study stated, adding that all the workers were tested for Covid-19 on 1 May, and found negative.
Each worker’s PPE kits included alcohol hand rub, three-layered surgical masks, gloves, and shoe covers. The patients’ contacts who were supposed to meet these workers were asked to wear face masks during the conversation, “although workers reported that some did not”.
On 16 May, two workers developed Covid-19 symptoms. “The remaining 60 workers were monitored, and all workers were tested for SARS-CoV-2 by RT-PCR between 16 and 19 May, and home visits suspended,” the study stated.
Then, face shields were added to their PPE kits. “On 20 May, face shields made of polyethylene terephthalate (250-μm thickness) were added to the equipment provided,” the study stated, adding that after each visit, “the shield was decontaminated using an alcohol-based solution, and at the end of the day, soaked in detergent mixed with water”.
“After the introduction of face shields, workers were screened for symptoms and had RT-PCR tests performed weekly,” it added.
Findings before and after face shields
The study then compared the number of positive test results before (3-15 May) and after (20 May-30 June) the introduction of face shields.
Without the shields, 62 workers (of which 40 were women) visited 5,880 homes and met more than 30,000 persons, of whom 222 tested positive between 4 and 13 May. Twelve workers, 19 per cent of those under the study, were infected during this period. “Eight developed symptoms and 4 were asymptomatic,” the study stated.
After the introduction of face shields, the 50 workers who were previously uninfected continued to provide counselling, visiting more than 18,000 homes, counselling over one lakh persons, around 2,700 of whom tested positive for Covid-19.
“However, no worker developed asymptomatic or symptomatic infection,” the study stated.
Subscribe to our channels on YouTube & Telegram
News media is in a crisis & only you can fix it
You are reading this because you value good, intelligent and objective journalism. We thank you for your time and your trust.
You also know that the news media is facing an unprecedented crisis. It is likely that you are also hearing of the brutal layoffs and pay-cuts hitting the industry. There are many reasons why the media’s economics is broken. But a big one is that good people are not yet paying enough for good journalism.
We have a newsroom filled with talented young reporters. We also have the country’s most robust editing and fact-checking team, finest news photographers and video professionals. We are building India’s most ambitious and energetic news platform. And we aren’t even three yet.
At ThePrint, we invest in quality journalists. We pay them fairly and on time even in this difficult period. As you may have noticed, we do not flinch from spending whatever it takes to make sure our reporters reach where the story is. Our stellar coronavirus coverage is a good example. You can check some of it here.
This comes with a sizable cost. For us to continue bringing quality journalism, we need readers like you to pay for it. Because the advertising market is broken too.
If you think we deserve your support, do join us in this endeavour to strengthen fair, free, courageous, and questioning journalism, please click on the link below. Your support will define our journalism, and ThePrint’s future. It will take just a few seconds of your time.