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Domènech-Montoliu S, Pac-Sa MR, Sala-Trull D, Del Rio-González A, Sanchéz-Urbano M, Satorres-Martinez P, Blasco-Gari R, Casanova-Suarez J, Gil-Fortuño M, López-Diago L, Notari-Rodríguez C, Pérez-Olaso Ó, Romeu-Garcia MA, Ruiz-Puig R, Aleixandre-Gorriz I, Domènech-León C, Arnedo-Pena A. Underreporting of Cases in the COVID-19 Outbreak of Borriana (Spain) during Mass Gathering Events in March 2020: A Cross-Sectional Study. EPIDEMIOLOGIA 2024; 5:499-510. [PMID: 39189253 PMCID: PMC11348374 DOI: 10.3390/epidemiologia5030034] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/25/2024] [Revised: 08/02/2024] [Accepted: 08/06/2024] [Indexed: 08/28/2024] Open
Abstract
Determining the number of cases of an epidemic is the first function of epidemiological surveillance. An important underreporting of cases was observed in many locations during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. To estimate this underreporting in the COVID-19 outbreak of Borriana (Valencia Community, Spain) in March 2020, a cross-sectional study was performed in June 2020 querying the public health register. Logistic regression models were used. Of a total of 468 symptomatic COVID-19 cases diagnosed in the outbreak through anti-SARS-CoV-2 serology, 36 cases were reported (7.7%), resulting in an underreporting proportion of 92.3% (95% confidence interval [CI], 89.5-94.6%), with 13 unreported cases for every reported case. Only positive SARS-CoV-2 polymerase chain reaction cases were predominantly reported due to a limited testing capacity and following a national protocol. Significant factors associated with underreporting included no medical assistance for COVID-19 disease, with an adjusted odds ratio [aOR] of 10.83 (95% CI 2.49-47.11); no chronic illness, aOR = 2.81 (95% CI 1.28-6.17); middle and lower social classes, aOR = 3.12 (95% CI 1.42-6.85); younger age, aOR = 0.97 (95% CI 0.94-0.99); and a shorter duration of illness, aOR = 0.98 (95% CI 0.97-0.99). To improve the surveillance of future epidemics, new approaches are recommended.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Maria Rosario Pac-Sa
- Public Health Center, 12003 Castelló de la Plana, Spain; (M.R.P.-S.); (M.A.R.-G.)
| | - Diego Sala-Trull
- Emergency Service University Hospital de la Plana, 12540 Vila-Real, Spain; (D.S.-T.); (M.S.-U.); (P.S.-M.); (R.B.-G.); (C.N.-R.); (R.R.-P.)
| | | | - Manuel Sanchéz-Urbano
- Emergency Service University Hospital de la Plana, 12540 Vila-Real, Spain; (D.S.-T.); (M.S.-U.); (P.S.-M.); (R.B.-G.); (C.N.-R.); (R.R.-P.)
| | - Paloma Satorres-Martinez
- Emergency Service University Hospital de la Plana, 12540 Vila-Real, Spain; (D.S.-T.); (M.S.-U.); (P.S.-M.); (R.B.-G.); (C.N.-R.); (R.R.-P.)
| | - Roser Blasco-Gari
- Emergency Service University Hospital de la Plana, 12540 Vila-Real, Spain; (D.S.-T.); (M.S.-U.); (P.S.-M.); (R.B.-G.); (C.N.-R.); (R.R.-P.)
| | | | - Maria Gil-Fortuño
- Microbiology Service University Hospital de la Plana, 12540 Vila-Real, Spain; (M.G.-F.); (Ó.P.-O.)
| | - Laura López-Diago
- Clinical Analysis Service University Hospital de la Plana, 12540 Vila-Real, Spain; (L.L.-D.); (I.A.-G.)
| | - Cristina Notari-Rodríguez
- Emergency Service University Hospital de la Plana, 12540 Vila-Real, Spain; (D.S.-T.); (M.S.-U.); (P.S.-M.); (R.B.-G.); (C.N.-R.); (R.R.-P.)
| | - Óscar Pérez-Olaso
- Microbiology Service University Hospital de la Plana, 12540 Vila-Real, Spain; (M.G.-F.); (Ó.P.-O.)
| | | | - Raquel Ruiz-Puig
- Emergency Service University Hospital de la Plana, 12540 Vila-Real, Spain; (D.S.-T.); (M.S.-U.); (P.S.-M.); (R.B.-G.); (C.N.-R.); (R.R.-P.)
| | - Isabel Aleixandre-Gorriz
- Clinical Analysis Service University Hospital de la Plana, 12540 Vila-Real, Spain; (L.L.-D.); (I.A.-G.)
| | - Carmen Domènech-León
- Department of Medicine, University CEU Cardenal Herrera, 12006 Castelló de la Plana, Spain;
| | - Alberto Arnedo-Pena
- Public Health Center, 12003 Castelló de la Plana, Spain; (M.R.P.-S.); (M.A.R.-G.)
- Department of Health Science, Public University Navarra, 31006 Pamplona, Spain
- Epidemiology and Public Health (CIBERESP), 28029 Madrid, Spain
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Llimós M, Segura-Benedicto A, Benavides FG. [The public health profession in Spain: an urgent challenge to strengthen its practice]. GACETA SANITARIA 2024; 38:102364. [PMID: 38422945 DOI: 10.1016/j.gaceta.2024.102364] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/01/2023] [Accepted: 12/04/2023] [Indexed: 03/02/2024]
Abstract
The recent health crises have highlighted the weakness of public health structures in Spain. The causes are, among others, the scarcity of economic resources and the delay in their institutional modernization. In addition, there is the weakness of the training processes and the employability. The Spanish Society of Public Health and Health Administration (SESPAS) has developed a White paper of the public health profession with the aim of contributing to strengthening professional practice. The sociodemographic characteristics of the associations federated to SESPAS have been described and the discourse of professionals has been analyzed through six focus groups and 19 interviews (72 people). To agree on the conclusions and recommendations, a meeting was organized with the participation of 29 participants. The demographic and employment data of the 3467 people belonging to seven SESPAS societies show that, overall, about 60% are women and 40% were under 50 years of age. Undergraduate degrees were medicine (35.9%), nursing (17.4%) and pharmacy and veterinary medicine (10.4%). Key aspects of the meaning of public health, training, employability and career and institutionalization of public health were collected through interviews and focus groups. The final meeting agreed on 25 conclusions and 24 recommendations that aim to contribute to strengthening professionals and the public health profession in Spain. Some of them, related to training, employability and professional career, have been shared in a workshop at the School of Public Health of Menorca with public health officials from the Ministry of Health and some autonomous communities.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mireia Llimós
- Departamento de Medicina y Ciencias de la Vida, Universidad Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona, España.
| | | | - Fernando G Benavides
- Departamento de Medicina y Ciencias de la Vida, Universidad Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona, España; CIBER de Epidemiología y Salud Pública (CIBERESP), España; Hospital del Mar Research Institute, Barcelona, España; Centro de Investigación en Salud Laboral (CiSAL), Universidad Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona, España
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Guisado-Clavero M, Astier-Peña MP, Gómez-Bravo R, Ares-Blanco S. Open data for monitoring COVID-19 in Spain: Descriptive study. ENFERMEDADES INFECCIOSAS Y MICROBIOLOGIA CLINICA (ENGLISH ED.) 2024; 42:80-87. [PMID: 37088686 PMCID: PMC10073586 DOI: 10.1016/j.eimce.2023.04.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/03/2022] [Revised: 09/28/2022] [Accepted: 10/03/2022] [Indexed: 04/09/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND The indicators of the pandemic have been based on the total number of diagnosed cases of COVID-19, the number of people hospitalized or in intensive care units, and deaths from the infection. The aim of this study is to describe the available data on diagnostic tests, health service used for the diagnosis of COVID-19, case detection and monitoring. METHOD Descriptive study with review of official data available on the websites of the Spanish health councils corresponding to 17 Autonomous Communities, 2 Autonomous cities and the Ministry of Health. The variables collected refer to contact tracing, technics for diagnosis, use of health services and follow-up. RESULTS All regions of Spain show data on diagnosed cases of COVID-19 and deaths. Hospitalized cases and intensive care admissions are shown in all regions except the Balearic Islands. Diagnostic tests for COVID-19 have been registered in all regions except Madrid region and Extremadura, with scarcely information on what type of test has been performed (present in 7 CCAA), requesting service and study of contacts. CONCLUSIONS The information available on the official websites of the Health Departments of the different regions of Spain are heterogeneous. Data from the use of health service or workload in Primary Care, Emergency department or Out of hours services are almost non-existent.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marina Guisado-Clavero
- Unidad Docente Multiprofesional de Atención Familiar y Comunitaria del área norte de la Comunidad de Madrid, Madrid, Spain
| | - María Pilar Astier-Peña
- Centro de Salud Univérsitas, Servicio Aragonés de Salud, Zaragoza, Spain; GdT de Seguridad del paciente de semFYC y del GdT de Calidad y Seguridad de WONCA, Zaragoza, Spain
| | - Raquel Gómez-Bravo
- Research Group Self-Regulation and Health, Institute for Health and Behaviour, Department of Behavioural and CognitiveSciences, Faculty of Humanities, Education, and Social Sciences, Universidad de Luxemburgo, Luxembourg, Luxembourg
| | - Sara Ares-Blanco
- Centro de Salud Federica Montseny, Gerencia Asistencial de Atención Primaria, Servicio Madrileño de Salud, Madrid, Spain; Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria Gregorio Marañón, Madrid, Spain.
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Forcadell-Díez L, Sánchez-Valdivia N, Piñero Casas M, Pila M, Reyes Segura A, Salobral R, Olivella Cirici M, Fernández-Barrés S, Pérez G. [Germina: tool for automatic detection of clusters of COVID-19 cases]. GACETA SANITARIA 2023; 37:102321. [PMID: 37696159 DOI: 10.1016/j.gaceta.2023.102321] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/21/2023] [Revised: 05/30/2023] [Accepted: 06/20/2023] [Indexed: 09/13/2023]
Abstract
The COVID-19 pandemic showed that epidemiological surveillance was under-resourced to respond to increases in cases and outbreaks. The high community transmissibility among the school population in the city of Barcelona at the beginning of the sixth wave strained the local COVID-19 surveillance unit. Using SCRUM methodology, Germina was developed and implemented as a software tool capable of capturing, harmonizing, integrating, storing, analysing and visualizing data from multiple information sources on a daily basis. Germina identifies clusters of three or more school cases and calculates epidemiological indicators. The implementation of Germina facilitated the epidemiological response to the sixth wave of COVID-19 in the school setting in the city of Barcelona. This tool is transferable to other exposure settings and communicable diseases. The use of automated informatics tools such, as Germina, improves epidemiological surveillance systems and supports evidence-based decision making.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lluís Forcadell-Díez
- Agència de Salut Pública de Barcelona, Barcelona, España; Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona, España
| | | | | | - Marc Pila
- Agència de Salut Pública de Barcelona, Barcelona, España
| | - Alexia Reyes Segura
- Agència de Salut Pública de Barcelona, Barcelona, España; Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona, España
| | - Raúl Salobral
- Agència de Salut Pública de Barcelona, Barcelona, España
| | - Marc Olivella Cirici
- Agència de Salut Pública de Barcelona, Barcelona, España; Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona, España
| | | | - Glòria Pérez
- Agència de Salut Pública de Barcelona, Barcelona, España; Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona, España; CIBER de Epidemiología y Salud Pública (CIBERESP), España; Institut d'Investigació Biomèdica Sant Pau, Barcelona, España.
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Guisado-Clavero M, Astier-Peña MP, Gómez-Bravo R, Ares-Blanco S. [Open data for monitoring COVID-19 in Spain: descriptive study]. Enferm Infecc Microbiol Clin 2022; 42:S0213-005X(22)00191-4. [PMID: 36249470 PMCID: PMC9554340 DOI: 10.1016/j.eimc.2022.10.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/03/2022] [Accepted: 10/03/2022] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND The indicators of the pandemic have been based on the total number of diagnosed cases of COVID-19, the number of people hospitalized or in intensive care units, and deaths from the infection. The aim of this study is to describe the available data on diagnostic tests, health service used for the diagnosis of COVID-19, case detection and monitoring. METHOD Descriptive study with review of official data available on the websites of the Spanish health councils corresponding to 17 Autonomous Communities, 2 Autonomous cities and the Ministry of Health. The variables collected refer to contact tracing, technics for diagnosis, use of health services and follow-up. RESULTS all regions of Spain show data on diagnosed cases of COVID-19 and deaths. Hospitalized cases and intensive care admissions are shown in all regions except the Balearic Islands. Diagnostic tests for COVID-19 have been registered in all regions except Madrid region and Extremadura, with scarcely information on what type of test has been performed (present in 7 CCAA), requesting service and study of contacts. CONCLUSIONS The information available on the official websites of the Health Departments of the different regions of Spain are heterogeneous. Data from the use of health service or workload in Primary Care, Emergency department or Out of hours services are almost non-existent.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marina Guisado-Clavero
- Técnica de Salud de la Unidad Docente Multiprofesional de Atención Familiar y Comunitaria del área norte de la Comunidad de Madrid, España
| | - María Pilar Astier-Peña
- Médica de familia. Centro de Salud Universitas del Servicio Aragonés de Salud (Zaragoza, España). GdT de Seguridad del paciente de semFYC y del GdT de Calidad y Seguridad de WONCA, Zaragoza, España
| | - Raquel Gómez-Bravo
- Research Group Self-Regulation and Health. Institute for Health and Behaviour. Department of Behavioural and Cognitive, Sciences. Faculty of Humanities, Education, and Social Sciences, Universidad de Luxemburgo, Luxemburgo
| | - Sara Ares-Blanco
- Médica de familia. Centro de Salud Federica Montseny, Gerencia Asistencial de Atención Primaria, Servicio Madrileño de Salud, Madrid, España. Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria Gregorio Marañón, Madrid, Spain
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Gullón P, Lumbreras B, Sánchez-Martínez FI, Jaaskelainen FDM, Ruiz-Cantero MT. La Salud Pública y la Administración Sanitaria ante la pandemia de COVID-19. Informe SESPAS 2022. GACETA SANITARIA 2022; 36 Suppl 1:S1-S3. [PMID: 35781140 PMCID: PMC9127046 DOI: 10.1016/j.gaceta.2022.05.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/12/2022] [Accepted: 05/15/2022] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
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