Occupational COVID-19 Exposures and Illnesses Among Workers in California-Analysis of a New Occupational COVID-19 Surveillance System

Details

• Personal Author:
  Bui DP ; Espineli C ; Fiellin M ; Flattery J ; Gebreegziabher E ; Gibb K ; Majka C ; Rodriguez A ; Vergara XP
• Description:
  Little is known about occupational SARS-CoV-2 exposures and COVID-19 outcomes. We established a Doctor's First Reports of Occupational Injury or Illness (DFR)-based surveillance system to study cases of work-related COVID-19 exposures and disease. The surveillance data included demographics, occupation, industry, exposure, and illness, details including hospitalization and lost work. We classified workers into 'healthcare', non-healthcare 'public-facing', or 'other' worker groups, and rural-urban commuting areas (RUCAs). We describe worker exposures and outcomes overall by worker group and RUCA. We analyzed 2848 COVID-19 DFRs representing workers in 22 detailed occupation groups and 19 industry groups. Most DFRs were for workers in metropolitan RUCAs (89%) and those in healthcare (42%) and public-facing (24%) worker groups. While DFRs were from 382 unique worksites, 52% were from four hospitals and one prison. Among 1063 DFRs with a suspected exposure, 73% suspected exposure to a patient or client. Few DFRs indicated hospitalization (3.9%); however, the proportion hospitalized was higher among nonmetropolitan (7.4%) and public-facing (6.7%) workers. While 56% of DFRs indicated some lost work time, the proportion was highest among public-facing (80%) workers. Healthcare and prison workers were the majority of reported occupational COVID-19 exposures and illnesses. The risk of COVID-19 hospitalization and lost work may be highest among nonmetropolitan and public-facing workers. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Communicable Diseases Demography Epidemiology Health Personnel Occupational Health Safety
• Keywords:
  Author Keywords: COVID-19 COVID-19 Demographic Characteristics Health Care Workers Infectious Diseases Occupational Health Occupations SARS-CoV-2 Surveillance Workers
• ISSN:
  1660-4601
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Cooperative Agreement
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  California ; OSHA Region 9
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Volume:
  20
• Issue:
  13
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20068012
• Citation:
  Int J Environ Res Public Health 2023 Jul; 20(13):6307
• Contact Point Address:
  Kathryn Gibb, Occupational Health Branch, California Department of Public Health, Richmond, CA 9480
• Email:
  kathryn.gibb@cdph.ca.gov
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2023
• Performing Organization:
  Public Health Institute, Oakland, California
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Start Date:
  20050701
• Source Full Name:
  International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
• End Date:
  20260630
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:d0ce2a92aebafd60e5f1fa240ee4b18b0df73e4ddb240c9d5bd596f288f3fc36e9053efbab55964cb9c0a7ed2c91e9bbda64cfe5c4558a5c752f37015c1d8bf3
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/230243/cdc_230243_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 1.20 MB ]