A King's College of London study of 10 hospitals in the United Kingdom and one in Italy found that one in eight patients receiving treatment for COVID-19 at those hospitals caught the virus on site. The researchers say the results of the study demonstrate a low rate of infection and prove that effective infection control is taking place, reports BBC.
The study examined data gathered in more than 1,500 cases dating back to April 10, which was the peak of the COVID-19 outbreak in the United Kingdom. Study head Dr. Ben Carter says the majority of the patients who caught COVID-19 at one of the hospitals had been there a long time, and were generally old and frail with a history of healthy issues. Despite the struggles these patients faced regarding their age and other illnesses, the study found that they generally experienced better outcomes than the COVID-19 patients who were admitted with the virus. That's likely because they were diagnosed and treated closer to the time they contracted the virus.
People who tested positive 15 days or more after they were admitted are included in hospital-acquired infection (HAI) figures.