Korean J healthc assoc Infect Control Prev.  2018 Dec;23(2):72-79. 10.14192/kjhaicp.2018.23.2.72.

Surveys and Proposals of the Infectious Disease Home Isolation through Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) Transmission

Affiliations
  • 1Department of Emergency Medicine, Kyung Hee University Hospital at Kangdong, Seoul, Korea. ondali77@khu.ac.kr

Abstract

BACKGROUND
The purpose of this study was to identify the degree of home isolation and to determine what is needed for an effective home isolation through experience with home isolation that has been found to be in close contact persons with MERS-confirmed patient.
METHODS
We conducted a questionnaire survey of employees at a university hospital in Seoul, Korea, which were classified as close contact with the MERS patient who visited the emergency room in June 2015. The questionnaire items were prepared by referring to the MERS response guideline, 3-3 edition.
RESULTS
There were 81respondents in total. At the time of home isolation notification, 74 (91.4%) were guided by the instructions. At the time of home isolation notification, 42 (51.9%) persons were out of the home. When they comed back home, 7 (16.7%) persons were ambulanced-supported, but 14 (33.3%) used public transportation. the performance of "keeping inside home" was 4.51 out of 5, and the perfomance of "twice daily monitoring" was 3.68 out of 5.
CONCLUSION
As the result of survey suggests, overall isolation practices were satisfactory, but there were difficulties in home isolation practices such as the supply of daily necessities, monitoring of symptom manifestations, and worries about family infections. Therefore, it is advisable to fix the home isolation problems in tandem with the isolation of facilities.

Keyword

Home isolation; MERS; Survey

MeSH Terms

Communicable Diseases*
Coronavirus Infections*
Emergency Service, Hospital
Humans
Korea
Middle East*
Seoul
Transportation

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