Posts

Showing posts with the label nursing homes

The Role of AC Systems in Nursing Home Superspreading Events

Image
Nursing homes are the most common setting for superspreading events in the database. How can the virus spread so easily in them? A confidential report of the Dutch scientific advisory board RIVM may provide an answer. It states that the HVAC system in a nursing home in the Netherlands likely caused an outbreak that infected up to 21 residents and 18 staff members. Below is a (slightly manually improved) Google Translate of an article in Dutch newspaper De Volkskrant. The main findings that are suggestive of aerosol transmission via the HVAC system: - All staff members in the nursing home wore surgical masks (except during breaks) - Only one patient was initially infected but the virus then spread rapidly throughout the facility - The virus was found in high values ​​on the mesh covers of the air-conditioning unit and in filters of four ventilation cabinets.